Tommy Rees - Offensive Coordinator

[rtrn2glory]

When did the last two work with Rees?

 

[dublinirish]

When did the last two work with Rees?

Chargers and former ND GA


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Jiggafini19Deux]

Refresh my memory, but how many guys did Saban go to first before Tommy?

 

[Dale]

Refresh my memory, but how many guys did Saban go to first before Tommy?

anywhere from 0 - 5.

I believe some would say Rees was the only one legitimately offered the job. Some will say Saban contacted Grubb, Moorhead and others first. I think he was the second person to interview, after Grubb, so I would personally call it as second choice.

 

[ab2cmiller]

Refresh my memory, but how many guys did Saban go to first before Tommy?

Possibly 4 others over TR. What's your point? Saban sees a lot in TR to even have him on his list and that says a ton. He's a top 20 OC for sure. He just wasn't ever going to be viewed that way at ND because of his hire being lazy, nepotism, blah blah blah. Yet here we are with Parker as our new OC. Yipee.

 

[Jiggafini19Deux]

Possibly 4 others over TR. What's your point? Saban sees a lot in TR to even have him on his list and that says a ton. He's a top 20 OC for sure. He just wasn't ever going to be viewed that way at ND because of his hire being lazy, nepotism, blah blah blah. Yet here we are with Parker as our new OC. Yipee.

Didn't have one. Asked a question.

On my third cup of coffee, so I'll expound.

Looking at it from a "dominoes" perspective, Alabama hired Rees and he was evidently not their first choice. ND gets Parker instead of Ludwig or Klein. Miami winds up with Shannon Dawson, UGA loses Monken to the League and goes with Bobo again.

All of these hires were handled in their own way, but really in the end it was about a lot of guys staying put (Grubb, Ludwig, Candle, Lewis, Klein, Moorhead) who were rumored and interviewing at this respective openings which caused Alabama, Notre Dame, Miami to go with options that were down their respective lists. UGA probably knew Monken was leaving and had Bobo ready to go. In the end, this portion of the carousel really wasn't what anyone could have possibly predicted and ended up centering around who didn't leave their current positions.

With the two final NFL jobs having been filled earlier this week, there might be a few other ripples, but it was otherwise not a "big" window considering the openings that were available.

 

[NDRock]

Alabama has now hired three of Rees’ old co workers.

McNulty, Whisenhunt and John Aylward

Sure seems Saban possesses ample respect for Rees, as he’s allowed him to surround himself with his guys.

Yeah. They’re not afraid to add as many analysts as needed to succeed.

 

[NDMatt91]

Yeah. They’re not afraid to add as many analysts as needed to succeed.

No clue if it's true, but I've seen posts that schools like Bama and UGA have over 30 analysts. I wonder how many ND has.

 

[Jiggafini19Deux]

No clue if it's true, but I've seen posts that schools like Bama and UGA have over 30 analysts. I wonder how many ND has.

There are militias in the upper Midwest that don't have 30 members.

30 analysts in a college football program is insanity.

 

[TNUtoNotreDame]

Possibly 4 others over TR. What's your point? Saban sees a lot in TR to even have him on his list and that says a ton. He's a top 20 OC for sure. He just wasn't ever going to be viewed that way at ND because of his hire being lazy, nepotism, blah blah blah. Yet here we are with Parker as our new OC. Yipee.

Another nepotism hire! Yea!

 

[dublinirish]

 

[ulukinatme]

Kinda crazy to think 10 years ago he was suiting up for the Irish and playing against Alabama, and now he's one of their highest paid coaches after Saban.

 

[Sea Turtle]

Kinda crazy to think 10 years ago he was suiting up for the Irish and playing against Alabama, and now he's one of their highest paid coaches after Saban.

Welcome to the big time, Tommy.

If you can't beat them, join them.

 

[Irishdrunk]

OMG I bet Swarbrick is relieved.... Rees new salary was disclosed AFTER he signed Parker to his really juicy contract....

