Great article. To the younger core out there who may be unaware, here is some context. Granted it was much more difficult to reach the NCAA tournament up until the mid-1970's (fewer teams, conference champions only), but GW had reached the NCAA tournament twice in approximately 80-90 years of playing basketball prior to Mike''s arrival. The program was a year removed from a 1-27 season. Mike's first GW team reached the NIT and he then proceeded to lead the Colonials to 4 NCAA appearances within a 6 year span. (A 5th NCAA team, coached by Tom Penders, consisted largely of Mike's recruits.) He coached the only ever Sweet 16 team, and led GW to the second round on another occasion. There isn't a single individual who can be credited with putting GW basketball on the map moreso than Mike Jarvis.
His critics will point out two things. First, Mike had an ego and was a self-promoter. When a more prominent coaching position would open, Mike (through his agent) would see to it that his name was being discussed as a possibility. As a fan, your emotions go from "good for him, he deserves more money, a more prominent program to run, etc." to "not this again." When he left for St. John's, the media reported that GW officials practically had to push him out the door to take the job. Questionable at best. Not that Mike didn't love GW, but he knew it was time to advance in his profession. And secondly, and perhaps most importantly to GW fans, that unused timeouts, the kind that many coaches use to stop a team's run, momentum, etc., do not carry over into the following season. (See: Iowa)