What do you do if you’re Tennessee athletic director Dave Hart and a coach who has won 70 percent of his career games, has made more NCAA Tournament appearances (22) than the Vols have made in their history (20) and has won everywhere he’s been (George Mason, Providence, Clemson, Texas) drops into your lap?
You hire him, that’s what you do.
We all love Bruce Pearl, but it’s pretty clear that Rick Barnes has had a much better career. How can you argue with a coach who has more NCAA Tournament appearances than your entire program?