Shafer

[TheCusian]

It’s childish to care 6(?) years later. The guy beat his former employer who fired him in their house and with a mid major team. I get his actions. What’s your justification for your childish and embarrassing position?

Also, as far as in over his head, who knows? He never really got much of a shot to prove one way or another. He had a MAC-level coaching staff that was assembled at the last minute. He made a bowl game in year 1, so he couldn’t fire them. He had a bad year 2, and made staffing adjustments. He was then fired in year 3. He ultimately started in an impossible position, had a limited budget, and had a boss change, which led to real and material road blocks for attracting talent (who wants to work for a guy about to get fired, and how many AD’s don’t want to bring in “their guy?”). The above is just from a staffing perspective. Add in the other many considerations (like a young injury-prone QB), and making and definitive judgement on the guy is idiotic.

There are reasonable cases to be made about the hand he was dealt... but he made those hiring decisions and sometimes that’s the ballgame. He got a shot and blew it. Then, was classless in victory. The guy who fired him wasn’t even there.

Def a mixed bag with SS, but let’s not let him skate. Accountability was something he talked about.

 

[Roger N]

Shafer 0 Triple Option 98

Two games. Ouch.

Congrats Brave Old Army Team.

He never knew how to play against the option

 

[OrangeAl]

Does anyone remember when we loved him because he was "one of us?"
Sure, he didn't do a great job keeping the HCDM momentum going, but he's still the same guy we loved.
We just got really mad when his team beat us in our unlocked dome.

 

[OttoinGrotto]

Personally the most offensive thing I believe Shafer ever did was punt from the 32.

 

[orange79]

Are people really bent because he lit a cigar in a non smoking facility? Lol. Do you also make citizens arrest for Jay Walker's when you see them? If you don't like the guy just say it. If you think he is a bad coach then fine. He lit a cigar in a non smoking facility? That is just weak sauce...you may want to chillax a little.

No. They're bent because it was a move.

 

[CuseCactus]

He was a meat head. Glad he’s long gone.

 

[bigmike]

I would never want to be judged by some of the worst moments of my life. I have a feeling that, looking back, FHCSS would express some regret for the cigar incident. Emotion makes us do regrettable things.

 

[Alsacs]

Personally the most offensive thing I believe Shafer ever did was punt from the 32.

He faked a Fg at BC from the 32 and had the holder punt.
It was the most gutless thing a HC ever did until the following year he punted from midfield on 4th and 3 down 21 points at Pitt.

The guy was a painter hired to be an architect.
We got what we paid for.
He wasn’t a HC and should be thanking his lucky stars he got the job.
He is a nice man I am sure but awful HC material.
Especially a team in transition into a P5 league.

 

[bigmike]

He faked a Fg at BC from the 32 and had the holder punt.
It was the most gutless thing a HC ever did until the following year he punted from midfield on 4th and 3 down 21 points at Pitt.

The guy was a painter hired to be an architect.
We got what we paid for.
He wasn’t a HC and should be thanking his lucky stars he got the job.
He is a nice man I am sure but awful HC material.
Especially a team in transition into a P5 league.

Hard to argue the cold hard truth of the 5 points here.

 

[Cusefan69]

No. They're bent because it was a move.

Maybe. My guess would be that his players probably laughed about it and said "#$ckin Schafer". More fans got their panties bunched about it than players I guarentee it and in my mind if the players didn't bitch about, then we can probably move on from it as well. Also read earlier post, some were indeed bent over the no smoking part of what happened.

 

[Steelerswan]

I'm not sure why you think the physical training for Army's football team should be any better than any other D1 program. There's military fitness and there's football fitness and they aren't the same. I served with ex D1 football players as well as West Pointers. Some of the best PT test performers were neither of those. I will say the West Pointers seemed to enjoy brigade runs more than most of us ROTC folks.
Also, it is always a good thing to be in great shape.

Agree, no reason to believe the military schools playing fb are in better physical shape. Off season programs at every school in the d1 level are elite. If you want to say the militaries are more disciplined and prepared, that makes alot of sense.

 

[djorange1989]

He faked a Fg at BC from the 32 and had the holder punt.
It was the most gutless thing a HC ever did until the following year he punted from midfield on 4th and 3 down 21 points at Pitt.

The guy was a painter hired to be an architect.
We got what we paid for.
He wasn’t a HC and should be thanking his lucky stars he got the job.
He is a nice man I am sure but awful HC material.
Especially a team in transition into a P5 league.

I thought the worst of all was in 2015 when he didn’t go for the win in the 2nd OT against UVA. We were on the road and all kicking the PAT did was send it OT number three where you HAVE to go for two and we had the ball first. Gutless wimp when it came to strategy

 

[SUFan44]

He wasn’t in over his head.

He never had a decent healthy QB for an entire season.

And Red Auerbach lit many victory cigars - nothing wrong with it.

Over his head is the best thing I can say about his tenure as HC at SU.

In his last two years as head coach, we had 3 wins over Power 5 teams -- including 2 over Wake Forest.

We went to double overtime against a 1-AA school and should have lost if not for fake FG and a missed XP.

What about that doesn't scream "in over your head"? Outside of the result-based evidence, my eyes told me we were unprepared on many occasions and recruited at a level one tier below what we needed to in the ACC.

The resources he was afforded may not have been what, in turn, have been given to Dino Babers. But he certainly did not earn anything beyond what he got, which was a shot.

