Coaching Carousel

[NDRock]

It's an interesting question. For elite programs, G5 guys like Norvell and Napier have not worked out, while big-program coordinators like Lanning and Freeman obviously have. But worth noting that right now today, the three hottest stories in coaching took three different paths to their jobs:

Cignetti: successful G5 coach
Lea: Coordinator at a major P4
Brent Key: Internal promotion

So, there are many paths to glory.

The one thing I was concerned about when we hired Kelly, was his lack of experience at a big time program. He had success in the lower divisions but was he going to miss things because he had never seen first hand what a winning, big time program looked like from the inside. No idea if that lack of experience mattered at all but I would be weary of hiring a guy who had only coached as lower programs.

It's still a crapshoot. I would go after defensive minded coaches, who had coached at big time programs in some capacity. Even narrowing it down to that, I have no idea why Kirby Smart has been wildly successful while Will Muschamp has flamed out twice. They both seemed very similar as candidates.

 

[Dale]

PSU should probably hire Chesney if they wanted to hire Cignetti but they won’t

 

[Jiggafini19Deux]

PSU should probably hire Chesney if they wanted to hire Cignetti but they won’t

I like Chesney. I think he will do well if the right opportunity and timing afford itself.

 

[Irish du Nord]

From everything I'm hearing, Arkansas is going to make James Franklin say no - and they're going to throw Wal-Mart money at him to make that difficult.

Very interesting, Petrino isn’t already lined up there?

 

[Jiggafini19Deux]

This might be a dumb question, but what would Kiffen be able to accomplish at Florida that he can’t at Ole Miss? It feels lateral to me but I guess easier to recruit the state of FL?

Recruiting is a big part of it, yes. On top of that, Spurrier and Meyer won National Championships there. Ole Miss doesn't have that kind of lore in their history. Kiffin recruited Florida when he was with SC and did the time at FAU for his rehab stint. He knows the landscape pretty well by now for as long as he's been around.

He's likely taken Ole Miss about as far as they can go. He's reconciled with the wife, who is a Florida alum, so it all kind of adds up together. Kiffin gives them the aura they've been missing since Lord Florida and The Visor were there.

The games against Tennessee alone would make this outstanding.

 

[Irish#1]

Keep winning and going to the CFP and those no pressure, low expectation fans will become relentless like they are with basketball. IU has an absolute shit ton of billionaire money backing their athletics right now. They are dead serious about fixing the basketball program and are more than pleased with where Cig has the football program. The fans response to losing on the grid iron will soon mimic the bball court if Cig starts going 6-6, 7-5, hell even 8-4....after back to back years in the playoff race.

You could be right, but I'm not sure myself. We're comparing apples and oranges. IUBB has a storied history and the fans have been unhappy and restless. I could be wrong, but if IU slips back to 6-6, I think fans will be more like, "well it was fun while it lasted". The boosters pumping the money in may see it differently.

 

[Katzenboyer]

Very interesting, Petrino isn’t already lined up there?

I think that Petrino knows his only shot at getting a HC gig is with Arkansas - and Arkansas knows it, too.

Feels like the plan is to pursue bigger fish and if all that fails, they'll give the reins back to Bobby P.

 

[Irish#1]

From everything I'm hearing, Arkansas is going to make James Franklin say no - and they're going to throw Wal-Mart money at him to make that difficult.

That's worth noting. I don't remember where I read it, but not that long ago I read that the Walton family doesn't like spending money on athletics. Anyone else remember that? Is Tyson ready to support both FB & BB?

 

[SportsingHard]

That's worth noting. I don't remember where I read it, but not that long ago I read that the Walton family doesn't like spending money on athletics. Anyone else remember that? Is Tyson ready to support both FB & BB?

I believe the Mizzou end of the Walton family supports sports, but the Arkansas end does not.

 

[dublinirish]

Tyson Foods give Arkansas athletics money too right

 

[Dale]

From Split Zone Duo, I believe the Walton family donates quite a bit to the school but not the athletic department. They have their pro sports teams, same for Jerry Jones. The Tyson money is specifically for Calipari.

So the football team is not as flush with cash as you would think, of course could change if motivated to do so.

 

[dublinirish]

wasnt there a faction of boosters too that only paid into the program when Malzahn was in charge? I remember there was some politics going there around that time

 

[BleedBlueGold]

You could be right, but I'm not sure myself. We're comparing apples and oranges. IUBB has a storied history and the fans have been unhappy and restless. I could be wrong, but if IU slips back to 6-6, I think fans will be more like, "well it was fun while it lasted". The boosters pumping the money in may see it differently.

True. Probably important to keep the two differentiated.

 

[Bane]

This might be a dumb question, but what would Kiffen be able to accomplish at Florida that he can’t at Ole Miss? It feels lateral to me but I guess easier to recruit the state of FL?

