2019 Coaching Carousel
- Thread starter ForbinsAscynt
- Start date
Likely hire neal brown or luke Fickell. either one would have the potential of being a big upgrade over DH, whose teams were soft.
Neil brown has done an exceptional job at Troy. He almost beat clemson in death valley the year they won the title(lost 30-24), and he beat LSU in baton Rouge, breaking their 46 game win streak against non sec teams. he beat nebraska this year, and had Troy ranked in AP top 25 for first time in their history.
He was also Texas tech's offensive coordinator under tuberville when they upset OU 41-38, for which he got national offensive coor of week. Being at tech, he's familiar with big 12.
Neil brown has done an exceptional job at Troy. He almost beat clemson in death valley the year they won the title(lost 30-24), and he beat LSU in baton Rouge, breaking their 46 game win streak against non sec teams. he beat nebraska this year, and had Troy ranked in AP top 25 for first time in their history.
He was also Texas tech's offensive coordinator under tuberville when they upset OU 41-38, for which he got national offensive coor of week. Being at tech, he's familiar with big 12.
I know I speak for the majority of WVU fans who hope Dana has nothing but success at Houston. He was pushed out by an AD and president who didnt like him and didnt believe in him. DH was solid, averaged 7.6 wins a year over his 8 years at WVU.
WVU fans think(hope) we can do better. I think we saw this year that he just isnt going to win a big 12 title. He had grier, big 12 defensive player of the year, 2 5 star dlinemen(one blocked a fg against you guys for a td), biletnikoff finalist, 1st team all big 12 tackle(1st or 2nd round draft pick). The stars aligned, and he had a team many "experts" thought was a dark horse playoff team.
He was 8-4. Not terrible, but given the talent he had, I think we saw his ceiling. Whoever WVU hires may be worse, but most fans were willing to at least try for someone better. WVU fans dont see a Big 12 title ot at least a second or third place finish an unrealistic expectation once every 5 years. DH had 7.
And with those kinds of expectations and pressure, you'd expect a blue blood like ND to compensate competitively. Per the USA Today 2018 NCAAF Coach Pay page, Brian Kelly was only at $2,129,638 this year (good for 59th).
I think WVU had 10 win talent, but let's say DH got everything he could out of the talent he had.
Who recruits that talent?
DH inherited a team that beat Clemson 70-33 in the orange bowl. That team had geno Smith at qb(still in NFL), stedman bailey(2nd round pick was with rams until shot in head in gang stuff),
2 players taken in 1st 15 picks, Tavon Austin,8th pick) Bruce irvin(15th pick), Geode(still in nfl lb eagles), Keith tandy(safety falcons) and 3 offensive linemen still in NFL.
Also, not drafted, a beast of a rb who ran anyone and everything over in college. Clemson got tired of being run over by him before the half.
So why cant Dh recruit like his predecessors? DH also has alienated all of WVU's big donors, and few give WVU anything(1 reason he needed to go).
DH is a quirky guy. Fans like that from a distance, but he was supposedely very abrasive to people in settings where you mingle with big donors.
Like i said, I liked Dana, hope he does well at houston, but few WVU fans are shedding tears over his departure. The AD wouldn't extend him, Hou offered 5 years 20 million all guaranteed. Plus hou paid WVU 1 million for the buyout. Pretty sweet deal for WVU.
Wait, I thought you just listed all this talent and how “everything came together”? Apparently he was recruiting like his predecessors, if not better.
WVU didn’t underperform this year- although they had a good roster relative to WVU’s past, they didn’t have more than above average P5 talent. DH put together a team that won 8 of 12 games and was competitive in nearly all. A few better bounces or breaks and maybe they’re a 10 win team. WVU can ask for better, but history suggests they’re unlikely to take the next step.
"A few better bounces or breaks and maybe they’re a 10 win team. WVU can ask for better, but history suggests they’re unlikely to take the next step."
WVU just needs the right coach. RRod's last 3 years WVU finished in top 10(top 5 twice), beat UGA SEC champion in Sugar, beat OU 48-28 in the fiesta, and beat ACC 2 in gator).
History shows with right coach it can happen at WVU. Of course RROD bolted for Michigan at the end of that string, and WVU has never recovered that lofty footing.
That may be what you are saying though, any coach who wins the Big 12 title at WVU will have the blue bloods calling, and will be tough to keep.
WVU just needs the right coach. RRod's last 3 years WVU finished in top 10(top 5 twice), beat UGA SEC champion in Sugar, beat OU 48-28 in the fiesta, and beat ACC 2 in gator).
History shows with right coach it can happen at WVU. Of course RROD bolted for Michigan at the end of that string, and WVU has never recovered that lofty footing.
That may be what you are saying though, any coach who wins the Big 12 title at WVU will have the blue bloods calling, and will be tough to keep.
As an Irish fan, I hope he does...because I'm sick of him on Notre Dame's sidelines. I'm tired of him crapping his pants in big games and playing tight in games that should be blowouts. This 12-0 season was the same as Iowa's, against a weak schedule and ended up getting exposed in their bowl game.
Some big bowl wins. You’re Boise St...probably, more like Utah.
DH didn’t underachieve this year, and 8 wins in the regular season is probably better than WVU should expect going forward.
"Some big bowl wins. You’re Boise St...probably, more like Utah.
DH didn’t underachieve this year, and 8 wins in the regular season is probably better than WVU should expect going forward."
WVU is a lot more than Boise State. That's why the big 12 picked WVU over louisville and everyone else and WVU was a finalist along with Mizzou for SEC expansion.
WVU has more than "big bowl wins." It's played for the national title twice after undefeated seasons beating the likes of Penn State and Miami, it gave OU its worst loss ever in Norman, has put a lot of qbs in the NFL, and has been a fixture in the top 25.
SB Nation described the WVU job: "WVU isn’t a blue-blood, but it’s hung out in the same neighborhood as the blue-bloods a handful of times before. With the right talent identification, development, and strategy, that can keep happening. It’s a big lift, but Brown might have the background and talent to do it."
DH was an average coach. That's it. Neil Brown, we hope, may be a great one.
DH didn’t underachieve this year, and 8 wins in the regular season is probably better than WVU should expect going forward."
WVU is a lot more than Boise State. That's why the big 12 picked WVU over louisville and everyone else and WVU was a finalist along with Mizzou for SEC expansion.
WVU has more than "big bowl wins." It's played for the national title twice after undefeated seasons beating the likes of Penn State and Miami, it gave OU its worst loss ever in Norman, has put a lot of qbs in the NFL, and has been a fixture in the top 25.
SB Nation described the WVU job: "WVU isn’t a blue-blood, but it’s hung out in the same neighborhood as the blue-bloods a handful of times before. With the right talent identification, development, and strategy, that can keep happening. It’s a big lift, but Brown might have the background and talent to do it."
DH was an average coach. That's it. Neil Brown, we hope, may be a great one.
Besides Fickell, that's a solid hire. WV could have done worse.
I think Kelly has been quoted before saying it is pretty hard to get some recruits to qualify for ND's academic requirements.
Jets gotta take Campbell's fallback option
Notre Dame's strength of schedule was in the top 15. The gap between Alabama and Clemson, and everybody else is just too great. Unfortunately.
would like to get him out of Baylor at a bad time. He has made a lot of progress, and Baylor is playing a lot tougher. Still as dirty as ever.....
