2023 Head Coach Candidates

MeanGreenTexan · November 17, 2022

6 minutes ago, GMG_Dallas said:

I think the point he's trying to make is Deion Sanders is beating FCS competition with FCS competition which isn't completely accurate. There's what? 30 FBS transfers at Jackson State and like you said, six 4 star and one 5 star guys from HS. He's not beating FCS teams with mostly FCS talent which to me, lestens his record a bit. Imagine a P5 going to CUSA but keeping the P5 recruiting. I'm sure that P5 would dominate similar to Jackson State in the SWAC. You can't coach size and speed. Jackson State outclasses their competition on that front.

OK, I understand this. But what was JSU recruiting like prior to Deion's arrival?
Probably a bunch of 2* & maybe a few 3*'s.

What I'm saying is that if Deion can pull those kinds of classes to JSU, imagine what kinds of classes he can pull into Auburn. Probably ripping some recruits away from the other SEC teams he'd be battling.

Now, imagine those same 5* and 4* guys showing up in Denton to play at Apogee against other AAC schools.

EDIT: A guy like Anthony Hill, who just backed out of his commitment to A&M might decide to stay close to home & play for Neon Deion. There are a ton of 4* and 5* guys around North Texas who would love to play for him.

Edited November 17, 2022 by MeanGreenTexan

southsideguy · November 17, 2022

you know Sexton is trying to work one sided deal right now with UNT. With SL or another one of his clients.

Whatever we do, please do not hire the Kent State coach. I watched them play last night and it was like watching UNT play. Good first half, lousy second half, qb who cant hit an open receiver and if the box is stack he had no solution.

Edited November 17, 2022 by southsideguy

97and03 · November 17, 2022

56 minutes ago, MeanGreenTexan said:

OK, I understand this. But what was JSU recruiting like prior to Deion's arrival?
Probably a bunch of 2* & maybe a few 3*'s.

What I'm saying is that if Deion can pull those kinds of classes to JSU, imagine what kinds of classes he can pull into Auburn. Probably ripping some recruits away from the other SEC teams he'd be battling.

Now, imagine those same 5* and 4* guys showing up in Denton to play at Apogee against other AAC schools.

EDIT: A guy like Anthony Hill, who just backed out of his commitment to A&M might decide to stay close to home & play for Neon Deion. There are a ton of 4* and 5* guys around North Texas who would love to play for him.

Your last point was what I was thinking. A handful of 4 star guys and P5 transfers would immediately make us more competitive in the AAC.

Cr1028 · November 17, 2022

1 hour ago, MeanGreenTexan said:

The fact that he built Memphis up from the previous era under Porter (obviously going to struggle early on) into what it became under him, then under Norvell after he left (actually building a sustainable PROGRAM) is extremely enticing.

It wouldn’t be hard to argue that Littrell inherited worse with a team that set the record for being blown out by a FCS team. Fuente had 2 poor years, 1 great year, and 1 good year at Memphis. Littrell had an ok year, 2 good years, 2 poor years, and now 2 more ok years(pending the finish of this season). If Littrell left after 2018, everyone on here would be banging the drum for his return because KState “just wasn’t the right fit” and that’s why he failed there. If we are going to truly pull the trigger and replace Littrell we need to aim higher than a guy who is buddies with our AD.

Edited November 17, 2022 by Cr1028

GMG_Dallas · November 17, 2022

1 hour ago, MeanGreenTexan said:

OK, I understand this. But what was JSU recruiting like prior to Deion's arrival?
Probably a bunch of 2* & maybe a few 3*'s.

What I'm saying is that if Deion can pull those kinds of classes to JSU, imagine what kinds of classes he can pull into Auburn. Probably ripping some recruits away from the other SEC teams he'd be battling.

Now, imagine those same 5* and 4* guys showing up in Denton to play at Apogee against other AAC schools.

