I started playing HD in Phelan in Oct. of 2016 with the goal of eventually coaching my alma mater, Purdue. Had no idea it would take a year and a half of real time to land the gig, but I finally took over the Boilermakers today. Looking at the game as a newby, I figured maybe 5-6 seasons and I would be able to jump into D1 and hope my team was available. In retrospect, I really enjoyed the journey and wouldn't change a thing. Learned a ton at D3 and D2, then again in low D1 and met a bunch of great coaches, helped build up a mid major conference, and had some solid rivalries along the way.

How does this experience compare to others who have made it to their destination school or are chasing a dream job?

I have to imagine if the likes of KY, Duke or Kansas are your end game, 17 seasons probably sounds pretty good as it may take 40 seasons plus a small miracle to get one of those gigs.

I’m in my 37th season in Tarkanian still trying to get my alma mater of IU.

I'm in my 8th season with UT Arlington, and while I haven't had a whole lot of success there, it's still by far my favorite HD team that I've ever had. I'm hoping to be able to eventually get good enough at D1 to compete for championships, but for the time being I'd be happy with a few more NT appearances.

Congrats on landing Purdue!

I am still trying to get Syracuse somewhere. It's a gig that rarely opens up.

Posted by robinsmd on 3/10/2018 12:25:00 PM (view original):
I’m in my 37th season in Tarkanian still trying to get my alma mater of IU.

That's crazy robins. The IU job has been open on at least 3 different occasions since I joined Phelan. Shows how important it is to be in the right place at the right time.

I had an opportunity to move from Villanova to UConn (my alma matter and ultimate goal) but passed it up because I was returning my best team ever at Nova and had a legit shot at the NC. In the end, I made it to the Championship game and lost on a last second 3 pointer, and of course someone swept in and took UConn.....

I am a big east guy so I have always wanted to nab Syracuse, g’town, uconn and then sign a bunch of d3 players and have them go 0-27 for as long as I can.

Posted by Trentonjoe on 3/10/2018 2:19:00 PM (view original):
I am a big east guy so I have always wanted to nab Syracuse, g’town, uconn and then sign a bunch of d3 players and have them go 0-27 for as long as I can.

Just to get them to replicate real life Rutgers? That's not nice.

Posted by Trentonjoe on 3/10/2018 2:19:00 PM (view original):
I am a big east guy so I have always wanted to nab Syracuse, g’town, uconn and then sign a bunch of d3 players and have them go 0-27 for as long as I can.

I hope they get firing going.

I just saw in the Phelan news that you got the Purdue job and thought to myself that I’m pretty sure you said that was your dream job. Congrats!

Took me real life 10 years to get UNC lol

IT took me 17 seasons to get to my dream job at VT. Though, I could have gotten there faster had I not gone to Hawaii first.

Congrats! Chasing dream jobs can be all consuming, but a word of warning must come with it. Just remember it is a game.

I am in year fourteen at WVU (Naismith) and of all my teams, in all the Worlds it is the only one that stresses me out. I get far too serious with the awful recruit cycles, the EE's, and the wins that I turn into losses. Just have fun.

My journey took 25 seasons to land my alma mater Pitt.

1season D3
8 seasons in D2
4 seasons at each school in D1
(Liberty -> N.Mex -> Oregon -> Louisville)

I was content at Oregon, but when the coach at Pitt left, I jumped & took Louisville to get a feel for the conference. As my prestige slowly built up & as the sim lowered Pitt’s, I was able to finally land the job.

Geanted, it is still a work in progress, but definitely rewarding as I know I am here to stay for the long haul.

Thanks all for the congrats. And great advice wvufan. I'm already getting stressed out about the 6 open spots I inherited for RS2. This isn't my first rebuild though, so I know patience is key as well when trying to turn around a D1 dumpster fire.