The Fake Lonnie Finch

Yes, that's the one!

Well, my team sure wouldn't have helmet stickers...but, we would sport the old, dark green that we wore in our bowl days.

Remember those team paintball things they used to show on late TV a few years back? We should all get together and have a huge paintball fight based on factions. A winner-take-all paint war where the losing faction cannot post for a month.

I sincerely doubt Baird is #1. I would think the boys from Stamford and Ranger might have a different opinion.

Of course, there's that pressure. But, who created it? To me, Todd Dodge has to be realistic. He's got to see on game film the size and strength of other quarterbacks, not just in the Sun Belt in other places. It seems that it's his responsibility as a coach, and a dad, to say to Riley, "Look, you're on fire against Western Kentucky, which is basically a I-AA/FCS school playing up. But, against the big guys, it's not working. We need to move you. Or, you can go play QB and dominate the FCS." I just don't think Todd Dodge really has the ability to do it. I don't think he realizes his son is too small to be an FBS quarterback. And, if he doesn't realize it, there's a huge problem in his perception of college football at this level. And, that's huge problem for us. Based on what Riley did against Western Kentucky, I think he'd be a monster FCS QB where the game is a step slower all the way around and the linemen are more fat than tall in most cases. Up here, if we're going to take advantage of his knowledge of the game and his shiftiness when he runs, he's got to be moved to a position that allows us to do that. But, it's not at QB.

Not bad. Not a splash/buzz-type hire. But, definitely a guy who knows the program. In fact, because he coached there through 2006, before he went to Stanford, he probably helped recruit some of the guys who will be seniors in 2010 and 2011. Good recruiting ties to Florida, where he's from, and now California. WKU's a school that must recruit out of state. This is a guy who can do it.

Quinn tore his MCL and ACL about a month ago. He's not playing. The other thing: "They clinched a berth in their second Grey Cup game in three years for head coach Ken Miller and the 30,945 fans at a sold-out Mosaic Stadium." What? Only 30,000? For a pro team. Anyway, I wached the first half of this game yesterday. The place was packed. It looked good, and it was loud. I think our new 30,000 seat stadium will be fine. If we start winning regularly, then we can expand. But, watching this game yesterday, 30,000 packed in there can get quite loud and raucous.

Look, these were problems alot of scouts saw and wrote about in the recruiting process. That's why he was listed as an athlete, not a quarterback. Yet, when many of us pointed out what these people said Riley's shortcomings were, we were pooh-poohed. As if there is some shame in being a high school quarterback, but being moved to a better position for your skill in college. It happens everywhere to hundreds of athletes every year. For pete's sake, high school coaches have to use their best athletes at QB sometimes when they legitimately have no one else available who can make plays. But, those kids are always moved to their more natural, better fitting positions in college. What's wrong with that? Nothing. There's nothing wrong with it. You'd hope your coach and coaching staff would put the best 22 out there on offense and defense, even if it meant admitting they were wrong about a guy in a position. Look at TCU. They've got former QBs and RBs all over their defense. That stud DE Jerry Hughes was a tailback in high school. He was a first team, all-district tailback at that, up for many awards following his senior year! http://gofrogs.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/mt...es_jerry00.html So, what did TCU do? They looked him over in practices and said, "Son, try defensive end. We think you'll be a nice fit there." Moviing Riley to slot, safety or corner wouldn't be the end of the world. In fact, it would probably help. We'd have someone bigger and stronger at QB, and we'd have a shifty runner at slot, or a defensive back who knew how to read quarterbacks well.

Baloney. We're in the Sun Belt. College coaches have made one year turnarounds in much tougher conferences. A college coach could easily come in here and have this thing competitive next year. The examples are legion. Our problem is that our athletic director sells the program short by not going out and pursuing every possible coach out there. Most of the coordinators in FBS are making less money than Todd Dodge makes. Yes, that's right. Even what we pay Todd Dodge makes be a raise for many excellent college assistants. For a pay raise many would jump at the chance to prove their mettle as a head coach. The problem is, Rick Villarreal has to get on the phone and ask. It would be a riase for Major Applewhite, assistant head coach and running backs coach at Texas It would be a raise for Clint Bowen, Kansas' defensive coordinator. It would be a raise for Eric Russell, Texas Tech's special teams coach. It would be a raise for John L. Smith, former head coach at Idaho, Utah State, Louisville, and Michigan State, now making $70k less than Dodge as an assistant at Arkansas. It would be a raise for Walt Harris, former head coach at Pacfic, Pitt, and Stanford, now an assistant at Akron making $205k less than Dodge. It would be a raise for Tim Kish, assistant head coach and LB coach at Arizona It would be a raise for both Bryan Harsin and Justin Wilcox, the offensive and defensive coordinators at Boise State. The list goes on and on and on. There are hundreds of coaches out there. Good, solid college assistants who are making less money than Todd Dodge, at both BCS and non-BCS schools. Unlike some of you, I don't discount our school. There are coaches who would gladly take a pay raise to get come to this school and get their shot. There are even former coaches standing on other sidelines now who would like another shot. I guarantee you that any of the assistants I've listed above would have this thing running neck and neck with Troy and Middle Tennessee for the Sun Belt title next year. Every single one of them has more experience than Todd Dodge. Additionally, John L. Smith has put programs back on the right track. Walt Harris brought Pitt out of its doledrums and recruited the likes of Larry Fitzgerald. Rick now has a new stadium to sell a new coach on. He needs to strike while the iron is hot.

