Fickell a candidate for Pitt job
http://www.buckeyextra.com/content/stories/2011/12/16/1216-fickell-repo…
Might be a good job for him and a good fit, but after all his game mis-management gafs this year, Pitt may not make that leap.
How awkward that would be for the former UM players that transferred there to play for a former Ohio coach. Gotta feel for those kids in Pitt for all the hassle they've endured.
December 19th, 2011 at 8:25 AM ^
where promising coaching careers go to perish...
December 19th, 2011 at 8:45 AM ^
was his career ever really that promising?
December 19th, 2011 at 8:49 AM ^
I was impressed with Fickell this year. OSU's season was going to be a dumpster fire from the get go. He made some rookie mistakes but I think Braxton Miller grew throughout the year and he had a big win against Wisconsin. It wasn't an award winning debut but he seems like a solid up and comer.
December 19th, 2011 at 9:51 AM ^
considering all the suspensions. Also, comparing how bad they looked in the beginning of the season to how much better they looked at the end. A lot of their woes weren't really all his fault.
December 19th, 2011 at 11:47 AM ^
But that defense was positively GERGian at the end of the year giving up 20 points to Penn State (IU only gave up 16) 26 to Purdue (Rice only allowed 22) then 40 to UM (with 4 points of replay help and didn't force a punt in the final 3 quarters of the game). And defense is what he does (or at least should be good at). Couple that with horrid game and clock management that at least played some part in his 2-5 record in 1 score games, and remember that one of those two victories was a hail mary against Wisconsin.
December 19th, 2011 at 2:36 PM ^
............. <<<<please use more of these
,,,,,,,,,,,, <<<<<< and these
December 19th, 2011 at 11:18 AM ^
It was a sincere question, and while he certainly didn't impress me, I could see how he could be considered an up and coming coach.
December 19th, 2011 at 2:18 PM ^
It is really too bad they won that game. They lose to Wisconsin 9 out of 10 times and it didn't help Wisky that they were coming off a heart breaking loss to Sparty. Ohio loses that game and they aren't bowl eligible and don't have two coaching staffs.
December 19th, 2011 at 5:52 PM ^
I'm not sure I agree. Ohio held the Wisconsin offense in check for like 50 minutes. UW only finally got going in the 4th quarter. If UW would have won, I would have felt like they stole a win.
But anyhow, I'm not sure the two-staff thing really matters, because either way Meyer would be out recruiting for them now.
December 19th, 2011 at 8:50 AM ^
With all the problems at Penn State, it would seem that Pitt would be a decent job. Recruiting should get easier.
December 19th, 2011 at 9:49 AM ^
logged in just to up vote. Thanks for the laugh upon looking at the first threadof the day.
December 19th, 2011 at 8:43 AM ^
What I don't get about those players that transferred was you had to figure if RR got hired everyone was going to join his staff. The jobs taken at Indiana and Pitt were just stop gaps for the all the RR assistants
December 19th, 2011 at 8:45 AM ^
I'm all for Urban's assistants being hired away. Bring him closer to his UF perils.
December 19th, 2011 at 9:04 AM ^
Plus, it wouldn't hurt if Fickell is able to give ol' Urbie a headache or two on the recruiting trail
December 19th, 2011 at 5:06 PM ^
Yes to MOAR recruiting problems for OSU. Pitt please hire Fickell....Einhorn....Fickell
December 19th, 2011 at 9:07 AM ^
I think deep down he's happy to be relieved of the HC duties and wants to be part of the Urban Meyer regime.
In related news, Urban Meyer was less than a half-hour away from me this weekend and I didn't show up with a high-powered rifle, some iocane powder or even a very slippery banana. I feel like I owe all of you an apology.
