ESPN just broke the news. Press conference scheduled for tomorrow. Hopefully everything is alright. He was one of the better coaches left. Won’t miss his defensive style of play when Duke matches up against UVA in the future. Best of luck to him.
Tony Bennett is Retiring
- Thread starter DukeCorey21
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I just hope it’s nothing more then,” it’s his time to step away !”
Sad to see him leave, although, as DukeCorey said, I won’t miss seeing his defense against us! A totally class act, made Virginia hoops relevant again. Good luck to whatever your next act is, Tony!
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Can’t blame him one bit. The transfer/NIL have totally stripped coaches from being able to do their job.
Sports nowadays are a direct reflection of our society.
Sports nowadays are a direct reflection of our society.
Although there are likely some coaches who already feel and embrace this, the older coaches must feel like their job has become much like being a bidder at a horse auction. And I’m sure that’s not what attracted people like K, Boeheim, Williams or Bennett to the profession.
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Darn hope he is okay. Always seemed like a class act, and won a lot of games, and a title. The old guard is slowly being put out to pasture. Will be weird. No K, No Jimmy B, no Roy, no Bennett. The times they are a changin.
If it's something health-related, a whole lot of CBB media are going to be backpedaling on what they've reported tonight.
This was rumored to be coming in February. And if I knew about it then -- premium members can attest -- I'm sure anybody around UVA's program knew about it.
Tony's best teams at UVA were built on years of development in his system. That is obviously a lot more difficult to build in the current climate. Look at the teams UVA has put on the court in recent seasons. It's been a minor miracle some of these teams have made the NCAA tournament, given there have been maybe 3 halfway decent offensive players and a hodgepodge of mediocre-to-subpar transfers.
He's got a national championship, he's made a ton of money; it just reads like a coach who's burnt out by fighting an uphill battle of what college basketball has become. So, all of the critics of the transfer portal/NIL/immediate eligibility for transfers can rejoice.
The only surprise here is the timing. And that gets reasoned out when considering that resigning this close to the season guarantees Ron Sanchez -- who was Charlotte's head coach and left that position to go back to UVA -- gets a season to audition for the job.
This was rumored to be coming in February. And if I knew about it then -- premium members can attest -- I'm sure anybody around UVA's program knew about it.
Tony's best teams at UVA were built on years of development in his system. That is obviously a lot more difficult to build in the current climate. Look at the teams UVA has put on the court in recent seasons. It's been a minor miracle some of these teams have made the NCAA tournament, given there have been maybe 3 halfway decent offensive players and a hodgepodge of mediocre-to-subpar transfers.
He's got a national championship, he's made a ton of money; it just reads like a coach who's burnt out by fighting an uphill battle of what college basketball has become. So, all of the critics of the transfer portal/NIL/immediate eligibility for transfers can rejoice.
The only surprise here is the timing. And that gets reasoned out when considering that resigning this close to the season guarantees Ron Sanchez -- who was Charlotte's head coach and left that position to go back to UVA -- gets a season to audition for the job.
Yep and add Larrañaga/Hamilton although theirs will be based on age
Bingo. This has been in the works for a while. The timing while initially shocking makes perfect sense. Players will stay now and Sanchez gets to coach the full season.
It is a bummer for the sport because it’s become a thankless job as a coach. It’s 24/7/365 now. There’s no life for coaches. You’re constantly recruiting, recruiting, poaching, shmoozing families and so so much more. It’s sad. But here we are.
This further weakens the ACC. All the coaches who won titles are gone. Coaches like Buzz, Barnes (for better or worse), and Jamie Dixon have had success other places and done better than the coaches who replaced them. The next generation of coaches in the ACC have yet to prove themselves and, as said above, we will be losing two more very soon.
To keep the roster intact? To ensure UVA could still go compete in the summer AAU circuit with this to combat negative recruiting? Because TB might have had a change of heart after the season, and given UVA was more active in the portal with better players, thought he could overcome whatever feelings about the current climate he had -- and sometime in the last four months, realized he couldn't? Because he just saw a month of practices with TJ Power as his second-best player?
This is from the press release of the contract: "Bennett’s extension will keep him under contract at UVA until April 30, 2030. If Bennett is UVA’s head coach on April 30, 2026, the contract has an automatic one-year rollover extending him until April 30, 2031."
I'd be interested to see more in the contract, if further outs were provided with the notion that this day could come.
