Jared DeMichiel and Ben Barr shared an office at UMass in the years building up to that school’s national championship in 2021. A frequent topic was the theoretical timeline for bringing a struggling program up to speed.
“We would say, hey, when you’re turning around a program or getting a program where you want it to go, it’s usually a three-year thing,” said DeMichiel, now the associate head coach at Michigan State. “That’s lofty expectations. I think most people would say it takes a little bit longer, but Benny’s got very high standards and expectations.”
As Barr starts his third season as head coach at Maine, the Black Bears already have come a long way in a short time.
And DeMichiel is not the least bit surprised by how much his friend has accomplished so far.
