Shane Burnham

So what happens with Shane when his dad eventually retires? I hope that we find some way to keep him around, because I'm sure Wally is heading south once he hangs 'em up. He'll want to be closer to home and warm weather.

Shane has been one of my favorite coaches on this staff since that first spring. Admittedly, I initially thought he was a "throw in" to get his dad here, but I love his style and I love the way he motivates his guys. In his latest interview he talks about holding the arrival of Pompey and Simon over his guys' heads, letting them know they need to show something this spring before a couple of nice JUCO talents arrive this fall. He's a no-BS kind of guy.

Is Shane DC material? He has experience with the front seven, but he's never coached the secondary. I would think that the most obvious internal candidate for the DC job would be Elliot. Can we keep junior Burnham here with anything less than the DC job?

I guess I assumed that when Wally came he brought his son to groom him into being the DC someday. I think that'll depend on how long Wally sticks around. He still has a lot of fire and those type of guys seem to keep it going for longer than anyone expects. I really thought that Ash was going to be the next guy in, but I guess that didn't work out so who knows.

I agree with the op, but I don't think you can him DC after only 3-4, or however many years til Wally is gone, of div 1 coaching exp. If its like 5-6+ years and Rhoads knows he has what it takes then maybe. Hopefully Wally is here for a few more years and we don't need to worry for a while.

Man, I hope Shane sticks around awhile.

I haven't paid too much attention to them at games, but if you ever watch Shane and Wally at practice they are in each other's hip pocket

Wally appears to be healthy. I am under the impression he will be here long enough to be a mentor for Shane to take over. Plus I highly doubt Wally will stop helping when he retires. We have a one in a lifetime setup here and should do whatever it takes to keep these two loving being here.

Just my opinion, but I think that Wally has 2-3 more years left. At that point, I could see CPR naming Shane and Bobby Elliot co-DC's. Then Shane would get the job by himself in another few years when Bobby retires. Just a guess though.

Why are you worried about it? If the DL makes the quantum leap that I expect it to over the next couple of years, Shane will be fielding offers from other schools long before his dad retires.

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Originally Posted by Aclone

Why are you worried about it? If the DL makes the quantum leap that I expect it to over the next couple of years, Shane will be fielding offers from other schools long before his dad retires.

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Unless his dad is willing to step down or take a a position coach assignment to keep Shane here.

I think at this point theres a plan to keep Shane around after Wally goes, having his dad and Coach Rhoads to learn from should help ease his transition to DC.

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Originally Posted by yaman3

Unless his dad is willing to step down or take a a position coach assignment to keep Shane here.

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I think that perhaps you guys are considering too big a step for a promotion. Shane is currently the defensive tackles coach--not even the entire defensive line. What I meant was that another, more prominent school, could easily offer him more money (and perhaps visibility) than he can get staying in Ames--even for doing the same job. Until CPR gets the program into full gear (both winning and attendance), I don't think he's going to be able to offer the assistants a whole bunch more in the way of pay raises.

I would not have any problem with Shane taking over the coordinator's responsibilities rather than a more experienced coach. Talent trumps experience -- for a couple of examples, look at Brad Stevens and Shaka Smart.

That being said, Wally may be here for awhile.

I think Shane will be next if he wants to stay. Elliott and Wally have different terminology and slightly different philosophies. Shane seems to have the same approach as his dad. We all expect the defense to continue to get better, therefore maintaining the continuity will only help things get better. Elliott also seems to happy being a position coach and helping young kids.

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Originally Posted by Aclone

I think that perhaps you guys are considering too big a step for a promotion. Shane is currently the defensive tackles coach--not even the entire defensive line. What I meant was that another, more prominent school, could easily offer him more money (and perhaps visibility) than he can get staying in Ames--even for doing the same job. Until CPR gets the program into full gear (both winning and attendance), I don't think he's going to be able to offer the assistants a whole bunch more in the way of pay raises.

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So what are you going to do? Are you going to go hire a MAC DC who may or may not know how to coach at the next level or are you going to promote the guy who at worst, is a very fine recruiter (probably our best) and has been around the game all of his life. His father also seems to be a very good DC. He is learning from him as we speak.

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Originally Posted by yaman3

So what are you going to do? Are you going to go hire a MAC DC who may or may not know how to coach at the next level or are you going to promote the guy who at worst, is a very fine recruiter (probably our best) and has been around the game all of his life. His father also seems to be a very good DC. He is learning from him as we speak.

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History says most head coaches go with the proven (at some level) DC, not the position coach.