Giving Cubit a 2-year contract before the end of the season was the height of stupidity. They should have cut Cubit and Mike Thomas after the season, hired a new AD and then chosen a coach. The main problem now is the timing puts the program in a very tough spot. But this new AD decided he couldn't deal with a full season of Cubit. It could be this is the first step to putting out the dumpster fire. It better be because the new AD just painted a giant target on his own back his first official day on the job.
The optics are terrible when you consider how much of a mess the Illinois athletic department has been lately, and the fact that Cubit took over the program about 15 minutes ago, but moving on from him is the right thing to do for the program's long-term success. Sure, keeping Cubit was a safe move, and while his ceiling as a head coach isn't all that high, his floor was pretty high. You knew the team wasn't going to be a complete disaster. But that's about all you could say about it. The two-year contract he was given was going to undermine his and his staff's recruiting efforts, and recruiting to Illinois is difficult as it is. He also wasn't ever going to be a long-term answer, even if he had had some success right away. Should the Illinois AD Josh Whitman have allowed Cubit to speak with his players before the news because public? Probably. Did Cubit get a bit of a raw deal? Perhaps. But it was a silly move for him to be hired as the full-time coach to begin with, and even if it's awkward, this is a move that's best for the Illinois program.
If Lovie can play the recruiting and schmooze alumi roles well enough, this is a slam dunk move by the new AD. Just wow!
We will see. I am skeptical that he will put in the effort needed and I also question his long term ability to pick coaches/recruiters. I can guarantee you that his unemployed sons are about to get jobs. Lovie is a well known name, and players like him. It is worth the risk for the AD but time will tell.
