In Reply to: I have a friend who knew Howland pretty well. posted by ej on July 16, 2026 at 11:07:05
I too think that Cronin is a boorish acerbic individual who can be charming at times. To his credit, it appears that his players trust him and are loyal. That ain't nothing. I too have seen the pressure he has experienced at UCLA have an affect on him. What else I do see is that after the Michigan State debacle Cronin has appeared to make an earnest effort to change some things. First the apology, although he markedly did not apologize to the young Michigan State reported and that's a shame IMO, and then his demeanor in press conferences has changed. Perhaps the changes will not hold. Most people can't sustain that kind of personality change, eventually reverting back to their past nature. But sometimes they can. I believe Cronin understands that a personality change of sorts (an easing up on his intensity) is existential in terms of his coaching life at UCLA. I would most welcome that change but have a bit of a skeptical question mark as to whether he can actually do it. I guess we will soon see.