WACO, Texas -- Criticized even as he produced a consistent winner, New Mexico's Dave Bliss has decided the time was right for a new job, even if it meant leading a team struggling to survive in the Big 12.
Baylor University officials on Tuesday tabbed Bliss to take over a basketball program flattened by five years of probation and abandoned by its leading scorer midway through this season.The Bears finished 6-24 this year, including 0-16 in the Big 12 under former coach Harry Miller.
"I told (Baylor players) success is not just measured in wins, it's what you overcome," Bliss said.
Bliss is the second hire at Baylor for a major sport in recent months. Baylor hired former Carolina Panthers assistant coach Kevin Steele as head football coach in December.
"Dave was certainly a target from the beginning," Baylor athletic director Tom Stanton said. "We recruited him. I'll be honest. This is somebody we really wanted."
To come to Baylor, Bliss walked away from 11 years of success at New Mexico, where he was the Lobos' winningest coach.
Bliss, 55, led the Lobos to a 246-108 record, winning at least 20 games in 10 seasons. New Mexico went to the NCAA tournament seven times during his tenure and advanced at least into the second round the last four years.
Still, he found plenty of criticism in Albuquerque. That, combined with a lucrative Baylor contract -- reportedly worth $600,000 a year, double his New Mexico deal -- probably were the reasons for Bliss' decision, New Mexico athletic director Rudy Davalos said.
"He's got to move on, and we've got to move on," Davalos said.
This year, New Mexico had a 25-9 record and again went to the NCAA tournament, losing in the second round to Connecticut.
But there was increasing criticism in recent years over his teams' failure to go deep in the tournament. Critics also attacked his team's weak early season schedule.
UNLV PROBE: The NCAA informed UNLV its basketball program is once again under investigation for possible recruiting and other violations.
A visit by investigators to the UNLV campus last week led to a letter from the NCAA notifying UNLV officials that it will launch a preliminary inquiry into several allegations surrounding coach Bill Bayno's program.
Bayno said he was apprehensive about the probe but believes his program has not violated any NCAA regulations.