Ohio hires Everett Withers as Co-D Coordinator
http://espn.go.com/college-football/story/_/id/7376122/everett-withers-…
Is Urb M just keeping Fickell around to exploit his recruiting relationships for this class and then bail on him?
UNC is not the squeakiest clean program either, btw.
December 21st, 2011 at 6:44 PM ^
So Fickell's not the real DC then. Because you never have to Co-anythings that really have equal power.
December 21st, 2011 at 6:49 PM ^
Greg Mattison was Co-D Coordinator at Florida under Meyer.
December 21st, 2011 at 6:54 PM ^
The question is who was the other co-Dcoord? And who really ran the show..
December 21st, 2011 at 7:00 PM ^
Since there were 2 of them, and they were both highly skilled, I would say they both ran the show, as Co-coordinators. Charlie Strong had been there for 5 or 6 years as the sole defensive coordinator. When they brought Mattison in he was the better defensive coach, but Strong was also named the Assistant Head Coach. Your guess is as good as mine. I think that it didn't matter who was "really, really" in charge because they worked well together for at least 3 years and won the National Championship.
December 21st, 2011 at 7:17 PM ^
I'm not saying that system can't work successfully. I'm not saying having this guy and Fickell as co-DCs will fail. I'm just saying, one of them is the DC, and the other guy is a D-line coach with a better title. Only one of them calls the plays and only one of them is the boss. If there is a disagreement between the two of them, one of them overrules the other.
If you're Luke Fickell, you might be OK with that, if you think the alternative is to just be the DL coach. But you also might not be. If Urban though Fickell could handle the defense on his own, he wouldn't have hired this guy.
December 21st, 2011 at 8:21 PM ^
So then why did Meyer say Fickell would be calling the defensive plays next year? I'd also love to hear your thoughts on which is the real assistant head coach, the assistant head coach, or the associate head coach? since one of them is obviously an imposter
December 21st, 2011 at 8:45 PM ^
I have no idea which is which, but I know that one of them is in charge and one of them isn't, it's just the way it is. When the players look to the sideline, there aren't two guys making the calls. And I promise Urban sees one of them as the guy in charge of the defense.
Think of this is any other job. You might have two guys who run an office or a department together, but at the end of the day one of them is the sherriff and the other is the deputy.
December 21st, 2011 at 7:44 PM ^
Fickell is the real DC. Meyer said he will be calling the defensive plays. This differs from when Fickell was under Tressel as co-DC and Heacock called the defense.
December 21st, 2011 at 6:46 PM ^
think this might be good news for us? Two coordinators who don't have any ties trying to develop a system... seems like there might be some issues with direction/roles?
December 21st, 2011 at 6:46 PM ^
That job at Pitt just became a really attractive one....
December 21st, 2011 at 6:51 PM ^
Sounds like they hired someone that fits the status quo. I'll assume by not the squeakiest clean program, you meant a heaping pile of filthy cheating.
Worked for Auburn when they brought in Gene Writing Chizicks.
December 21st, 2011 at 6:51 PM ^
Luke Fickell is a DLine specialist, Everett Withers is a Secondary specialist. Like most of Meyers assistants I wouldn't expect him to stay long, but only becasue he's a really good defensive coach. His defenses consitently intercept passes at a high rate everywhere he goes.
December 21st, 2011 at 6:54 PM ^
This is a polite way of Urban telling Fickell to get the fuck out! Classy guy. I can see why the recruits and the co-eds flock to him.
December 21st, 2011 at 6:57 PM ^
...if you haven't filled every single position on both.
December 21st, 2011 at 7:02 PM ^
I feel every move Meyers is making is just digging that school down south into a deeper and deeper hole, this may be their version of our Rodriguez years, too bad they are not loosing more scholarships, but maybe enough will jump ship to replicate our depth chart. Wishful thinking i'm sure. But a dreamer can dream, a dreamer can dream
December 21st, 2011 at 7:36 PM ^
Being the guy that UNC promoted after the housecleaning, I doubt Withers is all that dirty, necessarily. How many people around here said "I feel sorry for Fickell" after all? He's a solid DC, too. Had some pretty good D's at UNC.
December 21st, 2011 at 7:57 PM ^
Sounds like a kid who didn't get his first date until the age of 30 when his aunt set him up with a 4th cousin, Ella, on a blind date which ended at 3:00 AM in a nip joint outside of Morgantown swallowing the tongue of a boy named Bubba while Ella lay passed out on the floor. I am not worried about him.
December 21st, 2011 at 8:24 PM ^
Um.....is there something in your past you'd like to get off your chest?
December 21st, 2011 at 8:07 PM ^
Ain't no sunshine when he's gone ...
December 21st, 2011 at 8:29 PM ^
Everett Withers? Wasn't he the barber on Mayberry RFD?
December 21st, 2011 at 9:27 PM ^
Urban's staff:
Co-DC - Luke Fickell - Retained
OC/QB Coach - Tom Herman - Former OC of Iowa State
Co-DC - Everett Withers - Former interim HC and DC of UNC
LB Coach - Mike Vrabel - Retained
DB Coach - Taver Johnson - Retained
RB Coach - Stan Drayton - Retained
Feelings on the hires so far? Is it what you expected so far, or underwhelming?
December 21st, 2011 at 9:29 PM ^
Not the greatest coaching staff assembled in the nation like Urb stated he was going to do.
December 21st, 2011 at 9:37 PM ^
Jim Bollman: Not Retained
Nick Sicilano: Not Retained
December 22nd, 2011 at 12:46 AM ^
Are you Trusts Tressel and Trusts Fickell?
December 22nd, 2011 at 1:11 AM ^
You can decide if that's a coincidence.
December 21st, 2011 at 9:53 PM ^
So, when I read this:
A few years ago we talked when the Florida defensive coordinator job came open.
I immediately thought that he was no better than the runner-up for the D-coodinator job at Florida. I'm going to go ahead and believe that. It's comforting. Like warm cocoa.
December 22nd, 2011 at 12:41 AM ^
My thinking is that "the Urb" is going to slowly but surely force Fickell out. Fickell has probably relayed to "the Urb" that the interview at Pitt went well and he's probably not going to be at tsiO for an extended period of time. Being that Fickell is a bucknut through and through, the school is definitely not rewarding him for his loyalty during the shit storm, that probably isn't over yet. If Easy Gee and Mean Gene, have shown us anything in the last year, it's that they don't have a f'n clue as to what's happening in that program. I wouldn't be surprised to find out that Craig James, well you know the rest.
December 22nd, 2011 at 1:55 AM ^
Wasn't everyone's firsth thought that a cheater hired another cheater, allegedly of course? Obviously, I'm not sure of the specifics of what happened with him and the wrongdoing at NC. But Urb hiring a guy from a program just tarnished by a scandal was hilarious to me.