by Connor Whalen ‘28 on January 29, 2026
Opinion - Campus
A crucial missed opportunity for the Providence College men’s basketball team to enter NCAA tournament contention after a blown lead to the University of Connecticut. A terrible loss to a mediocre Xavier University. A defeat on home soil against Villanova University. A mismanaged, and embarrassing game against dead-last Marquette University. Worst of all, a blown lead— 21 points at its height—against Georgetown University and traitorous former head coach Ed Cooley. If Providence students and fans are booing their own head coach instead of Cooley, there is no clearer sign a change is needed. There is only one step the Friars can make to move in a positive direction, and that is to fire head coach Kim English. The English era is over.
Some aspects of the game of basketball are largely uncoachable. Pure scoring talent, raw athleticism, creativity, shooting ability: these skills can be slightly improved or enhanced by a good coach, but often these are gifts given to different players. English has been blessed with players who have all of the above; he has one of the most athletic teams in the Big East, with able-scorers, creative and skilled players, and abundant shooters. Jason Edwards ’26G and Jaylin Sellers ’26G are each putting up scoring tallies among the top in the Big East; Jamier Jones ’29 and Stefan Vaaks ’29 are two of the best freshman this program has ever seen; Oswin Erhunmwunse ’28 leads the Big East in blocks and is a force on the boards.
Some other areas of the game are, however, very coachable, and well-run programs across the country do them well year-in and year-out, regardless of their personnel. Good coaches create a culture and a standard to be followed, and that bar has simply not been set high enough under coach English. He has allowed defensive rebounding, careless turnovers, lack of situational awareness. He lacks grit and intensity, especially on the defensive end. There should be no room for lackadaisical play or sorry effort. That breeds the blown-lead losses we have seen over and over again. There is not enough pressure put on the players to get that crucial defensive rebound and prevent another clock reset and defensive possession. Players are not punished when they storm down the court and throw up an unintelligent shot. It is not just the players who deserve criticism; the one person that, at all times, should know the situation and make the right move is coach English, and he repeatedly fails to do that aspect of his job. Horrible management of the clock and timeouts, throwing out lineups that make no sense, not subbing out players when they need to be shown the bench. For example, letting players like Vaaks have free reign on the offensive end as he misses three-pointer after three-pointer. Last year, the excuse that there was not enough talent on the team was applicable, but that get-out-of-jail-free card is no longer valid. There is no more room for excuses for coach English and no reason for blame to be directed elsewhere. The blame must primarily fall on him.
Some fans worry about next steps for the program. Firing coaches can cause massive disruption and overhaul in the college setting. They ask: what if players leave? What if we struggle with upcoming recruiting classes? Simply put, where do we go from here? No one holds the answers to those questions, but what has become clear is that this program is going absolutely nowhere under coach English. If the program needs to rebuild and go through a rocky period, then so be it at this point. Good programs are built with a strong foundation and winning culture. Coaches are not supposed to simply bring in talent; they are supposed to make players better and let them grow. The English era has been entirely absent of that. The bottom line is clear: the Friars need to bite the bullet and move on.