Bacon's Plan A, Plan B and Plan C. You Won't Like Plan B.
John U. Bacon on the Huge Show this afternoon, offering his updated assessment:
- Plan A is (in no order) Jim Harbaugh, John Harbaugh or Les Miles.
- Plan B is Greg Schiano. Dan Mullen was part of Plan B, but he's fading.
- Plan C is another Brady Hoke.
November 24th, 2014 at 7:52 PM ^
His team is slowly improving in the SEC. Two consecutive shutouts of Ole Miss and LSU is pretty damn impressive. Not my favorite, but have noticed the last two weeks.
November 24th, 2014 at 7:59 PM ^
Wears a headset, seems to be aware and doesn’t like hugging
November 24th, 2014 at 8:08 PM ^
He's not fully aware and there's not a chance in hell he coaches here when Brady is fired.
November 24th, 2014 at 6:32 PM ^
does bacon offer any tasty insider info there?
November 24th, 2014 at 6:36 PM ^
November 24th, 2014 at 6:48 PM ^
Dan Mullen fading... sounds like a thread in the board a couple days ago.
November 24th, 2014 at 6:48 PM ^
to throw to the dogs, is rapidly eroding his credibility. He is a decent to strong writer who really needed an editor, and a radio personality in need of a filter.
November 24th, 2014 at 10:35 PM ^
he has no insider info
there is no proof that Mullen is fading
The only correct way to read this, imo, is Bacon's own personal wishlist which is unsurprisingly composed of Bo Jr., Bo Jr's brother, an ex Bo player and Italian American Bo.
November 24th, 2014 at 6:32 PM ^
November 24th, 2014 at 6:32 PM ^
If they hire Schiano, they (the AD) are basically saying "we want to win, but we don't want it to cost that much." Of course, I think a Schiano led Michigan would have a high-point potential of 8-9 wins at best. And frankly, as bad as things have been, I am not ready to watch my beloved team accept "Second tier in the big ten" status.
Seriously, I won't be happy if we hire Schiano. If we don't get Harbaugh or Miles, I really want them to talk to Todd Graham. I think what he is doing in the desert is spectacular... and I don't care that he bolted Pitt--you would too.
November 24th, 2014 at 6:35 PM ^
November 24th, 2014 at 6:39 PM ^
I actually agree with you 100%. But I think you have to at least give the guy a call, especially considering that he makes less than Brady Hoke does, and has a reputation for going to better jobs.
And yeah, ASU is in an awesome city. Frankly, I would kind of find it odd if he left what he has built there for Ann Arbor, but I wouldn't be SHOCKED if he did so. I guess my Graham affinity comes from being excited about watching that team play... I admire his ability to hire great coordinators and put together a solid defense with mostly 2-3 star players.
That said, my internal realist thinks we are going to get some vaguely connected retread... I am just praying it's not Schiano; I would gladly sign up for the Hermann experiment before going down that road.
November 24th, 2014 at 6:38 PM ^
November 24th, 2014 at 6:46 PM ^
You don't put "Leaders and Best" and "Champions of the west" in your fight song, (which celebrates victory, not middle-of-the-packness) if you want to be second tier. I am not trying to hire a coach who loses to Dantonio more than 40% of the time and is incapable of beating Urban Meyer. I want nice things. NICE THINGS.
November 24th, 2014 at 8:03 PM ^
You are exactly the type of person Schlissel is talking about. Why can't leaders and best/champions of the west" be used in reference to our academic achievement and not our athletic ones? We all know that Schlissel wants to de-emphasize football and the entire athletic department in general. Hoke, despite his struggles on the field, has done a great job of graduating the football players. I'm not giving my opinion on whether Hoke should stay or not, just don't be surprised if Schlissel mandates that Hoke stays because Hoke's graduation rate is much much much higher than his winning percentage.
November 24th, 2014 at 8:19 PM ^
Because the fight song was not written for academic achievements. It was written after a football victory. That's why.
And the only reason he's graduated so many players is because he hasn't had many quit/transfer or leave early to go to the NFL which counts against graduation scores.
November 24th, 2014 at 11:12 PM ^
and absurd statements I've read on this board. Using your logic then, the fight song should only be allowed during football games, and any other athletic team representing Michigan has no right to have the victor's played because it's a football only song.
Instead, I see the victor's as pertaining the University as a whole and it transcends just the football team and represents what the University of Michigan aspires to be, which at the end of the day is an outstanding ACADEMIC institution. Schlissel is right. We are a school first and the athletic programs, while fun and nice, are not what this University's main purpose is. So sure, the victors may have been written after a football victory hundreds of years ago, but that doesn't mean that it hasn't evolved to become something much more than a song played on Saturday's to pump up the crowd. It's a representation of who we are and what we aspire to be as people, not as athletes.