 

[MadNY3]

And Red Auerbach lit many victory cigars - nothing wrong with it.

Did he ever light one up after a Syracuse victory? Don't remember that, which is why it understandably burns some people.

 

[Alsacs]

Did he ever light one up after a Syracuse victory? Don't remember that, which is why it understandably burns some people.

Red Auerbach lit up cigars when he won championships.
Scott Shafer being a douche when Middle Tennessee won a football game is nothing like Red Auerbach.


Shafer got 3 years as HC. He didn’t deserve 1 if we had a competent AD. Gross hired him and got the cheapest replacement he could find because the AD was hemorrhaging money and he needed a cheap hire.

 

[GreekFreak]

Did he ever light one up after a Syracuse victory? Don't remember that, which is why it understandably burns some people.

He couldn't fill an ash tray with the number of games he won here.

 

[pacusewife]

You guys act like there aren't bigger things to worry about...like ISIS.

 

[nzm136]

There are reasonable cases to be made about the hand he was dealt... but he made those hiring decisions and sometimes that’s the ballgame. He got a shot and blew it. Then, was classless in victory. The guy who fired him wasn’t even there.

Def a mixed bag with SS, but let’s not let him skate. Accountability was something he talked about.

Randomly ignoring the context of his decisions is intellectually challenged.

Put yourself in his position. He had a limited budget, a large number of positions to fill, and a timeframe to make the hires that was very late in the cycle. Who, other than to people he had close relationships with (which is who he hired), would you have hired?

Unless you have a better answer than he did, then it’s kind of hard to hold him accountable for having weak assistants.

 

[Alsacs]

Randomly ignoring the context of his decisions is intellectually challenged.

Put yourself in his position. He had a limited budget, a large number of positions to fill, and a timeframe to make the hires that was very late in the cycle. Who, other than to people he had close relationships with (which is who he hired), would you have hired?

Unless you have a better answer than he did, then it’s kind of hard to hold him accountable for having weak assistants.

His in game coaching decisions were gutless.

He played not to get embarrassed not to win.

We didn’t even try to hire anyone else and it wasn’t to late in the process to get a decent coach.
It was in January. Plus Dr. Gross knew Marrone was looking at NFL jobs. He wasn’t caught off guard Marrone left.

Hackett was by the far the better upside choice if Gross had to go internal.
The hiring of Shafer was a dumb decision that was done to save money. Gross was under pressure because the AD was going thru it’s audit and spending was out of control.
Gross hired Shafer because it would be cheap and Gross thought he could survive the AD audit as ACC money was coming the next year.

 

[Steelerswan]

His in game coaching decisions were gutless.

He played not to get embarrassed not to win.

We didn’t even try to hire anyone else and it wasn’t to late in the process to get a decent coach.
It was in January. Plus Dr. Gross knew Marrone was looking at NFL jobs. He wasn’t caught off guard Marrone left.

Hackett was by the far the better upside choice if Gross had to go internal.
The hiring of Shafer was a dumb decision that was done to save money. Gross was under pressure because the AD was going thru it’s audit and spending was out of control.
Gross hired Shafer because it would be cheap and Gross thought he could survive the AD audit as ACC money was coming the next year.

Interesting take and one that hasn't been entertained much . Hackett was gem and soon went to the bills. He is a brilliant mind and was on the come in his coaching career. Would have loved to see him in a HC position.

 

[nzm136]

Does anyone remember when we loved him because he was "one of us?"
Sure, he didn't do a great job keeping the HCDM momentum going, but he's still the same guy we loved.
We just got really mad when his team beat us in our unlocked dome.

This post is dead on.

He was the greatest coach ever until he wasn’t. This forum has an incredibly selective memory and a raging inferiority complex.

 

[nzm136]

His in game coaching decisions were gutless.

He played not to get embarrassed not to win.

We didn’t even try to hire anyone else and it wasn’t to late in the process to get a decent coach.
It was in January. Plus Dr. Gross knew Marrone was looking at NFL jobs. He wasn’t caught off guard Marrone left.

Hackett was by the far the better upside choice if Gross had to go internal.
The hiring of Shafer was a dumb decision that was done to save money. Gross was under pressure because the AD was going thru it’s audit and spending was out of control.
Gross hired Shafer because it would be cheap and Gross thought he could survive the AD audit as ACC money was coming the next year.

This is absolutely false. What a good assistant coaches weren’t locked up at the time, especially at a discount?

 

[TheCusian]

Randomly ignoring the context of his decisions is intellectually challenged.

Put yourself in his position. He had a limited budget, a large number of positions to fill, and a timeframe to make the hires that was very late in the cycle. Who, other than to people he had close relationships with (which is who he hired), would you have hired?

Unless you have a better answer than he did, then it’s kind of hard to hold him accountable for having weak assistants.

Ask anyone here. I carried water for SS a long time. I’m well acquainted with the arguments about what he inherited, budgets, and hiring.

Living with bad hires is the job he signed up for. To his credit, he tried to right the ship with Lester’s promotion. It’s a tough gig.

 

[TheCusian]

This post is dead on.

He was the greatest coach ever until he wasn’t. This forum has an incredibly selective memory and a raging inferiority complex.

Sorry

 

[Alsacs]

This post is dead on.

He was the greatest coach ever until he wasn’t. This forum has an incredibly selective memory and a raging inferiority complex.

I wasn’t a fan. I questioned the hire right off the bat.