Long Beach State defied the odds and made the March Madness tournament after clinching the Big West. However, all eyes are on this program ever since head coach Dan Monson was fired. He's continued coaching the team anyway and they've found success late in the season.

It's one of the more interesting stories for March Madness this year as many have speculated what Long Beach State will do if they go on a run. Do they hire Monson back? Do they still let him walk? Who really knows at this point?

But things took a weird turn on Thursday after Long Beach State's Athletic Director, Bobby Smitheran, reportedly claimed that his firing of Dan Monson lit a fire and “inspired” the team to play better, according to ESPN and The Associated Press.

“‘My belief and hope is that by doing what I did and the timing of it, they would play inspired, and that's what they did,' Bobby Smitheran told The Associated Press on Thursday, a few hours before the Beach tipped off against Arizona. ‘I'm not trying to pat myself on the back, but it worked.'”

What's the old saying? Hindsight makes everybody a genius? That kinda fits the bill here for the Long Beach State AD. The program originally fired Dan Monson after they lost five straight games. But since then the team went on to win the Big West tournament and earn a guaranteed bid for the March Madness tourney. All with Monson leading the way as head coach.

It's kind of hard to believe that the AD actually thought it would light a fire under the program. But since that decision, Dan Monson has reportedly loved every minute coaching Long Beach State. The veteran coach described the situation as “surreal.”

“On Wednesday, [Dan Monson] quipped that he's working for free now, and loving it because of the outpouring of support he's received from his players, friends and family. ‘I keep using the word ‘surreal.' Twilight zone might be part true. It's been awesome.'”

After Long Beach State lost to the Arizona Wildcats in the opening round, Dan Monson was asked about the AD's comments. Monson essentially took the high road with his answer, according to Brendan Quinn of The Athletic. Here is Monson's full answer.

“No. If it helped, I'm really happy we did it because I wouldn't trade it for the job or any other job. I've said it all along. If that's what spurred it, that's great. But we'll never know 'cause that's how it played out. We'll never know if it did or not.”

That's probably the smart answer in this situation. Although Monson was already fired, there's no real reason to combat his former AD. Especially considering Dan Monson is now seeking a new coaching job somewhere. Trashing his former employer could be a bad look for future opportunities.