Glenn Wohl at the Rutgers blog “RAC ‘Em Up” and I are doing the Q&A exchange. You can read my answers to his questions here. These were his responses to some of mine.

Is Gary Waters, dead coach walking? Does he need to make the NCAA or NIT? Or just get to the BET and look respectable? Fred Hill was a great hire, obviously, just from recruiting alone, and is his ascension inevitable?

There are 3 main schools of thought on Gary Waters:

1) fire him now, he is not the man to get the job done;
2) if we don’t make the NCAAs this year, fire him; and
3) get to BE Tourney and NIT this year, NCAA next year. Anything less, then fire him.

I think he gets next year regardless, barring a major collapse this year. Many people believe Hill to be the heir apparent, whether Waters being fired or moving to greener pastures. In addition to recruiting, Hill has been credited with Douby’s return to RU. I don’t know enough about Hill’s coaching prowess and whether he is a good hire, but he is certainly active on the sidelines during games. I also don’t know if he aspires to be a head coach, as there is a good chance the Seton Hall job will open up after this year.

Quincy Douby is the primary scoring threat, and Marquis Webb is the defensive shut-down artist for the team. Who needs to help them out for Rutgers to win against Pitt? In what ways (rebounding, scoring, defense). If Pitt shuts down Douby (holding him under 15), can Rutgers win?

I don’t think RU has that one guy in addition to Douby who can pick up the load. It requires a collective effort from anyone, though Webb, Anthony Farmer, JR Inman, and one of the big men (Jimmie Inglis or Adrian Hill) are the likely candidates.

Inman would appear to be the most likely candidate due to his size and athleticism, but he is only a freshman. I think the other guys will contribute defense and rebounding regardless. They must contribute offense.

RU won at DePaul with Douby struggling for 20 (he shot 6-20) from the field. Pitt is better than DePaul, but Douby usually plays well at home. I doubt RU could win if he doesn’t get 20-25, which is a big problem for RU. Last year, Webb shut down Krauser and Ramon stepped up for Pitt. Last week, RU held Ray in check, and Kyle Lowry stepped up. Not sure we have that guy on our roster.

Why should people believe that this year will be different for Rutgers? By that, I mean will they be the team that plays very well at home, getting an upset or two, but look lost away from the RAC? Not to be mean, but the reputation Rutgers has earned is that it just is not a good road team.

You’re not being mean, just truthful. RU still needs a signature victory, which we all hope is tomorrow night. At a minimum, they must beat the weaker teams (St. John’s, USF, Seton Hall) on the road.

The reason to believe this year will be different? A few:

1) Douby has elevated his game. He is no longer just a long-rage bomber. He can drive to the basket, and is a more proficient passer.
2) The halfcourt defense is much improved.
3) The freshman are contributing, especially Farmer and Inman.
4) Webb may be the best defender in the league, maybe the country. He simply shuts down his opponent, which includes to date, Mardy Collins (Temple), Allen Ray (Nova), and Sammy Mejia (DePaul).

There will be more exchanges coming.