Future Of Offensive Assistants?
Nuss pretty much stated it flat out in the conference. "Heck, Daryl, Dan and Fred" mentioned specifically as being a "great staff". They get one year to prove themsleves. I am going to go ahead and guess there isnt going to be a harder working coach than Funk this year.
#GOBLUE
MOD EDIT: I will leave the OP to edit the body of this, but yeah, the title was misleading as nothing definitive was said regarding this. He said something more to the effect that he was excited to work with the current staff, but whether that staff remains current once he gets going as OC is another matter. - LSA
January 10th, 2014 at 1:04 PM ^
I heard what you heard, but I'm not positive it means 100% job security for these guys. I think that Nussmeier said what he needed to, but it seemed more akin to Hoke's "I don't anticipate any coaching staff changes" from after the B1G season.
And in fairness to Nussmeier and the other coaches, they deserve time to get to know one another and determine fit. I'll be surprised if any heads roll before NSD, though. (Similar to the way the Borges was not let go until the EE players were actually enrolled.)
January 10th, 2014 at 1:11 PM ^
I don't think the timing had anything to do with the EEs. Though they just recently enrolled, they signed their papers back in October
January 10th, 2014 at 1:16 PM ^
Thanks - that's good to know. I assumed that EE's weren't really dedicated to the program until they arrived on campus. If those letters are the functional equivalent of signing on NSD (i.e., October is the new February w/r/t EEs) then I feel better about the Borges timing.
So a plus 1 to you, good sir.
January 10th, 2014 at 1:27 PM ^
January 10th, 2014 at 1:52 PM ^
From John Infante's blog
Note that midyear enrollees still cannot sign National Letters of Intent (except for junior college transfers). So the impact may be limited if coaches are unwilling to sign a prospect to a financial aid agreement that locks the university in to providing a scholarship but does nothing to commit the prospect to the university.
Since none of the players were really recruited heavily by Borges and the scheme won't be that different, I'm still inclined to believe that EEs weren't really a consideration, but I guess you never know.
January 10th, 2014 at 2:00 PM ^
January 10th, 2014 at 2:05 PM ^
5starrecruit is right, DGDestroys is wrong (for once). The papers they signed were only financial aid documents holding the university responsible for supporting them ... they did not tie the recruit to the university. They could've chose to not report to the school and gone somewhere else.
EDIT: Sorry, DG, I see you already realized the difference. I guess I had the tab open for a long time before I decided to respond.
January 10th, 2014 at 2:20 PM ^
If you think this is the first time I'm wrong, you're not paying close enough attention.
Still, thanks!
January 10th, 2014 at 1:04 PM ^
I don't know if that's a definitive statement, but we'll soon find out. Or not, either way.
January 10th, 2014 at 1:14 PM ^
Also, I agree with Jimbob, the title should be revised. This is like, your opinion, man. Nothing more.
January 10th, 2014 at 1:04 PM ^
That's your opinion...not fact. Nothing is set in stone at this pont.
January 10th, 2014 at 1:19 PM ^
Can we get a Mod edit? That's not what he said.
January 10th, 2014 at 1:05 PM ^
If Coach Nuss wants it, I'm cool with it. Guy said alllllllllllllllllllll the right things in his press conference.
January 10th, 2014 at 1:09 PM ^
Regardless of whether they stay or not, I think they may all look a lot better - especially Funk - if we have a coherent plan for our offense and don't constantly deviate from it like we did in 2013.
January 10th, 2014 at 3:07 PM ^
I think GERG's shocking resurgence at Texas really shows how meddling with a coaches plan can completely submarine him. I still don't think GERG is great, but Mack Brown didn't make him run a 3-3-5 and it turned out well in Austin. Similarly, Borges' game plans were just all over the place and maybe that was submarining the development of the O-line when Funk has no clue what is going to change week-to-week.
With a new coach, we might see better stability that lets Funk to his thing a little better. He didn't get to be a BCS level O-line coach because he sucked. A change at OC may be good for him
January 10th, 2014 at 3:16 PM ^
I agree with this completely. Funk was forced to change his blocking schemes at least 3 times last year, this didn't allow for a lot of cohesion on the offensive line.
January 10th, 2014 at 1:09 PM ^
I certainly hope this isn't true. It has the makings of a repeat of the RR Scott Shaffer placement.
You can't force a guy to work with dudes he didnt hire. You can ask him to see if he can work with them or not and then hire/fire from there, but you cant just give everyone job security. Some people dont work well together.
January 10th, 2014 at 1:12 PM ^
The vast majority of the time, this is exactly what happens. Most of the time it doesn't result in in-fighting like we had under RR.
January 10th, 2014 at 1:16 PM ^
The other shoe to drop is what Kiffen does at Alabama. If he brings in some of his own guys, it "frees up" some of the Alabama O staff to perhaps come join Nuss. We'll see.
January 10th, 2014 at 1:20 PM ^
agreed..some coaches clash...like nuss with saban.
considering the circumstances of his departure, his talks with hoke, and his complimenting of the coaching staff, i aint worried. he sounds like an intelligent guy who realizes what situation he's walked into. he has 100% support from Hoke.
