Not only no to Brad White, but hell no.
Curt Cignetti V Jon Sumrall v Someone else
- Thread starter CatJustice
- Start date
He'll be the hire. Quick, painless, and no thinking required from Barnhart.
And, a BW hire would be applauded by the "UK can never win in the SEC" crowd.
MB and several UK football "fans" love status quo with UK football .
Yep! It's so maddening hear UK fans say ''we can never compete'', why are you watching then? VT fans said the same before Beamer. Kansas state before Snyder, etc.
Kansas State had a cumulative record of 299–510 (.370) in 93 years of play, which was easily the most losses of any team in Division I-A at the time. The school had been to only one bowl game (the 1982 Independence Bowl), had not won a conference title since 1934 and had enjoyed four winning seasons in the previous 54 years (including two in the previous 34 years). The program also had not won a game since October 26, 1986, going 0–26–1 in that time.
It just takes one coach.
Yes!! Just one.
But, it has to be the right one.
It can be done.......even at Kentucky.!!
Ingram has been known about for awhile, he is someone we are recruiting hard along with UK and Vandy as his current top 3, with officials to Michigan and South Carolina also planned.
We need a new President, New AD before anyone is allowed to hire a football coach. Neither of those guys give a shvt about football. They are blinded with a second level sport, basketball. They have lost sight that basketball barely pays it's own way. Football supports the entire athletic budget. We will NEVER be a football school as long as our leaders think basketball is king. Actually basketball is a minor sport at most schools in the SEC. These are the schools we compete against in football. LSU, FL, AL, SC, GA, TN, AR, MS, MS ST, AU, TX, and OK might want to win but none of them put basketball as a priority. Now Vandy won't. We need to say hell with basketball if it is the reason our leaders will not go all in in football and save a wasted $9 million a year on a loser and cancel our football program. I have supported UK football since 1968. I'm done because our University don't. It is all basketball. Duke, Kansas, UNC all support football much more than UK. It is a sad time with UK leaders being so short sighted. Our fan base really supports basketball because they feel like that is the only winner we have. If our football program were to get competitive with TX, AL, LSU,and TN year in year out, basketball would not be such a big deal. WE can put 21,000 in Rupp and 60,000+ in Kroger. More people will be willing to support NIL if we would get serious.
Well, I don’t have a lot of pull, but if the opportunity arises, I’ll personally work my arse off to get Sumrall hired.
I might be wrong, but if absolutely necessary, I think I can get in direct touch with a major voice or two that Barnhart would listen to in making his decision.
Given the ease of quick transfers, the likelihood that Sumrall could haul talent from his current gig, and his charismatic recruiting ability to hold onto current commits, his hiring would be an opportunity to exorcise the demons of Coach selection follies of the past . . . like taking “Five Down Fran” over Jerry Claiborne in 1971/72, totally passing on Chollie Mac in the 60’s, and totally ignoring Howard Schnellenberger, post-Curci.
Like those three UK graduates who were passed over in their prime, Jon Sumrall graduated from UK and Wants to be HERE.
He would not likely look elsewhere, as we are SEC and have the resources to bid against all but the Texas schools.
You might hate Barnhart, and I’m no friend of his, but you far underestimate his understanding of football and commitment to it.
Early on, he came within an eyelash of luring the Big Tuna (who acknowledged his tentative acceptance of the job in a later book) and hired two of our better football coaches the last 60 years.
And I’m hardly a big roundball fan: I’ve watched fewer basketball games on TV than I have attended Kentucky Bowl games in Florida since 2016. I was offered tickets in the eighth row of Rupp by a very affluent friend last year: I thanked her for her generosity, but suggested she find someone who really gave a damn about basketball.
I learned a lot about Mitch Barnhart and his family in the wee hours of the morning after we beat Florida in Gainesville in 2018.
About 150 folks showed up to greet the team at Blue Grass, gathering at midnight.
It was 2:00 am when the plane arrived. A very tall young couple was there with two “small” boys, all wearing UK football jerseys. Mom looked like a blonde model at at least six feet tall, and Dad was at least 6’ 4”. The kids were like 6 and 8 years old, but were tall for their ages.
I told Mom she had two tight ends for kids. She laughed and said she had one tight end and one nasty Offensive Guard.
I “hunted and pecked around” which player they were there to greet, and Mom volunteered she was Mitch Barnhart’s daughter. We talked for maybe 30 minutes. When the players came by in the bus, the young family and assorted fans got to see Kash Daniel give all of us the finger from inside the bus . . . he’s a tad nuts.
Anyhow, I firmly believe Mitch Barnhart is the only AD in my 61 years who has truly given a damn about football, has found a way to build hundreds of millions of dollars worth of new and improved facilities, and is now paying a winning (though faltering) head Football Coach Top Ten money, slightly exceeding Cal’s last salary and dwarfing the salary of Mark Pope.