EDIT: A guy like Anthony Hill, who just backed out of his commitment to A&M might decide to stay close to home & play for Neon Deion. There are a ton of 4* and 5* guys around North Texas who would love to play for him.

And I'd argue from a general recruiting class standpoint, Auburn was consistently top 15, often top 10, until the past 2 years ago when they had back-to-back 6-win seasons. They were 8th nationally as recently as 2020. That's not why they started losing, IMO. Coaching is ever more important amongst the top teams where talent is mostly equal. He has a huge talent advantage at Jackson State that he wouldn't have in the SEC. That's where I'm not sold on him yet. If he had a SWAC roster, what would he be?

Now for us, sure. I can see it being good as long as we can get top coordinators and position coaches which means we'd have to have the money to pay for a top coaching staff. He'd probably be fine here for the same reason he's winning in the SWAC. Just questioning if he's ready for the P5 world, especially the SEC.

MGNation92 · November 17, 2022

1 hour ago, Cr1028 said:

It wouldn’t be hard to argue that Littrell inherited worse with a team that set the record for being blown out by a FCS team. Fuente had 2 poor years, 1 great year, and 1 good year at Memphis. Littrell had an ok year, 2 good years, 2 poor years, and now 2 more ok years(pending the finish of this season). If Littrell left after 2018, everyone on here would be banging the drum for his return because KState “just wasn’t the right fit” and that’s why he failed there. If we are going to truly pull the trigger and replace Littrell we need to aim higher than a guy who is buddies with our AD.

Memphis went 5-31 the three seasons before Fuente got there. Sure he struggled the first two seasons, but once he got his recruits, they flourished and continued to excel under Norvell after.

No idea if Seth is setting us up for future success. We have a young team so it's possible. The question becomes do we want to stick with what we know? Or do we take the chance to improve?

Cr1028 · November 17, 2022

39 minutes ago, MGNation92 said:

Memphis went 5-31 the three seasons before Fuente got there. Sure he struggled the first two seasons, but once he got his recruits, they flourished and continued to excel under Norvell after.

No idea if Seth is setting us up for future success. We have a young team so it's possible. The question becomes do we want to stick with what we know? Or do we take the chance to improve?

I’m ok with moving on, I just don’t think Fuente is this slam dunk people are making him out to be. I feel like he is what we already have and if we want better we need to find better.

greenminer · November 18, 2022

I think if Deion is an even remote possibility, you go hard for him.

GMG_Dallas · November 18, 2022

2 hours ago, Cr1028 said:

I’m ok with moving on, I just don’t think Fuente is this slam dunk people are making him out to be. I feel like he is what we already have and if we want better we need to find better.

Why not? He got to Memphis their last year in CUSA, taking over a team with 5 wins in 3 seasons, oversaw the move to the AAC, and left the program in a much better spot than when he took over. He started what ended up being 7 straight seasons of 8+ wins. His 3rd season there, Memphis finished first in the conference and in the top 25 AP poll.

El Paso Eagle · November 18, 2022

5 hours ago, MeanGreenTexan said:

OK, I understand this. But what was JSU recruiting like prior to Deion's arrival?
Probably a bunch of 2* & maybe a few 3*'s.

What I'm saying is that if Deion can pull those kinds of classes to JSU, imagine what kinds of classes he can pull into Auburn. Probably ripping some recruits away from the other SEC teams he'd be battling.

Now, imagine those same 5* and 4* guys showing up in Denton to play at Apogee against other AAC schools.

EDIT: A guy like Anthony Hill, who just backed out of his commitment to A&M might decide to stay close to home & play for Neon Deion. There are a ton of 4* and 5* guys around North Texas who would love to play for him.

Great points about his recruiting. Still not sure about his X's and O's coaching ability or how good of a coaching staff he can put together. It's one thing to beat the teams that are at the lowest level of FCS when you have players who are clearly superior in talent but what happens when the talent gap is not so wide? Now, not saying this would not be a good "problem" to get to deal with at UNT 😈

El Paso Eagle · November 18, 2022

5 hours ago, southsideguy said:

you know Sexton is trying to work one sided deal right now with UNT. With SL or another one of his clients.

