Al Golden

[Dale]

Tyler Santucci is a name, but he coaches LBs and isn’t someone you just say he’s a DC only like Golden

 

[IrishFanForever23]

Tyler Santucci is a name

Meh, no thanks.

 

[Ndaccountant]

If we are dreaming, Anthony Weaver.

 

[notredomer23]

What about Tyler Stockton?

He does currently coach safeties 👀

 

[NDMatt91]

Are there any dline ace recruiters that could fit? I feel like between Freeman and Mickens we have the second and third levels locked down.

Nick Eason, currently the DT coach at Clemson. He went into Alabama and took Peter Woods and TJ Parker from Bama and Auburn. He has also gotten DL from Georgia and the Carolinas. Coached in the NFL for 8 years and is in his 3rd year at Clemson. He's a Clemson grad, but he isn't their DL coach. He coaches DT's and they have another coach for DE's. Give him a raise and have him take control of the entire DL, not just the DT's.

 

[IRISHDODGER]

Al has been great. I do wonder though the involvement that Mickens has on coverage schemes. The reason the defense has worked so well is due to coverage. Curious how much of that was Al driven versus Mick and Freeman.

Golden has stated than Mickens has called some coverages

 

[IrishLion]

Kerry struggled as a DC, however, his passion for coaching and teaching is incredible. He's also a tremendous recruiter. DB coaching is his niche.

I love Kerry Coombs as much as any Bearcat should…

But there’s no room for him on the ND staff, even if there are multiple departures. He’s just not good enough as a coach, and his recruiting chops are pretty Cincinnati-centric. Not gonna help ND in that regard.

 

[Irish#1]

I love Kerry Coombs as much as any Bearcat should…

But there’s no room for him on the ND staff, even if there are multiple departures. He’s just not good enough as a coach, and his recruiting chops are pretty Cincinnati-centric. Not gonna help ND in that regard.

Listen to him. This man knows his Cincinnati Chili and Bearcats.

 

[IrishSteelhead]

Related but side question:

Is any and every assistant under a head coach part of their coaching tree regardless of length of stay or circumstance for the pairing?

Like is Tommy Rees part of Freeman’s coaching tree since he was an assistant under him? Or is it strictly a mentor/mentee type relationship that qualifies it?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Irishokie]

I’d say Rees is a member of the BK tree

 

[BeatSC]

I’d say Rees is a member of the BK tree

Are they still on speaking terms?

 

[stlnd01]

Related but side question:

Is any and every assistant under a head coach part of their coaching tree regardless of length of stay or circumstance for the pairing?

Like is Tommy Rees part of Freeman’s coaching tree since he was an assistant under him? Or is it strictly a mentor/mentee type relationship that qualifies it?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

It's such an itinerant profession. I think in most cases coaches are identified with the head coach they came up/spent the most time with.

Like, Denbrock is of the Kelly tree, even though he also worked under Fickell. While Freeman is of the Fickell tree, even though he also worked under Kelly. Rees is clearly Kelly, though he may eventually become identified with someone else over time (though the NFL seems less tree-oriented than college where head coaches move up the ladder and take their assistants with them). Freeman basically inherited Rees, and then they parted ways a year later. Likewise Rees isn't of Saban's tree, despite spending a year with him, while, say, Kirby Smart who Saban hired to coach three different football teams, clearly is.

 

[SeekNDestroy]

It's such an itinerant profession. I think in most cases coaches are identified with the head coach they came up/spent the most time with.

Like, Denbrock is of the Kelly tree, even though he also worked under Fickell. While Freeman is of the Fickell tree, even though he also worked under Kelly. Rees is clearly Kelly, though he may eventually become identified with someone else over time (though the NFL seems less tree-oriented than college where head coaches move up the ladder and take their assistants with them). Freeman basically inherited Rees, and then they parted ways a year later. Likewise Rees isn't of Saban's tree, despite spending a year with him, while, say, Kirby Smart who Saban hired to coach three different football teams, clearly is.

Denbrock is part of the Willingham tree (gasp!)

 

[Bane]

Denbrock is part of the Willingham tree (gasp!)

Live look at the Willingham tree.

 

[BeatSC]

As long as we got rid of Parker who is why we missed the playoffs last year. Horrible OC.

 

[Jiggafini19Deux]

The replacement is on the staff...Mickens.

Like Mike Elston before him.

Yep. Got it.

 

[Jiggafini19Deux]

I love Kerry Coombs as much as any Bearcat should…

But there’s no room for him on the ND staff, even if there are multiple departures. He’s just not good enough as a coach, and his recruiting chops are pretty Cincinnati-centric. Not gonna help ND in that regard.

Other than two years with the Tennessee Titans, he's only coached in the state of Ohio. Not interested.

So far it's basically the short list I'd expect. Mickens at the top and a bunch of former ND alums who were players.

I'm curious to see what they do.

 

[irish4ever]

The replacement is on the staff...Mickens.

I agree. I'd like to see Mickens be promoted to DC and then search for and acquire the damn best DB coach/recruiter they can find.

 

[stlnd01]

Other than two years with the Tennessee Titans, he's only coached in the state of Ohio. Not interested.

So far it's basically the short list I'd expect. Mickens at the top and a bunch of former ND alums who were players.

I'm curious to see what they do.

So far it's basically just message board posters spitballing though, right?

With what we're paying Golden, and the talent/culture in the program right now, I would think we could practically have our pick of college DCs. Maybe that's Mickens, for all the reasons. But if it's not, Freeman should shop around. I wouldn't just default to a guy because he played for Notre Dame 15 years ago (I don't mean that as a knock on Tyler Stockton, who looks like an up-and-comer, but we should have a lot of options and I think the model of very experienced coordinators has worked well under Freeman.)

