Would Memphis football hire Jackson State's Deion Sanders if there's a coaching change?

Dannymacfan · November 14, 2022

Memphis football coach Ryan Silverfield is facing pressure from fans after the Tigers' three-game losing streak. There's also growing concern that his job status could be in question if the season continues to spiral.

If the Tigers made a coaching change - and there's been no indication that will happen, yet - could they look further south for a potential replacement? On ESPN's College GameDay podcast this week, senior college football writer Pete Thamel suggested Jackson State coach Deion Sanders could be a candidate should the Tigers move on from Silverfield.

read more: https://www.commercialappeal.com/story/sports/college/memphis-tigers/2022/10/27/memphis-football-deion-sanders-coaching-change-espn-ryan-silverfield/69597085007/

Hunter Green · November 14, 2022

It would be a stroke of genius to hire Deon here.

Jonnyeagle · November 14, 2022

Would be a great hire but he may have better options.

peanuts104 · November 14, 2022

If they get rid of Silverfield, I wonder if Henigan hits the transfer portal...

Mike Jackson · November 14, 2022

Actually (trying to be as objective an unbiased as possible) I think UNT is the better job for him if he is going G5. He has history the metroplex. He has instant credibility with parents of a lot of local recruits who are Dallas Cowboys. He would be able to recruit anywhere that is for sure but the prospect of staying close to home being coached by a legend who wore a star on his helmet would be huge tug on the heart strings. Memphis would have more pressure and their ceiling as a G5 is just as low as ours. The challenge here is recruiting and Deion will meet that challenge with flying colors. And I assume he still owns a home in the area and no state income tax is a bonus. And on top of all that he will sell tickets by just being here, more so than probably any other program except for SMU. If Deion wants a G5 job there are few better suited for him than North Texas. I think I would be shocked more by leadership and big money donors getting him here than him not being massively successful here.

NorthTexasWeLove · November 14, 2022

5 hours ago, Mike Jackson said:

Actually (trying to be as objective an unbiased as possible) I think UNT is the better job for him if he is going G5. He has history the metroplex. He has instant credibility with parents of a lot of local recruits who are Dallas Cowboys. He would be able to recruit anywhere that is for sure but the prospect of staying close to home being coached by a legend who wore a star on his helmet would be huge tug on the heart strings. Memphis would have more pressure and their ceiling as a G5 is just as low as ours. The challenge here is recruiting and Deion will meet that challenge with flying colors. And I assume he still owns a home in the area and no state income tax is a bonus. And on top of all that he will sell tickets by just being here, more so than probably any other program except for SMU. If Deion wants a G5 job there are few better suited for him than North Texas. I think I would be shocked more by leadership and big money donors getting him here than him not being massively successful here.

I'm not sure of his of his X and O suave, but I am aware of his coaching resume. His resume suggests he can't go to a lowly P5 (which would be the type of P5 that might hire him) and win big. He'll probably be outcoached and won't have the better players. Big time programs view him as too risky right now (AU has already floated it out that they're not hiring him). So, this puts him in the G5 arena if he's moving on from JSU. He knowingly loves the DFW area. Landing him would be the single greatest thing that WB ever does for UNT. And he may come here and busts. But with his recruiting prowess, I just can't imagine a scenario that he's not able to substantially elevate our program. Worse Case Scenario: Another AAC team lands him. Best Case Scenario: he signs the #1 recruiting class in the AAC for however long he's here while finally allowing UNT to keep home grown talent at home. And I bet he brings in UNT's first HS 4* and probably multiple of the them. It would be crazy around here.

MeanGreenGlory · November 14, 2022

I've previously thought that Deion was too much of a gamble, so I hadn't heavily considered him as a candidate before...but the more I think about it, the more I could see him being exactly the right HC for UNT. Here's why...

We all know we need the next HC to do two main things:

Improve recruiting
Win games and compete for championships consistently

Guys like Justin Fuente and Tom Herman have a track record doing this as head coaches at the FBS level, which is why they seem to be top runners amongst the forum right now. It seems logical enough.

