Josh Hirsch: Miller's attitude could spell success

Two seasons ago, Glen Miller said the following after a win at Yale: "I think we all wish, except for a few teams in our league, that we had a postseason tournament. It's frustrating that we don't have one."

Last week at the Red and Blue Scrimmages at the Palestra, Miller was asked what he thought about an Ivy League tournament. He said that while he thought it might be fun for the players, it's probably unfair for a team in a one-bid league like the Ivy League to axe a regular season champion in one game.

Welcome to Penn, coach.

In nine days, Miller will coach his first game with the Quakers after leaving Brown in the spring to take over for 17-year Penn legend Fran Dunphy.

And all indications are that Miller may have a special rookie season in Philadelphia.

Miller's hiring was met with some skepticism by some in the Penn community, largely because he had no previous ties to the school like other candidates.

He was also well-known for an outburst after a loss to Penn in 2003 in which he said, "We got jammed up our asses by three officials."

However, athletic director Steve Bilsky was very strong in his support for Miller, saying when he hired him, "I heard from scores of university presidents, athletic directors and basketball coaches, and the unanimous opinion is that Glen is a person of integrity, sincerity and uncommon coaching acumen."

And Miller has, on several occasions, joked about his temper and vowed to tone it down.

These examples have led me to believe that Miller is very serious about this job and is committed to winning, channeling his anger and using it to his advantage.

Several basketball recruits that I have talked to spoke of the aggressiveness of Miller and his staff's recruiting as reasons why they even considered Penn.

On the court, Miller has been responsible for more thorns in Penn's side in recent years than any other Ivy League coach.

In seven years in Providence, R.I., Miller won three games against Penn, including a sweep in 2003-04. This is tied for the most wins by any current Ivy league coach against the Quakers, and his winning percentage of .214 versus Penn is second only behind Princeton's Joe Scott's 1-3 mark.

Miller was also the first coach last year to use the zone extensively against Penn, which turned out to be a major Achilles' heel of that team.

Playing with subpar talent, Miller kept his team in the top half of the Ivies for most of his tenure. Now we'll see if he can outcoach Roy Williams in January with the best players he has ever managed.

It also seems like Miller has won over his team and some Penn fans who had doubted his hiring.

Obviously, Miller has not yet coached or won an NCAA Tournament game, an Ivy League title or even a single game at Penn.

But his attitude has made me excited to watch the team this season, more so than I have been recently.

As the Quakers athletics program appears to be headed to its second straight title-less fall season, it's time to turn the calendar forward to winter.

Are you ready for some basketball?

Josh Hirsch is a senior urban studies major from Roslyn, N.Y., and is former Senior Sports Editor of The Daily Pennsylvanian. His e-mail address is jjhirsch@sas.upenn.edu.

Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.