Izzo’s coaching tree grows
Former Michigan State assistant Jim Boylen wasted no time in making a great first impression on Utah fans at his initial press conference. Micheal C. Lewis of The Salt Lake Tribune reports that Boylen set high standards for his Utah program, very similiar to the standards set by Tom Izzo and Michigan State.
“From here on out, it’s, ‘We, us and the Muss,’ ” he said, referring to the student fan club whose name is taken from the school fight song. “That’s our slogan.”
With that, wild applause filled in the room, and Boylen went on to set a high standard for himself by saying he was “born for this job” - he signed a five-year contract worth $575,000 a year, the Utes said - and that he will have failed if the Utes don’t win the Mountain West Conference championship for the next 20 years.
“You have to dream it before you can live it,” he said. “And we’re going to dream it here, and we’re going to live it. We’re going to develop our players . . . we’re going to take young men and develop them into men . . . and we’re going to be passionate about the way we do it.”
Kurt Kragthorpe, also of The Salt Lake City Tribune, wrote about Tom Izzo’s influence on Boylen as well as his influence on several other Division I coaches around the nation.
Izzo is known for promoting his guys for job openings, and they do succeed. While he’s out of work at the moment - after taking Arkansas to the NCAA Tournament this month - Heath thrived at Kent State before joining the Razorbacks. Tom Crean has built Marquette into a consistent program, even without Dwyane Wade. Stan Joplin took Toledo to the NIT this year. Doug Wojcik has lifted Tulsa from 9-20 to 20-11 in two seasons since leaving Michigan State, where Boylen replaced him.
“You definitely see the Izzo influence on every one of his coaches out there,” another former assistant, Dayton coach Brian Gregory, recently told the Detroit News. “The core stuff, the things you believe in, they’re all consistent from Michigan State.”
Having worked for Izzo for only two seasons himself, Wojcik called Izzo “an unbelievable role model . . . like a big brother.”