Hewitt to Oklahoma?

Wes Durham has a better chance of going to Oklahoma than does Paul Hewitt.

Now, see, this is how a good rumor gets started. Someone, probably reading this post while also watching a “Dukes of Hazzard” repeat and eating a bowl of chocolate pudding, will read that first sentence and post on a message board someplace that not only is Georgia Tech’s coach leaving, but he’s taking the play-by-play guy with him.

While, back in the real world, neither is likely to stray far from Atlanta and the Yellow Jackets.

Durham joined ACC Nation this weekend and the Voice of the Jackets shot down those Hewitt-to-Oklahoma rumors right away.

“I think Oklahoma is going to find a fine coach,” Durham told the Nation, “but it won’t be Paul Hewitt.”

In fact, Durham said he had a better chance of ending up in Norman, Okla. Hence, the opening sentence and the rumors that will surely be tracked back to Chris and me.

For his part, Hewitt denied the rumor that he will replace Kelvin Sampson, who is the new coach at Indiana. Well, Hewitt didn’t so much deny that he was leaving Georgia Tech as he simply said no one had contacted him about the Sooner job. Read into that what you will.

According to Durham, the rumor was started when a newspaper in Oklahoma put together a bracket, in the style of the NCAA Tournament, listing a number of coaches who Oklahoma should consider. One by one they were eliminated until only Hewitt was remaining. Well, Hewitt and a good rumor.

“That’s how this whole thing got started,” Durham said.

I did a search – albeit not a thorough one – for the bracket in question. Durham told us it was the Daily Oklahoman, which actually doesn’t exist to the best of my knowledge. There’s the Oklahoman and the Oklahoma Daily, which is the student-run newspaper in Norman. I couldn’t find a coaches bracket in the archives of either. And a Web search turned up nothing. If you, the loyal readers, find something send me the link.

But bracket or no bracket, I seriously doubt Hewitt is going anywhere soon. (There’s probably more truth to the rumor that Miami’s Frank Haith is coming to North Carolina State, although that might cause conniption fits for ACC officials. Try explaining to Miami how the conference invited them in with open arms a couple of years ago and then let one of the original members steal their coach.)

As for Hewitt, the coach has plenty of reasons to remain at Georgia Tech. Despite the troubles this past season, there is some promise with a talented recruiting class coming to Atlanta. But maybe more than what may or may not happen on the court, Hewitt’s wife and children love Atlanta, and his parents recently relocated from New York to the Atlanta area. Unless there’s a lot of money involved with the Oklahoma deal, chances are Hewitt is staying put.

Said Durham, “I don’t think Paul Hewitt has any desire to go to Norman, Oklahoma.”

- Patrick Hite