However, there's a third thing that UNT desperately needs, but hasn't been talked about much. The third thing is to re-energize the fan base.

Right now, apathy is a serious problem for UNT football because we've failed to string together any kind of success for DECADES. Our alumni base and community simply aren't on the bandwagon—not only because some got off, but also because most never got on.

I think the assumption is that if a new HC comes in, improves recruiting, and wins more, fans will organically start showing up to games. This might be true...but the AD seems to believe that wins should speak for themselves, and no additional promotion is needed, so it'll likely take 5–10 seasons of consistent winning to get there.

As a result, I think we need a HC who can engage the fans and community in a way that gets them to buy in sooner rather than later. Doing so will increase engagement at games which will make Apogee a harder place for visiting teams to win, as well as increase ticket sales, donations, etc. to help provide more funds to build the program. Programs like Texas A&M or Auburn don't necessarily need their HC to also be a promoter of the program because the fanbase already wants to be fiercely engaged. UNT is not in that category and could benefit greatly from a coach that wins and also has an infectious personality who wants to engage the community.

So, to me, there are three important goals for the next HC at UNT:

Improve recruiting
Win games and compete for championships consistently
Engage and re-energize the fanbase, community, and alumni

With this lens, I don't know that guys like Fuente or Herman are the right guys for UNT at this moment, and it makes guys like Deion very appealing.

The risk with Deion is that he's not a proven HC at the FBS level. For that reason, I think it'd be important to ensure he has the funds to bring in an excellent OC and DC with substantial college experience to help hedge this.

But given Deion is one of the best in the industry at generating buzz and attracting attention, along with his history in the DFW area, I think that if he were hired him and brought in the right staff, he could be very well be the right person to bolster recruiting, re-energize the fanbase, and stack championships.

MeanGreenDan · November 14, 2022

He will have P5 offers, probably already has, and is holding out for one he likes. He's not going to Memphis, nor is he coming here.

El Paso Eagle · November 14, 2022

Coach Prime can recruit and with the talent he has he can dominate a very, very poor conference. He has yet to beat a quality opponent so it's hard to tell if he can "coach". If he can hire top level assistants to help with the X's and O's he will create a buzz anywhere he might go.

NorthTexasWeLove · November 14, 2022

1 minute ago, MeanGreenDan said:

He will have P5 offers, probably already has, and is holding out for one he likes. He's not going to Memphis, nor is he coming here.

He will calculate his decision. As I stated, understanding his personality, I just don't see him going to a lower tiered P5. He knows capturing success there will be very difficult. I have read Georgia Tech is in on him hard. The issue with Georgia Tech is that Clemson, FSU and UNC looms large. Then the end of year cherry on top vs UGA every year. That's a tall task for a guy that calculates his success very carefully. And Ga Tech is an example of the type of 'P5' that might try to bring him on. The mountain(s) is steep.

At UNT, a region of the country he likes to call home, has a lot of pieces in place. He will be generously paid in relation to his AAC peers. He also knows a transfer class and a HS class can put him in the drivers seat of proving what he can do at the FBS level very quickly. Then, the more powerful programs very well might come knocking.

TheColonyEagle · November 14, 2022

2 minutes ago, NorthTexasWeLove said:

He will calculate his decision. As I stated, understanding his personality, I just don't see him going to a lower tiered P5. He knows capturing success there will be very difficult. I have read Georgia Tech is in on him hard. The issue with Georgia Tech is that Clemson, FSU and UNC looms large. Then the end of year cherry on top vs UGA every year. That's a tall task for a guy that calculates his success very carefully. And Ga Tech is an example of the type of 'P5' that might try to bring him on. The mountain(s) is steep.

At UNT, a region of the country he likes to call home, has a lot of pieces in place. He will be generously paid in relation to his AAC peers. He also knows a transfer class and a HS class can put him in the drivers seat of proving what he can do at the FBS level very quickly. Then, the more powerful programs very well might come knocking.

