ADVERTISEMENT

A few names for discussion...

1) Matt Campbell from Toledo
2) Justin Fuente from Memphis
3) Matt Rhule from Temple (I knew Matt and talked to him when he was an asst and RC at Western Carolina from 2002-05. All out baller baby and would motivate our team to run through glass!)
4) Dino Babers from Bowling Green
5) PJ Fleck from Western Michigan

All 5 would be excellent hires. Young and hungry! We don't need another legend or some SEC assistant. GO COCKS!
 
  • Like
Reactions: BigBlueCatNation
1) Matt Campbell from Toledo
2) Justin Fuente from Memphis
3) Matt Rhule from Temple (I knew Matt and talked to him when he was an asst and RC at Western Carolina from 2002-05. All out baller baby and would motivate our team to run through glass!)
4) Dino Babers from Bowling Green
5) PJ Fleck from Western Michigan

All 5 would be excellent hires. Young and hungry! We don't need another legend or some SEC assistant. GO COCKS!
OMG!!!! What a list of long shots!!!

I hear that Chris Miller at Spartanburg HS may be interested.
The new guy at Hillcrest HS may listen to us!!!
Sky is the limit!!
 
Yes poultry let's listen to you and hire some old broken down legend who had better days at another school. You're an idiot.
 
No to Justin Fuente. He is a good football coach. He is turning Memphis around. But, he is NOT a strong recruiter. The next Head Football Coach at the University Of South Carolina needs to be:
1. A proven, successful Head Football Coach
2. Needs to have achieved that success at a FBS school
3. must be no older than 45
4. must be a strong recruiter.

We are in a small state. We cannot have a championship program by simply depending on in-state recruiting. Dabo Sweeny seems to be able to attract 5 star talent from out of state to come play in a basketball league. Why can't we? Whoever is the next Head Football Coach, MUST be a STRONG recruiter. Since he has been at Carolina, Steve Spurrier's recruiting classes have averaged 7th in the SEC. Obviously, that's not good enough. Since Justin Fuente has been at Memphis, his recruiting classes have averaged 7th in the MAC.

Wittingham and Babers are too old. Smart has no Head Coaching experience.

Matt Campbell would be a superb hire, as would Tom Herman of Houston and Matt Rhule of Temple.
 
Last edited:
No to Justin Fuente. He is a good football coach. He is turning Memphis around. But, he is NOT a strong recruiter. The next Head Football Coach at the University Of South Carolina needs to be:
1. A proven, successful Head Football Coach
2. Needs to have achieved that success at a FBS school
3. must be no older than 45
4. must be a strong recruiter.

We are in a small state. We cannot have a championship program by simply depending on in-state recruiting. Dabo Sweeny seems to be able to attract 5 star talent from out of state to come play in a basketball league. Why can't we? Whoever is the next Head Football Coach, MUST be a STRONG recruiter. Since he has been at Carolina, Steve Spurrier's recruiting classes have averaged 7th in the SEC. Obviously, that's not good enough. Since Justin Fuente has been at Memphis, his recruiting classes have averaged 7th in the MAC.

Wittingham and Babers are too old. Smart has no Head Coaching experience.

Matt Campbell would be a superb hire, as would Tom Herman of Houston.

I am ALL IN for Matt Campbell!
 
  • Like
Reactions: tricox
Kirby Smart is the slam dunk choice to me. There's always the chance we could eventually lose him to either Georgia or Bama, but that's not necessarily a bad thing; it means he did a good job here, if that were to happen.
 
  • Like
Reactions: GamecockJL
Looks like a Darrin Horn type list to me.

5-7 or 6-6 seasons for a decade types.
Exactly!!!

And for the doofus above that accused me of wanting a broken down retread....you obviously have not read my posts. We need to go after guys like Mike Gundy (48) a young proven HC with a hot up tempo O and D.

It is not a requirement of the HC to be a big recruiter. Typically, the HC is not the recruiter...he is the one that sets the tempo for the staff, is the O and D identity and style of play that attracts his types of players. He is the face of the team.
But the HC is rarely ever the recruiter of record for a kid. He may come in and close by dancing with a Mom to get a Lattimore.

Surely to goodness, we don't have to step down to some 1 year wonder at Toledo; or some 1 year person that is holding a NIU program in the road. You think that Clemson, UGA, UT etc will not attack a 1 year MAC HC like a beef roast in the lion cage.
 
  • Like
Reactions: DaddyRooster
Exactly!!!

