CIL
All Conference
- Joined
- Aug 14, 2011
- Messages
- 2,968
- Like
- 9,265
Well folks, it turns out that light at the end of the tunnel was indeed and oncoming train. I need to apologize to my wife and children who awoke to a few shouts of " Me." Imagine most of us here feel the same way. I'm not going to rehash the reasons why Doug left, we've killed that topic over the last few days.
While a lot of this is disappointing, this job is much more appealing than it was when Doug took it over. We have better talent now than we did 4 years ago, the conference affiliation is much better, and the facilities, while still lagging behind, don't have to be hidden anymore (which literally happened).
That being said, this is a very important hire, in some ways, just as important has the DM hire. This program has some momentum behind it with regards to public perception. People respect the program and what Dm was able to do with it. There is kind of a "cool" factor associated with Syracuse Football that hasn't existed in 15 years. We cannot hire someone that moves us backwards. With the current sensitivity of the football landscape, being a college football afterthought is a very dangerous game with horrible repercussions.
As DeepThrowIt wrote earlier, this is not the time to throw some half assed staff together. This isn't about saving a recruiting class. This is much bigger than that -- it is about saving a program. Good news is we at least have more money committed these days than we did in our last 3 coaching searches (and if we don't, then I am washing my hands of this program, seriously). I want this search to be diligent and thorough. I believe Gross learned a lot from the GRob disaster and we have that working in my favor.
I have heard that we are already in the midst of a coaching search and that candidates have already been contacted. While we as fans were somewhat blindsided by this, the administration was not nearly as shocked as we were. I have heard there is ample interest from very solid coaching names, although I have not heard any specific names.
As far as in house candidates go, it starts and ends with coach Hackett. Yes, he is a risky choice, but he is also a strong offensive mind and a very good recruiter. He is a high energy coach, and his is every bit as attentive to detail as Marrone was. As for Shafer, I like the guy, but let's just say I have a few reservations about him.
Outside of Hackett, one coach that I would say we may have a punchers chance in getting is Al Golden at Miami. JO knows a lot about Al, more so than I could even dream of, so maybe he can fill us in here a bit. I have heard that he is a bit disappointed with experience in Miami, and with impending NCAA sanctions, I bet he would be willing to listen. He's a NE guy, great recruiter, and did wonders at Temple. He's been the head coach at 2 private schools, so he knows what he is dealing with from that perspective.
Another interesting candidate is Mario Cristobol, former FIU head coach who was let go this year. He has ties in the NE as well as FL, which is a must. What he did at FIU was nothing short of a miracle, taking the worst program in all of D1 to a bowl in 4 years. He is a great recruiter and runs an exciting offense, but the guy has a few skeletons in his closet. I'm not sure how that would play here.
A very interesting name available is former Cal head coach Jeff Tedford. Not exactly an east coast guy, and would have to put together a staff that understands the landscape a bit. He got a bit of a raw deal at Cal, who never was going to be mistaken for USC. Once again, great offensive mind, and great talent evaluator. Probably a long shot.
Keep and eye out for former BC head coach Jags, who has kind of ventured in the GA wilderness after being canned from BC.
Hot assistants list: Bob Diaco DC Notre Dame, Kirby Smart DC Alabama, Philip Montgomery OC Baylor.
While a lot of this is disappointing, this job is much more appealing than it was when Doug took it over. We have better talent now than we did 4 years ago, the conference affiliation is much better, and the facilities, while still lagging behind, don't have to be hidden anymore (which literally happened).
That being said, this is a very important hire, in some ways, just as important has the DM hire. This program has some momentum behind it with regards to public perception. People respect the program and what Dm was able to do with it. There is kind of a "cool" factor associated with Syracuse Football that hasn't existed in 15 years. We cannot hire someone that moves us backwards. With the current sensitivity of the football landscape, being a college football afterthought is a very dangerous game with horrible repercussions.
As DeepThrowIt wrote earlier, this is not the time to throw some half assed staff together. This isn't about saving a recruiting class. This is much bigger than that -- it is about saving a program. Good news is we at least have more money committed these days than we did in our last 3 coaching searches (and if we don't, then I am washing my hands of this program, seriously). I want this search to be diligent and thorough. I believe Gross learned a lot from the GRob disaster and we have that working in my favor.
I have heard that we are already in the midst of a coaching search and that candidates have already been contacted. While we as fans were somewhat blindsided by this, the administration was not nearly as shocked as we were. I have heard there is ample interest from very solid coaching names, although I have not heard any specific names.
As far as in house candidates go, it starts and ends with coach Hackett. Yes, he is a risky choice, but he is also a strong offensive mind and a very good recruiter. He is a high energy coach, and his is every bit as attentive to detail as Marrone was. As for Shafer, I like the guy, but let's just say I have a few reservations about him.
Outside of Hackett, one coach that I would say we may have a punchers chance in getting is Al Golden at Miami. JO knows a lot about Al, more so than I could even dream of, so maybe he can fill us in here a bit. I have heard that he is a bit disappointed with experience in Miami, and with impending NCAA sanctions, I bet he would be willing to listen. He's a NE guy, great recruiter, and did wonders at Temple. He's been the head coach at 2 private schools, so he knows what he is dealing with from that perspective.
Another interesting candidate is Mario Cristobol, former FIU head coach who was let go this year. He has ties in the NE as well as FL, which is a must. What he did at FIU was nothing short of a miracle, taking the worst program in all of D1 to a bowl in 4 years. He is a great recruiter and runs an exciting offense, but the guy has a few skeletons in his closet. I'm not sure how that would play here.
A very interesting name available is former Cal head coach Jeff Tedford. Not exactly an east coast guy, and would have to put together a staff that understands the landscape a bit. He got a bit of a raw deal at Cal, who never was going to be mistaken for USC. Once again, great offensive mind, and great talent evaluator. Probably a long shot.
Keep and eye out for former BC head coach Jags, who has kind of ventured in the GA wilderness after being canned from BC.
Hot assistants list: Bob Diaco DC Notre Dame, Kirby Smart DC Alabama, Philip Montgomery OC Baylor.
