Issue date: 4/9/07 Section: Opinion

Fred Lambuth - The Battalion

There isn't much good an Aggie basketball fan can find in Billy Gillispie leaving for Kentucky. As if his departure wasn't bad enough, the way in which he left adds salt to the wound. Take into account what Gillispie said just one week before bolting to Kentucky:

"I am sincerely appreciative of the efforts of everyone associated with Texas A&M for their personal support they continue to show. We will continue to do our best to try and make the Texas A&M family proud."

Let me be the first to tell you how proud I am of Gillispie's numerous reassurances that he would stay at A&M to his incoming recruits and current players in the weeks leading up to his departure. This small town, humble Texas boy left his position in College Station, where most fans would say he was already a legend with three straight 20-win seasons. He travels to Kentucky, where a 20-win season could get a coach fired.

Gillispie's absence may trigger a complete meltdown for the A&M basketball program. Do we lose our recruits, most notably 7-footer DeAndre Jordan? Have we done enough to earn respect nationally, respect that would allow us to hire a worthwhile replacement? Are we going to return to our conference doormat status?

While those predictions are a bit over the top, you have to expect that the Aggies will take a few steps back, as any program would after losing a successful coach. If Byrne doesn't make a great hire, those scenarios could end up being next season's headlines. Who can blame Gillispie for going to Kentucky, one of college basketball's legacy jobs? It is the way he left that brings the sting. He was always on his way to a top-level coaching position, it is just sad that he used A&M as a stepping stone to another school instead of taking the Aggie program to the same level.

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