 

[forkbeard3777]

The coordinator positions at Alabama are a revolving door — which is truly remarkable given their consistent level of elite success.

Something tells me Rees won’t be there too long, though, and it it won’t be due to Rees being promoted / leaving for a head coaching position somewhere. I just don’t see it working out too well there. However, Golding lasted longer than I (or 9/10 Alabama fans) wanted and expected.

 

[ulukinatme]

The coordinator positions at Alabama are a revolving door — which is truly remarkable given their consistent level of elite success.

Something tells me Rees won’t be there too long, though, and it it won’t be due to Rees being promoted / leaving for a head coaching position somewhere. I just don’t see it working out too well there. However, Golding lasted longer than I (or 9/10 Alabama fans) wanted and expected.

Rees has gotten to the playoffs before with far, far less. Why would he struggle with the best talent available and a stout defense on the other side of the ball? Alabama coordinators are setup for success, not failure.

 

[Bishop2b5]

I think the biggest problem for Tommy at Alabama is going to be living up to the standard and expectations set by Kiffin and Sark. O'Brien wasn't a bad OC, he just wasn't great. After several years of Sark & Kiffin going wild and putting up ridiculous numbers sometimes, anything less seemed pedestrian and unacceptable. I don't think Tommy has to be the next 2020 Sark, but he definitely needs to show he's an improvement over O'Brien. If he does that, he'll be a hero in Tuscaloosa, especially if he helps us win a championship.

 

[Giddyup]

Rees will be back in 10 yrs to be NDs coach.

 

[forkbeard3777]

Rees has gotten to the playoffs before with far, far less. Why would he struggle with the best talent available and a stout defense on the other side of the ball? Alabama coordinators are setup for success, not failure.

How much of the play calling responsibilities were on Rees? I was under the impression that Kelly either predominately called the plays or considerably inhibited Rees’ play calling. Even without Kelly, last year’s offense was … well … insignificant. Sure, the quarterback room was pedestrian, but he was working with an elite offensive line, an impressive tight end, and a stable of quality running backs.

 

[Giddyup]

Rees will be fine. Any idiot can win 10 games with Alabamas O players.

 

[Giddyup]

They sure did back up the Brinks for him. He’ll have to be the highest paid assistant in CFB.

 

[stlnd01]

How much of the play calling responsibilities were on Rees? I was under the impression that Kelly either predominately called the plays or considerably inhibited Rees’ play calling. Even without Kelly, last year’s offense was … well … insignificant. Sure, the quarterback room was pedestrian, but he was working with an elite offensive line, an impressive tight end, and a stable of quality running backs.

Rees is a very good play caller and designer of offenses. Dude got nine wins out of Drew Pyne. His weakness is in recruiting, but that will be less of a concern at Bama.
I suspect he’ll do just fine and be on to something bigger in three years (NFL OC or P5 head coach). If that wasn’t the goal he’d have stayed at Notre Dame.

 

[irishog77]

I think the biggest problem for Tommy at Alabama is going to be living up to the standard and expectations set by Kiffin and Sark. O'Brien wasn't a bad OC, he just wasn't great. After several years of Sark & Kiffin going wild and putting up ridiculous numbers sometimes, anything less seemed pedestrian and unacceptable. I don't think Tommy has to be the next 2020 Sark, but he definitely needs to show he's an improvement over O'Brien. If he does that, he'll be a hero in Tuscaloosa, especially if he helps us win a championship.

Wasn’t Locksley before Sark and the first one that started putting up big numbers as OC with Tua?
I thought Joey Freshwater was merely “ok” as OC and even on a lower level than BoB.
Saban and others seemed to not mind him leaving, even a few days before the Natty.

