I think you are selling this job WAAY short. Iowa State is a much better brand than it was when Orr came here. We have great fan support and the Big 12 is an alluring conference for basketball play.
Are there better jobs out there? Sure. But bringing up Boston College, which has no basketball tradition or history, as a potential "better geographical fit" makes little sense. There may be other factors which could make that true (like being in a metropolitan area) but nothing on the immediate surface.
ISU is a good job, but not a great job. ISU has had a solid history over the last 35 years and Hilton is a great homecourt advantage and fans support is awesome. But is Iowa State a destination job where a coach having success at his current Power 5 job will come to Ames? IMO, No. Not selling ISU short, just being realistic.
Look around the Big 12- what schools have a current head coach who jumped ship from another P5 conference school? Bill Self came from Illinois, Jamie Dixon from Pitt and Bob Huggins from K-State.
Huggins and Dixon both returned to their alma mater.
How about the Big 10- Mark Turgeon from Texas A&M to Maryland and Underwood from Okie State to Illinois.
How about the ACC - Roy Williams from KU to NC, Tony Bennett from Washington State to Virginia
So the reality is, most P5 schools are hiring:
- Either a P5 assistant
- A mid-major head coach
- An alumni
Obviously Blue Blood schools like Duke, North Carolina, Kentucky, Kansas and UCLA can have their pick of a head coach.
My point on Beilein, he is an east coast guy. Michigan is the farthest west he has taken a job. IF (a
nd that is a big if) he is interested in coaching again, his job history indicates Penn State, Boston College and Notre Dame make more sense. Beilein is 67 and he's coached in the following cities: Cleveland, Ann Arbor, Morgantown, Richmond, Buffalo, Syracuse and Rochester.
Boston College hasn't been relevant in about 15 years, but it does have some tradition with Tom Davis, Jim O'Brien and Al Skinner having success at BC. Plus recruiting guys to Chestnut Hill should be easier than Ames.