But Mitch MUST give respect to UK basketball, as it is a major tradition, here, and is quite profitable. When Coach Pope was introduced, they could have likely filled Kroger for his first press conference as there were thousands (I am told) who did not get into Rupp for the event.
And now having been a part of the “extended family” of UK football since the 1980’s, while basketball is still a major part of the UK draw, the old boy basketball stranglehold that existed 40 years ago has slowly been loosened by Mitch Barnhart, who was willing to step on the toes of many privileged persons who siphoned off of UK for decades, and were closely associated with decades of basketball shenanigans.
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You’ve been a fan since 1968 and you think this is the administration that doesn’t support football? Never in UK’s history have more resources been put into football.
Last year, we had the 2nd highest paid coordinator combo in college football, the 8th highest paid coach in college football, and the highest paid trio of assistant coaches in college football.
In the past 10 years, they did a $140 million renovation to Commonwealth, built a $45 million football facility, put $5 million into the Nutter Fieldhouse and then did an additional $12 million upgrade at Commonwealth.
Our issue is not investment in the program by the current administration.
Glad to get an Ingram visit but it's probably the longest of longshots UK could sign him. Don't see him getting away from GA if they really push for him.
I think he may feel a little slighted by UGA. UGA has been all in on 2 other DT for years. He is from near Athens but far from a pro UGA area, so not as strong as a connection as you might think. Having Vandy mixed in there makes me feel they may be a bigger player than many think. UGA and UK have good academics but Vandy is on a different level, he may be one where academics is his top priority.
All of those bad hires and missed opportunities are exactly the reason we have the football history (misery) that UK fans have had to endure for a lifetime.
All because of passing over UK alums who were dieing to coach their Alma Mater who were better coaches than the AD hired at the time.
Great post. Only the long time die hard UK fans know the real truth about the status of UK football in the SEC and why we are the laughingstock of the other schools in the SEC when it comes to our football program.
Time to change that narrative.
Bingo.
This is when you know it is time for a change in your coaching staff, starting with the CEO.
When the university makes the necessary investments in the football program needed to compete with the top schools in the conference, including HC salary and staff pay, and you are floundering at the bottom of the conference, and trending down over a 3 year span, the AD must take the necessary steps to get the program turned back in the right direction.
CMS is not the coach to make that happen. Time for a change at the top.
Sumrall, although he's a defensive guy, somehow doesn't seem to stifle offensive productivity. His Tulane team is averaging 42 ppg and giving up 21. His Troy teams averaged around 30ppg and gave up 17. Stoops is the same age as me and I don't see him changing anything about his coaching style. Saban was smart enough to change his mindset, but he's the GOAT. We're going to miss on Sumrall if we wait too much longer.
Billy D would have taken the job and everyone knows it. Hoping Pope works out but Billy was best available, you can't argue otherwise. Pope was Mitch's guy though. I agree that the only person Mitch will talk to is Sumrall which is a mistake. You have to interview several guys, this is a business, not a good ole boys convention.
Per Matt Jones Brad White is at the top of the list... turrible
That was reported yesterday, why delay your predictable outrage 24 hours?
I didn't get that from what he said yesterday. I got that if this year was a success and Stoops left, that Brad White was probably going to be the guy. But since it's not successful, who knows if that is still the case.
It will be interesting to see if Mike Bobo starts to pop back up radars.
He’s always been one of the best assistants/coordinators I think. From recruiting to development within is offense and execution/performance on game day. He’s put up a lot of production and points. The list of guys he’s coached and help put in the NFL is long.
Didn’t work out first go around as HC at CSU but I think it may be time for another go. Sark and Kif among others had bumps…now look at them.
He could be a uga and co-pilot lifer and not want to be head man. If this gig did open I’m not saying he’s number 1, but it would be malpractice not to call and have a talk.
He’s always been one of the best assistants/coordinators I think. From recruiting to development within is offense and execution/performance on game day. He’s put up a lot of production and points. The list of guys he’s coached and help put in the NFL is long.
Didn’t work out first go around as HC at CSU but I think it may be time for another go. Sark and Kif among others had bumps…now look at them.
He could be a uga and co-pilot lifer and not want to be head man. If this gig did open I’m not saying he’s number 1, but it would be malpractice not to call and have a talk.
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Those modest numbers for Tulane’s defense this season are strongly affected by having front-loaded their schedule with K-State and Oklahoma, both of whom defeated Tulane in very competitive games.
His scoring defense at Troy at 17 was a darn good result, again, given that they played P4/5 teams that clearly outclassed Troy in both depth and talent.
Am I misreading this or are you seriously talking about him being a possible replacement for Stoops? He got the job because he is Kirby's best friend and most of the UGA fanbase would be pleased.
