A Date in Cornell Basketball History: April 2006

Oh there are so many twists of irony in the tangled Ivy League...

During April 2006, Penn just capped off its second consecutive Ivy League championship. Within the weeks thereafter, the Quakers watched their head coach, Fran Dunphy bolt across town to take the coaching job at the higher profile Temple program. Suddenly, Penn was searching for a new coach.

Cornell head coach, Steve Donahue, a Philadelphia area native, interviewed for the newly vacant position at Penn. But Donahue never became Penn's head coach. Instead, Glen Miller left his coaching post at Brown to take over the Quakers' surging program.

During his first season with Penn in 2006-2007, Miller took a Penn team that Dunphy constructed to its third consecutive Ivy League title. The status quo was maintained, at least for the time being.

But the following two Ivy League seasons would belong to Steve Donahue and Cornell. The Big Red captured the 2007-2008 and 2008-2009 Ivy League titles. Below we post an archived report from April 2006.

Report: Big Red's Donahue to interview for Penn job

By Brian Delaney
The Ithaca Journal
April 13, 2006

ITHACA - According to a report Tuesday in the Philadelphia Inquirer, Cornell men's basketball coach Steve Donahue has been told he will be interviewed for the head coaching position at the University of Pennsylvania following the departure of the Quakers' longtime coach, Fran Dunphy, to Temple earlier this week. Donahue was an assistant under Dunphy at Penn for 10 years before leaving to take over Cornell's program in 2000. His career record on East Hill is 58-105 over six seasons.

When reached Wednesday by phone, Donahue declined comment on the Penn situation.

Other coaches who are widely considered to be top candidates for the position include Brown's Glen Miller, current Penn assistant Dave Duke, Lafayette's Fran O'Hanlon and Howard's Gil Jackson.

The Quakers, led by junior Ivy League Player of the Year Ibby Jaaber, won the conference crown for the second straight season. Dunphy leaves his successor four returning starters and a talented recruiting class led by 6-foot-8 power forward Andreas Schreiber from Los Angeles.

Donahue, meanwhile, is expecting his strongest class yet for the upcoming 2006-2007 season. Geoff Reeves and Ryan Wittman, a pair of 6-6 swingmen, are talented enough to contribute immediately. A team source also confirmed late last week that prospect Louis Dale, an athletic point guard and McDonald's All-America nominee from Altamont High School in Alabama, has committed.