OT: Mora turns down UW, Mariota staying at Oreg for another year
Mariota link:
http://www.addictedtoquack.com/football/2013/12/3/5172092/marcus-mariota-and-hroniss-grasu-will-return-to-oregon-in-2014
Mora link:
http://www.uwdawgpound.com/2013/12/3/5171344/jim-mora-uw-ucla-coach
Not a great day for Washington Huskie fans.
December 4th, 2013 at 12:31 PM ^
to Ed Orgeron. That would be wickedly awesome karma for USC....
December 4th, 2013 at 12:35 PM ^
Orgeron has a career head coaching record of 16-27. He has had a very Brian Ellerbe-like career trajectory: failure at his first HC gig (Ole Miss), followed by a job as an assistant at a bigger school (USC) and then moderate success in one interim year. I'd be wary of hiring him as a permanent HC.
December 4th, 2013 at 12:41 PM ^
But he is one hell of an actor....
December 4th, 2013 at 12:47 PM ^
He has also openly admitted that he screwed up at Mississippi. And he did hire Hugh Freeze, which, if we give credit to the coaching tree, did ultimately benefit Ole Miss in the long run.
It's not too much of a stretch to see Coach O at Washington. He knows the recruiting area, he has had success, even if it is moderate. Plus it would make for a fun press release and instant notice.
December 4th, 2013 at 1:04 PM ^
The problem is, teams often rally behind an interim coach. The players take it personally that their previous coach was fired and it gives them motivation to play for the interim guy, who they usually want to get the job (better the guy you know than an unknown outsider). But those interim guys often turn out to be mediocre once they become the permanent coach, and the emotions of the previous coach's firing have subsided.
In any event, he certainly didn't help himself with his team's flat performance against UCLA. When you're at SC, beating Stanford is nice, but beating UCLA is essential.
December 4th, 2013 at 2:01 PM ^
December 4th, 2013 at 3:06 PM ^
That's another fairly common occurrence - the HC is unpopular but his assistants are beloved by the players.
On a typical program, the head coach is usually the "bad cop" who lays down the law while the assistants are the "good cops." Players often like their position coach or coordinator better than the head coach, and have a closer relationship with him. When the assistant gets promoted, at first they love the guy and rally behind him - but then he has to become the bad cop himself to maintain program discipline, and sometimes he isn't cut out for that.
December 4th, 2013 at 2:23 PM ^
Yep. I'm thinking USC's turnaround was based more upon a major boost in team morale after Kiffin was finally let go than it being because Coach O righted the ship. Regardless, some team will take a stab at him (I just don't think they'll end up getting what they expected).
December 4th, 2013 at 12:41 PM ^
Not sure why anyone would have thought Mora would go to UW (unless buckets of money were involved). Smaller fanbase, less resources, and harder to recruit at (SoCal vs. Washington HS football talent).
December 4th, 2013 at 12:42 PM ^
Mora supposedly once said that coaching at Washington was his dream job.
December 4th, 2013 at 12:48 PM ^
Plus he played there in the early '80s and his Dad was a coach there in the 70s
December 4th, 2013 at 12:48 PM ^
I wondered the same thing at first--Mora played there.
December 4th, 2013 at 12:51 PM ^
Not sure that's true about a smaller fanbase or fewer resources. UCLA, remember, has no home stadium. They play home games at the Rose Bowl, which is an hour's drive from campus and is way too big for their fan support. UW has an awesome on-campus stadium and when they're good, it sells out. UW also is (historically) top dog in the state of Washington, whereas UCLA is usually in the shadow of SC.
UCLA is also Mora's alma mater. It was probably a tough call for him. In the end, inertia probably won out - most coaches are pretty happy where they are and need a really good reason to leave.
December 4th, 2013 at 1:02 PM ^
so resources are there for the taking. The fan base used to be really good until they sucked for a while. If Washington can get back to being a title contender, they'll get them back. Ed O has a really good rep as a good recruiter plus he won't have to deal with USC in their backyard at LA/SoCal.
UCLA put way less resources and less support from the athletic department.
December 4th, 2013 at 3:13 PM ^
December 4th, 2013 at 5:18 PM ^
As a UCLA fan and graduate (PhD, rooting interest tem times greater for M) I can add some color. The Rose bowl is the home stadium, and makes for a nice experience. It is not cose to campus, and yes it could take an hour and would be nicer if the stadium was on campus, but the down side is not great. Far better than the coliseum imo.
