San Jose State Basketball: What does Dave Wocjik’s resignation mean for the Spartans?

Head Coach Dave Wocjik recently resigned due to personal reasons, and San Jose State basketball will now be rushing to find a replacement before the season.

Late on the night of June 10th, San Jose State announced that head basketball coach Dave Wocjik was resigning due to personal reasons. This is a major blow to the Spartans, who were looking like a competitive team in the Mountain West.

While Wojcik has not had the most successful career at SJSU, his team did appear to be improving, finishing eighth in the conference last season after three straight years in last place. It was unlikely Wojcik would have led the Spartan to a postseason tournament, but he did provide the team with the stable leadership that is essential for improvement.

With Wojcik is gone, the Spartan’s athletic department has less than 125 days (when the college basketball season begins) to find a replacement. According to ESPN’s Jeff Borzello, Assistant Coach Rodney Tention was named the interim head coach until a replacement is found.

What does this mean for the Spartan’s 2017-2018 outlook?

Entering this season, San Jose will lean on its two junior leaders: Mountain West Player of the Year candidate Brandon Clarke, and his teammate Ryan Welage. Clarke is perhaps the best player in the conference, coming off a season in which he averaged 17.5 points, 8.9 rebounds and 2.6 blocks per game. Welage is a solid second option, finishing the year with 13. 2 points and 4.6 rebounds while providing the ability to spread the floor.

With the sudden loss of its head coach, San Jose State chances of finally reaching a .500 record dropped. While the team has two talented players and Tention as a solid temporary replacement, the sudden change will take some time to adjust. A team that previously looked like it could be competitive with schools like Colorado State, may stuggle.

It will be interesting to see who the Spartans pursue as their next head coach.