Thad Matta fails physical and IU coaching job offer revoked

[jjas]

Rumor has it...

According to sources, Indiana and Thad Matta had agreed to a deal for Matta to become the next men's basketball coach at Indiana but after failing his physical, the deal has fallen through.

The Hoosiers, who dismissed Archie Miller last Monday, have been focused on a relatively small group of candidates for most of the past week, including John Beilein, Chris Beard and Mike Woodson. Matta was part of that group but following the news, is now out.

Matta was assumed to be in better health since stepping down from Ohio State at the end of the 2016-17 season. As recent as two years ago, Matta was squarely in the running for the Georgia job before reportedly turning down the offer, thus having the Bulldogs go with Tom Crean.

Matta spent 13 seasons at Ohio State, going 337-123 with two National Championship game appearances. He went to the NCAA Tournament nine times.

It is unclear what the next step for Matta, just 53 years old, will be who has cited back and leg/foot injuries as some of the main issues keeping him from the sidelines over the last few seasons.

indiana.rivals.com/news/sources-thad-matta-fails-physical-after-agreeing-to-deal-with-indiana

[Woody Williams]

WOW! What could be that serious he couldn't do the job?

I'm still betting John Beilein and a couple good understudy coaches that he can train..

[Woody Williams]

Side note...


Looks like Michigan is the lone Big Ten survivor..

[Sasquatch]

Mar 22, 2021 21:50:24 GMT -5 Woody Williams said:

WOW! What could be that serious he couldn't do the job?

I'm still betting John Beilein and a couple good understudy coaches that he can train..

No joke. Must be bad!

[duff]

Fake news is what I read. But he did retire or get fired from OSU due to health issues.

[jjas]

Mar 23, 2021 18:44:22 GMT -5 duff said:

Fake news is what I read. But he did retire or get fired from OSU due to health issues.

It very well could be, which is why I prefaced the entire post with these three words...

Rumor has it

If it's true (and he indeed failed a physical badly enough to disqualify him from being eligible for the job), I would imagine both sides will do their best to keep that quiet so as to not derail any hopes that Thad Matta may still have for coaching in the college game again.

[greyhair]

In general, a person cannot be denied a job for that reason unless a certain physical ability is necessary for them to perform am essential function, and the employer must make reasonable accommodations for them to do so, unless it causes an undue hardship.

The entire ADA hinges on three subjective words.

Essential, reasonable and undue.

I find this story questionable.

A player, yes. A coach, doubtful.

[jjas]

Mar 23, 2021 19:09:42 GMT -5 greyhair said:

In general, a person cannot be denied a job for that reason unless a certain physical ability is necessary for them to perform am essential function, and the employer must make reasonable accommodations for them to do so, unless it causes an undue hardship.

The entire ADA hinges on three subjective words.

Essential, reasonable and undue.

I find this story questionable.

A player, yes. A coach, doubtful.

Again...I don't know if the opening article is true, which is why I prefaced it with...Rumor has it.

But, if you go back and read articles from three years ago when Georgia was looking for a coach, this is part of what was written. Coincidence, or is there something to it?

Here's a quote from the article...

Matta’s back problems are/were no joke and seriously impacted his ability to recruit. The back issues date back to high school and have required multiple surgeries. A 2007 surgery damaged a nerve and resulted in what is known as “drop foot” in his right leg. So he walks with a noticeable limp.
Matta’s back issues contributed to his demise at Ohio State. The Columbus Dispatch used open records to obtain recruiting logs, which showed Matta’s activity on the road decreased every year until he was dismissed. He reportedly was coaching practice in a chair, would lay on his stomach in the locker room at halftime and had a specially made chair on the Buckeyes’ sideline that was higher and easier for him to get out of.

Here's a link to the article.

www.dawgnation.com/football/opinion/georgia-basketball-thad-matta-head-coach-hire-great-concerns

In the end, it makes no difference to me. I just find the stories interesting and very similar. Perhaps his health is the story here. It might help explain why a coach with his winning percentage has been out of the game for so long.

[duff]

Yeah, I never found out what his limitations were from but knowing his condition was impacting his performance certainly would make me think long and hard about paying a coach millions of dollars to perform at an elite coaching level. Even if the hoosiers have been much less than elite lately

[parrothead]

His wife told me at our last reunion major back issues. He could not even wear dress shoes he always wore tennis shoes if u ever saw pics. Has drop foot and has to always wear brace. Not even allowed to climb step stool. They ate both tighter than bark on tree and probably has first dollar he ever made