THE LATEST LINE: IMPRESSIVE COACHES VIE FOR SE POST

There is a chance -- depending on the results of an ongoing NCAA investigation -- that Southeast Missouri State University's men's basketball program could be hit with some NCAA sanctions.

But that isn't even coming close to keeping some well-known and impressive coaches on the national scene from making a pitch for SEMO's vacant head coaching position.

Literally dozens and dozens of head and assistant coaches on various NCAA levels have either contacted SEMO officials or sent resumes trying to reach the top of the school's list.

Some of the more notable coaches that seem interested in taking over the program are Missouri assistant Kim Anderson, Iowa State assistant (and former SEMO assistant) Sam Weaver and Fort Hays (Kan.) head coach Gary Garner. On the surface, all would appear to be highly qualified for the job.

Since the position has only been open a little more than a week, no formal interviews have yet been conducted. But SEMO officials have indicated they want to move as quickly as possible to hire a new coach, so don't be surprised if that person is revealed within a month or so -- and perhaps even sooner.

* Some people -- through Speakout -- have been taking shots at me lately for writing that SEMO basketball had been struggling before Ron Shumate took over the program in the early 1980s.

It's true that I wasn't around here for those struggling years, but what I wrote was not a matter of opinion, it was strictly factual information gathered from the school's media guide.

No matter how many people -- and I don't think there are a lot of them -- want to claim that the Indians had a solid program before Shumate arrived, the proof is in the record.

Before Shumate took over, the Indians had had just two winning records in the previous six seasons and they were coming off a last-place conference finish.

I don't know how other people define struggling, but to me, that is struggling big-time.

* I'm not about to say whether SEMO was right or wrong in firing Shumate. I believe that will ultimately be determined by what the results of the NCAA probe are.

But I will say this: I think it's pretty sorry that the man wasn't told of his dismissal in a face-to-face meeting with SEMO administrators and that he wasn't given an opportunity to go before the board of regents and at least give his side of the story.

* Mike Gross, a Jackson High senior, plans to walk on to the SEMO football team in the fall.

Gross started 38 games during his career at Jackson, helping leading the Indians to a 31-7 record and two Class 4A state runner-up finishes. His father, Jackson coach Carl Gross, was a former standout football player for SEMO in the 1970s.

* Another local high school student also will be following in his father's footsteps.

Josh Daniel, a senior at Cape Central who was a member of the Tigers' football team, will switch gears and attend the University of Mississippi on an athletic trainer's scholarship. His father, Jeff, was in the athletic training business for 18 years, including several years at SEMO in the 1980s.

~Marty Mishow is a sports writer for the Southeast Missourian