Sorry squirrel food. Wasn’t at the game. Never posted that I was.
Try stronger meds in the future.
STOOP'S is the Best Coach for Kentucky.
- Thread starter mellowe4
- Start date
Try stronger meds in the future.
5-7 obtainable coaches that can not just win 10 games at UK but do better? Name them
"At least not anyone we can hire" ... until we do. Then what say you? History is littered with absolute guarantees of impossible results ... until it happens.
Dude it won't matter if Stoops fires Scangerello and hires another OC, it will still be the same stone age slow paced low scoring ball control offense. The guy has had 5 OC's and we've had essentially the same problem with all 5, that would be Stoops handcuffing them to run the ball control he so loves to keep his avg Defense off the field.
I get the frustration. We just lost at home to Vandy and this year has been a disappointment but Stoops has earned some leeway. IF we beat Louisville this season is not a total disappointment. I’m with you though, unless they pull a miracle and beat UGA there’s no way to feel “good” about this season.
And I can guarantee you that you can't teach your grandma how to do it. And as a grandpa for several decades I can guarantee that if you could teach her how she wouldn't be able to block the first one.
It's an honor just being nominated...😎Nominated for a “Postie”
Well no one wants to have to settle for mediocre. But it’s a valid point that it could absolutely be worse. People have this fantasy-like approach that means making a change will bring instant glory. Programs like Kentucky don’t become great overnight and they don’t land high profile coaches easily. We aren’t LSU.
I want to be rah rah and super ambitious just like everyone else. But you really gotta step back and look really hard at what’s in front of you. For anyone who follows MMA, chael sonnen has a quote that I will never forget. It can be applied to most decision making situations. In our case when you’re talking about making all these changes you better be damn sure you know what you’re doing
“They'll tell you failure is not an option. That is ridiculous, failure is always an option. Failure is the most readily available option at all times. But it's a choice. You can choose to fail or you can choose to succeed”.
Chael Sonnen
It's not that you fail ... it's how you respond to a failure. If you accept failure, then and only then, do you lose. Failures are the path to winning if your response to that failure is to learn and improve. Too many around this program have accepted the failures of the past and too easily rationalize losing. The fans need to demand better without becoming unreasonable in that demand.
Tennessee finally got a coach. Florida will not be down forever, too many resources and the administration will keep looking until they find their man. USCjr is better, Vandy is better, Mizzou is recruiting better, not sure if Drinkwitz is the guy to get them there though. 'Yes', the East is improving, is UK? That is the question.
CMS has improved our program to be sure. However, he has to keep adapting, overcoming obstacles, and improving.
Bottom Line: We've taken a step back this year.
To improve requires self-assessment and adjustment by the HC and potentially the AD.
Can CMS adjust? Time will tell.
IF SO, we should see:
IF NOT, we should see:
GBB!
Bottom Line: We've taken a step back this year.
- Programs are usually improving or declining.
- Holding serve at a modest quantity of wins is more rare and not helpful for a team seeking championship quality CFB.
- Either way, improving programs get the recruits that are required for taking the desired "next step" that we seek.
To improve requires self-assessment and adjustment by the HC and potentially the AD.
Can CMS adjust? Time will tell.
IF SO, we should see:
- some movement on the OC/OL coaching side....either replacement of staff and/or retooling of the entire scheme. (Bama, Ole Miss, UT, USC (trojans), Wake Forest, LSU (Burrow year) have all made dramatic changes in their historical offenses recently to achieve greater success)
- an immediate addressing of one-third of the game....special teams....where we have fallen into disfunction. An unreliable PAT game is a terrible indicator.
- addition or infusion of staff members who can recruit (Marrow can't do it all).
- a tweak of the defense to get more pressure on opposing QBs rather than standard 3-4 man rush with a reliance on our DBs/LBs to deliver coverage pressure and occasional sacks. Elite opposing QBs must be pressured periodically.
- NIL employed as a functional enabler to our retention and recruitment efforts. It doesn't replace good recruiting and development, but it can certainly help or hinder our efforts based on our implementation.
IF NOT, we should see:
- AD consideration on leaping from what may be a CMS plateau of 7-10 wins per season to a coach who can take a Stoops-improved program to the next level. (UGA's shift from HC Richt to HC Kirby Smart is instructive here)
- and this should occur BEFORE we allow the program to slide to sub-.500; (4+ win) FB. This is to have a solid program to "sell" to good coaching candidates.