Or, to have one or two more plays, tell the returner to fair catch the punt. We'd have had maybe six or seven seconds and the ball. A long shot to score in one play, yes...but a long shot is better than no shot at all, which is what we got for letting the punt roll down the field. But, what do I know...I'm not a coach.

A college coach would look at our quarterback situation then bring in a JUCO to compete with Tune and Thompson for the job in 2010.

There have been four different starting quarterbacks under Dodge - Meager, Vizza, Dodge, and Tune. The only one who hasn't turned the ball with regularity is Nathan Tune. I'm not saying he's better than the other three listed. I'm just saying. What we really needs is for coach Dodge, or a the new coach if Dodge is fired - to recruit one or two JUCO quarterbacks to compete for the starting job. And, not just any JUCO quarterbacks. Get guys in here that are tall enough to see over the line and strong enough to give the offense a credible downfield threat.

He's the coach. If he doesn't want blame for losses to go along with credit when winning, he needs to find a new profession. The players don't coach themselves. The players also don't hire the coaches. The players don't make the gameplans. The players don't make the in-game decisions. We're 35 games into this thing, and it's the same mistakes over and over and over. It's coaching.

And Pat Hill is still at Fresno State. So what if the market didn't "respond"? The point is, they guy won and took us places that we hadn't been before - bowl games! When I was at UNT from 1990-1995, we only made the I-AA playoffs once. The thing is, Darrell Dickey did well here with what he had. I remember listening to our win over Texas Tech in 1999 and being proud of us doing more than just "hanging in there" against a Big 12 school. I surely remember our first bowl season, and always will. And, the three after were icing on the cake. Many of you want to diminish what the man did here based on his last two seasons. In 2005, he cold lost his starting QB in a car accident a month before the season started. In 2006, he had a heart attack in the middle of the season and still came back to coach. The truth of the matter is, Todd Dodge is a football coach. He's judged by what his teams do on the field. As the end of the third season nears, it is still making the same mistakes it was making when he took the helm. It's not changing. And, if RV isn't in the mood for changing the leadership after a ridiculous loss to Army, he needs to go as well. New stadium or not, SMU has already proved a shiny new stadium doesn't get you wins or top notch recruits - good coaching does. And, there are hundreds of good coaches across the country to choose from. RV needs to make a list and check it twice, then get us a new head coach for Christmas.

What really needs to happen is that the high school Todds need to work Dunbar into the game plan before the fourth quarter.

The naivete of this administration is getting to be unbelievable.

Do not mention Dug to me at this time. His fool's errand will keep him most occupied, most occupied indeed! Do you not agree with that which I am saying to you now?

You forgot the best reason to attend - to check out the Black Knights' 6' 10", 300 pound offensive lineman-turned-wide receiver, Ali Villanueva.

Urban Meyer was a wide receivers coach at Notre Dame when Bowling Green took a chance on him. Lots of guys out there like that.

We'll take your offensive coordinator. I'll be dadgum if TCU's problem for years was that it had a great defense, but inconsistent offense. Now, they are both hitting on all cylinders. We'll trade you Dodge for Justin Fuente.

That's kind of my point. If Ford wasn't the OC and someone else was, I think that someone else might be able to convince Dodge. Of course, I could be wrong. It could be that loss after loss after loss hasn't sunk in with Dodge and he really does believe no changes need to be made. If that's the case...just clean 'em all out, hire Eric Russell, who is currently making about $100k less than Dodge as Texas Tech's ST coach. He'd get a pay raise, and we'd get someone in here who has experience at this level and at this program.

Okay. How about we pull in the heroes of yesteryears squads who are now coaching at Cisco JC? Dodge, head coach/QBs Leftwich, run game coordinator/OLs Petersen, pass game coordinator/WRs Gandy, running backs/Co-Special Teams ANDY BREWSTER, TE/Co-Special Teams Nelson, DL Rausch, DE CHRIS HURD/LBs Buckels, CBs Deloach, defensive-coordinator/safeties

Yeah, but he played safety like 30 years ago when everyone was running the Wishbone or the I. I'd like co-offensive coordinators, one for the run game (Leftwich) and one for the pass game (Petersen). It'd look like this: Dodge, head coach/QBs Leftwich, run game coordinator/OLs Petersen, pass game coordinator/WRs Gandy, running backs/ST Nelson, DL Rausch, DE Deloach, defensive coordinator/LB Buckels, CBs NEW HIRE, secondary/safeties

ACU, 24-21. They play NW Mizzou next weekend.

I think we'd be talking about guys in other non-BCS FBS schools who are now position coaches or FCS coaches. I still say move Petersen to the offensive side of the ball where he spent 17 years at Air Force and hire an authentic safeties coach.