Searchbits III: Eye Of The Storm
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A NEW ROUND OF HE GONE. After San Francisco lost to the Rams in ridiculous fashion to drop to 4-4, the knives—already out—added numbers to their ranks. Jerry Rice:
"I think he’s gone," Rice said. … "We don’t really know if he wants to come back and be the head coach for the San Francisco 49ers...Maybe that’s starting to wear and tear on the team and it’s taking its toll."
San Francisco 49ers Hall of Fame wide receiver Jerry Rice believes coach Jim Harbaugh's act is starting to wear thin, in part because Harbaugh's "collegiate mentality" is not suited to the pro game.
"I have heard some complaints from some players that he likes to try to coach with the collegiate mentality, and that's just not going to work in the NFL," said Rice.
“So I stood right by the team,” Young said. “It was right before halftime and afterwards. And I remember calling to my security guy that I’ve known for years and years, Jeff Rodriguez. I said ‘Jeff, something’s wrong with these guys. There’s a bad vibe. Guys on and off the field.’ … A lot of complaining, a lot of moaning coming off the field.”
49ers GM Trent Baalke agreed with that take without getting too specific.
Mercury News reporter Tim Kawakami:
Less than 50%, then let's see how the season plays out. RT @chang358 your odds for harbaugh coaching Niners next year?
— Tim Kawakami (@timkawakami) November 4, 2014
At 4-4, San Fransico is three games back of 7-1 Arizona and one back of the Seahawks, and the way the NFC is breaking down this year the wild card teams are likely to have fancy records. The 49ers are currently behind the Packers, Cowboys, and Seahawks.
ON THE AD SEARCH. I got nothin'.
I don't know how other people are getting more than that. Schlissel just told the Daily the search is restricted to his head at the moment, so I regard all insider information on this skeptically. I don't suspect bad faith on anyone's part. I just doubt any of these sources have a great handle on the situation no matter how many times reporters use "Fact" as a sentence. Fact. (Actually, opinion.)
That goes double given the wildly divergent timelines that have been thrown out there. Sam Webb was mentioning Hackett could be around 18-24 months on WTKA, which freaked a lot of people out; Rivals was first positing nine months and now has their prediction in the heart of common sense, mid-December; Coaching Scoop just asserted that the goal was to have an AD in place by the time the whistle blows on the Ohio State game. That's 25 days from now.
In the absence of any information you don't already have or anything resembling consensus amongst the people who say they have some, I resort to common sense—
[whispering]
—nevermind. I resorted to common sense right before I projected Brady Hoke had a 0.0 percent chance of being Michigan's coach, so common sense and I aren't on speaking terms.
It is worth noting that the long Hackett timeframes may be maximums instead of likely lengths and may not preclude a long-term AD being brought in, with Hackett as a bridging aide.
ATHLETIC DIRECTOR CANDIATES OUTSIDE THE MICHIGAN BOX. A few candidates have drawn mention:
- Joe Schad reported that Michigan "has targeted" Northwestern AD Jim Phillips. Phillips is the president of NACDA, which is the national trade group for ADs and was AD of the year a couple years back. Before Northwestern, Phillips was the AD at NIU; he's an Illinois grad. FWIW: I've heard from Northwestern people that Phillips is going nowhere, and he's got the list of spurned suitors to back that up.
- Football Scoop's Pete Roussell brought up Oklahoma AD Joe Castiglione. The site just doubled down on that, saying "sources within the industry" thought he was the name and that he would take the job if it was offered. (Bob Stoops would not be coming along.)
- Sam Webb suggested that Michigan would look at Greg Byrne, the Arizona AD. This would of course be the most hilarious option.
Meanwhile, Warde Manuel told his local paper that he hasn't heard from Michigan.
November 4th, 2014 at 11:09 PM ^
Drake's Denogginizer? Yeah, that would do it.
November 5th, 2014 at 6:52 AM ^
November 5th, 2014 at 10:06 AM ^
Our sources at ESPN tells us that their sources have confirmed from a source that Harbaugh to Michigan is not a sure thing. The source claims that diaper prices in Michigan may cause the Harbaugh's to rethink any possible return to Ann Arbor. LeBron James has no comment.