January 10th, 2014 at 1:28 PM ^
January 10th, 2014 at 1:33 PM ^
When do offensive or defensive coordinators ever hire their own assistants? The head coach gets his staff together and fills it with like minded individuals who are supposed to be on the same page.
January 10th, 2014 at 3:41 PM ^
You are assuming Hoke knows anything about offense. In our situation, I woul like to Nuss to have a little bite of freedom to suggest to hoke who to let go and who to bring in. Just like others mentioned, if the alabama offensive staff is let go when kiffin arrives. I dont mind see Nuss plucking away the most talented assistant coaches from there. Give him a true chance to make a difference. But what am i saying, it is neither up to hoke or Nuss. It is all in DB's hand, he is the AD, and the head coach
January 10th, 2014 at 1:12 PM ^
If so, I vote for this lady to get the job:
January 10th, 2014 at 1:44 PM ^
Holy crap, you could lose a body part if you got too close.
January 10th, 2014 at 2:31 PM ^
Calling Ed Muransky.......
January 10th, 2014 at 3:26 PM ^
Holy crap I've seen snakes that chew their food more than this girl.
January 11th, 2014 at 12:22 AM ^
to the ladies room to empty her colostomy bag. And now you know the rest of the story.
January 10th, 2014 at 1:14 PM ^
FWIW-I'm not as down on Funk now as I was earlier in the year. I'm sure his personal situation made it very difficult to do as well as he himself would like and I'll bet Hoke knows that. And nobody really knows just how dysfunctional our offensive staff was this year behind the scenes-perhaps Hoke believes this change will fix any o those interpersonal issues too.
January 10th, 2014 at 1:14 PM ^
January 10th, 2014 at 1:22 PM ^
...if he does decide to stay with the current staff, you'll never know whether he looked at anyone else or not. It'll be up to you to decide if you think Hoke is rerunning RR's script.
January 10th, 2014 at 1:35 PM ^
January 10th, 2014 at 2:00 PM ^
It's like all the people who "think" that DB forced Hoke to fire Borges, which in turn means it's a fact because they read their own post on the internet.
January 11th, 2014 at 12:25 AM ^
it's gotta be true.
January 10th, 2014 at 1:16 PM ^
January 10th, 2014 at 1:16 PM ^
January 10th, 2014 at 1:20 PM ^
January 10th, 2014 at 1:18 PM ^
I've said it 1 million times, this 1,000,001.
Give him an office right next to Coach Carr, have him be an ambassador for the program. Give speeches and visit with high school coaches. Have him work with Greg Harden on administrative things and have him involved in community engagement in SW Michigan.
He'd be the perfect mentor for the new Michigan RB Coach - Tyrone Wheatley.
January 10th, 2014 at 1:23 PM ^
I've said it 1 million times, this is 1,000,001.
Jackson has been here for 20-plus years. He's coached Wheatley, Powers, Biakabutuka, Thomas, Perry, Hart, and lots of others along the way. Just because a cadre of Rich Rodriguez-approved tailbacks like Vincent Smith, Michael Shaw, etc. didn't work out doesn't mean that Jackson is to blame.
January 10th, 2014 at 1:29 PM ^
Derrick Green and Deveon Smith showed significant improvement throughout the season, as well. Touissant was displaced as a starter by the end of the year. That's a 5th year senior RB losing his spot to a true freshman. RB coaching is a low-requirement job. If your RB have the athleticism, you have a good run game.
January 10th, 2014 at 1:37 PM ^
You still need a decent OL.
January 10th, 2014 at 1:36 PM ^
Which is fine.
But Michigan hasn't had a running game from the RB position since Hart left.
Michigan currently does not have one RB in the NFL.
Where is Thomas Rawls? He's not Rich Rod approved, he was supposed to be Mark Ingram...but faster. He committed AFTER Rich Rod was gone. His counterpart Hayes who ended up in the class is also buried at the bottom of the depth chart/changed positions.
Didn't WVU have Steve Slaton under Rich Rod? Right now at Arizona Rich Rod has a kid Ka'Deem Carey. Both had monster seasons under Rich Rod...so he clearly can produce at the RB position in a big way. Borderline Heisman producing. So that's B/S to blame it on Rich Rod.
I'm not going to place all the blame on either guy, but you can't ignore these things either.
ALSO, I think our coaching staff as a whole needs to get younger. This would be a great start in having a younger guy to mix in with the experience.
In my opinion, it's time for a change. I don't care about the circumstances, his position has not produced in over 6 years.
January 10th, 2014 at 2:02 PM ^
Which RB coaches would have made any of the RR-era backs into multiyear NFL players? Touissant's injury pretty much ended his NFL hopes. V Smith was never going to make in the NFL. STEVE SLATON IS NOT IN THE NFL. Does Rich Rod have any RBs currently in the NFL?
