Louisville names David Padgett head coach, stunningly not Chris Mack

It happens literally every offseason at this point.

• “Power Five” job opens up.
• National media suggests Chris Mack.
• Job goes to different coach while Mack reiterates how happy he and family are at Xavier.

It should come as no surprise that it happened yet again with the suddenly available Louisville job this week. The Cardinals ended up hiring David Padgett, but Mack was suggested for the paper-thin reasoning of “he’s never been in trouble with the NCAA and his wife is from Louisville”.

Eventually, enough has to be enough. It would be short-sighted of me (or anyone) to come out and declare that Chris Mack will never leave Xavier. Things happen. The only people that truly know are Mack and his family. But to suggest that he would consider leaving for a job like Louisville where heavy sanctions are about to rain down was asinine from the start.

I’m not usually one to play the respect card generally, but at a certain point, it gets borderline disrespectful to both Mack and Xavier, and the work he’s done in his time there.

This isn’t the days of old where Xavier was a stepping stone to bigger and better things. The Musketeers have become the bigger and better thing. They’re a damn good team in a damn good conference, and there’s no reason to believe that will change anytime soon.