November 4th, 2014 at 8:51 PM ^
November 4th, 2014 at 9:24 PM ^
November 4th, 2014 at 9:21 PM ^
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November 5th, 2014 at 6:49 AM ^
November 4th, 2014 at 9:52 PM ^
We get all things done in a day - the Michigan difference!
November 4th, 2014 at 10:15 PM ^
Hire Gregg Henson as Master of Spies
November 4th, 2014 at 10:47 PM ^
Whisperers.
/GOT'd
November 4th, 2014 at 10:43 PM ^
Something is rotten in Denmark here... JH gets them to 3 NFC championships, the team hits a touch of adversity, and they're crying about a "college" coach?! Soft. Just like when Mike Singletary tried to instill a bit of toughness in those primadonnas and they drove him out of town. SF must want to be soft.
Reminds me of the Lions filing a union grievance for practicing in pads and then going 0 - 16. Hmmm.
Michigan is soft too and I'm all in if JH can fix that. When Morris took that cheap shot from Minny, Cockran should have got knocked right on his ass. But not 1, NOT ONE, Michigan player stuck up for Shane. Pathetic. Soft. You don't think Moo U. wouldn't have cleaned Cockran's clock? Or ohio for that matter too?
November 4th, 2014 at 11:14 PM ^
So it is like this. Players will more or less always complain, about one thing or another. Usually the GM and the owner will say, "well that's why the players play and the coaches coach." But when the GM and owner can obtain leverage or advantage for, say, ongoing contract extension negotiations, player complaints are amplified (and/or fabricated) to serve the interests of the suits who own and run the team.
November 5th, 2014 at 2:02 AM ^
Something akin to a minor brawl or major scuffle if it had been one of those two schools' QB leveled like that.
November 5th, 2014 at 8:42 AM ^
November 4th, 2014 at 10:59 PM ^
as well as Sam Webb. There will almost certainly has to be a new permanent AD in place by the end of the regular season or shortly thereafter. They can't go into the off-season with all this hanging in the balance. There won't be a recruit left to keep.
Hackett could very well be on staff for 9-12 months. It's called the transition phase. I think the Dartmouth and NW guy and Arizona AD are purely deceptions. Throwing the dogs off the scent. To make this work in the small timeframe they have, It has to be Long, Bates, Manual and maybe Parker (longer shot).
Bringing in Bates or Long would be a relatively easy transition, especially Long considering Arkansas' place within major college football. The sticking point is Long's position in the Playoff Committee.
Bates would be easy also. the hardest part is getting that deal done while they are under contract.
I think Sam Webb is blowing smoke in every direction to keep everyone guessing. Maybe he knows something, maybe not. My guess is he and Ira have to toe the line to keep their connections.
I say new AD in place by December 10 at the latest and Hoke possibly gone before that. Hackett can handle that job. There shouldn't be a bowl game, if there is, Nuss will be interim. Don't need Hoke for that.
Coaching choices probably 1. JH, 2. L Miles, 3. Mullen (He probably not leaving the SEC).
November 5th, 2014 at 12:17 AM ^
Sam does not do that. Sam had the student protest organizer on to his personal detriment in an effort to be neutral.
He's relating something from inside the program. I don't know how accurate it is, because anyone asserting anything is guessing right now. He is not pushing anything.
November 5th, 2014 at 1:27 AM ^
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November 5th, 2014 at 1:38 AM ^
November 5th, 2014 at 4:05 AM ^
it means that, in the eyes of the players, he is treating them like 18-22 year olds and not like grown ass millionaires. Or, in other words, he is not a player's coach and is being more demanding of them than they'd like.
There is a reason most college to pro moves like this don't work... I went through it once and worked out that the vast majority of successful NFL coaches have little to no college coaching experience with some of the most prominent of the past decade (Cowher, Dungy Belichick) having never held a college job. They're two entirely different skill sets.
