May 7
I wasn't shocked or surprised when Larry Eustachy and Iowa State reached a mutual agreement and Eustachy stepped aside as head coach.

Eustachy's No. 1 priority now should be to attack his alcohol problem.

Eustachy's No. 1 priority now should be to attack his alcohol problem. He has to get his life back in order. He is heading in the right direction -- identifying his problem was a major step forward.

Finding a solution was the next step. Now, I believe something positive can come out of this situation. Eustachy has said he will be a better husband, father and coach in the future by staying sober. And to do that, he has to keep the disease under control.

Eustachy's decision to leave Iowa State was a wise one. The heart and soul of any program is the players it recruits. Imagine what he might have gone through in the recruiting process. It would have been a nightmare.

Given what's happened, it would have been incredibly difficult to recruit blue-chip athletes at the Big 12 level. Competition is so keen, and the Big 12 is arguably the premier conference in America.

Trying to beat the likes of Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri, Texas, Texas Tech and Oklahoma State would have been difficult.

Now Iowa State has to move forward to find the right guy. Will Creighton's Dana Altman, who's already served in the Big 12 at Kansas State, be that guy?

Altman was high on Illinois' list, but things didn't work out. Will he leave Omaha to coach at Ames? Stay tuned...