Five against the field

[Homer J]

So this is my amateur take on this search.

Mullen - not going to happen. Neither side seems to want to make it happen. Quit beating a dead horse, but at least he doesn’t appear to be angling for a raise.

Strong - no thank you. Not a big fan. Good DC, but not quite as good as the god pedestal people put him on. Good at UL, but total bust at UT. Seems to have found a sweet spot at a 2nd tier conference.

Frost - my number one pick from what i’ve read and watched. Seems to have the coaching intangibles that Mac is looking for. If he takes the job, we’ll get our first look at how he assembles his staff. Will he fall into a loyalty trap? Some of his staff would surely be ready to take on a new challenge while some have maxed out. I think Frost is exactly what Stricklin described what he was looking for.

Fuentes - 2nd pick mainly because I don’t know how attainable he really is. Call him 1b if you’d like. Has done nice things at VaTech. Probably the safest hire, if you could land him.

Norvell/Campbell - these are the Foley pool of coaches. I think they’d both be massive upgrades, but we have a low bar right now. So it is what it is.

Taggart - great recruiting with something like a .500 record. No thanks.

Kelly - surprisingly, I think we’d have a shot if we went after him. I think the show cause has an effect because of other issues like his perceived lack of passion for college ball, personality, etc. Don’t think we go this route.

Gruden, Quinn, etc. - there are just a lot of good coaches that may get a call that’ll have no interest. I wish Quinn did, but I don’t think he would.

Then the Kiffin, Petrino, etc. - just no

If we land just about anyone else, we got turned down a lot. Brohm might not be so bad, but he still needs to prove something at Purdue first.

You can't look at Taggert's record and judge him on that. He took over bottom dwellers and made them all winners.

 

[AlexDaGator]

I'm voting we say fock it and go full-on villain. No halfway BS, we embrace the dark side and enjoy being the most hated team in America if not the universe.

I present you with...THE ALL SCUMBAG COACHING STAFF:

Art Briles, Hugh Freeze, Bobby Petrino, AND Lane Kiffin.

No pretense. No apologies. No denials.

Reporter: "Coach, there are reports of hookers and blow at your recruiting events, is this true?"
Coach: Winks slyly and says "We try to show recruits a good time."
Reporter: "Coach, there are reports that over 90% of your players have failed their drug tests"
Coach: "Let's talk 40 times"
Reporter: "Is it true that you are bribing the local police so they won't arrest any players?"
Coach: "We support law enforcement around here. What are you? A commie?"



Alex.

 

[alcoholica]

As far as I know neither of these guys worked for Saban. Certainly Norvell is offensive minded and Campbell is to a certain extent. So no they are not the Foley pool of coaches this time around.

Saban had nothing to do with my comment. So no, you interpreted poorly.

 

[InstiGATOR1]

Saban had nothing to do with my comment. So no, you interpreted poorly.

It is not a matter of interpreted or not. It is a matter of what the "Foley pool" of coaches is. Foley did not go out and get UF the best young non-power 5 coach ala Norvell or a rising coach new to a lower level power five school ala Campbell. The Foley pool is guys he knew or Saban acholytes who only talk offense, but want to win with defense. Thus Foley hired:

1. Ron Zook, guy he knew, DC no head coaching experience.
2. Machen of course hired Meyer who he new from Utah, Foley just did the leg work.
3. Since Ron Zook did not work out and by this time Foley wanted the Saban program for UF, he hired Will Muschamp, guy Foley knew, Saban acolyte, DC, no head coaching experience, but head coach in waiting at UTx so who could criticize that. It turns out anyone who watch UF play those 4 painful years could criticize that.
4. So then Foley decided that he had to hire an offensive coach with head coaching experience. Apparently Foley was running out of guys he new who also were Saban acolytes so this time he hired McElwain a Saban acolyte, offensive coach who wants to win with running and defense who did have 3 years experience.

So what are the Foley characteristics in coach that could lead to them being called in the Foley pool this time around:

A. Foley knows them:: 2 of 3 above met this, neither of the guys you mention do.
B. Defensive coaches or defensive minded offensive coaches: All 3 above meet this, but Norvell does not and maybe Campbell does not either. I know less about Campbell.
C. Saban acolyte: 2 of 3 above met this, neither of the guys you mention do.