The talent he could consistently get there could take him over the top. Florida is coming off it's literal worst coach maybe of all time in terms of record and accomplishments, but they still recruit extremely well. Not to mention UF athletic department has deep pockets. The problems at UF are coaching, not talent. With good coaching UF would in the thick of the hunt this year.

I'll say this, UGA fans absolutely do not want Lane to UF.

 

[dublinirish]

The talent he could consistently get there could take him over the top. Florida is coming off it's literal worst coach maybe of all time in terms of record and accomplishments, but they still recruit extremely well. Not to mention UF athletic department has deep pockets. The problems at UF are coaching, not talent. With good coaching UF would in the thick of the hunt this year.

I'll say this, UGA fans absolutely do not want Lane to UF.

would UF give Lane more than Ole Miss can give him in terms of support/recruiting? It never seems like there is much to seperate SEC schools they all have the same culture, same footprints with the exception of Vandy and the smaller programs like MSU

 

[zelezo vlk]

would UF give Lane more than Ole Miss can give him in terms of support/recruiting? It never seems like there is much to seperate SEC schools they all have the same culture, same footprints with the exception of Vandy and the smaller programs like MSU

I thought one road block for Ole Miss keeping Kiffin last time was they can only offer 4 year contracts to state employees? If Florida breaks open the vault big time, I struggle to see how the Rebs can match

 

[stlnd01]

would UF give Lane more than Ole Miss can give him in terms of support/recruiting? It never seems like there is much to seperate SEC schools they all have the same culture, same footprints with the exception of Vandy and the smaller programs like MSU

Really? I feel like the SEC has definite tiers:

Bama, Texas, Georgia are the true elites
LSU, Oklahoma, A&M, Tennessee and Florida are programs aspire to win titles (national or SEC)
Ole Miss, South Carolina, Mizzou and Auburn aim to compete for at-large spots in the expanded CFP.
Kentucky, Miss. State, Arkansas are glad to cash the TV checks and chant "S-E-C" when Georgia's playing Ohio State for a natty.
Vandy's kind of its own thing.

Right now, Ole Miss is the class of Tier Three while Florida is the worst of Tier Two, so the gap appears small. But that's largely due to coaching. With the right hire, Florida can jump to the top of Tier Two, while if Kiffin leaves, Ole Miss probably falls back to Auburnland.

 

[SportsingHard]

Really? I feel like the SEC has definite tiers:

Bama, Texas, Georgia are the true elites
LSU, Oklahoma, A&M, Tennessee and Florida are programs aspire to win titles (national or SEC)
Ole Miss, South Carolina, Mizzou and Auburn aim to compete for at-large spots in the expanded CFP.
Kentucky, Miss. State, Arkansas are glad to cash the TV checks and chant "S-E-C" when Georgia's playing Ohio State for a natty.
Vandy's kind of its own thing.

Right now, Ole Miss is the class of Tier Three while Florida is the worst of Tier Two, so the gap appears small. But that's largely due to coaching. With the right hire, Florida can jump to the top of Tier Two, while if Kiffin leaves, Ole Miss probably falls back to Auburnland.

Texas AP rankings since 2009:
UR, UR, 19, UR, UR, UR, UR, UR, 9, 25, 19, UR, 25, 3, 4, 22

'23 and '24 were nice.

Georgia since '17:
2, 7, 1, 7, 1, 1, 4, 6, 5

Meanwhile, Bama has a #17 finish and a '25 loss to a team whose next best win is Kent State since Saban left.

When it comes to programs, I look at the SEC and see Georgia and a bunch of feisty competitors.

 

[Bluto]

PSU should probably hire Chesney if they wanted to hire Cignetti but they won’t

Kenny Chesney?

 

[Dale]

Texas AP rankings since 2009:
UR, UR, 19, UR, UR, UR, UR, UR, 9, 25, 19, UR, 25, 3, 4, 22

'23 and '24 were nice.

Georgia since '17:
2, 7, 1, 7, 1, 1, 4, 6, 5

Meanwhile, Bama has a #17 finish and a '25 loss to a team whose next best win is Kent State since Saban left.

When it comes to programs, I look at the SEC and see Georgia and a bunch of feisty competitors.

What does Texas between 2009 - Tom Herman have to do with their current status? Texas no doubt is in whatever top tier of SEC, wherever that line gets drawn.

 

[stlnd01]

Texas AP rankings since 2009:
UR, UR, 19, UR, UR, UR, UR, UR, 9, 25, 19, UR, 25, 3, 4, 22

'23 and '24 were nice.

Georgia since '17:
2, 7, 1, 7, 1, 1, 4, 6, 5

Meanwhile, Bama has a #17 finish and a '25 loss to a team whose next best win is Kent State since Saban left.