November 5th, 2014 at 6:15 AM ^
You had me until you claimed that "they're two entirely different skill sets." The skill set being their coaching and play calling are pretty similar.
The difference is the manner in which you coach and communicate with the players. That's what creates the culture, which is what the players apparently don't like.
November 5th, 2014 at 1:47 AM ^
is run past Jim Harbaugh! Let him pick the ones he will work for and the ones he would not. Then pick Jim's favorite AD.
I think Jim is getting sick of the attitudes of NFL players, so I don't think he will go to another team. I think he will take the Michigan job if the salary is enough and the right AD is in place. I just hope Michigan doesn't screw this up! Everything is falling in place to have Jim Harbaugh fall into your lap!
November 5th, 2014 at 7:19 AM ^
Having an employee pick their supervisor is a horrible idea, might as well have the employee pull double-duty
November 5th, 2014 at 8:23 AM ^
November 5th, 2014 at 7:23 AM ^
So our ideal coach
1) Lost 4 games already
2) Lost his team (by several reports)
3) Is unable to work with his GM
4) Will not be welcome in the 49er's organization after the end of the season
5) Is a high-functioning lunatic on the sidelines.
We may want to give this a little more thought.
November 5th, 2014 at 7:51 AM ^
1) Harbaugh has lost far more than four games as a coach. I think he's lost over 25% of his games, in fact. If the ideal candidate is a coach who has lost fewer that four games, the list will be pretty small
2) I don't think we need to worry about Harbaugh's ability to "not lose" mullionaire professional athletes after better than three years of success.
3) Obviously, he has been working with hus GM since he got there, so I don't think it is tenable to argue that he can't.
4) I think we'd prefer a candidate who wouldn't be welcome to coach the 49ers after the end of the season. Dunno what it means to be "not welcome in the 49ers organization;" where in the organization would he fit, except as coach? All you are saying here is that he won't be welcome as coach, and that itself is a stretch.
5) So, he'd be like most other successful college coaches? Okay by me.
You might want to give your posts a little more thought.
November 5th, 2014 at 8:10 AM ^
1) I mean 4 losses so far this season. Sorry if that went over your head.
2) Why don't you think we have to worry? Are you disputing the reports of discord in TFA or dismissing them as unimportant? 3 years ago is ancient history in these leagues.
3) For commonly-used definitions of "working with" no, actually, he hasn't. I mean, RTFA.
4) Why would you prefer a candidate who is not welcome back to their previous place of employment? Have you ever performed a reference check? Have you ever worked with a guy who wasn't?
5) Yay, we get to see Kelly-purple on the sidelines. Just like all the other cool kids successful programs. Because it's the crazy that makes them successful
But hey, he's a Michigan Man.
November 5th, 2014 at 8:39 AM ^
So has John Harbaugh.
2--The discord is directly related to how Harbaugh acts--like a college coach. As far as we know Harbaugh did not have the same problems at San Diego and Stanford. These are much more relevant to UM than the Niners as UM is a college program and not a NFL team.
3--Jimmy Johnson could not work with Jerry Jones. Personalities conflict. I don't think it says much at all.
4--Maybe. But it also might be the case that Harbaugh does not want to go back to the Niners. If you consider how bad/mediocre the Niners have been since the days of Walsh and Seifert I would not hold this against Harbaugh. The Niners are not exactly a well-run organization.Harbaugh has an immediate impact on that franchise. 6-10 before he got there and NFC title game the next year.
Also Nick Saban was loathed in Miami before he left. He has done okay for himself at Bama.
5--Um, Bo? Michigan has seen such behavior on the sidelines before. Clearly this is something he needs to work on, but it is hardly a dealkiller.
November 5th, 2014 at 8:43 AM ^
You make good counter points. It's just that I'm bit concerned about the unquestioning adulation for a guy who really seems to have some baggage. I think there's a legit risk that his star is no longer on the rise.
November 5th, 2014 at 8:50 AM ^
The dynamics in the NFL are much, much different than college. Millionaire players, unions, GM, salary cap...these are issues Harbaugh did not have to deal with in college.
