Swayze Howell Sheen

November 23rd, 2014 at 5:46 PM ^

That's actually kind of the point - everyone keeps suggesting guys who will never come here, including Patterson, Mullen, etc.

I think it is worth considering a "guy nobody's ever heard of" -- except that people who know football have heard of him.

Wisc plucked Bret B. out of nowhere and he is already working wonders at Arkansas.

 

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ThadMattasagoblin

November 23rd, 2014 at 5:57 PM ^

Florida didn't take a flyer on Urban Meyer. Alabama didn't take a flyer on Nick Saban. Sure whoever we hire could turn out wrong but at Michigan your job is to get the Mullens, McElwains, Grahams, or Pattersons of the world. As an AD you need to understand this. We've already tried getting Hoke out of SDSU with a below .500 record. The last thing we need is another mediocre head coach/cordinator coming in. If Mullen says no then keep uping the money until he says yes. The results of hiring someone unproven are worse financially then overpaying someone now.

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Tater

November 23rd, 2014 at 6:03 PM ^

Exactly how do you know that coaches like Patterson and Mullen are "guys who will never come here?"

If presented properly, Michigan has the potential to be one of the top five or six jobs in college football.  If coached and administrated properly, Michigan should be one of the top five or six programs in college football.  AFAIC, right now, the only programs whose coaches wouldn't at least listen are Alabama, Oregon, USC, ND and Ohio State.  There are obviously a few exceptions like temporarily elevated Auburn, or coaches who hate Michigan, but from a perspective of relative positions on the food chain, Michigan should be a very desirable job.

Coaches at any other school should be "fair game."   It wouldn't be a "lateral" move for any other coach.  Michigan still has resources, tradition and relevance.  AD douchebaggery has temporarily degraded the job, but a competent AD and president could restore the Michigan job to its rightful place as one of the top five or six in the NCAA.

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ThadMattasagoblin

November 23rd, 2014 at 6:06 PM ^

It's the self loathing that goes on where people can't seperate team and program. Michigan has a bad team but not a bad program because of Yost, Schembechler etc. just like Bama in 06 had a bad team but not a bad program because of Bear Bryant etc. If you can't get a proven head coach and have to resort to a cordinator who's not even Kirby Smart or John Chavis level then somethings wrong with your AD.

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ThadMattasagoblin

November 23rd, 2014 at 6:19 PM ^

Yes but Alabama sucked from 2000 to 2007 and they were able to get Nick Saban. Florida was terrible and they were able to get Urban Meyer. USC ditto and they were able to get Pete Carroll. I know people are depressed but looking at this objectively if those schools were able to pull off those hires then why can't we? If we're hiring some cordinator that's only been at a school for 2 years then it's the ADs fault not our program's fault.

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Don

November 23rd, 2014 at 6:27 PM ^

There's a huge gulf between somebody listening and seriously considering. Anybody's going to "listen" just to make sure that the offer isn't a ginormous amount of cash that dwarfs what Saban is getting. I think you're a bit stuck in the past in thinking that Michigan is regarded today by the entirety of the coaching ranks as a place they'd just drop whatever they're doing and come running to. Steve Sarkisian and Jim Mora Jr. aren't leaving sunny southern CA and the fertile recruiting grounds of the west coast to come here. The best coaches in the SEC aren't going to be jumping out of their shorts to leave the strongest conference in the country that turns a blind eye to questionable recruiting practices and has more lenient admission standards for a down program with stricter admission standards in a laughingstock conference. The only exception is Miles for obvious reasons, but I think he's a long shot, especially with Schlissel around.

It's not 1989 any more.

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ThadMattasagoblin

November 23rd, 2014 at 6:39 PM ^

It depends on what you mean by not considering. Yes Saban's not going to come here. I doubt that Harbaugh's going to come here. What makes you think Mullen who plays in a stadium half the size of our stadium, way worse recruiting rankings, less tradition, worse facilities isn't going to come here. They may never have another year like this one and go back to being 2nd fiddle to LSU, Bama, Auburn, Texas A&M. Graham has jumped at every oppotunity so why wouldn't he jump to Michigan where he could upgrade each of those 4 things I mentioned. This is what I'm talking about with blind pessism. People think we've become Purdue and we should be happy with Wisconsin's DC instead of demanding excellence and using money and our advantages to get who we want.