- NOTE: A Rich Brooks -to- Joker Phillips type of drop-off must be avoided at all costs. We would have had a fair chance at a better post-Brooks HC hire had we not engaged in the AD's HCIW scheme.
GBB!
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This. Plus, I wonder how much of what he's done has been the stars aligning versus actual coaching ability and team building.
He's been pretty fortunate in regards to having a 12th game (cupcake), not having to play any P5 opponents out of conference other than louisville, a down Louisville, and a down SEC east. Not to mention, he's had the most support, by far, of any UK coach ever as far as resources and money behind football.
He already turned down better jobs and will turn down better jobs still. Plus no way in hell Mitch would ever hire him.
As an Iowa Hawkeye guy, I can relate almost identically to Kentucky's situation. Your program resembles Iowa. It's on solid footing. They will win 9 games often--not 11 or 12, but 9-- with the occasional 10 year season.
You are very strong defensively while the offense tends to always struggle. That's Iowa-- has been Iowa for years.
Stoops and Ferentz at Iowa are molded identically.
At Iowa we must understand we'll never be Ohio State or Michigan; and an equal number of years we aren't Penn State either.
Like Iowa, you don't have a lot of in-state studs. And when we have one, we have another Power 5 in-state school to compete with in Iowa State while you do in Louisville. Therefore, most of your recruited kids must come from out-of-state. That's not easy.
You have a damn good coach. The reason you care a lot now is because Stoops has taken you to this level. Again, you don't want the guy there's many places that would love him....including me at Iowa if Ferentz is gone and someday he will be.
You are very strong defensively while the offense tends to always struggle. That's Iowa-- has been Iowa for years.
Stoops and Ferentz at Iowa are molded identically.
At Iowa we must understand we'll never be Ohio State or Michigan; and an equal number of years we aren't Penn State either.
Like Iowa, you don't have a lot of in-state studs. And when we have one, we have another Power 5 in-state school to compete with in Iowa State while you do in Louisville. Therefore, most of your recruited kids must come from out-of-state. That's not easy.
You have a damn good coach. The reason you care a lot now is because Stoops has taken you to this level. Again, you don't want the guy there's many places that would love him....including me at Iowa if Ferentz is gone and someday he will be.
There are zero doubts in my mind you could plug in Summeral today and he’d be able to match what Stoops has done. He’s a great coach with a lot of upside. And honestly? I’d think he’d be way more flexible on offense than Stoops rigid, 80’s Big Ten philosophy and gameplan which seems to always just revolve around “well we’re just going to be tougher than the other team and hope we pull it out in the end”.
But that’s not who you call if you want to take this program to the next level that a lot of us believe it can be.
You swing for the fences and call Kiffin and offer him a blank check and total control of the football program. When he says no (and he will)
Sonny Dykes
Hugh Freeze
Luke Fickell.
There’s the list.
But we don’t have the vision and leadership on the AD office to get that done unfortunately. It’s going to take a new leader to take Kentucky Football to the next level.
So no I’m going to sit here and clutch my pearls and go “oh no! Stoops can’t leave! He’s the best coach ever!!!! What will we ever do without him!?”
Go ask TCU fans today if they should have kept the architect of TCU football Gary Patterson around.
great post, but Mitch will wait until we’re only winning our 3 cupcakes and the stands are empty before moving on. Look at Mingione, he’s been here about 4 years too long
He’s right though. It’s a tough pill for us all to swallow. But it’s true. No sense in hiding from the truth
I completely agree with you can't be fearful of change at any point. But that's very different than taking a guy like Stoops, who has built the program to where it is today, and throw him to the curb as you suggest and automatically expect you're going to get a better hire.
Guess what? If your AD did that, many coaches would steer AWAY from UK because they respect the great job Mark has done there and if he can be easily disposed of they fear what would happen to them in no time.
For the record, Sonny Dykes isn't leaving for Lexington. He's got just as good of a job now and much greater/fertile recruiting territory in his back yard. In line for a huge salary bump too.