And for the doofus above that accused me of wanting a broken down retread....you obviously have not read my posts. We need to go after guys like Mike Gundy (48) a young proven HC with a hot up tempo O and D.

It is not a requirement of the HC to be a big recruiter. Typically, the HC is not the recruiter...he is the one that sets the tempo for the staff, is the O and D identity and style of play that attracts his types of players. He is the face of the team.
But the HC is rarely ever the recruiter of record for a kid. He may come in and close by dancing with a Mom to get a Lattimore.

Surely to goodness, we don't have to step down to some 1 year wonder at Toledo; or some 1 year person that is holding a NIU program in the road. You think that Clemson, UGA, UT etc will not attack a 1 year MAC HC like a beef roast in the lion cage.
Using your criteria, you would've never hired UM from Utah.
 
Exactly!!!

And for the doofus above that accused me of wanting a broken down retread....you obviously have not read my posts. We need to go after guys like Mike Gundy (48) a young proven HC with a hot up tempo O and D.

It is not a requirement of the HC to be a big recruiter. Typically, the HC is not the recruiter...he is the one that sets the tempo for the staff, is the O and D identity and style of play that attracts his types of players. He is the face of the team.
But the HC is rarely ever the recruiter of record for a kid. He may come in and close by dancing with a Mom to get a Lattimore.

Surely to goodness, we don't have to step down to some 1 year wonder at Toledo; or some 1 year person that is holding a NIU program in the road. You think that Clemson, UGA, UT etc will not attack a 1 year MAC HC like a beef roast in the lion cage.
Other than Gundy who would you suggest. I personally think we go after someone who believes in tough, physical lines of scrimmage. We seem to be lacking in this area a couple years. Thesehighpowered offenses don't seem to get it done but times that build inside out like Bama and Ohio State and Florida and LSU were all physical and fast.
 
Exactly!!!

And for the doofus above that accused me of wanting a broken down retread....you obviously have not read my posts. We need to go after guys like Mike Gundy (48) a young proven HC with a hot up tempo O and D.

It is not a requirement of the HC to be a big recruiter. Typically, the HC is not the recruiter...he is the one that sets the tempo for the staff, is the O and D identity and style of play that attracts his types of players. He is the face of the team.
But the HC is rarely ever the recruiter of record for a kid. He may come in and close by dancing with a Mom to get a Lattimore.

Surely to goodness, we don't have to step down to some 1 year wonder at Toledo; or some 1 year person that is holding a NIU program in the road. You think that Clemson, UGA, UT etc will not attack a 1 year MAC HC like a beef roast in the lion cage.

The Head Coach is the one who sets the standards and accountability for his assistants' recruiting. If a Head Coach has had mid-tier recruiting classes in his conference, there's no reason to then expect him to have better than mid-tier SEC recruiting classes. Steve Spurrier has proven that's not good enough.
 
A couple of other things: Urban Myers is a recruitholic. He personally attends Friday night high school football games, recruiting players. I think it has worked out pretty well for him.

It's difficult to steal a successful Head Football Coach from another FBS school. Certainly, Tennessee and Florida in the SEC East are proof of that.
 
Other than Gundy who would you suggest. I personally think we go after someone who believes in tough, physical lines of scrimmage. We seem to be lacking in this area a couple years. Thesehighpowered offenses don't seem to get it done but times that build inside out like Bama and Ohio State and Florida and LSU were all physical and fast.

I will give you a list of names and try to do them in the order I'd call them. I understand that some are longer shots than others...some may not happen; BUT I'd let them say it.

Gundy
Patterson
James Franklin
Witingham
Fitzgerald at Northwestern
Todd Graham @ Az St

After this cut, I would look at Herman and Hudspeath.
I would then entertain Smart and Phillip Montgomery @ Tulsa the former OC for Baylor,
 
  • Like
Reactions: pjrtiger
I am really not sure what the fascination with Kirby Smart is. Lots of guys look good as assistants at a place like Alabama. Remember when Ellis Johnson was hailed as a genius when at USC? Then he left to be a head coach and it was a disaster. I remember one Brad Scott who was hailed as the next great head coach only because he worked at FSU. That worked out real well. Some guys are head coaches, some are assistants. Somehow I think if Smart had the chops to be a head coach someone would have taken a chance on him long before now.
 
Not sure why anyone mentions Fitzgerald at Northwestern anymore. He is coaching at his alma mater and will not even entertain other offers.
 
