There has been a lot of news lately about Temple's search for a new men's basketball head coach to replace John Chaney, and Penn coach Fran Dunphy has constantly been mentioned as one of the top candidates for the job.
Considering how often a new story has contradicted something that came out a day or two earlier, I'm not sure what to believe.
Given what has happened so far, though, one of the few things I am sure of is that I hope Dunphy will stay here for at least one more year.
My first reason for feeling this way is that I think the current team's work ethic and character, which are among its greatest assets, are the result of Dunphy's coaching.
I know there are a lot of people out there who highlight Dunphy's flaws before his talents and who think that Penn could have a better in-game decision maker at the helm.
But the way the Quakers executed Dunphy's gameplan against Texas showed almost perfectly that Dunphy can hold his own against the best teams in the country.
Then again, such luminaries as Duke's Mike Krzyzewski, North Carolina's Roy Williams and even Texas' Rick Barnes have known that for a long time. Just ask them.
Yet if Dunphy doesn't get the respect he deserves at Penn, I have a nasty feeling that he might end up worse off at Temple.
It pains me to say that, because I've seen Dunphy be the center of attention at all kinds of great events off the court.
In these kinds of forums, Dunphy does as much to enhance Penn's image in the community as anyone involved with economic development in University City. He would do the same on North Broad Street.
But he would also have to deal with the scrutiny that comes with being the face of a program whose roots in Philadelphia basketball, especially in the city, are deeper than any other Big 5 team.
There really is no easy way to say this, but hiring Dunphy would constitute a departure from Temple's philosophy during the Chaney era. And Dunphy would have to deal with a lot of the reaction to that change.
For 24 years, Chaney recruited kids from Public League schools across the city, including Aaron McKie, Lynn Greer and Mardy Collins.
Dunphy has plenty of experience recruiting at private and suburban schools in the Philadelphia area, but has never had a Public League player on his team.
This is worth thinking about in the context of Chaney's words at his farewell press conference, in which he exhorted Temple administrators to "stay your course."
That statement referred to much more than whether his successor would play a zone or a man-to-man defense.
If Dunphy stays at Penn, though, he will continue to hold the keys to an arena he loves dearly and to be the face of a program that he has built in his own image of selflessness and hard work.
Furthermore, while Penn fans may long for a win in the NCAA Tournament, they sometimes lose sight of the fact that the Quakers have to win the Ivy League to even have a chance to be on college basketball's biggest stage.
With that in mind, there is no arguing against Dunphy's nine Ancient Eight titles since 1993. Only Kentucky can equal Penn's mark in terms of NCAA automatic bids.
Yes, taking the Temple job would be a big step up in prestige, resources and salary for Dunphy.
But the modern image of Penn basketball has resulted from Dunphy's work more than anyone else's. I hope he realizes this and realizes what he can still do to furnish that legacy.
If he does, Fran Dunphy will hopefully stay here at Penn.
Jonathan Tannenwald is a senior urban studies major from Washington, D.C. His e-mail address is jtannenw@sas.upenn.edu.
