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I like the communication Acker has had in year 1. But, to be fair, last year was a dumpster fire. And while I think Acker has shown himself to be an excellent assistant, I do not see how in any way he has proven he belongs as a head coach.

Key responsibilities for a MBB head coach include recruiting, hiring and managing assistants, and developing and installing a "system" (Xs and Os). Personally, I was pleased with the assistants he brought in. I really don't have a clue on how well he managed them. But, let's face it. On the basketball side of things, either his recruiting was a disaster, or the system sucked horribly. Additionally, the fact that the team fell apart as the season went on instead of coming together. This means at least one of these was a problem, perhaps both. At this point Acker still has everything to prove.

Personally, I am willing to give him more than a year, few Coaches here have done well in year one, the only exceptions are those who inherited talent, and frankly, in my memory, nobody had less return than Acker did last year. Unfortunately, the loss of almost the entire team means this year looks no more promising. Further, if he bombs this year, holding the core of the team and improving next year are likely to be harder, and with two bad years in his first two, he may find recruiting even tougher next season.

Some of this is not Acker's fault. The basketball world has changed in ways that make it really tough on those without budgets, and the finance guy overseeing the program is evidence that we are in the category of "have nots".