Jarmond to USC talk is all about Urban Meyer

Earlier this week, Lynn Swan resigned as USC Athletic Director. Even if it was a forced resignation, Swann's tenure was just another rocky step in the recent run of USC Athletics which has seen coaching churn, probation and an extensive bribery scandal. Among the names floated early as a replacement was BC's Martin Jarmond. While Jarmond is a reasonable candidate (P5 school AD, young, charismatic, good fundraiser at a private school), there are plenty of other good candidates out there. Every candidate has his or her pluses and minuses. But if USC goes hard after Jarmond, it will be a signal to the college football world that they want Urban Meyer.

From the minute he stepped down at Ohio State, many started predicting USC as Meyer's next step. Meyer is a great coach, but one of the keys to his success is picking opportunities where he knows he can succeed. SC has been in a down cycle, but they still have a fertile recruiting base, a national brand and a winnable conference. But Meyer is mercurial. Just because it makes sense, doesn't mean that USC can just pick up the phone and get him. This is where Jarmond's prior relationship comes into play. Jarmond is the type who can talk to Meyer and build up his comfort in taking the USC job.

Could Jarmond get the job even if he tells them Meyer is not his vision for USC Football or that he doesn't think the coach will come back? Sure. While his experience is still light, he has enough on his resume for them to hire him. But that doesn't seem like USC's style. They may miss often, but they like to take big swings. If they hire a green, young east coast AD, it will be because they want Jarmond to land the biggest free agent in College Football. 

Urban Meyer: The BC Fan Rorschach Test

As I was watching the Rose Bowl and Urban Meyer retired (again), I first thought "he'll coach again." Next my thoughts drifted to the ultimate "what if" of would I want him coaching my team. Despite thinking he embodies so many of the consistent flaws in some college coaches -- he's myopic, he's hypocritical, he's a bully, he's thin-skinned, -- I still admitted that I would welcome him to BC in a minute. The guy might be the best game manager in the last 30 years, certainly knows how to build a program and has won everywhere.

As for it ever happening, it won't. I know that. But Meyer's connection to Jarmond and the slight chance that he'd want to comeback and do it differently and the "right way" means that there is the slightest of slight chance. Like getting struck by lightning. Meyer's snakey history of picking his spots where he can win big and quickly, and the fact that taking the BC job would mean undercutting one of his former assistants probably more than offsets Jarmond's history with him.

But I am willing to admit my hypocrisy even on the hypothetical. I want BC to win and he's proven he can do it. But to give you a sense of how BC fans see ourselves, all you have to do is look at the replies to my tweet about Meyer.

Twitter poll for BC fans: if Martin Jarmond could talk Urban Meyer out of retirement, would you want him coaching BC?

— Bill Maloney (@bcatleagle) January 2, 2019

Some would never want Meyer and some would be over the moon. Very few are in the middle. It shows that BC fans value what BC stands for and that we are different. I think we could still be BC regardless of our coach.

I just hope that one day we get a coach at Meyer's level and he stays around long enough to win something big.