I also work for some buddies of Jim Mora, know the awesome neighborhood he still has a house in, so was wondering if he might take his "dream job" where he could commute by boat if he wanted. However, LA is an awesome place if you have coaches kind of money. Wicked cold today, the high is only 63!
Comparing UCLA and UW, both are public schools hurting bad for money. Not sure of the UW situation, but UCLA has made a major push in the last few years to compete for donors with USC, and they have banked some big bucks, so though the school has historically not paid its coaches, times are different and the school can't get by on gov't grants and instead are raking in donor dollars which are tied to sports success. UCLA is perhaps the most recognized U brand worldwide? No shortage of resources if the desire is there.
Recruiting might favor UCLA, as the Northwest is a different place, nice but not SoCal, but UW has O in its backyard. Yes UCLA has USC, but the brand and players are different, with Mora making a big difference in making UCLA an attractive place for those that want to compete for championships.
December 4th, 2013 at 12:41 PM ^
I actually wanted Mora to go to Washington. It would cause the most hilarious amount of confused butthurt for Bruin fans who piss on Mora literally every game (even the blowout wins) because the product isn't Perfect after he practically resurrected the program in one year.
You think our expectations are unreasonable? You haven't met UCLA fans.
December 4th, 2013 at 1:47 PM ^
Dude you're talking about the jackwads at Bruins Nation a group well known throughout the rest of the fanbase to be insane idiots. They're basically the RCMB/MLive equivalents. I wouldn't judge UCLA fans by those guys.
December 4th, 2013 at 4:11 PM ^
Interesting to know. Are UCLA fans cognizant UCLA has 3 true freshman OL. And if yes, are they cognizant at what is going on at UM with our OL versus theirs? UCLA's only losses this years are AT Stanford and AT Oregon and a 5 pt loss to ASU which the computers like and is a top15 type team. This is a very nice season; very Carr like in fact. This is for a team that was 4-8, 7-6, 4-8, and 6-8 (lol somehow division champs that year due to USC issues) the previous 4 years to Mora arriving.
I am watching from afar but Mora seems like he is doing very Harbaugh type things with that program (knocking off Oregon and/or Stanford is next on the agenda) and if something were to go amiss with Hoke in the next 2 years I'd be all in the Mora for UM bandwagon unless something shows me different in the next 2 years. That said he may just go back to the NFL In a few years.
December 4th, 2013 at 12:44 PM ^
The Seattle Times was theorizing on some of the other names involved in the Washington coaching search. Among them, former Washington assistant (now with Saban in Alabama) Doug Nussmeier, as well as Tim DeRuyter at Fresno State and even Gary Pinkel at Missouri. As it now seems to be standard for such reporting, James Franklin makes an appearance on their list of those "possibly intrigued" by the job too.
December 4th, 2013 at 12:51 PM ^
Every coaching vacancy that comes up he is mentioned, so I thought it was suitable to add his name to the Washington job.
December 4th, 2013 at 2:44 PM ^
December 4th, 2013 at 1:56 PM ^
...those rumor days have passed.
That said, if he was fired, I could see him as the OC with Orgeron at UW. They could get Ty Willingham to be the DC and it can be the team of misfit coaches.
December 4th, 2013 at 1:50 PM ^
DeRuyter would be a great choice. Air Force's defense has never been the same since he left and I am sure he would love the opportunity. I just wonder if there is maybe more a "prove it" atmosphere with him as two good seasons at Fresno St.might not be enough of a resume, especially when he lucked into having the latest Carr brother as his QB.
December 4th, 2013 at 2:01 PM ^
It's going to be disappointing for Mariota when he stays an extra year only to DROP BEHIND DEVIN GARDNER IN THE DRAFT RANKINGS!
December 4th, 2013 at 2:06 PM ^
December 4th, 2013 at 3:24 PM ^
I laughed at this and also hope its true. Thanks.
December 4th, 2013 at 5:55 PM ^
December 5th, 2013 at 2:26 AM ^
Give sparty some credit for scheduling that game. I think we learned from Alabama to stay on the porch and not try to run with the big dogs.