Rich Rod interested in Ole Miss
Thought i would share - insider rumor quotes RR, says he is interested in the job at Miss.
http://insider.espn.go.com/ncf/features/rumors?date=20111112
Did mention one thing about Michigan:
"I think I have 10 to 15 years left in coaching and I'm hungrier than I've ever been. We didn't get a chance to see it through at Michigan for various reasons."
Kind of a jab, but doesn't give the full context, so I don't know.
November 13th, 2011 at 5:59 PM ^
I get it. It just wasn't funny or original.
November 13th, 2011 at 10:36 AM ^
I think he's learned to just hire a DC and let him do his thing, which will obviously be crucial in SEC. Ole miss will probably give him time. Seems like a good fit.
November 13th, 2011 at 10:39 AM ^
He has a shot at going 8-4. But that is Ole Miss' ceiling. Their division plus their cross divisional games make anything more unlikely.
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<br>Rich seems like a good guy and I wish him he best. I just wish he recognize his part in the failure that was his program here.
November 13th, 2011 at 12:04 PM ^
Their protected cross divisional rivalry is Vandy. That's the least of their problems. A bigger problem is a fanbase with outsider expectations, given the difficulties of their division.
November 13th, 2011 at 10:41 AM ^
If he takes the Ole Miss job, all that it shows is either:
a) He really didn't learn much here. Clearly, the situation you put yourself in is a HUGE consideration. At Michigan, it was not a great situation for a lot of reasons (the roster, alumni expectations, outsiders not welcome, etc.). At Ole Miss, it would be a bad situation for other reasons (SEC competition is murder being a primary one).
OR
b) He is somewhat desperate to coach, and doesn't want to step down into a lower tier position such as Tulane. This might be a reality given his tenure here.
Either way, if I were an advisor to RR, I would tell him to wait for the exact right opportunity, where (1) they'd be desperate to have you and (2) it is OK not to win right away. The earlier comment about something in the ACC makes perfect sense along these lines...
November 13th, 2011 at 10:51 AM ^
He could take the Vanderbilt job for all I care, but the dude got paid here and will probably get paid there...in the end, it's a job. If he fails, he takes his multi-million dollar career earnings and does color commentary...
November 13th, 2011 at 1:12 PM ^
This is Franklin's first year at Vandy and he is doing a great job. Where did this Vandy thing come from?
November 13th, 2011 at 10:48 AM ^
I figured he would never make it there. His offense would never survive the SEC West. Rich could make a go of it. If they give him the time. As he quoted so often in Three and Out, the Bobby Bowden theory of coach: First you lose big, then you lose close, then you win some close and then in year four to five you win big. The key for RR's system, the adeministration and the fans have to have the patience for him to get the players he needs and the right staff. If he gets Ole Miss or even Kansas, he could do some amazing things. The key for him is obviously the QB, just like everyone else.
November 13th, 2011 at 11:10 AM ^
Never have. Never will. Their defense is horrendous and their offense disappears versus the elite teams.
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November 13th, 2011 at 10:55 AM ^
I don't understand why people keep saying that he won't be able to succeed because of defense. GERG was more of a problem with the defense than RichRod--by far... So long as he picks up a decent coordinator, I think he'll be fine.
November 13th, 2011 at 11:17 AM ^
Why do you assume that? It wasn't GERG's call to run the 3-3-5, or have Tony Gibson as his DB coach. Scott Shafer, considered an emerging name in the coaching field, didn't have much more success in 2008 when he was here.
November 13th, 2011 at 12:11 PM ^
GERG was the assistant, RR was the HC. Ultimately, it all falls on his shoulders.
November 13th, 2011 at 10:57 AM ^
November 13th, 2011 at 12:37 PM ^
It's a trap!
November 13th, 2011 at 10:59 AM ^
UM was the only place RR did not succeed. I see no reason why he can't do it at Ole Miss. The SEC west is tough, but who knows what's going to happen 5 years down the road. Saban and Petrino take another shot at the NFL a la Carrol; Miles goes back to his 8-9 win ways; Auburn stays OK, but can't get back to elite without Cam; MSU already hurts without Diaz. Plus there are a lot of raw athletes in Miss, and RR has a ton of recruiting ties in the south. Just get a DC and a QB, and he can win.