December 19th, 2011 at 10:41 AM ^
If he's being offered a D-1 head coaching job at a school moving to the ACC, not some entry level FCS or MAC position ... even if Pitt has been a revolving door these past two seasons.
a) Pitt needs to stabilize, so they are likely to give whoever they hire a solid shot
b) Penn State in turmoil is a recruiting opportunity to get up an running
c) Getting out of Dodge for a while, while all the NCAA stuff clears up ...
Urban is not going to be at OSU forever (or so people project). Getting D-1 head coaching experience, and leaving with an overall positive / clean opinion would position him better to come back at some point in the future no?
December 19th, 2011 at 9:16 AM ^
Assures Gee that OSU will be granted waiver to use a third coaching staff.
December 19th, 2011 at 9:12 AM ^
to see Fickell leave for a meh ACC school after pretty much helping to recruit Urban Meyer to OSU and guaranteeing himself a job.
He just isn't ready to be the head coach.
December 19th, 2011 at 9:31 AM ^
I'm not so sure I agree with you. Fickell was handed a disaster this season with some of his best players missing between five and ten games, a true freshman QB who was supposed to be learning the game and ended up starting, injuries, etc. Did he do a couple of stupid things on the field with his game management? Yup, but that was only part of the story.
Say what you want, but from having been in attendance at the Big House for the Ohio game, Fickell had those kids coached up and they played well.
December 19th, 2011 at 9:49 AM ^
in the year though? Why wait until the last game to open it up? Bauserman was horrible. Yet they didn't start Miller, and when they finally did, they bottled him up until the last game. I understand part of that is progression, but a kid who can do what he did the last game could have been doing more all year.
December 19th, 2011 at 10:06 AM ^
Because he is still just a true freshman who knew probably just a fraction of the playbook at the beginning of the year. Last game of the year, in The Game, staring 6-6 in the face, they're letting it all hang loose. Screw risk aversion, they're going for it. Maybe they should have played that way earlier against Purdue and PSU, but there was still the possibility for a winning season at those points and it made sense to be risk averse.
December 19th, 2011 at 10:25 AM ^
One item you may have forgotten is that Posey, clearly their best WR, was only available the last two games of the season. Do you remember how our D showed substantial improvement, particularly kids like Countess, in many aspects of the game as the season progressed - I would assume the same thing was true with Miller. Being a starter at QB as a freshman is not an easy thing to achieve.
December 19th, 2011 at 11:09 AM ^
I'm just saying, if he could do that in game 12, he could have done a lot more in games 6-11 (or however many he started)
As a sidenote, after the game I was talking with some Buckeye fans, asking this very question ("where was that Miller all year?"). They mis-heard me at first and thought I was calling him out, and they were like "Yeah we know, he sucks... he's so terrible."
I'm like no man, he was pretty good today. Nice turning on the kid, though
December 19th, 2011 at 10:47 AM ^
Fickell got stuck with the former coach's buddies on the offensive side of the ball. If he'd been able to put his own staff in place, I think it would have been a very different season.
My only issues with Fickell were the repeated issues with clock (mis)management and how often the team came out flat against opponents it should have blown away. It seems like he had trouble getting the team ready to play a lot of the time.
December 19th, 2011 at 10:05 AM ^
a head coach is dealing with the media and alums and he simply terrible at it and didn't even pretend to like it.
December 19th, 2011 at 12:13 PM ^
December 19th, 2011 at 7:49 PM ^
HE went into a SH**Storm and hadndled himself well. He could do much worse that PITT, which has a strong tradition and has fielded some excellent teams in the past.
December 19th, 2011 at 9:34 AM ^
I would be shocked as well, but Luke Zimmerman of 11W wouldn't be.
AB: Any general thoughts about Fickell and Pitt?
LZ: As an Ohio State fan, I'd be miffed to lose him from the staff but think it would be a great opportunity for him. I also think he'd be uniquely qualified for the Penn State situation but would hate to have to go against him yearly nor do I think Pitt fans probably want to hear that right about now.
I think he would be making a mistake by leaving, but that's only my opinion.