So the Foley pool is defensive minded coaches particularly if they know Foley or are Saban acolytes. I don't see evidence that Norvell or Campbell can accurately be called the Foley pool as you called them.

 

[Windy City Gator]

You forgot to add Pittino as the Quality Control Manager

 

[alcoholica]

It is not a matter of interpreted or not. It is a matter of what the "Foley pool" of coaches is. Foley did not go out and get UF the best young non-power 5 coach ala Norvell or a rising coach new to a lower level power five school ala Campbell. The Foley pool is guys he knew or Saban acholytes who only talk offense, but want to win with defense. Thus Foley hired:

1. Ron Zook, guy he knew, DC no head coaching experience.
2. Machen of course hired Meyer who he new from Utah, Foley just did the leg work.
3. Since Ron Zook did not work out and by this time Foley wanted the Saban program for UF, he hired Will Muschamp, guy Foley knew, Saban acolyte, DC, no head coaching experience, but head coach in waiting at UTx so who could criticize that. It turns out anyone who watch UF play those 4 painful years could criticize that.
4. So then Foley decided that he had to hire an offensive coach with head coaching experience. Apparently Foley was running out of guys he new who also were Saban acolytes so this time he hired McElwain a Saban acolyte, offensive coach who wants to win with running and defense who did have 3 years experience.

So what are the Foley characteristics in coach that could lead to them being called in the Foley pool this time around:

A. Foley knows them:: 2 of 3 above met this, neither of the guys you mention do.
B. Defensive coaches or defensive minded offensive coaches: All 3 above meet this, but Norvell does not and maybe Campbell does not either. I know less about Campbell.
C. Saban acolyte: 2 of 3 above met this, neither of the guys you mention do.

So the Foley pool is defensive minded coaches particularly if they know Foley or are Saban acolytes. I don't see evidence that Norvell or Campbell can accurately be called the Foley pool as you called them.

God you’re dumb. Foley hired more than just football coaches. JFC, it’s been covered here numerous times. He went for cheap up and comer types. Muschamp was regarded as the next up and comer. Mac was deemed the best up and comer that year by Foley.

This year Foley would have probably zeroed in on Norvell because Frost could get expensive for his tastes and Campbell has a big buyout. Although Campbell would probably be cheap enough to work out something with his buyout.

I say all that to comeback to the fact that UT, Ole Miss, Nebraska and others will probably be looking for a coach and Foley would have a tough time getting Norvell let alone Frost or anyone else.

So to clarify, Foley’s pool is cheap up and comers who are thought of as value picks. Not someone who happened to coach for Saban

 

[ThreatMatrix]

So this is my amateur take on this search.

Mullen - not going to happen. Neither side seems to want to make it happen. Quit beating a dead horse, but at least he doesn’t appear to be angling for a raise.

Strong - no thank you. Not a big fan. Good DC, but not quite as good as the god pedestal people put him on. Good at UL, but total bust at UT. Seems to have found a sweet spot at a 2nd tier conference.

Frost - my number one pick from what i’ve read and watched. Seems to have the coaching intangibles that Mac is looking for. If he takes the job, we’ll get our first look at how he assembles his staff. Will he fall into a loyalty trap? Some of his staff would surely be ready to take on a new challenge while some have maxed out. I think Frost is exactly what Stricklin described what he was looking for.

Fuentes - 2nd pick mainly because I don’t know how attainable he really is. Call him 1b if you’d like. Has done nice things at VaTech. Probably the safest hire, if you could land him.

Norvell/Campbell - these are the Foley pool of coaches. I think they’d both be massive upgrades, but we have a low bar right now. So it is what it is.

Taggart - great recruiting with something like a .500 record. No thanks.

Kelly - surprisingly, I think we’d have a shot if we went after him. I think the show cause has an effect because of other issues like his perceived lack of passion for college ball, personality, etc. Don’t think we go this route.

Gruden, Quinn, etc. - there are just a lot of good coaches that may get a call that’ll have no interest. I wish Quinn did, but I don’t think he would.

Then the Kiffin, Petrino, etc. - just no

If we land just about anyone else, we got turned down a lot. Brohm might not be so bad, but he still needs to prove something at Purdue first.

Did somebody say Fuentes?