November 24th, 2014 at 11:30 PM ^
Classes aren't held inside the 118,000 person football stadium. Football is played there. We built that because we care about football.
If it was ONLY about Academics, we would downscale the stadium and would pay our coaches what the coaches here at Columbia (where I am doing grad school) pay their coaches, which is about 120K per year. No. Michigan is an EXCELLENT school, I am not denying that, nor am I saying I want that to change, but we always had BOTH an excellent football team, and EXCELLENT academics. I am sorry, but I am not going to settle for a "decent" football team because we are a top-flight academics school. Stanford doesn't settle, Notre Dame doesn't settle, and Stanford is academically rated higher than our beloved alma mater.
And please don't tell me what "we" aspire to be as Michigan Alumni. I went there, I paid my money, I donate, and when I am home, I go to as many games as possible. I know why I went there, I know what "we" aspire to be...I was told we aspire to be the BEST at everything--INCLUDING football.
November 25th, 2014 at 12:12 AM ^
1) I'm not trying to tell you or any other alumni/alumnae what the University of Michigan aspires to be. That was more of a response to the other poster who seemed to insinuate that the only reason that we're the "leaders and best" is because of the football team, when to me that statement applies to so much more than what happens on Saturday's.
2) I agree. I'd love to have an excellent football program and that consistently beats our rivals on the football field, but the truth of the matter is that the program is a shell of what it used to be, and we as fans need to adjust our expectations accordingly. Does that mean that we shouldn't aspire to have one of the best football programs in the country? of course not. If you'll allow me a quick analogy: if you run a business who annually turns a 3% profit, is it honestly realistic that in the next year you'll suddenly turn into a company that earns a 20% profit solely because you want to?
3) You mentioned 2 schools who have been able to achieve academic and athletic excellence: Stanford and Notre Dame. Well Stanford did accept mediocrity for a long time and it wasn't until Harbaugh that that culture changed, and Notre Dame is more of the exception than the rule.
My statements were in regards to the fact that, in my analogy, the football program is a 3% profit company, and that first we need to be a 10% profit company before we can become a 20% profit company. Do I believe that ultimately we can one day get there? yes absolutely. But I honestly believe that that time is a long ways away and that people who are predicting an overnight change are in for a rude awakening, especially with a President who is trying to de-emphasize athletics.
November 25th, 2014 at 12:50 AM ^
I'm not adjusting my overall expectations of this football program. I expect excellence in due time. I expect that we get back to the top tier of Big Ten teams and are serious competitors nationally. If we aspire to get there, but are forevermore only able to maintain our current status as the most storied, winningest low-mid echelon Big Ten team, I'd rather knock down the stadium and live forever off my memories of the days when we were leaders and best in both academics and athletics, including football. Schlissel's the one in for a rude awakening if he thinks de-emphasizing athletics is going to be a winning proposal for the next big capital campaign.
November 24th, 2014 at 6:32 PM ^
November 24th, 2014 at 8:55 PM ^
November 24th, 2014 at 6:32 PM ^
Fuck that. I'd rather keep Brady Hoke for another year. I don't like assholes who are assholes just because (cough Brandon cough). And I definitely don't think he's some sort of upgrade over Hoke. I'm not a huge Mullen guy, but I'd take him in a heartbeat over Schiano.
And plan C...a guy like Hoke...what does that even mean, honestly? Are we talking about Cam Camerons and Scott Loefflers? Because if so...kill me now. Or does he mean a mostly unproven head coach? If we're talking about guys like the OSU offensive coordinator...well sure, why not look at some under-the-radar types?
I want to believe the candidates list is larger than that. But I just don't know anymore. I only hope the program somehow figures out how to get its head out of its ass. Until a new coach is named, I remain skeptical (and slightly hopeful of Harbaugh)
November 24th, 2014 at 6:35 PM ^
November 24th, 2014 at 6:42 PM ^
November 24th, 2014 at 7:13 PM ^
November 24th, 2014 at 9:23 PM ^
Secondly, none of the programs you mentioned have the politics and "Michigan man" bullcrap thag we have. If Harbaugh isn't our next coach, half the fan base and boosters will be calling for his firing before he even coaches a single game. Think any other head coach of a power 5 program has to deal with that? Sure there might be a few that don't like a certain hire at other places, but no where else is there widespread hatred for an incoming head coach without Michigan ties
November 24th, 2014 at 10:42 PM ^
That is such baloney. People were weary of John Cooper when he was hired because he was an outsider from the beginning. And they were right. He tried to think of ''The Game'' as just another game. We saw how that worked. You realize there hasn't been a single coach in Ohio State history without ties to Ohio besides Cooper?