If When falls for this it could completely alienate what's left of the fanbase

Cr1028 · November 18, 2022

1 hour ago, GMG_Dallas said:

Why not? He got to Memphis their last year in CUSA, taking over a team with 5 wins in 3 seasons, oversaw the move to the AAC, and left the program in a much better spot than when he took over. He started what ended up being 7 straight seasons of 8+ wins. His 3rd season there, Memphis finished first in the conference and in the top 25 AP poll.

Ok and now try this.

Took over a team that went 1-11 and suffered the worst lost to a FCS program of any FBS team in history. Took them to a bowl game in year one. His final 2 years he led them to back to back 9 win seasons including their first division title, a beatdown of a SEC program, and receiving votes in the AP poll for the first time in decades.

The above is what everyone would be spouting about Littrell had he left for KState.

If Fuente is so great, why didn’t anyone snatch him up when he became available in November of last year despite there being nearly 30 vacancies last cycle?

Edited November 18, 2022 by Cr1028

GMG_Dallas · November 18, 2022

26 minutes ago, Cr1028 said:

Ok and now try this.

Took over a team that went 1-11 and suffered the worst lost to a FCS program of any FBS team in history. Took them to a bowl game in year one. His final 2 years he led them to back to back 9 win seasons including their first division title, a beatdown of a SEC program, and receiving votes in the AP poll for the first time in decades.

The above is what everyone would be spouting about Littrell had he left for KState.

If Fuente is so great, why didn’t anyone snatch him up when he became available in November of last year despite there being nearly 30 vacancies last cycle?

Now I know we aren't comparing finishing first in the conference, a bowl win against BYU, a 10 win season despite playing Ole Miss and UCLA that both finished in the top 25, and a final AP poll ranking of 25 all in one season to a couple top 25 coaches poll votes, a beatdown of a 2 win SEC team, and zero conference championships. SL's first bowl game? Really? It was due to a high APR and a lack of bowl eligible teams. They made the bowl despite 5 wins. Back to the Arkansas beatdown, I'm much more impressed by Fuente coaching Memphis to a 13 point win against number 13 Ole Miss (finished 10th in the AP, it was a good team). Guess we can also throw in their 30+ point beatdown of Kansas since they're a P5 program.

These are not the same.

On to the next point of if he's so great, why is unemployed. Why wasn't Malzahn immediately snatched when he got fired? UCF sat for 3 months without a coach before deciding on him. Gary Patterson didn't get a HC gig after TCU. Tom Herman did great things and isn't a HC. It takes a minute for many of these guys to bounce back. Don't really see the problem with him spending a year at home but maybe that's just me.

Edited November 18, 2022 by GMG_Dallas

Cr1028 · November 18, 2022

51 minutes ago, GMG_Dallas said:

Now I know we aren't comparing finishing first in the conference, a bowl win against BYU, a 10 win season despite playing Ole Miss and UCLA that both finished in the top 25, and a final AP poll ranking of 25 all in one season to a couple top 25 coaches poll votes, a beatdown of a 2 win SEC team, and zero conference championships. SL's first bowl game? Really? It was due to a high APR and a lack of bowl eligible teams. They made the bowl despite 5 wins. Back to the Arkansas beatdown, I'm much more impressed by Fuente coaching Memphis to a 13 point win against number 13 Ole Miss (finished 10th in the AP, it was a good team). Guess we can also throw in their 30+ point beatdown of Kansas since they're a P5 program.

These are not the same.

On to the next point of if he's so great, why is unemployed. Why wasn't Malzahn immediately snatched when he got fired? UCF sat for 3 months without a coach before deciding on him. Gary Patterson didn't get a HC gig after TCU. Tom Herman did great things and isn't a HC. It takes a minute for many of these guys to bounce back. Don't really see the problem with him spending a year at home but maybe that's just me.