December 19th, 2011 at 9:35 AM ^
to be a HC. I think the plan was Tressel for a few more years, then Fickell. I know Ohio liked his wet hair before Tressel had his mask ripped off.
He's not getting the Ohio job now, so if he doesn't want to get Malzahn'd, he'll take Pitt right quick. But maybe this year convinced him he'd rather be a career DC
December 19th, 2011 at 9:41 AM ^
If the guy had any self-respect, he'd leave. Staying on as an assistant when you were previously being groomed to one day be the head guy long-term? Grow a pair dude.
December 19th, 2011 at 10:10 AM ^
I don't think the kids who transferred to Pitt from Michigan would really care that they end up playing for a former Ohio State coach. They obviously didn't go to Michigan because they truly loved Michigan, or else they would still be in Ann Arbor.
December 19th, 2011 at 10:48 AM ^
As a Syracuse alum, please let this happen.
Maybe we can see more balls spiked on third down in a one-score game.
December 19th, 2011 at 10:50 AM ^
Meyer will probably need to "find himself" in year 3 or "really want to see the world" in year 4.
December 19th, 2011 at 11:31 AM ^
They will never let Fickell be the head coach again at Ohio, even though this down year wasn't really his fault
December 19th, 2011 at 11:22 AM ^
i think it would be the right decission get out of dodge a hidethe out in the ACC until the ncaa gone and Urban retires from getting his beatdown every year by Hoke and Michigan.
December 19th, 2011 at 11:30 AM ^
All Fickell proved at Ohio was that he was seriously overwhelmed by the job. He needs to coach at a MAC school first until he has some kind of track record for winning. Pitt is showing that they want to retain their "wannabe" status if they hire him.
December 19th, 2011 at 11:38 AM ^
Let's see...true freshman QB, star WR missing, star RB missing, all kinds of media hoopla and NCAA investigators...
Maybe he wasn't so much overwhelmed as much as the situation was a negative one. I think you're jumping to conclusions in order to take a shot at Fickell, who was put in a tough situation and missing star players. Give him back Pryor, Posey, and Herron for the entire season, and you might have seen a completely different outcome.
December 19th, 2011 at 12:28 PM ^
If there is one thing I've learned at MGoBlog, its that the players dont matter, it only comes down to whose on the sidelines.
December 19th, 2011 at 2:49 PM ^
Not to mention playing Braxton Miller for an entire season. I don't blame a newbie coach for not wanting to go with a pure freshman, but Miller was a vast, vast improvement over Bauserman.
December 19th, 2011 at 11:32 AM ^
Pitt will hire Mario Cristobal from FIU...book it.
December 19th, 2011 at 12:14 PM ^
Feels like Fickell should jump at the opportunity - he's not going to get another shot at Ohio, and Pitt is a decent program with some strong recruiting hotbeds in the state. He probably won't turn them into a consistent top-10 program or anything, but he should be a decent recruiter and HC. His defenses at OSU were always very good, and while talent and Tressel had something to do with that it isn't crazy to see him putting out a nice team.
December 19th, 2011 at 3:57 PM ^
To take the job at Ohio as Fickell did under those circumstances and come out of it with a .500 season (bowl pending) is really not all bad. As much as he seems to want to stay at Ohio, it might be an even better idea for him to set out on his own - after all, many Ohio fans didn't seem very grateful, although a few I've talked to believed that the coaching depth chart in Columbus contained no obvious successors to Tressel, so literally, it could have been ANYONE on that staff, but Fickell bit the bullet for them.
I would be intrigued - admittedly - to see him coach away from Columbus, at least for a game. It could be a tire fire, but at least he would be a head coach without the numerous conditions attached, not someone who raised their hand at an untimely moment (for it seems that is how he got the temporary job at his alma mater).
December 19th, 2011 at 4:50 PM ^
That Fickell interviewed for the job and if he is offered the job he would take it but still coach for Ohio in the Gator Bowl.