The guy is probably 60 which won't please this thread, but I'd seriously Cutcliffe. He's winning at Duke and that's tougher to do now than it was when SOS did it. He's also recruiting better than he sould given the school involved. Maybe with SEC cash to throw around he could get a couple young hot-shot coordinators (and not a son) one of whom might be the one to follow him.
 
  • Like
Reactions: IrmoRed
A couple of other things: Urban Myers is a recruitholic. He personally attends Friday night high school football games, recruiting players. I think it has worked out pretty well for him.

It's difficult to steal a successful Head Football Coach from another FBS school. Certainly, Tennessee and Florida in the SEC East are proof of that.

Pay Urban $10 million he will come. He has always chased the mighty dollar
 
Not sure why anyone mentions Fitzgerald at Northwestern anymore. He is coaching at his alma mater and will not even entertain other offers.
So was Steve Spurrier...he left!
We could drop a lot more $$$ for him than NW.
Can we agree to let him say no thanks before we throw in the towel?
 
Kirby Smart is the slam dunk choice to me. There's always the chance we could eventually lose him to either Georgia or Bama, but that's not necessarily a bad thing; it means he did a good job here, if that were to happen.

Yeah, slam dunk. No head coaching experience.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Cock_Donor
You go after potential difference makers.
Assuming Chip Kelly is too far away on the wish list (because he'd be near the top).

I mean...I'd say go get a top coach in the country like Gary Patterson - a true defensive gem.....if you are looking for immediate results with a shelf life of 10-12 years. Guy is a phenom...and apparently happy at TCU. If he can be happy there, he should be happy here. I must have some secret affinity for former K State players..see immediately below.

Because his Asst. HC/ and run game coordinator working EXTREMELY close with the OL coach (be it Elliot or anyone else) would be Eric Wolford. Why in the h#ll won't we go after actual coaching talent. Dianond in the rough. That OL strength we had the last 3-4 years was a direct result of his targeting and reeling in the 'RIGHT' type of OL players.

So, if we can't land a big fish -How about let's offer Kendal Briles (yes...Art's son) something. Bring him in as Asst. HC/QB coach, and let SOS do what he wants to do (pass the ball 50 times) while he is transitioned over a 2 year period.

No more talk of this C+ or solid B type coaches. I want future stars that may stay. At this point...in 2 or 3 years or whenever it happens I'd take a future star that would stay 4-5 years.
 
Last edited:
Kendall Briles looks good on paper, but is that because of nepotism too?

On paper he's who I would go after honestly.

We are already in one bad situation created because of nepotism. So that's the only thing that makes me worry about that.

We are going to have to take a chance on a young gun this time if we are ever going to move forward.
 
If Steve Spurrier retires at season's end, I would say go after Tom Herman at Houston. Lets not make some of the same mistakes that we have in the past. Remember we hired Fat Brad, where we should have hired Mark Richt. Just because he does not have the head coaching experience some would like, does not mean he is not the right fit. Urban Meyers thought enough of him to bring him in as OC of Ohio St. Tell me how many times have Ohio St. has hired some one away from Iowa St. His offenses have been successful everywhere he has been.
 
  • Like
Reactions: ownCU
I understand about the nepotism thing. But, Briles is probably the most dynamic offensive coach in the last 15 years in college football...and the younger one would bring something that we don't currently have. Maybe we get lightning in a bottle with him as OC...maybe not. But, that's the type guy I would like to take chances on. For every 1 Urban Meyer there are 1,000 Larry Fedora types. It's all a gamble, so I'd prefer to bet on the genius's son in hopes that he got 70% of what his dad has. Wouldn't be a bad mentor for the kid in 7-8 years when the dad is done coaching either.
He's Baylor's recruiting coordinator. He's young, and obviously has a lot of energy for the recruiting game as he was the Big 12 recruiter of the year in 2013, 2014.
 
Last edited:
Usually the only time I post is when we are coach shopping and the process really is a numbers game. I figure we can afford to pay 5 million a year but obviously do not prefer to unless someone like Gary Patterson (private but numbers suggest he makes about $4 mil per year), Rich Rod ($1.5-2 mil per), or Chip Kelly ($3.5 mil pere last year at Oregon) is available and interested. You might could pry Rich Rod away with the dough but I am not sure he has the heart for another long term rebuild. Patterson and Kelly are pipe dreams, but you never know if Kelly would get canned and be available like SOS was.

The others are Herman, Campbell, Fuente, etc. I would think all would be available and would make fine coaches, but we don't want to make a Darin Horne mistake here. Herman has the best resume and comes from the Meyer coaching tree so he'd be my pick. Another is Kyle Whittingham but he has been at Utah for some time and I think taking a coach that has been on the west coast and is from out there could be dicey recruiting wise.