November 24th, 2014 at 11:35 PM ^
I don't know what he means about us not pulling that kind of elite talent. Last I checked, Michigan brought you Charles Woodson, Tom Harmon, Denard Robinson, Desmond Howard, and, hell I could go on for a very long time.
This school is the winningest college football school in history. That might not mean anything to you, but about 95% of college coaches would LOVE to be a part of that history. This job is still one of the best in the country--a decade of lows isn't going to change that...two decades might though, so that's why this hire HAS to work.
Frankly, if you're so down on our prospects for the future... why do you still watch? You have to have some pride in this institution, including its ability to attract high-quality candidates.
November 24th, 2014 at 6:36 PM ^
Is actually A.B,C.
No Mullin-this years Sumlin.
But....maybe McElwain.
No Schiano.
No Bret.
John.Jim.Les. Or Bust.
Also throw out some looongshots on Cowher, Gruden.
November 24th, 2014 at 6:42 PM ^
People keep saying "Jim Harbaugh or bust." What do you mean, or bust? Like we just don't hire a coach and fold the team? That's not how it works. There is no "or bust" option. If those guys don't come, we don't bust, we just go down the list.
November 24th, 2014 at 6:49 PM ^
That John,Jim, or Les are the only guarantees imo.
November 24th, 2014 at 6:59 PM ^
OK, but those sentences are a lot different. And even those guys don't guarantee anything.
November 24th, 2014 at 6:36 PM ^
Schiano would be the absolute worst hire ever
Give me the Harbaughs, Miles, or just get the dude at Colorado State.
November 24th, 2014 at 6:37 PM ^
Les Miles would seem to me to be a 5 year solution at best due to his age. I'd rather get a younger, successful coach though for that and other reasons.
November 24th, 2014 at 6:38 PM ^
My plan A: Harbaugh
My plan B: Harbaugh
My plan C: Harbaugh
My plan D: Harbaugh
My plan E: Harbaugh
My plan F: Harbaugh
My plan G: I AM GROOT
My plan H: ALCOHOL POISONING
November 24th, 2014 at 6:39 PM ^
Actually plan B should be to keep Hoke 1 more year plan C get RR back. Maybe what is to be learned is that coaches need more time. If we get another coach it will take 3-4 years to be dominant, especially if this years recruting continues to nose dive. If they do fire Hoke make sure you have plan A locked down (forget hiring a mediocre coach) or we are in for 4 more years of pain.
November 24th, 2014 at 6:44 PM ^
Ok take your heart medicine before reading this:
Honest to God, I would take RR back over Schiano!
November 24th, 2014 at 6:40 PM ^
Harbaugh or bust.
November 24th, 2014 at 6:43 PM ^
November 24th, 2014 at 6:43 PM ^
November 24th, 2014 at 6:50 PM ^
November 24th, 2014 at 6:44 PM ^
either.
November 24th, 2014 at 6:48 PM ^
November 24th, 2014 at 6:53 PM ^
November 24th, 2014 at 6:53 PM ^
If Michigan can't find an adequate replacement head coach because Jim Hackett is the interim AD, then I could see Michigan having an interim HC for the 2015 season. Doug Nussmeier would be the logical choice, if he's willing to take the job for a year and be considered for the permanent head coaching position.
I'm hard pressed to imagine that Michigan is going to be able to hire a really first class head coach without having a permanent Athletic Director in place. That permanent AD might turn out to be Hackett if they can't find the right candidates willing to take the job in the necessary time frame. i.e., sometime NLT than mid-December, because a new head coach will need to be hired sometime during or right after the bowl/playoff games. Hackett might also get the job because the AD candidates they're looking for are telling them "thanks, but no thanks".
If it were Nussmeier, then it also means there might be some minor turnover in the coaching staff, but not too much seeing that the HC is interim. Who knows? Maybe UM could get someone like Will Muschamp to take over as DC for that season as a replacement for Mattison.
Is this an ideal situation? No. Schools have had interim HCs put in place during the spring or summer months when coaches got fired during the offseason (such as Lloyd Carr), but they also had permanent ADs at the time (such as Arkansas with Jeff Long/Bobby Petrino and Ohio State with Gene/SmithJim Tressel). Michigan isn't yet in the position of having a permanent Athletic Director, and that might be the reason why an interim HC for 2015 might get named early in the process.
November 24th, 2014 at 7:01 PM ^
Luckily, if "Plan A" includes 3 candidates, that would seem to make the "Plan B" that we wouldn't like more of a Plan D (although still a realistic scenario). Also, I'm guessing "Plan C" isn't really on the table since Hoke's gonna get canned before we have an answer from any of the "Plan A" or "Plan B" candidates.