TLDR: Dino is a minimal improvement record wise and arguably performance wise at best then HCSS and by keeping him we are only hurting the program. In addition Dino gets too much protection by the “injuries give him a pass” people
Shafer in 3 years went 7-17 in the ACC. If you assume that same record is doubled had he been here 6 years that’s 14-34. Prior to this season and also being generous and removing two losses from the covid year due to two extra ACC games, Babers would have a record of 14-33 in the ACC.
Now it is fair to say that Dino has the better upper level wins, but as a whole record wise we have none to minimal improvement in the ACC since we got rid of HCSS and hired Dino. To make this even worse this comes in a time of massively increased salaries and budgets and improvements to the football team. The records speak for itself. Even if you take into account all of the ACC games for Babers he is 17-38 in the 7th year of the ACC. Compared to a projected 6 year record of the previous coach of 14-34. This is not to say that HCSS was the answer, but Dino has been given every oppurtunity to suceed. He has a roster full of his own players. And not even players from the first 2 seasons when the improvements weren’t there. There is no excuses.
You can even say “oh but he made it to a bowl this year.” Coaches can be fired even if they make a bowl depending on how the season as a whole went. Going 6-6 while being 2-3 then 4-4 then 6-5 is different then being 6-0 and then going 6-4 and then possibly 6-6 and then possibly 6-7. We still have two games left and I’d love to be able to go 8-4 and win the bowl to go 9-4 but it’s just as likely we go 6-7 with a 6th losing season. HCSS got us to a bowl. HCSS had injuries, every coach has injuries. NCST lost their QB and have outscored us 72-57. And we played 4 games to their 3.
This has been a long winded post but it had to be said. We have seen minimal improvement for too long and I’m tired of people acting like it is okay. Practically any other P5 school would have moved on by now and he should be grateful to make millions to lose football games. He has had 7 years to build an ACC level team which his predecessor did not. In fact, his best team was mainly due to having HCSS’s recruits as his main starters.
One last thing I want to talk about is losing streaks. HCSS was fired in 2015 after losing 8 in a row after starting 3-0, of which one win was against Wake Forest. In those 8 games we played teams ranked 1st, 8th, 17th, 25th, our worst margin of defeat was 24 points twice, at Louisville where we lost 17-41 and at FSU 21-45, which I may add, is better then we did at home on Saturday. Also included in those losses is a 3 overtime defeat against Virginia, a 20-23 loss against Pittsburgh and a 24-34 loss to No 8 LSU at home. There can be arguments that he deserved to be fired. But to that i saw. If he gets fired for that. Should dino not be fired if somehow we go 6-7? Minus the clemson game we have not even been really competitive In any of the three losses. We lost our starting QB the first game of the season and had to use a freshman dungey who also got hurt and only played in 8 games. Surely all the injury comments these last few weeks were out in force protecting the last guys job. But I suspect not. Every team has injuries. The good teams find ways to adjust. It’s time to pull the bandaid off and be prepared to fire dino if we lose out. And if we don’t. Then hold him on the hot seat for next season