 

[Pennick44]

Like Mike Elston before him.

Yep. Got it.

What does Mike Elston have to do with this?

 

[NDRock]

What does Mike Elston have to do with this?

I think a lot of people were calling for Elston to be promoted to DC. Essentially, the replacement is on the staff…Elston.

 

[Irish du Nord]

Live look at the Willingham tree.

Is that tree also on a golf course?

 

[IrishTusker]

Does Golden have a buyout that applies to the NFL? If so, will ND make the Bungles pay it? It was so nice of ND not to make LSU pay, lol.

 

[Jiggafini19Deux]

What does Mike Elston have to do with this?

I think a lot of people were calling for Elston to be promoted to DC. Essentially, the replacement is on the staff…Elston.

Exactly.

The program wouldn't have been able to afford to lose him. Here we are.

I like Mike Elston. I like Mike Mickens. I just don't like promoting them solely on the basis of their recruiting prowess and their ability to coach a position on the defense.

Instead of Elston, we got the LB Coach of the AFC Champion Bengals who was once the HC at Miami. Nobody saw it coming. Cast the net and make the best choice. If that's Mickens, fine. If there is another Al Golden out there, don't miss out.

 

[IrishLax]

Exactly.

The program wouldn't have been able to afford to lose him. Here we are.

I like Mike Elston. I like Mike Mickens. I just don't like promoting them solely on the basis of their recruiting prowess and their ability to coach a position on the defense.

Instead of Elston, we got the LB Coach of the AFC Champion Bengals who was once the HC at Miami. Nobody saw it coming. Cast the net and make the best choice. If that's Mickens, fine. If there is another Al Golden out there, don't miss out.

The counterpoint to this is look at what Kelly did with Clark Lea and building continuity. Clark Lea had a much thinner resume than Mickens, etc. Everything I have heard is that they have been grooming Mickens to take over in this eventuality and it's so that they can keep running the same systems with the same guys using the same terminology.

 

[stlnd01]

The counterpoint to this is look at what Kelly did with Clark Lea and building continuity. Clark Lea had a much thinner resume than Mickens, etc. Everything I have heard is that they have been grooming Mickens to take over in this eventuality and it's so that they can keep running the same systems with the same guys using the same terminology.

There is certainly an argument to be made for not overhauling defensive systems, especially when we have this much talent returning.
I was just going to post in the Sneed thread that it’s hard to know what he’ll do transfer-wise w/out knowing who our DC will be and what sort of scheme he’d run. For instance.
But, again, we could probably hire almost anyone we want right now.

 

[NDRock]

The counterpoint to this is look at what Kelly did with Clark Lea and building continuity. Clark Lea had a much thinner resume than Mickens, etc. Everything I have heard is that they have been grooming Mickens to take over in this eventuality and it's so that they can keep running the same systems with the same guys using the same terminology.

Isn’t the difference that Al is running Freeman’s defensive philosophy? Kinda like what Kelly did on the offensive side. I assume whoever gets hired there will be continuity just based on Freeman being a defensive guy.

 

[IrishLax]

Isn’t the difference that Al is running Freeman’s defensive philosophy? Kinda like what Kelly did on the offensive side. I assume whoever gets hired there will be continuity just based on Freeman being a defensive guy.

I've actually heard that Freeman basically gave Golden total carte blanche and let him do whatever the heck he wanted. Which is also why it worked out so well... few people understand or appreciate the art of empowering an assistant.

Ironically, the guy Freeman got in his business the most was Rees because he fundamentally didn't believe in what he was doing with the personnel he had to work with. Which also isn't surprising given how ND started the season, especially the Marshall loss.

 

[NDRock]

I've actually heard that Freeman basically gave Golden total carte blanche and let him do whatever the heck he wanted. Which is also why it worked out so well... few people understand or appreciate the art of empowering an assistant.

Ironically, the guy Freeman got in his business the most was Rees because he fundamentally didn't believe in what he was doing with the personnel he had to work with. Which also isn't surprising given how ND started the season, especially the Marshall loss.

Gotcha. I was just thinking back to when he got hired and they looking back at this thread where Sampson reported:

“Freeman wanted experience in the role, something that was noticeably absent in Notre Dame’s Fiesta Bowl collapse against Oklahoma State. But a willingness to run the head coach’s scheme was non-negotiable.”

Obviously, that probably changed as he worked more and more with Golden.

 

[Domina Nostra]

The counterpoint to this is look at what Kelly did with Clark Lea and building continuity. Clark Lea had a much thinner resume than Mickens, etc. Everything I have heard is that they have been grooming Mickens to take over in this eventuality and it's so that they can keep running the same systems with the same guys using the same terminology.

Yes. And I get the "calling defenses" aspect, but there is also a real phenomenon of NFL-style coaches who brings a "schematic advantage" but don't know how to develop teenagers. In college, I personally think fundamentals and development are equally, if not more important, on defense (offense is a different story).

What was so wild about this Golden defense is that the kids seemed to both develop fundamentally and play really complicated schemes.

Under Mickens, the backend of the defense is so much more consistent and formidable than it has been for ages. That is not just a Freeman-era all-ships-rising thing. (Some positions, for example TE and WR, have not taken anything like a step forward.) ND's backfield went from a consistent weakness--always a couple studs playing with a few duds--to a real strength. Mickens seems to understand defense and communicate it at a fundamental level better than most coaches. He also seems excellent at evaluating talent. Those things are not nothing.