The Verdict Is In -- The Hurricanes Are Happy

April 23, 2011

The announcement has been made. The press conference is over. Even the first individual workouts have been completed.

And the Hurricanes are happy.

From the moment new Miami head men’s basketball coach Jim Larranaga walked into the team conference room in the BankUnited Center on Friday evening, the Hurricanes players were put at ease with his big smile and effusive energy.

And although some of the players may have been unsure how to properly pronounce his name and couldn’t necessary rattle off all the accomplishments of the 27-year head coach, they were certainly aware of the success he brought to George Mason and that 2006 Final Four run.

After all, the hire of Larranaga (LARE-uh-NAY-guh) by new UM Director of Athletics Shawn Eichorst, marked just the third head coach to bring a Final Four appearance on his resume to an ACC school – and just the second by a current league institution.

That 2006 season was no fluke for the former Providence basketball player. In 14 years at George Mason, Larranaga guided the Patriots to the postseason nine times – including five NCAA Tournament appearances, which is just one shy of what the Hurricanes have accomplished in 64 seasons on the hardwood.

“Miami hit a grand slam in getting Jim Larranaga,” tweeted ESPN’s Dick Vitale. “He is a fierce competitor and has loads of contacts. Great hire!” CBS sports analyst Seth Davis tweeted, “Larranaga to Miami is a win win… Let’s not overthink this.”

Local media members and Miami administrators had smiles on their faces as Friday’s introductory activities started to wind down, but perhaps most importantly – so did those Hurricanes men’s basketball players, who went from a brief meeting with Larranaga, to the press conference and then back to the conference room to continue the process of getting to know their new head coach.

“It’s a new era,” said rising senior forward Julian Gamble. “I’m excited for this fresh start and opportunity. It’s not hard to say after meeting him that Coach L will do great things here.”

More comments from the Hurricanes:

DeQuan Jones: “Coach Larranaga’s track record speaks for itself and I’m really looking forward to playing for him.”

Malcolm Grant: “It was a great hire and he’s a good guy to be around! I can already tell he’s a great teacher of the game.”

Ryan Quigtar: “Coach Larranaga has great enthusiasm, a great understanding of the game and he wants to work WITH his players. He has already emphasized that everything is done TOGETHER.”

Erik Swoope: “I really enjoyed Coach L’s focus on defense and his overall excitement about the future for our team and the program!”

Raphael Akpejiori: “He is great teacher and perfecter of skills – he seems like a player’s coach.”

Justin Heller: “Workouts were great today and we have a bright future ahead of us.”

Kenny Kadji via Twitter: “This workout felt great today… Very happy about the new coach!!!!”