So Traz and all, what HC do you want for us instead of Mullen (Kelly and Frost unattainable)?
Seems we're left with hoping Mullen returning to locale of prior biggest success will rekindle his fires.?? By virtue of him having far better athletes at his orchestration.
That sums it up for many of us. I wasn’t high on Kelly and once Frost was off the table I didn’t have a strong preference (except no way with Kiffin). I wasn’t pining for Mullen but have felt better about him from the moment he stepped off the plane.
I’m taking the criticisms and cautions seriously because many of these guys are digging into relevant stats. All things considered and other options uncertain, I’m looking forward to seeing how this unfolds over the next few years. “Could” has to become “did” and in a terrifically difficult arena. There are lots of good coaches and good players trying very hard every day and only a few get trophies. UF has and should get more than most, but it’s really hard.
It’s not just great coach + great players = championships. (Meyer & Saban may be the 2 exceptions to that. I think either of them would win in any reasonable context.) It’s being the right coach in the right place at the right time, recruiting and connecting with players who buy in and meld into a championship team.
And even when all that is in place, Ahmad Black ripping an INT away from Joaquin Iglesias might make the difference. Michael Dyer’s knee not touching the ground makes the difference. Deshaun Watson getting the ball last makes the difference.
There’s no formula. A coordinator with no HC experience can win (Stoops). A HC who did better than most at a lesser program can win (Miles). A position coach with no HC experience can win (Dabo). But the vast majority from any category don’t.
Many of us think very highly of James Franklin and would have preferred him after Muschamp’s 4-8 season. His record at Vandy? 11-13 in conference against the weak SECe. But he took them to 3 consecutive bowls (they had never been to consecutive bowls) and a top-25 ranking. As a HC he was 3-15 vs. ranked teams coming into this year and tied with Mullen as a %. So yeah, he’s edged ahead at Penn St. this year while Mullen was still at MSU.
I’m ready to see if Mullen’s can right this ship and get us back in the mix consistently.