Coaching Carousel

[greyhammer90]

Yes.

And to add to the game of telephone, the only reason this is coming up now is because Josh Pate went on Taylor Lewan's podcast and said "watch the Lincoln Riley situation this offseason."

Seems legit

 

[Huntr]

What are they wanting to see if Lance Leipold has a bounce back at Kansas or what Jason Eck does at New Mexico Year 2 first?

I get there are a bunch of openings, but keeping him is just kicking your fans in the teeth.

Same thing if FSU fucks around and keeps Norvell.

 

[KPENN]

Fickell retained for '26

RedditCFB (@redditcfb.com)

Wisconsin coach Luke Fickell to return in 2026, AD says Translated: "This coaching market already has too many teams who will be overpaying, so let's just use this money elsewhere for now."...

bsky.app

View attachment 3061043

Week 1 dub. Sweet

 

[Pete]

Fickell retained for '26

RedditCFB (@redditcfb.com)

Wisconsin coach Luke Fickell to return in 2026, AD says Translated: "This coaching market already has too many teams who will be overpaying, so let's just use this money elsewhere for now."...

bsky.app

View attachment 3061043

Not to surprising. Too many jobs open right now and not enough good names to fill them. If Wiscy would have fired Fick, they’d probably be about 6th in the pecking order behind, Florida, PSU, LSU, Auburn, VaTech, maybe Arkansas and then possibly schools who lose their coach to one of those above.

 

[notredomer23]

I have Clickbait Pate fatigue. A guy has never been elevated to the level he has by speaking so much but saying so little.

 

[zelezo vlk]

I get there are a bunch of openings, but keeping him is just kicking your fans in the teeth.

Same thing if FSU fucks around and keeps Norvell.

Sconny does not invest in their football program. They let Paul Chryst's entire recruiting department get poached by MSU and were bottom 3 if not outright last in spending his last year. They are incredibly stuck in their ways, having extended Fickell because "we always keep coaches at full term contracts", and still aren't really spending. Firing Fickell will not solve their problems.

 

[Jiggafini19Deux]

I've liked Fickell since he was a player. I really wanted him at ND when Kelly left. I'm no fan of Wisconsin, but if anyone is going to survive this crazy 2025-26 carousel purge I'm glad it's him. I hope he turns it around for his own sake.

Honestly, it sounds like he should be looking for a move himself more than anything if they're not backing him with money and resources.

 

[LifelongFan]

Is there any reason to think LSU now is a good job? I'm sure they spend a lot on NIL. Do they spend more than Bama? Texas? Georgia? Auburn? Probably not. So they are at a deficit in the conference and now they have political interference. Why would you take a job where you report so directly to politics?

 

[ab2cmiller]

The only thing I know about Jimmy Sexton is that he’s exactly the kind of guy who would spread info that one of his clients is listening to offers, even if they aren’t really.

 

[Bane]

Sconny does not invest in their football program. They let Paul Chryst's entire recruiting department get poached by MSU and were bottom 3 if not outright last in spending his last year. They are incredibly stuck in their ways, having extended Fickell because "we always keep coaches at full term contracts", and still aren't really spending. Firing Fickell will not solve their problems.

I still cannot believe Fickell parlayed being the belle of the ball after taking a G5 team to the 4 team playoff into the job at Wisconsin. Talk about finding a crown laying in the gutter and pawning it off for beer money.

 

[zelezo vlk]

I still cannot believe Fickell parlayed being the belle of the ball after taking a G5 team to the 4 team playoff into the job at Wisconsin. Talk about finding a crown laying in the gutter and pawning it off for beer money.

I thought it was a mistake at the time as I thought he could set his sights higher than Sconny.

 

[Bane]

I thought it was a mistake at the time as I thought he could set his sights higher than Sconny.

Yeah it seemed bizarre at the time and has gone worse than I could have imagined.

 

[Huntr]

Sconny does not invest in their football program. They let Paul Chryst's entire recruiting department get poached by MSU and were bottom 3 if not outright last in spending his last year. They are incredibly stuck in their ways, having extended Fickell because "we always keep coaches at full term contracts", and still aren't really spending. Firing Fickell will not solve their problems.

Thing is, they're gonna be just as bad next year because their issue largely is investment, as you say.

So, they just gonna keep not firing Fickell while they go 3-9 year after year or will they fire him next year, proving that keeping him was actually pointless?


edit: Their AD had this to say:

"Chancellor [Jennifer] Mnookin and I are aligned on significantly elevating investment in our program to compete at highest level," McIntosh told ESPN. "We are willing to make an investment in infrastructure and staff. As important is our ability to retain and recruit players in a revenue share and NIL era."

I have no idea what that means in terms of Wisconsin spending. Prob need to hear some solid numbers.

 

[Irish du Nord]

PJ Fleck leaving Minnesota for Virginia Tech just seems lateral to me. He's done well with less at Minnesota and I'm sure they are perfectly happy with him. It would seem to me like if he's going to leave, it would be for one of the bigger openings.

Fleck leaving Minnesota for Arkansas screams Bielema to me. We know how that turned out. Bielema ends up right back in the Midwest with Illinois.

I think Fleck has earned being called and considered, but it feels like he has the opportunity to be selective as long as Minnesota is happy with him and he probably wouldn't jump over to jobs like UCLA and Virginia Tech unless they were spending stupid money and making assurances.