Best bets in my mind are Rich Rod (if he'd come) and then Herman.

No coaches w/o some form of head coaching experience need apply.
 
So was Steve Spurrier...he left!
We could drop a lot more $$$ for him than NW.
Can we agree to let him say no thanks before we throw in the towel?
We got Spurrier because UF upset him. We can in now way drop more money on him than NW. You don't know much about the Big Ten schools evidently. Sure, make a run at him...but he has refused to entertain offers from much bigger schools.
 
Here are a few more names to consider
1.Mark Hudspeth HC UL-L intense, aggressive young coach. 4 straight bowl at UL-L prior to his arrival they had ONE bowl appearance
2. Doc Holliday HC Marshall University Appears to have turned the program around won C-USA last year and looks like the favorite this year
3. Chad Morris not sure about the fit as he previously worked for Clemson but in my opinion he's done a great job at SMU. Innovative offensive mind
4.Dave Doeren HC N.C. State If he can win at N.C. State he can win BIG at South Carolina
5. Sonny Dykes HC California guy just wins and he might want to leave super-liberal Berkley for the SEC
Two other names to consider although I think they are both long shots for various reasons Tommy Tubberville and Skip Holtz
 
Here are a few more names to consider
1.Mark Hudspeth HC UL-L intense, aggressive young coach. 4 straight bowl at UL-L prior to his arrival they had ONE bowl appearance
2. Doc Holliday HC Marshall University Appears to have turned the program around won C-USA last year and looks like the favorite this year
3. Chad Morris not sure about the fit as he previously worked for Clemson but in my opinion he's done a great job at SMU. Innovative offensive mind
4.Dave Doeren HC N.C. State If he can win at N.C. State he can win BIG at South Carolina
5. Sonny Dykes HC California guy just wins and he might want to leave super-liberal Berkley for the SEC
Two other names to consider although I think they are both long shots for various reasons Tommy Tubberville and Skip Holtz

I want Wyatt Earp as DC if we get Doc as HC.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: lostcock
I was dead set against the idea of Kirby Smart. He obviously hasn't had a head coaching job yet.

But the guy sounds like he knows exactly what he is talking about and wants to do. He knows how a first class operation is run, though he hasn't had the chance to do it himself. He has a TON of contacts all over the coaching world.

Dunno. What bugs me about him is how much input he has on the defense at Bama (Saban and micromanaging), and the relatively poor performance of Saban tree guys (though McIlwain seems to be the real deal).

And especially whether he would try to run a 3-4 or go to a 4-3 (think this is the best for stopping spread teams and it fits the talent this state produces the best).

But the biggie is whether he would would try to run a pro set/I formation team or a spread. We just are not going to recruit the offensive linemen it takes to run a pro set, unless the new staff is composed of truly demonic recruiters.
 
Dunno. What bugs me about him is how much input he has on the defense at Bama (Saban and micromanaging), and the relatively poor performance of Saban tree guys (though McIlwain seems to be the real deal).

Mark Dantonio and Jimbo Fisher are part of Saban's coaching tree, I would say they've done well.

Fisher, btw, wasn't a head coach until he took the FSU position. If a coach without head coach experience was good enough for FSU, then a coach without head coach experience should be good enough for us...if he's the right man for the job.
 
Mark Dantonio and Jimbo Fisher are part of Saban's coaching tree, I would say they've done well.

Fisher, btw, wasn't a head coach until he took the FSU position. If a coach without head coach experience was good enough for FSU, then a coach without head coach experience should be good enough for us...if he's the right man for the job.

I did not know Dantonio worked under Saban.

But Jimbo is actually someone I am not impressed with. FSU has so many players available to recruit from... you expect them to dominate every year. And you expect the coach to walk into a dicey situation and produce from day one like McIlwain has.

Seriously if you had Meyer, Saban, Patterson, Briles, Kelly, etc at FSU what kind of results would you have expected from the amount of time they've been in Tallahassee?
 
The more I read about Tom Herman, the more I like him. The offenses he has produced at Rice, Iowa State and TOSU are amazing and reportedly he is a relentless recruiter.
 
  • Like
Reactions: ownCU
I don't know a lot about him, but I'm just throwing this out there so don't flame. What does everyone think about Kingsbury?
 
ADVERTISEMENT

Latest posts

ADVERTISEMENT