State Secrets

[FlourBluffHorn]

Maybe there is a silent search going on for a new coach..

 

[UTHWE]

We are not going to be looking for a coach. I just hope we bring in the best assistants possible and not some more good old boy buddies of the coach. Without major assistant coaching changes, Herman is on a very short leash and our 2020 season will likely be another gut rentriching disaster. More excuse about this, that and the other, another Big 12 Championship for OU. Riley probably hopes we keep Herman forever. Herman's record is already 1-3 against OU with little light at the end of the tunnel that is a train headed directly at us. Unless major changes are made at the end of the season in regard to assistant coaches, this time next year we will be 1-4 against our major opponent under Herman.

 

[Belldozer1]

Well, if gonna try for Franklin or Rule or Isu or Utah coach, nows the time before USC gets one of them...just a thought..lol, I think USC gonna be hunting one of them soon..

'https://www.yahoo.com/sports/heres-...er-us-cs-new-athletic-director-005947134.html

Having a distinct upgrade lined up is foggy in this marketplace. Landing the next tier of candidates – Baylor’s Matt Rhule, Utah’s Kyle Whittingham or Iowa State’s Matt Campbell – would also require an onerous buyout and deft maneuvering. Plus, a lot more cash for their bigger salaries and inevitably bigger staffs.

The more than $20 million cost represents both what it would take to buy out Helton’s contract and the rest of the Trojan staff. The Helton contract was one of the worst administrative decisions in modern college athletics, as former athletic director Lynn Swann bid against himself to keep Helton and guarantee a large swath of that contract through 2023. None of the USC athletic department lifers were savvy enough to stop him, as they’ve been around for USC hiring three straight lemons – Helton, Steve Sarkisian and Lane Kiffin – and have watched a Cadillac job turn into a Corolla.

As if having to ponder sending $20 million to the scene of “Cast Away” isn’t vexing enough for Bohn, here’s the backdrop surrounding his decision. There’s a president, Carol Folt, who loves Helton for his stability, calm and professionalism in a program that desperately needed it. That’s refreshing for Folt on a campus department besieged by waves of scandal. Losing games in football is far from USC’s biggest institutional issue.

It was interesting to hear another high-profile athletic director volunteer on Tuesday night that they’d keep Helton through next season if thrust into the same situation. Without time to properly diagnose issues in the program and come up with solutions, firing him would bring the risk of diminishing returns.

There’s conflict everywhere Bohn turns. There’s a loyal fan base that’s largely checked out while waiting to see who’ll replace Helton. There’s also a talented program, especially freshman quarterback Kedon Slovis, that could be framed as having a strong base of talent for the future.

Conversely, there are recurring issues that reflect poorly on the coaching staff – special teams incompetence, defensive inconsistencies and a lack of discipline that’s led to USC ranking No. 109 in penalties. Hey, that’s better than being ranked No. 120 last year. Would firing defensive coordinator Clancy Pendergast and special teams coach John Baxter be enough? Or would the fans protest with empty seats?

The messy contractual situation with Helton is indicative of what happens when you hire consecutive unqualified athletic directors who turn out to be wholly incompetent. USC hired former stars Pat Haden in 2010 and Swann in 2016 because they had letterman’s jackets, not credentials. The suffering in the wake of those felonious hires transcends the federal investigations that followed them. Did either Haden or Swann really know what a cutting-edge football program was supposed to look like? Unlikely, as neither spent a day working in an athletic department. That’s a decade of atrophy that Bohn needs to address, as USC regressed while Alabama, Oregon and Ohio State all stayed on the cutting edge.

With the $20 million decision in mind, it’s important to remember that Bohn isn’t going to make it solo. After all, he’s coming to a university that’s been so inundated with controversy that the optics of any move will be weighed considerably.

Folt took over a campus plagued by scandal back when she was hired in March. Her charge at USC has been to help heal a campus scarred by a sexual assault scandal tied to a campus gynecologist and a former medical school dean who admitted to frequent methamphetamine use.

Amid the backdrop of all the dueling USC scandals – the federal basketball investigation, Operation Varsity Blues and the campus scandals – there’s a sense that USC is going to proceed with caution moving forward on Helton. USC could still fire Helton this year, but it won’t happen at noon on Sunday. (Losing to UCLA, of course, could reinforce the notion that change needs to happen.)