Nick Saban and Steve Spurrier failed in the NFL. Failure in the NFL does not make you a bad coach or that your star has dulled. It just means that he suffered the fate of 99.999% of NFL head coaches.
Harbaugh is a college coach. I just don't know if he realizes that. Hopefully for Michigan he comes to realize this in the coming months.
November 5th, 2014 at 9:22 AM ^
So Its Not Dave if not JH who seems to be the leader in the clubhouse, if you don't mind, would you let us in on your shortlist or favorites to be the next HC? It seems that EVERY candidate mentioned by EVERYONE has some baggage or negatives. Just curious.
November 5th, 2014 at 10:54 AM ^
1) I considered the possibility that this was what you meant, but it was so stupid and irrelevant that I dismissed that possibility. Sorry to have overestimated your ability to stay on point.
2) I don't think that we have to worry because the reason cited by these reports is that Harbaugh acts too much like a college coach. A college coach who acts like a college coach is actually an asset.
3) So, you are making up your own definition of "working with" and declaring it the "commonly-used" one?" Not persuasive. If you want to argue that the two men are not working cordially together, okay. But, so what? Lots of people work together without being particularly cordial.
4) Not sure why this strawman is here. I have no idea whether I have worked with someone who wasn't welcome at a previous place of employment, and since Jim Harbaugh is welcome at all of his previous places of employment, don't see that it is relevant.
5) Yeh, we get to see Schembechler-purple, Hayes purple, Osbourne-purple, Bryant-purple... sounds like that would suck.... NOT.
But, hey, he's been wildly successful everywhere he has been. Some people take that as a sign that they need to come up with bulshit reasons to argue for giving the hire more thought.
There are genuine reasons to question why Harbaugh is the best guy, starting with "but, will he stay long enough to make a difference?" but your reasons aren't among them.
November 5th, 2014 at 8:52 AM ^
November 5th, 2014 at 9:44 AM ^
agree that his recruiting info is good. But I don't think he has a reliable source in any other respect. Lately his comments are nonsenical.
November 5th, 2014 at 9:48 AM ^
First off, I’ll say I believe Jim Harbaugh is the best head coach candidate for the University of Michigan. The best reason I would want him is he is the one guy that the collective OSU and MSU community would fear.
However, I’m a little nervous that we read between the lines of every Harbaugh tid-bit to draw our own, self-profiting, conclusions. I think it’s possible he’d be interested but I think it’s also possible he has zero intentions to return to college.
I realize there are probably credible sources that hear rumblings one way or the other. But, I’m pretty confident no one knows definitively for sure. I just try to pump the brakes a little bit to try to avoid a meltdown of epic proportions if the day comes that Harbaugh states he’s not interested in the UM job.
November 5th, 2014 at 1:32 PM ^
Why do I want Harbaugh?
Easy.
1) He made the 9ers elite in one year, and kept them elite for 3 years.
2) He made Standford elite
3) He finds players that are ELITE both in the CLASSROOM and on the field.
4) Oh, fuck it, he's a Michigan man, a really fucking smart no-bullshit Michigan man. When your'e looking for a "Michigan Man," teh first thing you should look for is someone with an IQ on the correct side of the bell curve. I'm not going to point any fingers on this one, though I'm sure most of you are able to perform a logical deduction.
5) Harbaugh is who we've always wanted. If we get him and it doesn't work, at least we will never have to bitch about it again, and if we're right, those of us who have been screaming his name for years will have a little stress lifted off of our shoulders, good beers will flow on the golf course, everyone will be smiling after the games.
We might not lose an entire generation of students as being Michigan football fans .....
We might not see 5* talent look like middle-road d2 talent.
November 5th, 2014 at 2:17 PM ^
Based on what a colleague who has spent his entire career in athletic departments has told me: Believe about 10% of what you hear around coaching searches and AD searches. There is a lot of crap being floated, and people have various and sundry reasons to putting it out there.
Doubt everything.
November 5th, 2014 at 2:52 PM ^
Why would Jim Harbaugh want to come Michigan or any other college? Maybe he still wants to be an NFL coach? I hope not!
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