So you are saying that CUSA and AAC rosters are typically on the same level? I thought AAC was supposed to be P6. Why are we bothering to move up then?

Malzahn didn’t have to spend a year away from coaching. Patterson and Herman have personality issue that kept them from an immediate new gig. I don’t think Patterson will ever get another head job but Herman probably will.

Edited November 18, 2022 by Cr1028

GMG_Dallas · November 18, 2022

52 minutes ago, Cr1028 said:

So you are saying that CUSA and AAC rosters are typically on the same level? I thought AAC was supposed to be P6. Why are we bothering to move up then?

Malzahn didn’t have to spend a year away from coaching. Patterson and Herman have personality issue that kept them from an immediate new gig. I don’t think Patterson will ever get another head job but Herman probably will.

Fuente did what he did at Memphis before they were "P6" and took over one of the worst teams in the country. They went from 2-10 before Fuente to beating two P5 schools, including number 13 Ole Miss by 13 points in year 4 meaning their seniors were CUSA recruits.

Malzahn wasn't exactly a first pick of that coaching carousel either is the point. Plenty of programs passed on him. Most fired HCs don't get new a HC gig months later. Malzahn was an exception.

Edited November 18, 2022 by GMG_Dallas

Dannymacfan · November 18, 2022

Any interest in Barry Odom? He and Wren have a history as well.

Cr1028 · November 18, 2022

33 minutes ago, Dannymacfan said:

Any interest in Barry Odom? He and Wren have a history as well.

He has a Clint Bowen vibe to me where he always is just waiting for his chance to go back to Mizzou like Bowen always did at KU.

MeanGreenTexan · November 18, 2022

8 hours ago, Dannymacfan said:

Any interest in Barry Odom? He and Wren have a history as well.

My only hang up on Odom is that outside of his brief stint as Memphis’ DC under Fuente, he hasn’t done anything at the G5 level. He might react like McCarney did.

Now, if Pittman and his staff are fired, & we hire Fuente, maybe he’d come on board as DC? That would be amazing.

untbowler · November 18, 2022

2 hours ago, MeanGreenTexan said:

My only hang up on Odom is that outside of his brief stint as Memphis’ DC under Fuente, he hasn’t done anything at the G5 level. He might react like McCarney did.

Now, if Pittman and his staff are fired, & we hire Fuente, maybe he’d come on board as DC? That would be amazing.

have you not seen the UA defense, Odom is a Big NO, do not need a P5 retread who is looking for a retirement job

MeanGreenTexan · November 18, 2022

18 minutes ago, untbowler said:

have you not seen the UA defense, Odom is a Big NO, do not need a P5 retread who is looking for a retirement job

Odom is a really good defensive mind. He'd do well here... as a DC.

Got5onIt · November 18, 2022

If you can get Deion, you absolutely have to throw the kitchen sink at him. The media attention and recruiting would be off the charts the first couple of years. Would he be able to capitalize on that? Would he come to NT for a cool crisp $2mill per year?

Cr1028 · November 18, 2022

3 hours ago, Got5onIt said:

The media attention and recruiting would be off the charts the first couple of years. Would he be able to capitalize on that? Would he come to NT for a cool crisp $2mill per year?

I can think of a coach that would have media attention off the charts (even more so than Deion for the first month or two) for well under $1M, just maybe not the type of attention you want. Is there truly no such thing as bad publicity? It’d be a Vegas style gamble. I don’t know about recruiting but the Xs and Os would also be off the charts.

Edited November 18, 2022 by Cr1028

UNTLifer · November 18, 2022

50 minutes ago, Cr1028 said:

I can think of a coach that would have media attention off the charts (even more so than Deion for the first month or two) for well under $1M, just maybe not the type attention you want. Is there truly no such thing as bad publicity? It’d be a Vegas style gamble. I don’t know about recruiting but the Xs and Os would also be off the charts.

Spill It David Martinez GIF by Cyberpunk: Edgerunners