All the reasons to fire Helton are still there. He’s proven he’s not a national championship-level coach, he’s massively underachieved the past two seasons and USC’s recruiting is untenable for a program that aspires to win championships. (While this is a small class for USC of only a dozen or so players, they’ve whiffed on nearly every top West Coast player and have the same average per-player ranking as Duke, Indiana and Cal.)

But can Bohn glance around for two weeks and throw away $20 million? The football decision whether or not to fire Clay Helton appears easy. The reality involves a suitcase of cash, dueling scandals and attempting to fix issues that haven’t been diagnosed.

Excellent write up as always FB

 

[FlourBluffHorn]

Excellent write up as always FB

Ya never know Bell!

 

[FlourBluffHorn]

We are not going to be looking for a coach. I just hope we bring in the best assistants possible and not some more good old boy buddies of the coach. Without major assistant coaching changes, Herman is on a very short leash and our 2020 season will likely be another gut rentriching disaster. More excuse about this, that and the other, another Big 12 Championship for OU. Riley probably hopes we keep Herman forever. Herman's record is already 1-3 against OU with little light at the end of the tunnel that is a train headed directly at us. Unless major changes are made at the end of the season in regard to assistant coaches, this time next year we will be 1-4 against our major opponent under Herman.

You could be right!

 

[FlourBluffHorn]

I could give a shit either way as me and Stranger still gonna watch us lose or maybe win and drink Shiner reg..lol Its turned to Hermanville over nite on here...LOL

 

[FlourBluffHorn]

I just hope we bring in the best assistants possible and not some more good old boy buddies of the coach.

Coaches Assts are only as good as the Coach as he;s the one that picked them..

 

[Belldozer1]

Now I has the confuse? Was the name of this thread changed and what happened to the first post I responded to?

 

[FlourBluffHorn]

Now I has the confuse? Was the name of this thread changed and what happened to the first post I responded to?

You didn't post on this thread, you must be drinking too much tonite bell, get ya shit together!

 

[MiccoMacey]

Can’t see it. This year has tanked, possibly way beyond what anyone could have thought, especially if they lose to Baylor and drop their fifth game. There’s really no sugar coating this season if that happens.

But he DOES have several great recruiting classes under his belt, with future classes looking just as good.

Before the higher ups even thought about getting rid of Herman, they’d tell him to change assistants first. Give him time to re-right his ship. He’s earned that at least.

 

[4MNChampsHorn]

Can’t see it. This year has tanked, possibly way beyond what anyone could have thought, especially if they lose to Baylor and drop their fifth game. There’s really no sugar coating this season if that happens.

But he DOES have several great recruiting classes under his belt, with future classes looking just as good.

Before the higher ups even thought about getting rid of Herman, they’d tell him to change assistants first. Give him time to re-right his ship. He’s earned that at least.

TH was stupid to bring Beck here. He failed at Nebraska. TH has proven poor at evaluating coaching talent thus far. I have little faith that TH will have some miraculous revelation if he were to replace the current assistants.

 

[MiccoMacey]

That may be true 4MN, but I’d be willing to bet your AD will at least give the only coach Texas has had in 10 years to win 10 games that chance.

 

[4MNChampsHorn]

That may be true 4MN, but I’d be willing to bet your AD will at least give the only coach Texas has had in 10 years to win 10 games that chance.

I wonder how many new head coaches Texas has hired over the past 50 years, that were not performing up to expectations after year 3, replaced a coordinator and some position coaches, and went on to win the B12 (conference championship)? Or got fired anyway?

I am asking does the data support replacing assistants as the cure or are we delaying the inevitable? I don’t know the answer, but given some time with Google, I could find out.

 

[4MNChampsHorn]

That would include the following head coaches of UT:
Darryl Royal (No losing seasons at Texas)
Fred Akers (left after a losing season at Texas)
David McWilliams (left after a losing season at Texas)
John Mackovic (left after a losing season at Texas)
Mack Brown (left 3 years after a losing season at Texas)
Charlie Strong (left after 3 consecutive losing seasons at Texas)
Tom Herman (No losing seasons at Texas)

 

[FlourBluffHorn]

That may be true 4MN, but I’d be willing to bet your AD will at least give the only coach Texas has had in 10 years to win 10 games that chance.

Damn Micco, we gonna have to make you a mascot like Bell!

 

[4MNChampsHorn]

It appears that a modern UT head football coach must suffer a losing season before being shown the door; or, resign on his own.

 

[MiccoMacey]

I calls’em like I sees’em Flour!

And 4MN, you may be right that it may just be delaying the inevitable. Great OCs and DCs don’t just grow on trees. But they are out there to find.