Just askin'

So Utah is checking out St. Mary's Coach Randy Bennett (who has to be assessing just what he has to do with his Gael program  in order to garner Big Dance invitee respect).

If Bennett does head to Utah (and becomes a PAC-12 head coach), will Kyle Smith, now at Columbia, consider or be considered for the opening? Smith is from New York state but his coaching tenure appears to mostly or all be western or west coast connected.

Andy Katz interviews Kyle Smith

Kyle Smith is one of the good guys in the college coaching profession -- make that a great guy. So it's good to see the former St. Mary's assistant receive some national exposure in his new venture:

Ivy's Lions are the right fit for Smith
Andy Katz
ESPN
July 26, 2010

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- Saint Mary's assistant coach Kyle Smith realized what Leon Rice and Billy Grier found out for themselves when they were promised to succeed Mark Few at Gonzaga: Don't hold your breath.

Grier anticipated at some point that Few would leave Gonzaga and be plucked by a power-six conference. But he never showed signs of really leaving so Grier had to find his own path and left for San Diego, a fellow West Coast Conference member. Rice was next in line for the Gonzaga throne but came to the conclusion in March that it might be time to go off on his own. He's now at Boise State.

Last season, Smith figured Randy Bennett would be on the move after the Gaels made a run to the Sweet 16. The timing would have been perfect. The Gaels made the NCAA tournament in two of the past three seasons, including last season after Patty Mills and Diamon Simpson had departed. But Omar Samhan's dominating presence in the middle and the collection of sharp-shooters led the Gaels to a historic run in the NCAAs...

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