November 13th, 2011 at 11:12 AM ^
That would make his success rate 50%.
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<br>He would benefit from lower expectatlons, but he would have to adapt his spread to the SEC.
November 13th, 2011 at 11:15 AM ^
Les Miles has averaged over 10 wins a year at LSU. Nice try.
November 13th, 2011 at 11:25 AM ^
Les Miles also was on the hot seat (yes, the hot seat probably shouldn't have been considering his NC) when he won 8 and 9 games in 08 and 09? He's also lost at least two games each season he's been a head coach. This is shaping up to be his best season ever. He makes silly decisions enough that he will not keep a vice grip on that division.
November 13th, 2011 at 11:35 AM ^
Losing 2 games a year as a head coach at LSU still means he is winning 11.
He's not leaving that job until he retires, and his "silly" decisions normally work. I much prefer watching his "silly" decisions than watching Ferentz and Zook play percentages and bore me to sleep.
November 13th, 2011 at 2:11 PM ^
zook and ferentz think they are making the good % play, when in fact, they are not.
November 13th, 2011 at 12:01 PM ^
The SEC (and the west in particular) is a defense first league. That is why Petrino will continue to lose the big games as long as he has a second rate D. RR could do well, but he would have to learn that the D is simply more important. At least most of his cronies are else where now, that is a plus.
November 13th, 2011 at 11:12 AM ^
I had a frightening thought...
What would happen if Illinois hires RR afterb firing Zook? RR can keep the current defensive staff and overhaul the offense. That could be a very bad news for rest of B1G.
November 13th, 2011 at 11:13 AM ^
Oh, wait, they have. The Big Ten would not be scared of a guy who flamed out at one of its premier programs.
November 13th, 2011 at 11:45 AM ^
and former coaches won't act like little babies and actually support him. If he kept that defensive staff intact and recruited Chicago hard, that would be much improved program.
November 13th, 2011 at 11:55 AM ^
Yeah that offense won't work in the NCAA. Oregon didn't really kick the living crap out if Stanford last night either. Spreads don't work in the big ten.
November 13th, 2011 at 1:36 PM ^
Right, Oregon ran right over Nick Fairley and a bunch of scrubs to win the title game last year. Oh, wait a minute . . .
November 13th, 2011 at 12:19 PM ^
Illinois defense is pretty damn good. If they can just keep that and update the offense with RR system, that would be a pretty killer combo.
You would think RR would have learned from Michigan experience to let DC's keep their ow staff...
November 13th, 2011 at 1:55 PM ^
...to the tune of 67 points last year.
November 13th, 2011 at 11:17 AM ^
If you read Three and Out, you'd know the first thing Rich would do is fire Zook's entire staff except for his most able recruiter, and he would then install Tony Gibson as defensive coordinator. I'm not sure why that would frighten you.
November 13th, 2011 at 12:02 PM ^
But Jay Hopson's looking for a job.
November 13th, 2011 at 11:25 AM ^
I suspect he would want nothing more to do with the big ten, it'll be south or southeast.
November 13th, 2011 at 11:33 AM ^
make sure to bring a defensive coordinator with you
November 13th, 2011 at 11:35 AM ^
Rich Rod, don't do it to yourself!
Rich Rod needs to go to UCF, point blank, PERIOD. A school like that.
Rich Rod at Central Florida, South Florida, Memphis would be a great fit.
November 13th, 2011 at 1:02 PM ^
As a current UCF student I'm not sure about that. King George pulls winning seasons out of nowhere to keep job security. To be honest with you if he couldn't win at UM he won't be in great shape here. The offense resembles a poor mans version of what Borges is trying to do.
November 13th, 2011 at 11:59 AM ^
Rodriguez the head coach is utterly unemployable at the high-major level. Not entirely because of anything he has done, also because of the perception of what he has done.
The perception, right or wrong, was that with Michigan's brand and tradition, it was a job that nobody could screw up. Then he won three, and five, and seven games, setting records for defensive incompetence as he went along. Then you add in the smear campaign by the local media. Was it fair? Nope. Does that really matter in the court of public opinion? Not so much.
