Horns247 Board

I don't know jack about women's basketball but I heard on 1300 that she was pretty much Conradt's best recruiter.

I also found this on ESPN... "Aston was a top recruiter for the Longhorns during a stretch when Texas made the Final Four (2003) and advanced to the NCAA tournament round of 16 two other times. During her time as an assistant, Aston signed seven high school All-Americans."

Does it matter?

I appreciate the North Texas fans comments, thanks for filling us in. Look forward to the glory days of lady basketball returning to UT. Baylor will most likely win the championship tonight, aggie won it all last year; the Big XII is on top of womens basketball, Texas needs to be there again. Sounds like a great hire.
Go Lady Longhorns...Hook'em.

Ya know....

There's a reason I don't frequent these freakin' boards...because they're populated by people who by the sheer virtue of the fact that they have fingers and a keyboard -- think they should speak. Nevertheless, here ya go.

Karen Aston is without question, the perfect hire for Texas.

If you truly KNEW what it takes to bring Texas back to prominence, you'd "get" this. Those who don't, oh well.

I'm not even gonna comment on the stupid lesbian crap that people seem to think is so cute and funny. Memo to all of you: it's not. You look like an idiot for even bringing it up, period. It's irrelevant, immature and hateful. Go play somewhere else. Or better yet, check your bigotry and ignorance at the door.

The issue at hand here is not whether Karen Aston is married or whether Jody Conradt had anything to do with her hire or anything else that's nothing more than petty conjecture and the unfortunate fact that a few folks have too much time on their hands, and so little insights into what it takes to build a winner, that it's laughable.

No, the issue here is simple: who's the best coach to bring Texas back to the level of dominance that we've enjoyed and want for this great University?

As someone who's been around women's basketball -- and more importantly UT, for almost 30 years, and someone who actually KNOWS what it takes for Texas to "get back", I will say on the record, off the record, in-between the record, and anywhere else, that Karen Aston was an intelligent and gutsy hire for reasons most detractors can't even fathom. So, I won't bother enlightening you.

Next point.

Chris Plonsky is an exceptional leader and executive who has tremendous passion for women's sports, particularly at UT. I'm not going to defend Chris' decision b/c it doesn't need defending. Do your own research.

Next...

I'm glad Karen's on the 40 acres but she, like any coach - male or female - at any tier 1 University on the planet, will have to prove that she was indeed the "perfect" choice. Let's keep in mind that athletic success ain't just about the coach...if it were, why are some "name brand coaches" on the golf course instead of playing in the Final Four this weekend? No, to succeed at this level a lot of things have to come together at the right time. There are a myriad of factors that go into building a championship program, let alone a winning season. Something savvy fans know all too well.

I was captain and leading scorer on UT's undefeated 34-0 championship team in 1986 - ahhh, yes - and I am proud that I played for Jody Conradt. She was an exemplary coach and mentor who molded UT into a perennial powerhouse. Of all the colleges I could have chosen, there's not a day that goes by that I'm not proud of the decision I made to continue my athletic career and pursue my degrees at UT. My professional life since graduating from UT has been one amazing ride - primarily because of the impact that Jody Conradt had on my life and the experiences I was fortunate to have as a student athlete while under her leadership.

So, haters, I don't mind you hatin', but instead of constantly resorting to childish middle school name-calling and lockerroom gossip, at least bring something intelligent to the debate table. Otherwise, as we say in sports, take your ball and go home. You'll get eaten alive messin' with a Longhorn.

Hook 'em
Fran Harris