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Don

November 23rd, 2014 at 9:24 PM ^

who plays in a stadium half the size of our stadium,

Where he's already played the #6 and #2 teams in the country, and will play #18 Ole Miss in their last game. Not to mention he's also played the #8 and the #5 teams on the road. And all of this is in the SEC. So he gets to play Rutgers, Maryland, Indiana, and Northwestern in Michigan Stadium. Big fucking woop-de-doo.. MSU and OSU don't exactly match the SEC in power teams.

way worse recruiting rankings,

After the last three years, I can't believe you're actually mentioning recruiting rankings as something in Michigan's favor. On top of that, since 2010 MSU has put as many guys into the NFL draft as Michigan, 13, so right now MSU is having as much success in developing players as UM is. Mullen doesn't have to come north to get talented players or develop them.

less tradition

Michigan has been truly relevant in the national picture exactly once—2006—in the last 17 years since 1997. Mullen is creating tradition now, which is what HS recruits are going to pay attention to. Those kids don't give a crap about what 44-year old Desmond Howard did way back in 1991 or what Charles Woodson did in 1997, much less what Bo Schembechler did 45 years ago or what Fielding Yost did back in the Dark Ages.

worse facilities

I'm curious exactly how the new facilities at MSU are verifiably inferior to those at Michigan, especially in the eyes of recruits from the south, many of whom are black kids from relatively poor circumstances:

http://www.forwhomthecowbelltolls.com/football/2013/2/13/3985096/new-mi…

isn't going to come here.

In case you're thinking about money, Mullen is reportedly making $3.2 million in 2014; for comparison, Mark Richt is making $3.4 million, so it's not like Mullen is getting chump SEC change. It's unrealistic to think that he isn't in line for a hefty increase after this season.

Sure, Mullen might decide to come here if he's offered the job, but the notion that it's simply unthinkable that he might conclude he's got a better situation overall where he's at is nothing less than typical Michigan arrogance.

 

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ThadMattasagoblin

November 23rd, 2014 at 10:46 PM ^

Let me mention the advantages of Michigan over Mississippi State. Our facilities are better, we have more money, recruiting is easier which is why I mentioned recruiting rankings. We may not get him but yes Michigan is a step up from Mississippi State. Florida is a step up from Mississippi State. They are the Iowa of the SEC who is always going to be behind Alabama, LSU, Texas A&M, and Auburn. We may not get him but we have not become Purdue where we can only get .500 career head coaches and random cordinators. I'm sorry if you think that's arrogance, but thank god you're not AD because we need to what's best for the program and get somewhat respectable for head coach and not Bob Stitt because hey Michigan is now a MAC level program about to hire Craig Creighton because hey we can't do any better than that.

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Don

November 23rd, 2014 at 6:09 PM ^

You're making it sound like WI hired Bielema directly to be their HC, which is not correct.

Barry Alvarez brought Bielema in as his own DC for two seasons in 2004-05. It was only after those two seasons—obviously a tryout/shakedown period conducted by Alvarez—that Barry retired and the reins were turned over to Bielema.

As for "working wonders" at Arkansas—they were 3-9 last season and 0-8 in the conference. Bielema didn't get his first conference win until November 15, just over a week ago.

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UMaD

November 23rd, 2014 at 8:25 PM ^

Nobody has any idea who or what will make a great head coach at Michigan. 

Do you want another "proven" coach like Hoke or "proven" like Rodriguez? Before Harbaugh got the Stanford job he was coaching at University of San Diego.  Urban Meyer was coaching ND's WRs before Bowling Green made him a head coach.  Malzhan and Mullen didn't have glorious head coaching resumes.  Carol and Saban were failed NFL coaches like Schiano.

People want to say Michigan is different but other than Harbaugh we're not going to pull away a better team's head coach just cuz.

So, yes, please, keep the interesting CCs coming.

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ThadMattasagoblin

November 23rd, 2014 at 8:36 PM ^

Carroll and Saban had success at other stops prior to being a failed head coach. We're also not Bowling Green or Stanford pre Harbaugh. Most big time programs don't take chances like hiring an OC or DC with no prior head coaching experience. Our current slide in football is based on us taking chances and not backing up the brinks truck for the sure thing. Alabama had a worse record than us from 2000 to 2007 and were able to get Saban who won 2 national titles prior to getting the gig.

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schreibee

November 23rd, 2014 at 6:04 PM ^

He'll yeah, put McDaniels in the group behind Harbaugh. I'm no longer sure who else is in that group? Mullen looks a little scummy alluvasudden; Miles doesn't excite me (except as opposed to Hoke); Patterson seems entirely unlikely; Stoops rumors dying down; we're on to coordinator candidates now? Someone above mentioned a Wiscy guy. I'm big on Herman for a number of reasons. So...why not McDaniels?!

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Izzoiswashedup

November 23rd, 2014 at 6:01 PM ^

I'd take McElwain just because I think he's the best coach in the country if any of the big 3 don't come to UM. I realize he has a massive buyout but beggars can't be choosers.

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