Then you add in the media miscues...The whole Lombardi thing...the staunchest Rodriguez supporter has to admit that made him look pretty stupid at the time. Even more so now. Then you look at those 17 year old kids he'd be going after. Their buddies are going to be crooning Grobin on signing day.
"Three and Out" itself. Embedding a reporter could be the single stupidest media decision he made. Even the book's goal--to paint Rodriguez as a victim--it makes him look better as a human being, but playing the role of tearful victim is hardly flattering for a head football coach. Having a journalist witness everything--the tantrums, cussing out players, crying to Bacon afterward...There is a reason no journalist had been given access like this before. I doubt opposing coaches have ever been gifted this sheer volume of negative recruiting material in the history of college football.
The thing is, Rodrigues is so GOOD at coaching and recruiting offense. I dont really see why he would be set on being a head coach, any more than I could understand Jordan Morgan wanting to become a 3pt specialist. It just makes so much more sense to stick with what you're good at. Why not take a coordinator spot somewhere? Let someone else take the hits for a while? It just seems like it would be so much better, so much EASIER for Rodriguez and his family.
November 13th, 2011 at 12:13 PM ^
What the fuck is your problem?
November 13th, 2011 at 12:30 PM ^
Your assessment is so offbase it's laughable.
November 14th, 2011 at 9:09 AM ^
Please see, "Bringing up Coastal Blue" volume 2, paying extra attention to the "attacking without providing justification" segment.
http://mgoblog.com/mgoboard/against-good-defenses-argument#comment-1328008
November 13th, 2011 at 1:56 PM ^
The perception, right or wrong, was that with Michigan's brand and tradition, it was a job that nobody could screw up.
That is the perception among many Michigan fans. The perception from much of the rest of college football world is that he never had a prayer at Michigan.
November 13th, 2011 at 10:58 PM ^
I have to admit that I'm curious at exactly who "much of the rest of college football world " might refer to.
The media seemed pretty optimistic about the hire as I recall, as was I. I'm just curious as to who you are referring to? Even Bacon thought he had a chance, referring to multiple "match point" opportunities where if Rodriguez just could have caught a break he would have captured our hearts and minds.
But if you have a line to much of the college football world I guess I stand corrected. I had no idea you had such wide and varied connections.
November 13th, 2011 at 12:00 PM ^
Didn't work out here, but I appreciate his efforts and wish him the best.
November 13th, 2011 at 12:28 PM ^
...and although I know RR loves to recruit Florida, I think he'd be a perfect fit at ASU. Dennis Erickson is absolutely TOAST at the end of this season. Expectations are always low at ASU, their facilities are lacking, and there's almost a total absence of anything that could be construed as media pressure. However, getting talent to ASU is usually not a problem, especially with such close proximity to Los Angeles. The academic standards (at least from an undergrad standpoint) are low. And the Pac-12 South Division (USC and then a bunch of nobodies) is extremely manageable. I think RR would be a big coup for them and they'd be really happy to have him. His recruiting ties aside, ASU should be a far more attractive option than Ole Miss to RR.
November 13th, 2011 at 12:28 PM ^
Would be great to see him back at a big school and doing well.
November 13th, 2011 at 12:35 PM ^
RR could be dominating the SEC in no time
November 13th, 2011 at 12:40 PM ^
What's wrong with taking a jab at Dave Brandon?
November 13th, 2011 at 12:45 PM ^
Really? Of all the things that went wrong in the RR era, your first thought is David Brandon?
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<br>How about:
<br>- Bill Martin
<br>- Freep
<br>- Inability to hire a defensive coordinator
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<br>Just to name a few that come well before David Brandon
November 13th, 2011 at 1:12 PM ^
Are you basing this all on hiring Brady Hoke? Because to be honest, that's not working out so bad...if you hadn't noticed.
November 13th, 2011 at 1:54 PM ^
he's just so smarmy.
November 13th, 2011 at 12:43 PM ^
November 13th, 2011 at 1:01 PM ^
ABOUT RICH RODRIGUEZ AND SO HAVE YOU. But I will restate my views every time his name is mentioned anyway!