SWX Right Now-Sports for Spokane, CdA, Tri-Cities, WAFew to Oregon? Chances few and far between

The steam hadn't even defogged off the locker room mirrors after Sunday loss to Syracuse, and Mark Few was already asked where he would be coaching next season.  It's a spring tradition here in Spokane.  The Zags go to the Big Dance and then whenever their postseason run ends, the "Where will Few go" questions begin.  Such is life when you're sitting on one of the most respected and coveted head coaches in college basketball.

Before I continue, I should concede that I was the one who popped the question.  Honestly, I didn't plan on asking.  I was perfectly content to let some other poor reporter drop the bomb and suffer the fallout.  Coach Few would understandably be perturbed since his team had just been knocked out of the tournament and the last thing he wants to do is start answering these kinds of questions.  The last thing I wanted to do was to be "that guy."  But, there I was, interviewing Coach in the hallway and the conversation steered into who would be back next season (i.e. Elias Harris).  Before I knew it, I was asking Mark Few if he, too, would be coming back next season.  Boom went the dynamite.  He politely answered how he and his family love Spokane and how there was still work to be done at Gonzaga.  He artfully gave the non-answer, and I didn't press him on it.

That brings us to Oregon.  I'll let you Google "Mark Few" and "Ducks" and read for yourself.  It's right up there with Frank Sinatra and the Mafia.  You know there's something to it, but 95 percent of what you hear is likely nothing more than conjecture.

But…

Oregon is going to approach Mark Few about its head coaching job, and he'll probably have to listen.  You know the story.  He was born and raised in nearby Creswell (just down the road from Eugene) and graduated from the UofO.   You can certainly see why the two would make a good match.

He has the perfect job.  He has the corner office on the top floor (in this case, it overlooks his basketball court).  His team is a near-lock to make the NCAA Tournament every year.  He gets to run the program his way.  Outside of weekly coach's shows on TV and radio, his only obligations are to his job and to his family.  He gets to go fishing on his days off.  His family loves Spokane.  He's here for the long haul.

But…

Oregon will tell him he can get the big stars to come to play for him.  The kind of guys that just beat his team in Buffalo.  The kind of players that will get him to the Final Four.  He'll coach in one of the most storied conferences in college basketball.  He'll get to cut the ribbon on a brand-spanking-new arena that will seat 12,500 and will be the envy of every basketball program in the country.  Nike uses Oregon as a beta-tester for its latest and greatest athletic wear.

But for all of the endless uniform combinations Oregon can offer up to its players, it cannot offer the combination Mark Few has in Spokane.  Job security.  Fly fishing.  Carte blanche to do things exactly the way he wants to do them.  Just like Mark Few politely answered my question, he'll answer Oregon's questions.  But this is one fish that Oregon won't be able to reel in.