Rawls was just a body in the 1 month 2011 class. Jackson hyped him up. Jackson hypes everyone up. Justice Hayes is still under 200 pounds. Hayes will still be a RS Jr. He looked pretty good in the bowl game, even if he is moving to slot. Drake Johnson, who was supposedly very raw coming out of HS, was competiting for the starting job. I thought Smith and Green improved a good amount over the course of the year.
January 10th, 2014 at 2:23 PM ^
My opinion is that 20 years at any job is too long. Change is good. If our running game was consistently excellent, I could see making a point against this. But it hasn't been. Change is good. (And this is nothing personal against Fred - I would say this about anyone who's been in the same place for 20 years).
January 10th, 2014 at 2:45 PM ^
RR has Denard in the NFL at rb.
January 10th, 2014 at 2:52 PM ^
How many multi-year NFL backs has RR ever had? If that's the metric, and I don't see why it should be, he's a remarkable failure as a developer of offensive talent. I checked this back when he was hired at Michigan, and during his tenure WVU had put fewer offensive players into the NFL than all but one school in the Big East (I forget which one it was, maybe South Florida?)
I don't know why it's a surprise that the trend continued here--it seems to be inherent in the particular system he runs and the players he recruits to fit that system. Blaming Jackson for that seems off..
January 10th, 2014 at 2:58 PM ^
Yep. I think the most productive offensive guy out of WVU under Rodriguez was Steve Slaton, and he's out of football after four or five years. His other running backs (Quincy Wilson, Kay-Jay Harris, etc.) didn't do anything, and neither has his celebrated quarterback (Pat White).
January 10th, 2014 at 3:06 PM ^
No linemen, either, or receivers. There was a defensive player who converted to fullback in the NFL; that doesn't count.
It's not a knock on RR, really, it's just a thing. But it's relevant, if you're going to apply that metric to his assistants.
January 10th, 2014 at 2:07 PM ^
...which is fine.
"Michigan hasn't had a running game from the RB position since Hart left."
That is patently false. Fitzgerald Toussaint averaged 5.6 yards/carry and had over 1,000 yards in 2011. Brandon Minor averaged 5.2 yards/carry in 2008 and 2009 and scored 17 touchdowns in just 199 carries over that span.
"Michigan currently does not have one running back in the NFL."
Arguably false. Michael Cox is a New York Giant, though he didn't finish his career at Michigan. And what does that have to do with Fred Jackson directly? Is it his fault that Mike Hart had injury problems and was small/slow? Is it his fault that Brandon Minor (allegedly) likes weed a little too much? The average running back's career is very short, so there's not a very large window. And when the program and recruiting take a dip for a few years because of a change in the system/philosophy/whatever, there's going to be some consequences. You know what other positions in the NFL are lacking Michigan players? Well...lots of them. Linebackers, cornerbacks, offensive linemen, quarterbacks... This isn't the old days when Michigan plays litter the NFL. The program has had a rough few years all around.
"Where is Thomas Rawls? He's not Rich Rod approved, he was supposed to be Mark Ingram...but faster. He committed AFTER Rich Rod was gone."
What's your point? First of all, you don't know whether Fred Jackson was the reason behind the Rawls offer or not. And secondly, it seems that you're suggesting the RB coach is the reason for any recruit not panning out.
"Didn't WVU have Steve Slaton under Rich Rod? Right now at Arizona Rich Rod has a kid Ka'Deem Carey. Both had monster seasons under Rich Rod...so he clearly can produce at the RB position in a big way. Borderline Heisman producing. So that's B/S to blame it on Rich Rod."
LOL. First of all, Ka'Deem Carey wasn't recruited by Rich Rodriguez. He was a 2011 recruit, the year Rodriguez was an analyst for CBS Sports, though he has produced under Rodriguez. Secondly, it seems odd to me that you're praising Rich Rodriguez for Steve Slaton's work from 2005-2007, but part of your argument against Fred Jackson is that he hasn't done anything since Mike Hart...who was in college from 2004-2007. Either the year 2007 counts for both guys, or it counts for neither.
January 10th, 2014 at 2:30 PM ^
It doesn't make you correct, clever or witty...but I'm sure it makes you feel better.
That was really long, but I'll say this.
I figured you'd mention Cox, which is a joke, but whatever, if it makes you feel better. "HEY EVERYBODY! Michigan has ONE RB in the NFL...a 7th rounder! Remember Michael Cox? He's the best we have from Michigan."
Since Mike Hart was drafted...we have Michael Cox. Michigan State has 3 guys that have been drafted. I believe OSU has had the same. So if you want to play the "technically...arguably..." game, that's fine. I hope it makes you feel better, but it doesn't prove ANYTHING.
My point on Rawls is that he's NOT a Rich Rod guy. Don't get hung up on the joke I put in there. Relax.
My other points were that he and Hayes are at the bottom of the depth chart, they haven't seemed to get much better. That is on the RB coach.
And Carey, it doesn't matter than he wasn't a Rich Rod guy...he's performing in his offense as Slaton did. So the point was Rich Rod RBs can perform...and there isn't an excuse why they didn't perform to a All-B1G level under Rich Rod or Hoke.
Keep trying.