It's not good for the ACC but man, those are ... some examples. Jamie Dixon, yes, Pitt got complacent and shouldn't have moved on. Weird example with Barnes, he was in the ACC when it was literally half the size it is now. Buzz's 5 years at VT: four 20-win seasons, 3 NCAATs, 1 Sweet 16; Buzz's 5 years at aTm: three 20-win seasons, 2 NCAATs, 1 NCAAT win.
Same time: Wake Forest went from Danny Manning to Steve Forbes. Georgia Tech went from Josh Pastner to Damon Stoudamire. Pitt suffered through Kevin Stallings ... but Capel has had back-to-back 20-win seasons, it's not like they're foundering. Louisville just went from Kenny Payne to Pat Kelsey.
Sad to see him leave but he's just the latest in what will be a long line of traditional BB coaches hanging it up. The game has changed from player development to player empowerment. There are far too many outside influences on a roster to build anything for more than a year. I hope he enjoys his retirement and pops up on TV or somewhere to stay involved in the game.
To reiterate/follow up after watching the first 20ish minutes of his presser:
- Not health related.
- Ron Sanchez takes over as interim coach. (TB said he always wanted one of his guys to take over for him)
- He was enthusiastic last week at media day, then UVA had their fall break and in that time, he realized his heart wasn't in it and wants to have more time away.
- Wants to remain involved with university ("with some long vacations," he joked to their AD)
- Not health related.
- Ron Sanchez takes over as interim coach. (TB said he always wanted one of his guys to take over for him)
- He was enthusiastic last week at media day, then UVA had their fall break and in that time, he realized his heart wasn't in it and wants to have more time away.
- Wants to remain involved with university ("with some long vacations," he joked to their AD)
Not the best timing in the world but I wish him well. His players can transfer now correct? We need more depth on the wing maybe we can get Power to come back. 
Tbh I’d argue it’s great timing, right before the season. Staff stays the same. Kids won’t want to leave now and sit out the year after the whole offseason working.Not the best timing in the world but I wish him well. His players can transfer now correct? We need more depth on the wing maybe we can get Power to come back.
30-day window opened for them to leave yesterday.
I think they can leave and be eligible when the spring semester starts (obviously depends on which school they join).
I think they can leave and be eligible when the spring semester starts (obviously depends on which school they join).
I agree with everything he said . What if this is a wake up call to all programs and the NCAA. Loosing your best coaches because they see this more as a pro model rather then student athletes. I like how he backed the players getting compensation but also worrying about their mental health and outside influences . I wish nothing but the best for him.
Not really Tony Bennett related but it's about the state of the game.
I think it's awesome when people take quotes that are 6 1/2 years old and present them as if they're new.
I mean hell, that quote could be a 2nd-grader.
I was unhappy/homesick my freshman year and wanted to transfer. I didn't, but it being so easy now (plus you can get paid) would make it hard to resist. I also think it could make it hard for us to retain guys, as players could get huge NIL $ to transfer. We will see I guess. I've given up predicting rosters for next year as it is pointless.
Virginia lost by 22 to VCU. Might be a long year in whoville.
Virginia lost by 22 to VCU. Might be a long year in whoville.
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If Tubby did say that, does it really matter that it was said 6 1/2 years ago, if it is pretty accurate?
And I’m not one of those “older guys” that say kids are softer than they used to be either. It’s simply the times they’re in.
Are coaches softer then, too? Tony Bennett retires at 55 because it's no longer the job he signed up for -- doesn't that make him a quitter?
There are just so many more reasons that players transfer than the mass public of college fans are ever aware of. Coaches are more likely to run kids off of teams now because they're judged quicker and harsher than 15-30 years ago. The NIL aspect of it throws a wrench into it; kids are promised a certain amount in recruiting and if they don't get it, they're not keen on sticking around. Hard to blame them -- if I'm promised something and get half of it, my loyalty is going to wane. The immediate eligibility for transfers of any sort makes it a whole lot more enticing to leave a team.
Tubby's quote isn't wrong -- other than it being dated, since something like 1,900 kids entered the portal last year -- it's just dated and the angst is misguided.
I didn't say the players are softer, I said the times they're in has created this, which really isn't their fault. I'm not sure about your comment about Tony Bennett either. I totally get why he decided to step away. If you're asking if that makes him a quitter? In my opinion, absolutely not. If you think he is, then we'll just have to agree to disagree.
Nobody is forcing me to watch sports. But I don't like the direction this has been going for quite some time.
I don't think what people went through in a previous generation is the measuring stick for what people should go through today.
Then why are we discussing what a coach said when he was 67 years old, while using an experience from his life nearly 50 years prior?