Fickell has had chances to go to places with a better/more upside than UK and turned them down....so he's not going to Lexington. As for Hugh Freeze, he's not going to be hired back into the SEC most likely.
As for Lane Kiffin, see what I said about Fickell. And with all due respect, if he ever does want to leave Ol' Miss, he'll have better opportunities than UK and he knows that.
So now who?
Really love the Minnesota HC PJ Fleck. Theirs only 14 about to be 16 HC’s in the SEC by far the best conference and football in the country.
I like Mike Houston at ECU (100-48 overall as HC at four schools).
Tremendous team improvement track record by the second year at historically challenged Lenoir Rhyne (conference championships/playoffs) and The Citadel (conference championship in year 2, playoffs, beat SoCar w/FCS team).
Won a FCS National Championship at James Madison University in year one, made the playoffs all three years at JMU, and won the CAA conference two out of three years.
It has taken him a little longer at ECU than his previous schools, but he has ECU bowl eligible (two years running in year-4). On offense: Has morphed from Triple option guru at LR and Citadel to RPO/spread at JMU and ECU. All his teams have a snoot full of attitude on defense. He develops a notoriously tough edge with his teams and can motivate like a monster (decidedly smaller SoCon Citadel absolutely out-hit South Carolina in 2015 winning that game 23-22).....Pre-game fire-the-team-up speech is linked.
GBB!
Tremendous team improvement track record by the second year at historically challenged Lenoir Rhyne (conference championships/playoffs) and The Citadel (conference championship in year 2, playoffs, beat SoCar w/FCS team).
Won a FCS National Championship at James Madison University in year one, made the playoffs all three years at JMU, and won the CAA conference two out of three years.
It has taken him a little longer at ECU than his previous schools, but he has ECU bowl eligible (two years running in year-4). On offense: Has morphed from Triple option guru at LR and Citadel to RPO/spread at JMU and ECU. All his teams have a snoot full of attitude on defense. He develops a notoriously tough edge with his teams and can motivate like a monster (decidedly smaller SoCon Citadel absolutely out-hit South Carolina in 2015 winning that game 23-22).....Pre-game fire-the-team-up speech is linked.
GBB!
No disrespect Rucker but just because you typed it doesn’t make it true. You have to offer people to see where they stand. If u never tried then change would never occur. Stoops is stale and there are many schools hoping we don’t ever get a better staff here. I am sure Mitch has a list and Fickell might be my first call but I don’t know too many college coaches. Nothing ventured nothing gained.
I agree nothing ventured nothing gained but if you don't get it right you're f---ed. And based on what I read on these oards seems as if many really don't care for your current AD. If that's the case, you want him making the next hire?
A lot of quality Coaches would be interested in the job……. Barney probably should hire an outside firm not sure I trust him to make the right hire by himself.
What else do you know about Fleck? We know about him very well in the Big 10. "Row the boat" dude who has clearly helped Minnesota get better, but his bite has yet has to live up to his bark. You either love PJ or you hate him and that comes from his own fan base too.
5 most important things Fleck has learned as a HC.
1 Never sacrifice what you really want for what you want right now.
2 Have to pay the price of change
3 If you know (What) you can be a worker, if you know (Why) and (How) you can be a leader
4 If your job doesn’t scare you then it is not the right job
5 Be you
Are our expectations too high? Was starting to think we could compete and win the SEC East but is it possible to overtake the perennial powerhouses in our conference without having the history and prestige behind us?
Our starting 11 on each side of the ball can compete in the league but not the next 5 to 6 up.. we experience 1 injury and there’s no one that’s truly got next.
Look at the $ that’s being thrown around in the SEC. We don’t have that type of backing and support. The reality is we are probably right where we should be in the pecking order. Hate to say it and really frustrated that I am, but Stoops has probably maxed us out and has us right where we should be..we’ll have really good years historically speaking but always land back around where we are now.
Our starting 11 on each side of the ball can compete in the league but not the next 5 to 6 up.. we experience 1 injury and there’s no one that’s truly got next.
Look at the $ that’s being thrown around in the SEC. We don’t have that type of backing and support. The reality is we are probably right where we should be in the pecking order. Hate to say it and really frustrated that I am, but Stoops has probably maxed us out and has us right where we should be..we’ll have really good years historically speaking but always land back around where we are now.
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