OT - Arizona offers Ken Niumatalolo EDIT: Not So Fast?
Arizona is rumored to be offering their open HC job to Ken Niumatalolo of Navy, a proponent of the triple option offense. He's an understudy of former Navy/current Georgia Tech HC/Option Guru Paul Johnson.
I'm interested to see how this offense would perform in the spread heavy Pac 12, especially given the existing talent from Rich Rod's Spread Offense. Arizona would also seemingly be an easier place to recruit to vs GT and the service academies.
link: http://tucson.com/sports/arizonawildcats/football/navy-s-ken-niumatalol…
January 12th, 2018 at 4:03 PM ^
Threw for more TDs than did Michigan.
January 12th, 2018 at 4:12 PM ^
So what? How many TDs Michigan threw for is not a metric for measuring well roundedness of offense.
Further Navy scored 42 rushing TDs to 10 passing
Michigan was 26 and 9.
If you're going to use TDs as a metric I would think the ratio of rushing to passing is more important than the absolute number of passing TD. And Michigan's is closer to 1:1 and therefore, I would argue, is actually more rounded.
January 12th, 2018 at 4:21 PM ^
I agree it is not a measure of a well rounded offense, but if you can't throw for more TDs than a triple option it shows that your passing game was terrible.
January 12th, 2018 at 4:27 PM ^
January 12th, 2018 at 5:05 PM ^
I suppose 3:1 is closer to 1:1 than is 4:1, but it's not particularly close to 1:1.
January 12th, 2018 at 4:06 PM ^
Did you watch the game? It was snowing so much it was worse than the 4th quater of Indiana and Michigan in 2016. Watch film of them this year and even in that game: different formations, different reads. Even with Reynolds in 2014 and 2015 there was diverse play calling and passing more so than Johnson at GT.
January 12th, 2018 at 4:18 PM ^
Yes I watched the game.
Navy throw 102 times on the season (822 runs). So, it really wasn't that much of an anomaly based on bad weather.
Further, GT throw 119 passes on the year and ran 632 times. So, the numbers say the GT actually passes more than Navy.
January 12th, 2018 at 3:55 PM ^
January 12th, 2018 at 3:56 PM ^
January 12th, 2018 at 4:10 PM ^
Hope he takes the job, cuz then I don't have to connect the Panic Button Dots ... Fisch to AZ, offers Partridge DC, Partride takes job and we never recruit another high school player again... ever.
iirc, Fisch to AZ was a chatsports type rumor. Not sure though.
January 12th, 2018 at 4:19 PM ^
I like the idea. I love watching triple-option teams play (though don't like playing against them).
January 12th, 2018 at 4:33 PM ^
January 12th, 2018 at 4:42 PM ^
Noooooooo! Stay away from Coach Ken.
The triple option will never work in the Pac 12. Niumatalolo can't coach defense. He can't recruit either. What else......he hates the desert. This would be really, really bad for Arizona.
In all seriousness, probably almost a lateral move for Niumatoalolo. What happened to Jedd Fisch? Please hire Jedd instead!
Why can't they go poach the OSU staff.
January 12th, 2018 at 4:34 PM ^
Sounds good to me as long as we never play them. Hate, hate, HATE playing triple option teams.
January 12th, 2018 at 5:03 PM ^
I want to see more triple option guys get head jobs. The variety of offenses in college football makes it so much fun to watch.
January 12th, 2018 at 5:07 PM ^
I've been aching to see how a true triple option team with P5 recruiting would do. Georgia Tech is so hamstrung by their academics and by their lack of fan support/cheapness with assistants that it always feel like CPJ is having to make chicken salad out of chicken excrement there every year. When you look at GTech assistant coaching salaries and then look at what the programs who compete for top Atlanta talent pay assistants, it's stark. I remember when Charles Kelly turned down the GTech DC job to go to FSU as a *position* coach with the promise he'd probably replace Mark Stoops (he ended up doing that) because FSU offered more money for him to do that on top of the promise. They've never given him that Brent Venebles type difference maker DC that could make GTech into something real scary and interesting.
Arizona has easier admissions, a willingness to pay for their coach, and if Coach Ken is able to get a big DC hire, he might do some real damage. Imagine a program that concentrates all their recruiting on defense because their offense can make due with kids that fit the system. That could be real scary.
January 12th, 2018 at 6:03 PM ^
I think Coach Ken could get his fair share of wins against the rest of the Pac-12 South. Defending the triple option requires tremendous discipline and USC, UCLA, etc. are...not known for that.
January 12th, 2018 at 7:01 PM ^
January 12th, 2018 at 7:38 PM ^
I'm very plugged into this search.
1) He has been offered.... The AD and Ken's agent are working out the details
2) The Zona fan base is imploding about hiring this guy over keeping Rich Rod
January 13th, 2018 at 8:22 AM ^
January 12th, 2018 at 8:44 PM ^
Arizona should go after Lane Kiffin. Seems like Lane thrives in jobs that have low expectations. Arizona is a low expectations destination and it's a step up to a P5 job from FAU. Seems like it would work really well.
January 12th, 2018 at 11:05 PM ^
They should go get Jim Tressel. I mean he can't be worst than Herm Edwards.
January 13th, 2018 at 1:51 AM ^
January 13th, 2018 at 8:34 AM ^
Yeah that was bad of me. I shouldn't try to mgoblog while heading out the door.
January 13th, 2018 at 9:07 AM ^
because he was damaged goods after Michigan. I think everyone realizes that the odds of a new coach coming in and surpassing RR's on the field record aren't great, but then they wouldn't have fired RR just on the back of his record.
Who else do the fans think they should get? Meyer and Saban aren't leaving for Tucson any time soon.