VT would definitely be an upgrade in terms of who he could recruit. Probably also an upgrade in fanbase size/level of interest. It’s a push I wouldn’t necessarily make if I’m VT but if I’m Fleck I have to take interest, independent of how comfortable I am at the U of M

 

[BeatSC]

Golden is going to be unemployed. Giving up 41 to the bears

47

He should've been fired for playing him a single snap at all.

There's not a D2 starting QB in Ohio that he's better than.

 

[IRISHDODGER]

I've liked Fickell since he was a player. I really wanted him at ND when Kelly left. I'm no fan of Wisconsin, but if anyone is going to survive this crazy 2025-26 carousel purge I'm glad it's him. I hope he turns it around for his own sake.

Honestly, it sounds like he should be looking for a move himself more than anything if they're not backing him with money and resources.

I think he has to survive b/c if they fire him, WTH are they going to replace him with? Wisconsin would be last in line for the available HC for P4 teams. The demand far outweighs the supply so Wiscy probably knows they’re better off keeping him.

 

[Bluto]

Is there any reason to think LSU now is a good job? I'm sure they spend a lot on NIL. Do they spend more than Bama? Texas? Georgia? Auburn? Probably not. So they are at a deficit in the conference and now they have political interference. Why would you take a job where you report so directly to politics?

I think about 99.9% of the global population would consider a job that pays 100 million guaranteed even if you do a shitty job and get fired in 3-4 years a “good job”.

 

[dublinirish]

Whenever we watch the movie, I remind the wife and kids that "Burt" is really Hugh Freeze.

Same with Moneyball. Jonah Hill = Paul DePodesta.

Speaking of




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[SportsingHard]

VT would definitely be an upgrade in terms of who he could recruit. Probably also an upgrade in fanbase size/level of interest. It’s a push I wouldn’t necessarily make if I’m VT but if I’m Fleck I have to take interest, independent of how comfortable I am at the U of M

Between significant enrollment disparity and Minnesota's monopoly on a state with above-median population, I'm guessing Minnesota has a massive edge in fanbase size, if not interest. Not that Minnesotans don't care about college football, but especially in the Twin Cities, people can concern themselves with a thousand other things when the Gophers aren't hot shit, unlike Appalachian Virginia, where you go rock out to Sandman or you stay home and finger your butthole. VT is closer to fertile recruiting grounds but tends to get outrecruited by Minnesota (on paper) because 30 schools are going to be jumping on any talented Virginia kid. Ultimately, the better job would be determined by NIL budget, and I don't know who wins there.

 

[IrishFanForever23]

Yes.

And to add to the game of telephone, the only reason this is coming up now is because Josh Pate went on Taylor Lewan's podcast and said "watch the Lincoln Riley situation this offseason."

If you sub to ISD, Freeman dropped something similar recently but no one caught onto it until today when he had to point it out. I think this actually has legs to it.

 

[Bane]

I swear some of you are determined to speak Freeman leaving into existence.

 

[SeekNDestroy]

Be gone, Matt Freeman, be gone.

 

[allenm5333]

If you sub to ISD, Freeman dropped something similar recently but no one caught onto it until today when he had to point it out. I think this actually has legs to it.

Wait, Matt is saying Riley could leave or that Marcus Freeman could leave?

 

[BoredIrish]

If you sub to ISD, Freeman dropped something similar recently but no one caught onto it until today when he had to point it out. I think this actually has legs to it.

About Riley or Freeman?

 

[Bane]

Be gone, Matt Freeman, be gone.

That Freeman can leave, yes.

 

[Irish5Saint]

About Riley or Freeman?

Lincoln Riley

 

[zelezo vlk]

Thing is, they're gonna be just as bad next year because their issue largely is investment, as you say.

So, they just gonna keep not firing Fickell while they go 3-9 year after year or will they fire him next year, proving that keeping him was actually pointless?


edit: Their AD had this to say:



I have no idea what that means in terms of Wisconsin spending. Prob need to hear some solid numbers.

They probably need to convince serious candidates that they will actually spend beyond the HC position before wading into the waters. Otherwise as others have already mentioned, they’re likely the least attractive P4 job.

 

[Dale]

Riley seeing this schedule:

@ Indiana
@ Penn State
Ohio State
Oregon
Washington
maybe Notre Dame

 

[stlnd01]

They probably need to convince serious candidates that they will actually spend beyond the HC position before wading into the waters. Otherwise as others have already mentioned, they’re likely the least attractive P4 job.

Or, they aspire to getting back to where they compete for Big 10 titles (or at least, in the modern Big 10, top-four finishes that would put them in the mix for playoff spots), and realize that in this cycle they are unlikely to get someone who is actually better than Fickell, they'd just be changing for the sake of change.
So give him another year, put the buyout money towards NIL, and see what happens. It's not the worst strategy. But they can't keep getting blown out at home.

 

[BrianWalsh]

Between significant enrollment disparity and Minnesota's monopoly on a state with above-median population, I'm guessing Minnesota has a massive edge in fanbase size, if not interest. Not that Minnesotans don't care about college football, but especially in the Twin Cities, people can concern themselves with a thousand other things when the Gophers aren't hot shit, unlike Appalachian Virginia, where you go rock out to Sandman or you stay home and finger your butthole. VT is closer to fertile recruiting grounds but tends to get outrecruited by Minnesota (on paper) because 30 schools are going to be jumping on any talented Virginia kid. Ultimately, the better job would be determined by NIL budget, and I don't know who wins there.

Like what? The call to prayer? Riots? You been to Minneapolis lately?