When it comes to programs, I look at the SEC and see Georgia and a bunch of feisty competitors.

Even elite programs have good eras and less-good eras (do you recall 1997-2010 for us?).
But when it comes to resources and expectations, Alabama and Texas are both in the top ~eight programs in the sport. I don't really see how that's debatable even for an eager debater like you.

 

[SportsingHard]

Even elite programs have good eras and less-good eras (do you recall 1997-2010 for us?).
But when it comes to resources and expectations, Alabama and Texas are both in the top ~eight programs in the sport. I don't really see how that's debatable even for an eager debater like you.

I certainly didn't mean to imply anything about expectations, nor do I find them particularly relevant. Resources are certainly relevant, though I'm not entirely clear on the resource rankings in the NIL era. What I'm pointing to is your first sentence. I expect a fluid situation in the SEC and across CFB. Georgia and Bama have been exceptions where SEC fluidity is concerned, but Daddy's gone from Alabama, and we all know that's not a trivial fact.

 

[ulukinatme]

Kenny Chesney?

I was thinking this in the back of my mind. He coaches college too?! What can't that man do?

 

[ulukinatme]

I think that Petrino knows his only shot at getting a HC gig is with Arkansas - and Arkansas knows it, too.

Feels like the plan is to pursue bigger fish and if all that fails, they'll give the reins back to Bobby P.

It's inevitable. They've already moved past the past making him OC

 

[SportsingHard]

What does Texas between 2009 - Tom Herman have to do with their current status? Texas no doubt is in whatever top tier of SEC, wherever that line gets drawn.

It all depends on what you're grading on. In terms of ancient history, Texas is up there. In terms of two of the past 16 years, Texas is up there. They simply haven't been anything like Georgia or Saban's Bama.

Basically, all I'm saying is, in addition to Georgia and Bama, I will be completely unsurprised if LSU, Tennessee, Florida, Texas A&M, Mississippi, Mizzou, Auburn, Oklahoma, or other SEC team outperforms Texas over the next decade. Same can be said for Texas Tech out of conference.

 

[TorontoGold]

It all depends on what you're grading on. In terms of ancient history, Texas is up there. In terms of two of the past 16 years, Texas is up there. They simply haven't been anything like Georgia or Saban's Bama.

Basically, all I'm saying is, in addition to Georgia and Bama, I will be completely unsurprised if LSU, Tennessee, Florida, Texas A&M, Mississippi, Mizzou, Auburn, Oklahoma, or other SEC team outperforms Texas over the next decade. Same can be said for Texas Tech out of conference.

You wouldn’t be surprised to see Tennessee, Mizzou, Auburn, Mississippi, or any other SEC team outperforming Texas? That is some serious stuff you’re using. Texas has the resources and proximity to talent that none of those other programs have.

They would have to step on their dick royally to not have more success than most of the SEC.

Before you say “ya but look at pre-Sark!” they didn’t just step on their dick they reversed a car over it.

 

[SportsingHard]

You wouldn’t be surprised to see Tennessee, Mizzou, Auburn, Mississippi, or any other SEC team outperforming Texas? That is some serious stuff you’re using. Texas has the resources and proximity to talent that none of those other programs have.

They would have to step on their dick royally to not have more success than most of the SEC.

Before you say “ya but look at pre-Sark!” they didn’t just step on their dick they reversed a car over it.

We need not look at Texas without Sark. We can just look at Sark. He's performed well in 2 of 12 seasons as a head coach. And no, "any other SEC team" is your phrase, not mine.

This is extremely simple. Sark-Texas might fair well in any given SEC season. They might not. People who assume they're going to be Kirby-Georgia or Saban-Bama are silly people.

 

[Jeffwantpoppers]

Maybe it’s growing up in the 90’s but Florida is just as much of an elite job as UGA

 

[Dale]

We need not look at Texas without Sark. We can just look at Sark. He's performed well in 2 of 12 seasons as a head coach. And no, "any other SEC team" is your phrase, not mine.

This is extremely simple. Sark-Texas might fair well in any given SEC season. They might not. People who assume they're going to be Kirby-Georgia or Saban-Bama are silly people.

What does Sark at USC have to do with Texas? You’re just kinda saying things, including odd goal posts and parameters. Texas is in the top tier of SEC jobs. No question about it.

 

[Dale]

I found something interesting from the Cover 3 podcast, apparently Florida high school coaching is in the toilet because they don’t get paid. So you still have a ton of raw athletes but guys are not hitting at nearly the same rate as they used to. A ton of poorly coached prospects (IMG aside) and multi high school guys. Georgia meanwhile is full of well oiled high school football programs. Given that shift, that is why Georgia as a job I would have a bit over Florida.