The word of the day was “timing” in Tuesday’s introductory press conference of new Utah State basketball coach Ben Jacobson.
After 25 years at Northern Iowa, 20 of which he spent as the head coach, Jacobson decided to make the move to Utah State.
Why make the move to a new school now, versus earlier in his career when he had received interest? According to Jacobson, it’s because the timing was just right.
He further clarified what he meant and said the timing was two-fold, one professional reason and one personal.
“To have a place in a program at Utah State line up with that on the personal side, because this is, from a basketball job standpoint, one of the best jobs in the entire country. To think that lines up with where Dawn and I are at with our family, really amazing for me to have this happen.”
— Utah State coach Ben Jacobson
First, Utah State’s move to the Pac-12 intrigued Jacobson. He’s followed Utah State the past few years and said he loved how special it is.
What particularly excites Jacobson about the Pac-12 is the hope of earning a higher seed.
“The excitement of moving into the New Pac-12. ... The opportunities with the new Pac-12, some of the nonconference scheduling opportunities that will come with it. ... If we do the things that we are capable of doing, when the selection show happens, we’re just in a better position because our numbers are different. Now you’re looking at a five, six, seven seed.”
Secondly, his sons Hunter and Tanner are now 22 and 20 years old. He and his wife, Dawn, feel that they’re at a time in their lives when a move like this makes sense, rather than when their kids were children.
“To have a place in a program at Utah State line up with that on the personal side, because this is, from a basketball job standpoint, one of the best jobs in the entire country,” Jacobson said. “To think that lines up with where Dawn and I are at with our family, really amazing for me to have this happen.”
To flip it, why was Utah State attracted to Jacobson? There were a few reasons, but one of the most prevalent was Jacobson’s track record of doing more with less.
“I’m not sure that the resources are there at Northern Iowa, so you’re taking someone who’s outperforming their resources,” said Utah State athletic director Cam Walker. “That’s certainly a part of the metric that I look at. You have to. If somebody’s resourced at the top of their league and finishes eighth, that’s probably a disappointment. When you’re resourced eighth and you finish toward the top of your league, that’s success.
“We know that we’ve got some ground to catch up and resources in the new Pac-12 and how we’ll compare. That’s me and my staff’s job to go chase that and close that gap. But in the meantime, I want a coach that’s strategic enough and runs a well enough program that he can make up some of that ground, too.”
Another reason Utah State liked Jacobson was because of his previous longevity. Despite a 33-year coaching career, Utah State is only Jacobson’s third school and second as a head coach.
Considering the Aggies have lost four coaches in six years, the consistency from Jacobson looked attractive.
“He clearly likes to put down roots,” Walker said of Jacobson. “That’s certainly something, not continuity for continuity’s sake, was something we were seeking in this search. Competitiveness and winning was at the top, and doing it the right way.
“But in order to get where we want to go, I think it was important to look at ourselves and say, ‘Why aren’t we getting to where we want to go the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament and beyond?’ And when you look at those teams that do it, they’ve done it through sustained success. That’s really hard when you’re hitting the reboot button every two to three years and sometimes after one year.”
Jacobson agreed, saying, “I don’t like change. That may indicate to you, I like being part of something special.”
There certainly seems to be a push from Walker and Jacobson to retain players. Mason Falslev and Karson Templin were both involved in the coaching process and attended Jacobson’s introductory press conference.
Walker and Jacobson both stressed the combined vision of not only reaching the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament, but also making a push for the third.
“(Jacobson) was asked, ‘What does long-term success look like and what does success look like in year one for you?” Walker said. “I think his answer was something to the effect of, ‘I want to be in the second weekend of the tournament. I want to try and make a run and get into that third weekend. I want to chase down Pac-12 championships.’
“In Year 1, based off where we’re at right now, we need to be chasing that.”
