Micah Shrewsberry Warned Penn State in December
For the second consecutive time after an NCAA Tournament appearance, Penn State will conduct a coaching search. There are some parallels to draw.
In 2011, after taking the Lions to their first NCAA Tournament appearance in a decade, Ed DeChellis left for Navy. Twelve years later, after Penn State's most recent tournament appearance, Micah Shrewsberry is off to Notre Dame.
In each case, the coach left breadcrumbs to decode his decision. DeChellis "felt a lack of respect" from Penn State, according to a 2011 Pennlive story regarding his departure. DeChellis was willing to accept less money in part for the belief that he was wanted at Navy.
Shrewsberry certainly was wanted at Penn State. The athletic department, led by Patrick Kraft, reportedly made significant offers to retain Shrewsberry, who took the program to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since DeChellis' final season. Penn State made a competitive offer regarding cash and contract length.
But a new disruptor has taken hold of college athletics, and Shrewsberry laid bare in December how far Penn State lags behind in the Big Ten regarding it. That disruptor is Name, Image and Likeness, particularly Penn State's approach, funding and level of function.
Shrewsberry told the world publicly that he believed Penn State ranked 13th or 14th in the Big Ten in terms of NIL funding and infrastructure. It was a warning that, evidently, was met too late.
To understand this fully, check out the on-the-record interview Shrewsberry conducted with Nate Bauer of Blue-White Illustrated late last year. It's even more revelatory now.
"It’s just about who we want to be as a program," Shrewsberry said on the podcast. "What are we willing to say is going to be our standard? I can be as good a coach [as there is] in the world, but if you don’t have as good of players [as other programs], it doesn’t matter."
During the interview, Shrewsberry said that Penn State lost recruits last year specifically because the program lacked NIL funding. He noted that Penn State likely wouldn't approach the fertile NIL initiatives at Illinois or Purdue. In fact, Shrewsberry knew all about Purdue's NIL program, having spent two terms as an assistant to Matt Painter, and stated outright that Penn State didn't have to compete at that level.
But still, he made this plea.
"We don't need to match it," Shrewsberry said on the podcast. "We just need to have something. ... A lot to nothing is hard to overcome."
Shrewsberry had made clear last offseason that he had no intentions of becoming a coach who recruits primarily through NIL. During the summer, Shrewsberry even said that he tells recruits, "If you come in and your first question is, 'What's your NIL package?' that's not going to fly with me."
However, even the best relationship-builders must have some basic answer to the NIL question. Shrewsberry's 2023 recruiting class ranked among the top 30 nationally. It was a good group, featuring an ESPN Top 100 player in Carey Booth and 4-star prospects Braeden Shrewsberry and Logan Imes.
But, as the now-former Penn State coach noted, look closer at the class. It included the coach's son, a player (Imes) with whom his son played AAU basketball in Indiana and the son of former Penn State great Calvin Booth. Relationships drove the class.
Meanwhile, Shrewsberry noted that he lost at least one player to another program because of NIL.
"If we have a little bit more that we’re offering to our guys or that we’re doing for our team in NIL, that top-30 class is probably top 15 in the country," Shrewsberry said on the podcast. "Just one or two more guys. It’s a controversial topic but it’s what college basketball is right now. It’s what’s going on. It’s here."
Shrewsberry has not been as vocal about NIL as football coach James Franklin, who mentioned several times over the past year that Penn State lagged behind its contemporaries. The NIL programs benefiting football have made strides. One, backed by the football-focused Lions Legacy Club, vowed to "change history for Penn State football."
Basketball made some strides, too, particularly during the NCAA Tournament run. But that was fundraising largely was based on the program's momentary profile. The core issues remained.
That doesn't mean Penn State basketball is doomed to drag in NIL in perpetuity. Perhaps losing Shrewsberry will invigorate the primary collective and lead donors to make basketball a larger priority.
However, things might have been different had Shrewsberry's December concerns generated more attention and action.
"You can not like [NIL] and that’s your prerogative, but then you can’t come back and complain about the product," Shrewsberry said on the podcast.
NIL certainly wasn't the only factor in Shrewsberry's departure. When Notre Dame introduces him, Shrewsberry no doubt will discuss how happy he is to be home. After all, Notre Dame will be the seventh college program in Indiana at which Shrewsberry has coached.
Further, how things will be different for Shrewsberry regarding NIL at Notre Dame remains to be seen. On Thursday, the university began a media campaign pressing for more NIL oversight from the federal government, the NCAA and member schools.
Meanwhile, back at Penn State, the program and its NIL collectives have a chance to effect change, even without Shrewsberry. Certainly, the next coach will be grateful.
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