None of this was a surprise. All of it feels like a grand slam — for Drake and for South Dakota State.

Both Porsches of their mid-major basketball leagues have the best possible drivers to keep things running fast and smooth and away from crashes.

In a 24-hour span, South Dakota State lost men's basketball coach Eric Henderson to Drake and replaced him with his assistant of six years, Bryan Peterson.

John Gaskins not only explains why both hires made sense, but brings you refreshingly candid insight from Drake athletic director Eric Henderson and a few clips from Petersen's interview with 15-year Voice of the Jackrabbits Tyler Merriam.

Then, John chats with Merriam, finding answers to these questions:

What will those within the SDSU athletic department miss most about "Hendo?"

Merriam has plenty of behind-the-ropes insight into how the men's basketball program thrived before and during Hendo's six years at the helm and offers unique perspective on new head coach Petersen, who was at SDSU the whole time.

What is Petersen's strength, his personality, and what will he bring to the table that Jacks fans expect to be similar or different?

Merriam also weighs in on Aaron Johnston's longevity at SDSU and why the wildly successful women's hoops coach has stayed in Brookings for 25 years despite a resume that suggest he could be somewhere else, and on the mid-majors' lot in life — or what it appears to be its lot — in the NIL and transfer portal era.