I don’t disagree. I wanted to wait on Billy. At the time I had posted that I’d be willing to sacrifice a garbage roster in year one for the name brand, home run hire to fuel national perception, believing it would ultimately pay off in year 2-7.
But I understand the hesitation since it’s the same AD who was left standing on prom night twice by him when he thought it was in the bag. IF it happened again, our coaching situation could have got real ugly…especially with the timeline to put a roster and staff together. Hindsight, Pope has re-energized the fanbase, put what should be a year 1 competitive team on the court, solid year 2 recruiting class taking shape, and made it about this state, fanbase, and programs place historically again…all those things were needed to heal some of the culture. Plus if he can get an E8 average (our historical marker for a successful season based on average finish), we are set up for longevity instead of another coaching search in 5 years due to age. If he isn’t successful, we are hiring a new coach in 3-5 years anyways.
Nope, not misreading it.
Not necessarily saying he's the guy. Just throwing it out there as a general inquiry. I mean he's not necessarily the craziest name I've heard tossed around coaching carousel discussions whether it's for this gig or others. He's only 50, has a decent resume. Again, not even sure if he wants to be HC. He's got a good gig going right now on the gravy train.
He may have gotten the gig because he's boys with Kirby, but I'd say he's doing pretty good. I'll take his offenses, skill talent, and production under Richt plus what he's doing now with Kirby.
I hope e8, that being said pope has never won a tournament game i believe.. correct me if I'm wrong
I posted it after I read it. While managing multiple career/personal responsibilities I sometimes find it difficult to catch every tidbit of info as soon as it comes out. My apologies.
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He is just so predictable, he scripts his plays, the issue it's the same every game. I don't know if the Colorado St. job scratched the itch to be a head coach or not. Things would have to go south bad for Kirby to make a change but very few fans are happy with him. He was fired from his 3 previous jobs, name isn't a hot commodity right now.
I hate the "you'll never compete in the SEC at UK" because while we're pissing down our leg right now, this is one of those years where the league is in flux. Alabama was bound to take a step or two back and hopefully will be in a good but not great cycle for several years, Georgia is the king for now but this is the least imposing of their teams in maybe 5 years, UT, LSU, A&M are good but not elite. Ole Miss is a mirror in some ways of UK, on paper say they're almost there and show flashes but after awhile it becomes they are what they've always been. Texas is ok but Georgia gave them an intro to what the SEC is like, their schedule up to this point has been soft. If we had our $hit together like a 2018 or 2021 we would be in the hunt for a playoff spot instead of absolutely nothing right now.
I know yall want Sumrall but after researching Cignetti I want him more. The guy has won big everywhere he goes and turns around programs in his first years. His wiki is kinda crazy. What he’s done at IU is mindblowing. IU not trailing a single second the entire year is insane.
If he was 50, I’d agree that he would be a great candidate. He’s going to be 64. I just feel like Sumrall, if successful, would be here a long time. I’m just not sure bringing in a guy for 5 years and potentially missing out on the long term solution is the way to go.
Unfortunately for us, Will Stein will probably get hired before something changes here. Timeline isn't going to match up.
Would agree he is next up. Great story. Young dude first OC gig and absolutely a big reason why Oregon is back and doing what they're doing under Lanning.
Their DC is nice too and will probably get some calls this offseason as well. I'm just kind of done with DCs. I think Lanning and Kirby are last of the Mohicans.
Ole dude at Navy is interesting. First gig but looking like a guy to keep an eye. Defensive guy, so he's not at the top of my list, but we'll see.
I'm always curious as to why Monken at Army doesn't get more attention during carousel season. He's kind of like Cignetti, Deboer, Brian Kelly. Dude has built 2 winning programs.
Would agree he is next up. Great story. Young dude first OC gig and absolutely a big reason why Oregon is back and doing what they're doing under Lanning.
Their DC is nice too and will probably get some calls this offseason as well. I'm just kind of done with DCs. I think Lanning and Kirby are last of the Mohicans.
Ole dude at Navy is interesting. First gig but looking like a guy to keep an eye. Defensive guy, so he's not at the top of my list, but we'll see.
I'm always curious as to why Monken at Army doesn't get more attention during carousel season. He's kind of like Cignetti, Deboer, Brian Kelly. Dude has built 2 winning programs.
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I think that just goes back to the fact it’s a total crap shoot. Sone guys succeed, some don’t. If UK was to make a coaching change in the next couple of years and they don’t go for a proven P4 winner, then Sumrall is near or at the top of the list of P4 coordinators and G5 coaches.
Let’s hope Stoops is wanted by someone after the season then timing would be perfect
The poll is stupidity. There is no world where the Indiana coach leaves for UK.
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