The rest I agree with, but these pre-determined hires kind of suck. They mean that a team doesn't do a fair evaluation of all the potential prospects out there. The best hire Texas has made in recent memory was Mack Brown and the process was extensive and involved multiple coaches, etc. The beauty of that is that it forces you to dig down and really get to know your candidates instead of picking the big name out there. Back then, these decision ultimately came down to Gary Barnett, the super popular HC at Northwestern, and Mack Brown. People were kind of underwhelmed with the Brown choice, but they made it after multiple interviews with both candidates. Just picking the big name with no interview process is how you end up with Jimbo Fisher.
LOL. My nephew worked for the athletic department back then. Mack brown was seen at school months before Mackovic was fired.
The official process was only 6 days, but Mackovic was "fired" long before he was fired. There was a genuine divide in the administration at the time between Barnett, Brown, and I believe a few others. I can't say when they were doing "unofficial" vs "official" interviews, but the process had a lot of back and forth and the "favorite" changed a few times along the way. It wasn't a pre-determined hire at all. edit: here's a list https://www.upi.com/Archives/1997/12/01/UT-has-short-list-for-coach/3970880952400/ AUSTIN, Texas, Dec. 1 -- University of Texas Athletic Director DeLoss Dodds says he has a 'very short' list of candidates to replace fired coach John Mackovic. Dodds says today he has already contacted several coaches and representatives. He declined to name the candidates but says interviews will begin immediately. Dodds says he hopes to have a new coach by Dec. 12. Speculation has centered on a handful of coaches, with Northwestern's Gary Barnett the apparent front-runner. Other possible candidates include Mack Brown of North Carolina, Bob Simmons of Oklahoma State, Terry Bowden of Auburn, Butch Davis of Miami and Mike Price of Washington State. Meanwhile, Mackovic met today with the UT football team for the first time since he was fired Saturday.
So you hired the dude who coached for you for 3 years under the dude you just fired? This is like saying the Hamburgers at mcdonald's suck so you order a double Hamburger thinking that's gonna fix it.
To be fair, that’s how we came about Charlie Strong but ya I agree. The timelines in the college carousel with conference championships, bowl games, early signing day, and now the portal are big factors in how things are done IMO. That’s what make this part of the year so damn fascinating.
Yep. It sucks. It could work out but it sucks. Jimbo didn't leave them a choice. He checked out. I think his son is dying. His head is not in it. I like what Baylor did. Kept Aranda, making an effort to pay the PLAYERS. The people that actually do stuff. Still thankful its not Stoops. Never been so embarrassed AND proud to be an Aggie (hiring = embarrassed, fan/donor revolt = proud). Lulz. And JK I've been more embarrassed before. Plenty of times. Lulz.
Didn't LSU win a national championship this way? It seems to me if they thought he was a good coach and he left for a promotion, there's nothing wrong with bringing him back. He knows the program, he knows the recruiting, he knows the culture, etc. No reason to avoid ex-coaches just because they worked for Jimbo.
Imagine Elko never left (and the defense played roughly the same). Do you still think hiring him is a good idea, or passable with the fan base? Point is he was there for a decent clip of time quite recently, during which the team performed in such a way as to result in his boss getting **** canned. Bringing this person back just strikes me as not worth the cost it took to dislodge Jimbo.
"Bringing this person back just strikes me as not worth the cost it took to dislodge Jimbo." I agree with this exactly. But, honestly, I'm not sure anyone they brought in would be worth that cost. Elko is a good enough coach, and he will put together a nasty NASTY defense at A&M, but the administration handled this poorly.
Except they were actually reasonably good when he was there, which is what earned Jimbo the extension. 17-9 his first two years; 17-5 his next two. 11-12 after he left.
It depends who the OC is. Any word? We keep the interim coach the players adore. Jimbo HAD to be "dislodged" - he checked out. His head is not in the game. His son is dying and so are his football teams.
I'm not sure where you're getting this take from, but Elko oversaw the best defense we've had in the Jimbo era. It was good enough to get HIMSELF a promotion for a HC gig. Jimbo didn't lose his job until 2 years later. I'm not saying Elko was a homerun hire, but under the circumstances, who actually would have been?? Lanning? DeBoer? Take away Nix and Penix next year, and let's see what they can do then. The reality of college football right now is that UGA and Alabama are operating on a completely different level than anyone else. There's no magic bullet that gets you there, but all you can hope to do is moneywhip the right combination of 18 year olds, get yourself into a position where you've got a good, solid group of upper classmen, hope your QB doesn't **** the bed in big games, and try and catch lightning in a bottle to get yourself into the Top 4. Elko can coach pretty well when given enough talent, and he seemingly has the right temperament and track record to do well with this defense in the SEC. He retained our best recruiter and promoted him to DC. We have a 3rd year QB that's in his make-or-break window starting now, and if we can keep Petrino or bring in an OC that knows how to call plays against SEC defenses, we still have as good a shot at taking down Alabama in the West as anyone.
Alabama rifles money at OC's. That's what we need to do to help Elko. That and pay players. Elko NEEDS the OC help. Jimbo got it but shouldn't need it, that was embarrassing to hire Petrino. Clear sign Jimbo was washed.
Elko seems like a safe hire and I understand the reasoning. I don't see any hot coaches that would excite a fanbase on the free market. But there is one that's recently available that has two championship trophies. Maybe A&M should hire him.
