Thursday, December 07, 2006

For Gene's consideration, Part V: Current College Coaches

Gene Defilippo’s legacy will be our move to the ACC. However, Football is our flagship sport and we are at a crossroads. The decisions Gene makes over the next few weeks are critical. No one from BC has asked for my advice, but think these are the paths we could and should follow. Regardless of which pool or path you want, I think the new head coach needs two traits.
1. Has to believe BC can win an ACC championship. Not every year but occasionally.
2. Has to respect and support BC’s belief in the student athlete. The focus on graduation predates TOB. I think we have used it as a crutch for bad losses, but I don’t want to see the philosophy trashed. Wake Forest proved you can graduate players and compete.


Some fans are worried that we will never find another coach like TOB. BS. Numerous guys can get us into the Tire Bowl every year. There are only 119 head jobs out there and thousands of assistants looking for their shot. We can find a good Head Coach. I have broken down the pools of candidate into a series of posts.

Part V: Current College Coaches

Hiring a guy who is currently a Head Coach in college can be a really safe bet. But you never know if your new hire is going to perform at the higher level and as TOB has shown trying to court a guy with a job can be a tricky and expensive proposition.

Paul Johnson. Head Coach, Navy.
Pros: Proven winner. Has recruited at a place with numerous restrictions.
Cons: No ties to BC. Gimmicky offense. Would use the job as a stepping stone.
Bottom Line: I would like this hire. Grobe just proved that you can win in the ACC with a gimmicky offense.

Steve Kragthorpe. Head Coach, Tulsa.
Pros: Great track record. Well respected by other coaches. Son of a college coach. Young aggressive recruiter.
Cons: No BC ties [CORRECTED: He coached under Henning]. No Northeast ties. Would certainly use this as a stepping stone.
Bottom Line: Kraglethorpe is the flavor of the month. I would like the hire, but don’t see it happening.

Brian VanGorder. Head Coach, Georgia Southern.
Pros: SEC experience. NFL experience. Georgia Southern has a good track record of guys taking the next step. Great recruiter. Experience recruiting the Midwest.
Cons: No ties to BC. No ties to the Northeast. No experience recruiting for a school like BC.
Bottom Line: Being a Georgia guy, I would like this hire, but don't think he will be on the short list.

Chris Peterson. Head Coach, Boise State.
Pros: Perfect record. Offensive innovator.
Cons: No ties to BC. No ties the East Coast. Is he a product of the system? Couldn't beat TOB.
Bottom Line: His name is getting floated all over the place, meaning he will listen. He is really a blank slate, so I hope Gene would take a long look before moving forward.

4 comments:

Brian P. Foley said...

How about Brown from Umass?

Anabasis said...

Paul Johnson isn't gimmicky so much as he will strictly revolve his offense around his talent pool. He aired it out at GSU, ran a balanced attack in Hawaii, and reverted to the cro-magnon triple option at talent-restricted Navy. He won't step anywhere if we pay him what he's worth, and even if he does then that's just a part of college football. Everyone is looking to the next step, in fact it's a coach that doesn't want to take another step that I'd be worried about.

I throw my support behind Paul Johnson for Head Coach of the Boston College Eagles.

Alex F. said...

I don't see anything about it in his official bio on the Tulsa site, but according to Rivals Kragthorpe was BC's QB coach for a year under Henning??

Unknown said...

I really like your writing style. Such a nice Post, Can’t wait for the next one.

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