Interesting "bad coaching hire" column re.Arkstfan

NT80 · November 22, 2006

For UNT and FIU fans (Main Board)

posted by Arkstfan , 11-21-2006, 15:51, from 170.94.60.200

Remember that the best hires aren't always popular until the results come in.

Tom Dienhart column from the Sporting News, January 1, 2001

Carroll's hiring is another mistake for troubled USC

Dear Mike Garrett:

I 'think you made a mistake hiring Pete Carroll as USC's next coach. As Trojans athletics director, you needed to hit a home run with this hire. This looks more like a scratch single.

I know. Carroll might end up being grand, but the perception in the here and now is what matters for a program that's on the wane. And that perception isn't good.

Some might compare Carroll to Paul Hackett, the coach he replaces. That might not be fair, but you can't blame them. Carroll is an NFL guy. He's a defensive tactician who hasn't coached in college since 1083, when he was an assistant at Pacific. Hackett was an offensive expert who hadn't coached in college since 1092 when he landed the USC job before the 1998 season. At least Hackett's most recent college stint at the time was as head coach at Pittsburgh.

Unlike Hackett, Carroll proved he can be a successful head coach, leading the New England Patriots to a pair of winning seasons and playoff berths. He's also a super-enthusiastic guy. But Carroll doesn't know college football.

Oh, he's saying the fight things. You know, stuff like, "If you can understand the process in the NFL ... in the draft process, it's all about watching players in college, I don't consider myself unfamiliar with the college game at all."

I'm sure Carroll, like Hackett, knows his X's and O's. The problem is the college game Carroll doesn't know. It was the same one Hackett had trouble grasping. I'm talking about things like academic issues, recruiting / and dealing with alumni.

Is Caroll up for whispering sweet nothings into the ears of know-it-all 18-year-olds? Is Carroll up for spending more time speaking at booster events than breaking down film? Is Carroll up for fans demanding to know why USC can't dominate the Pac-10 anymore?

Carroll needs a positive start and would help himself by retaining defensive line coach Ed Orgeron and running backs coach Kennedy Pola, a pair of Hackett assistants who red-line their intensity meters.

I know, Mike. You say, "Average Joe doesn't know football." Believe what you want, but Average Joe has reason to doubt your hiring skills and thinks you are part of the problem. Hackett was 19-18 at USC, and his last team finished last in the Pac-10, the first t/me that ever has happened. He was your man after you mishandled the termination of John Robinson after the 1997 season.

Your job might be riding on Carroll's performance. Your non-communicative ways cause people to make conclusions that might not be tree about you and your program. And you didn't help yourself a few years ago when you gave a "pep talk" in the locker room.

It was hard for you to believe people didn't fall over themselves to coach your beloved USC. But it's not that good of a job because it's not 1975 anymore. The 85-scholarship limit has made college football an equal-opportunity sport in which schools such as Oregon State and Virginia Tech have BCS dreams.

Also working against USC are substandard facilities-all the way from Heritage Hall to the antiquated weight room. And the L.A. lifestyle isn't tot everyone, especially not for assistant coaches. Housing prices are out of sight, To live in a decent area, coaches must drive an hour to and from work. Their days are long enough as it is.

Oregon State's Dennis Erickson and Oregon's Mike Bellotti are the biggest names who sniffed around the USC job but didn't really pursue it. San Diego Chargers coach Mike Riley would have been a good hire. He served as Oregon State's coach from 1997-98 and was USC's offensive coordinator before that, but he couldn't make up his mind. When he continued to drag his feet, you grabbed Carroll, who was out of work last season.

Contrast that to the job search at Alabama. Marquee names such as Virginia Tech's Frank Beamer and Miami's Butch Davis seriously considered taking the job. In the end, the Tide got TCU coach Dermis Franchione, one of the hottest coaches in the college game.

Dennis Franchione, USC Coach. Would've had a nice ring to it.

Sincerely,

Tom

mad dog · November 22, 2006

wow

In fact, I had to come back and emphasize a few things I saw.

Tom Dienhart column from the Sporting News, January 1, 2001
Carroll's hiring is another mistake for troubled USC

The problem is the college game Carroll doesn't know... I'm talking about things like academic issues, recruiting / and dealing with alumni.

Dennis Franchione, USC Coach. Would've had a nice ring to it.

What's beyond eating crow? Cuz this guy needs to order that, buffet style.

VideoEagle · November 22, 2006

I read that I think I'm completely wrong about the convention wisdom on Todd Dodge - that he need's some 1A experience in this century.

And l look at MTSU who turned everything around in one year.

Of course, then I look at Texas with David McWilliams or NMSU or Idaho now.

If only it was easy to predict!

chomp · November 22, 2006

I once made a similarly stupid comment about a new hire at my alma mater, Florida. When Lon Kruger left our basketball program to coach the Atlanta Hawks, I was angry that our athletic director, instead of hiring the most high profile candidate available for the job, hired some young guy I had never heard of from Marshall (Marshall basketball?) who had no track record as a head coach in a major conference. Of course, that guy turned out to be Billy Donovan who is the single greatest thing to ever happen to Gator basketball. Two lessons from this story:

1. I am an idiot

2. If you trust that your AD will make good decisions, feel confident in whomever is picked.

Arkstfan · November 22, 2006

That is one of the greatest sports columns ever written.

There was nothing wrong with the logic, it just proved that "the logic" only carries you so far.

Last year we had tri-champs in the Sun Belt. One coach had prior I-A head coach experience, one had moved in from being a I-AA and Division II coach, one was an ass't with no head coach experience.

This year the coach of the year will be a guy who had never been a head coach.

The person is more important than the resume.

Flash · November 24, 2006

That is one of the greatest sports columns ever written.
There was nothing wrong with the logic, it just proved that "the logic" only carries you so far.
Last year we had tri-champs in the Sun Belt. One coach had prior I-A head coach experience, one had moved in from being a I-AA and Division II coach, one was an ass't with no head coach experience.
This year the coach of the year will be a guy who had never been a head coach.
The person is more important than the resume.
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Flash · November 24, 2006

That is one of the greatest sports columns ever written.
There was nothing wrong with the logic, it just proved that "the logic" only carries you so far.
Last year we had tri-champs in the Sun Belt. One coach had prior I-A head coach experience, one had moved in from being a I-AA and Division II coach, one was an ass't with no head coach experience.
This year the coach of the year will be a guy who had never been a head coach.
The person is more important than the resume.
←

Remember.............it depends on support of the AD. RV has little experience or none other than UNT. It depends on the material that the former coach has recruited. Lots of factors. Can he recruit? Is there money to do so? Can he raise funds? Can he inspire a fan base. On and On....... The personality of the coach is a big thing. Can he conduct an interview.....a TV show. So many duties that an assistant never dreamed he must do. Walk a mile in a HC's shoes. Quite a job! Can you trust RV with the selection?????????

Monkeypox · November 24, 2006

RV has little experience or none other than UNT.
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NT80 · November 24, 2006

Can you trust RV with the selection?????????
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Why not? Who else at UNT has hired a college football coach or would know what we need?

Flash · November 24, 2006

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You could form a search commitee with U VPs and a couple of big donars. It has been done before with some success.

NT80 · November 24, 2006

You could form a search commitee with U VPs and a couple of big donars. It has been done before with some success.
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Know any U VPs or big donors that are current on coaching bios? A search committee just becomes a popularity contest between who has ever heard of what person, then sticks the AD with their pick to supervise. If RV makes the pick then he is completely responsible for the pick. I trust him to make a good selection (unless they have a SMUt background! ).