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FOOTBALL New Coach Wish List

Do we really want Buster ball back? Not that it was bad. We were 29-21 his 4yrs. And he won as OC at A State too. But do we want anyone that was a Stock staff member at all? Same for Simmons.

I personally think it should be no one associated with us in the past at all. I might still give Diaz a call just to say we tried, but he's the only one.

I will give Buster credit though as he was on staff at Georgia for their last two champs, so he should understand how a championship organization works.
Yes!!
 
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Im just glad they have not interviewed Dowell Loggains, Justin Stepp or Jody Wright yet.

 
I'm good with that choice, I'm not sure that any of the other candidates are all that better and I'm thinking having been in the state, he's more familiar to local high school coaches than our previous staff who couldn't bother to develop and maintain relationships with area and midstate coaches.

The MEAC HC experience is plus, not a huge plus, but against candidates who have none, a plus none the less. I don't see a sure thing among any of them.

All the candidates are a roll of the dice. Whoever is named, I'm good with it. Let's get him on board. The sooner the better.

You and JT have swayed me. His offenses weren’t very good at Rice and the HC experience he has as you mentioned isn’t really much, which is why I wasn’t sold. If he had a little more coordinator experience in FBS that would be a plus. Let’s get going and get it done. I’m looking forward to being back on campus.
 
No matter who we hire, my preference or my heck no, the key is the contract. Buyout. Has to be a decent buyout so if we are here again in 4yrs or so we can move on and not be hamstrung. And 4 years of 6-6 is not going to cut it either.
One thing for sure after the contract fiasco that was stockstill ball, It better be loaded down with higher standards (no auto unless a conference championship) and incentives for everything regarded as positive (wins over wku and in-state FBS schools, all P5 wins, etc) and it should be well documented and publicly available, no FOIAs required.
 
One thing for sure after the contract fiasco that was stockstill ball, It better be loaded down with higher standards (no auto unless a conference championship) and incentives for everything regarded as positive (wins over wku and in-state FBS schools, all P5 wins, etc) and it should be well documented and publicly available, no FOIAs required.
No auto-renewals PERIOD. That’s what contract renegotiations are for. Let the new HC void years off his contract if he meets the major milestones and forces the AD’s hand at giving him more money and years. As others have stated before, reasonable/competitive salary based on experience, and laden with bonuses for 1) beating WKU, 2) championship game appearances, 3) ranked opponent wins, and 4) bowl game wins. Minimum 8 wins and a championship game appearance by Year 3 with progressive improvement to consider any kind of moderate extension. And absolutely no fully guaranteed contract which pays out the full remainder of what he would make if he were fired. But favorable buyouts for us to receive if he’s lured to a bigger program.
 
If Mack ends up being the guy I have no idea what type offense he will run. No clue what they did at Central. At Rice he used quite of bit of 21 personnel including I-formation. They even huddled. Might be a culture shock. Both are practically going extinct as a philosophy/ grouping. Also some 11. Of course everyone has 10 grouping now as did Rice.

What he did at Rice is a lot different than Tennessee does now. Wonder which philosophy he would bring here? FWIW, Rice’s offense ranked 124th in 2018 and 123rd in 2019. His last year was the pandemic year so it’s not a useful metric.
 
Someone mentioned Will Healy earlier... There is a thread connecting MT / Healy... His father-in-law went to Middle back in the late 70's...
I was in on Healy coming here after 2017. But not now, he bombed at Charlotte, and he’s not even a coordinator now, so he would need to prove it again before I’d look at him again.
 
I know his name isn’t thrown around a whole lot, but perhaps this is the perfect job and timing for Joe Craddock….
 
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I know his name isn’t thrown around a whole lot, but perhaps this is the perfect job and timing for Joe Craddock….
See the premium folder for more on Joe & MT. Pretty sure there’s something in there.

That said, IMO, he’s not the right guy right now.

This next HC MUST connect with & excite the fan base / community. I’m not sure hiring the OC from Troy does that.
 
See the premium folder for more on Joe & MT. Pretty sure there’s something in there.

That said, IMO, he’s not the right guy right now.

This next HC MUST connect with & excite the fan base / community. I’m not sure hiring the OC from Troy does that.
So the guy HAS to come from a P5 in order to excite us? I tend to put P5 position coaches, G5 coordinators and FCS head coaches on the same level. And that puts upper P5 coordinators out of our reach.

I think regardless of who it is, the vast majority of the fanbase will not know who the new guy is or anything about him. So who’s to say how excited people will be until we start winning big.
 
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So the guy HAS to come from a P5 in order to excite us? I tend to put P5 position coaches, G5 coordinators and FCS head coaches on the same level. And that puts upper P5 coordinators out of our reach.

I think regardless of who it is, the vast majority of the fanbase will not know who the new guy is or anything about him. So who’s to say how excited people will be until we start winning big.

I don't think there's any pre conceived notion about where the guy absolutely has to come from....

Craddock's laid back demeanor and lack of experience are probably what's keeping him from the job.

We really need an energetic outsider. Someone with no ties to MT. Someone who will run through a brick wall and entice our fans to do the same.
 
Craddock's laid back demeanor and lack of experience are probably what's keeping him from the job.

We really need an energetic outsider. Someone with no ties to MT. Someone who will run through a brick wall and entice our fans to do the same.
Ok, so that’s the thing I don’t know about Craddock, his personality, so I can’t speak to any of that. But experience-wise, if we’re looking at top G5 coordinators at all, he fits. If we’re looking for somebody with HC experience, then yeah, he ain’t it.
 
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For what it's worth, Willie Simmons is leading 21-7 over Prarie-View. Game on rain delay.

Craddock essentially has Troy locked for their 2nd straight SBC champ and 11 win seasons. Up 35-17 with 6min left. Hell of a job by Sumrall down there. That can be us if we get this right.
 
About the leadership we have in place.
What role does the BOR play in all of this?
Say M&M offer a guy, does the BOR rubber stamp it or is there a process they go thru with a vote, etc?
I ask because we all know how “ swiftly” these folk move on important issues. They have been know to kick the can down the road.
Remember, Steve Smith leads the way and I trust him as much as I trust M&M
What BOR are you talking about?
 
Buster Faulkner?
Animated GIF
 
As time goes on, it’s really feeling like they are waiting on someone. Like we might be a backup option and we are okay waiting a little bit to see if we can get our guy. If it were some of the other names tossed around, I think we would have that wrapped up.
 
Dang, going to be sequestered all day at Special Operations Command at MacDill Tuesday. Though I think some details will start leaking tomorrow.
 
As time goes on, it’s really feeling like they are waiting on someone. Like we might be a backup option and we are okay waiting a little bit to see if we can get our guy. If it were some of the other names tossed around, I think we would have that wrapped up.
Atkins at FSU?
 
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