As much as I try not to let my emotions affect my judgement, I can’t help rooting for Tennessee basketball coach Rick Barnes. Sorry, I said it.
I’ve covered far too many bad seeds to not have the utmost respect for Barnes and I lament the fact that he has to carry around a moniker like “Regular Season Rick.” Think about that nickname for a second. Is there any worse nickname you could possible have if you’re a college basketball coach? Was “Bozo Barnes” taken?
Despite the name calling from some, there’s Barnes with seemingly perfect character, a history of developing great players and people. Barnes deserves better IF he can do just a bit more in his career, which surely is close to coming to an end.
Barnes, who will be 70-years-old in July, can achieve another level of notoriety with a deep run in the NCAA Tournament. Barnes has one Final Four on his resume, at Texas in 2003. One more Final Four run would elevate the way he’ll be viewed forever. A national championship? That would put Barnes at another level entirely. That’s what I want to see happen.
Per sources to Off The Hook Sports, Barnes plans on coaching two or three more seasons. He’s not crazy about the whole NIL world, but he’s found it manageable.
Even if Barnes has two or three seasons left in him, he’s still running out of time. Then, there’s the Dalton Knecht factor. Knecht’s eligibility is up after this season. He could be the last truly special player of Barnes’ career.
I’ll try not to cheer a bit. I’ll try not to curse if things go bad, as they usually do with Tennessee’s basketball program in March. However, I’ll feel a certain amount of joy if Barnes manages to win it all. Good people deserve good things. Great coaches, like Barnes, deserves at least one more Final Four – and maybe more.