 

[ulukinatme]

How much of the play calling responsibilities were on Rees? I was under the impression that Kelly either predominately called the plays or considerably inhibited Rees’ play calling. Even without Kelly, last year’s offense was … well … insignificant. Sure, the quarterback room was pedestrian, but he was working with an elite offensive line, an impressive tight end, and a stable of quality running backs.

It was also a young offense, and young players make mistakes. Estime had fumble problems early in the season. Merriweather struggled with the playbook early and didn't see much time as a result. Big Fish had a bit of a Sophomore slump in the early part of the season. Buchner certainly had his struggles even when he was healthy. There's a lot of talent there, and yes teams can be successful with a few young starters, but it's hard to be incredibly successful when over half your starters are underclassmen and one is a backup QB with limitations.

 

[Bishop2b5]

Wasn’t Locksley before Sark and the first one that started putting up big numbers as OC with Tua?
I thought Joey Freshwater was merely “ok” as OC and even on a lower level than BoB.
Saban and others seemed to not mind him leaving, even a few days before the Natty.

Locksley did pretty well and was well-liked by the fans. Joey F gets a lot of love for bringing Saban and the Bama O into the modern era. He generally did a very good job running the offense. He had a few dumb moments that set Saban off, but overall, he was a whiz at dialing up plays. His exit just before the Natty was because of lack of focus and time. He had taken the FAU job and was trying to put together a staff, recruit, and etc., and it showed. He did a poor job in the semifinal game and Saban invited him to go ahead and move on, replacing him at OC for the game with Sark.

 

[Irishdrunk]

I bet Saban bet some guy $1 at his Country Club that he could win a Natty with the worst OC in the country…..

 

[Irish#1]

How much of the play calling responsibilities were on Rees? I was under the impression that Kelly either predominately called the plays or considerably inhibited Rees’ play calling. Even without Kelly, last year’s offense was … well … insignificant. Sure, the quarterback room was pedestrian, but he was working with an elite offensive line, an impressive tight end, and a stable of quality running backs.

Doesn't matter how much talent you surround a QB with if the QB isn't good. He's the straw that stirs the drink. NFL teams are loaded with the best talent, but struggle because of their QB. Tommy had some question marks, but last years problems were primarily with the QB.

 

[forkbeard3777]

Doesn't matter how much talent you surround a QB with if the QB isn't good. He's the straw that stirs the drink. NFL teams are loaded with the best talent, but struggle because of their QB. Tommy had some question marks, but last years problems were primarily with the QB.

You can still win (see mainly LSU under Les Miles), and Notre Dame did win 9 games, but I absolutely agree with you. Quarterback is undoubtedly the most important position, and Notre Dame didn’t have an adequate one last year. Buchner may turn out to be a pretty good quarterback, but it was evident that he needed more time. Sitting behind Sam Hartman, gaining meaningful reps with the WRs, learning the (new) playbook, and continuing to learn, study, and dissect defense may be just what he needs. Further, hopefully Notre Dame is able to really lay it on to some its lesser opponents (Navy, Tennessee State, Central Michigan, etc.) so that Buchner can receive meaningful snaps in the second half.

Circling back to Rees, my point was simply that Rees (and the quarterback room) still had a lot of positives going in their favor. Did they have a Rocket Ismail or Tim Brown out there to assist? No, but the offensive line was elite, the running back had raw talent and notable depth, and you have a top-3 tight end that acted as a great possession receiver.

That said, looking at the end-of-year statistics, Notre Dame finished:

— 60th in total offense;
— 42nd in scoring;
— Right around 100th in passing offense;
— 35th in rushing; and
— Right around 50th in first downs.

Basically, nothing was good. The passing game was abysmal, which, in effect, hampered the running game (defenses stacking the line and daring Notre Dame to throw). I hate to rag on the guys, but maybe Pyne and Buchner were simply that bad. Saban, the prick, knows more than all of us combined, so he must be onto something…Rees won't have Bryce Young to work with though.

 

[Huntr]

woof

 

[IrishBoognish]

yeeps