The FB program has reached the point in the next hire that CL and company reached with the TB hire. Think about it -- basketball became increasingly irrelevant about five or so years before football, so our football program is right where the hoops program was six years ago. There are good lessons to be learned from each hire.
When we hired TB, we needed someone committed to a system that could get his recruits in to implement that system and regain respectability. Regaining respectability allowed to recruit better players, which increased winning, which has become a virtuous cycle.
Football is in the same spot right now. We've been bad so long, we need someone (like a TB or a Cutcliffe) that is deeply embedded in a system and can get respectable results with 3* guys to help rebuild the brand. We don't "need" to recruit more talent, we need to get some results. Think about how mediocre VT, NC, Duke, etc., have been the last few years and we have beaten very few of them very few times. Respectable teams win 40-60% of those games instead of the 10ish% we've won. The weird success against Miami has been just about it since 2007, with the obvious exception of 2011. The bar isn't really high right now.
We need a head coach from a lower level (either lower I-A or high I-AA), who has a philosophy and will stick to it in building the program. We need someone who has built a program. And we need someone who has developed talent. TB was the home run hire on the hoops side (I was familiar from time of the Palouse, so I was sure that was the right hire). So this time we need someone who has done it at a MWC/SunBelt/MAC type environment, or maybe has even been good at a resource-strapped P5 (like Tony was at Wazzu). Mid-Atlantic ties are not necessary. At this point, out-recruiting Urban Meyer, Jimbo Fisher, Jim Harbaugh, and Brian Kelly are NOT required as they are pillaging the best VA talent year in and year out. Out-coaching Frank Beamer, Larry Fedora, Paul Johnson, David Cutcliffe, et al, at least SOME of the time, is.
My quick list -- Mark Hudspeth @ ULaLa (offensive guy), Justin Fuente @ Memphis (offensive coach before HC @TCU and Illinois St), Ruffin McNeill @ECU (defensive, but has a good offensive staff). Fuente really intrigues me for some reason ...
OK, who is the TB to be hired on the football side?
When we hired TB, we needed someone committed to a system that could get his recruits in to implement that system and regain respectability. Regaining respectability allowed to recruit better players, which increased winning, which has become a virtuous cycle.
Football is in the same spot right now. We've been bad so long, we need someone (like a TB or a Cutcliffe) that is deeply embedded in a system and can get respectable results with 3* guys to help rebuild the brand. We don't "need" to recruit more talent, we need to get some results. Think about how mediocre VT, NC, Duke, etc., have been the last few years and we have beaten very few of them very few times. Respectable teams win 40-60% of those games instead of the 10ish% we've won. The weird success against Miami has been just about it since 2007, with the obvious exception of 2011. The bar isn't really high right now.
We need a head coach from a lower level (either lower I-A or high I-AA), who has a philosophy and will stick to it in building the program. We need someone who has built a program. And we need someone who has developed talent. TB was the home run hire on the hoops side (I was familiar from time of the Palouse, so I was sure that was the right hire). So this time we need someone who has done it at a MWC/SunBelt/MAC type environment, or maybe has even been good at a resource-strapped P5 (like Tony was at Wazzu). Mid-Atlantic ties are not necessary. At this point, out-recruiting Urban Meyer, Jimbo Fisher, Jim Harbaugh, and Brian Kelly are NOT required as they are pillaging the best VA talent year in and year out. Out-coaching Frank Beamer, Larry Fedora, Paul Johnson, David Cutcliffe, et al, at least SOME of the time, is.
My quick list -- Mark Hudspeth @ ULaLa (offensive guy), Justin Fuente @ Memphis (offensive coach before HC @TCU and Illinois St), Ruffin McNeill @ECU (defensive, but has a good offensive staff). Fuente really intrigues me for some reason ...
OK, who is the TB to be hired on the football side?