Very logical

dml7007 · November 14, 2022

I think if and when Wren decides to make a change we need to factor lots of bonus money based on performance. allows us to create a huge contract with out some huge guaranties

500K bonus for first sellout of Apogee (Wining and coach outreach is needed)

100 K for each following sellout

100 K Birth in Conference Championship

250 K Wining conference Championship

100 K winning bowl game

100 K for every week the team in ranked in the Top 25

1 M for finishing in CFP final rankings

GMG_Dallas · November 14, 2022

1 hour ago, MeanGreenGlory said:

I've previously thought that Deion was too much of a gamble, so I hadn't heavily considered him as a candidate before...but the more I think about it, the more I could see him being exactly the right HC for UNT. Here's why...

We all know we need the next HC to do two main things:

Improve recruiting

Win games and compete for championships consistently

Guys like Justin Fuente and Tom Herman have a track record doing this as head coaches at the FBS level, which is why they seem to be top runners amongst the forum right now. It seems logical enough.

However, there's a third thing that UNT desperately needs, but hasn't been talked about much. The third thing is to re-energize the fan base.

Right now, apathy is a serious problem for UNT football because we've failed to string together any kind of success for DECADES. Our alumni base and community simply aren't on the bandwagon—not only because some got off, but also because most never got on.

I think the assumption is that if a new HC comes in, improves recruiting, and wins more, fans will organically start showing up to games. This might be true...but the AD seems to believe that wins should speak for themselves, and no additional promotion is needed, so it'll likely take 5–10 seasons of consistent winning to get there.

As a result, I think we need a HC who can engage the fans and community in a way that gets them to buy in sooner rather than later. Doing so will increase engagement at games which will make Apogee a harder place for visiting teams to win, as well as increase ticket sales, donations, etc. to help provide more funds to build the program. Programs like Texas A&M or Auburn don't necessarily need their HC to also be a promoter of the program because the fanbase already wants to be fiercely engaged. UNT is not in that category and could benefit greatly from a coach that wins and also has an infectious personality who wants to engage the community.

So, to me, there are three important goals for the next HC at UNT:

Improve recruiting

Win games and compete for championships consistently

Engage and re-energize the fanbase, community, and alumni

With this lens, I don't know that guys like Fuente or Herman are the right guys for UNT at this moment, and it makes guys like Deion very appealing.

The risk with Deion is that he's not a proven HC at the FBS level. For that reason, I think it'd be important to ensure he has the funds to bring in an excellent OC and DC with substantial college experience to help hedge this.

But given Deion is one of the best in the industry at generating buzz and attracting attention, along with his history in the DFW area, I think that if he were hired him and brought in the right staff, he could be very well be the right person to bolster recruiting, re-energize the fanbase, and stack championships.

If a guy with a 54-22 HC record, 5-0 bowl record, bowl win against Florida State 2 years after they win the natty at a NY6 bowl, who's never had a losing season, and just recently was the HC at Texas doesn't energize the fanbase then there's no fanbase to be energized. Herman does all the same things, albeit in different ways, with a much more accomplished coaching resume.

MeanGreenGlory · November 14, 2022

1 hour ago, dml7007 said:

I think if and when Wren decides to make a change we need to factor lots of bonus money based on performance. allows us to create a huge contract with out some huge guaranties

I like this idea. Do any schools have a heavy incentive based contracts like this in place already? I'm be curious to know if there's a statistical difference in performance between schools with significant incentives in their contracts vs. schools with few incentives in their contracts.

El Paso Eagle · November 14, 2022

Just now, MeanGreenGlory said:

I like this idea. Do any schools have a heavy incentive based contracts like this in place already? I'm be curious to know if there's a statistical difference in performance between schools with significant incentives in their contracts vs. schools with few incentives in their contracts.

Not to this extent, but two years ago Michigan did in the contract for Jim Harbaugh. Maybe it's a coincidence, but the last two years have been the best of his Michigan career.

MeanGreen4Life1998 · November 14, 2022

While I think Deion would be an odd hire at UNT, I do believe he’d do really well at Memphis. Then again hes lived in Texas forever so maybe he’d excel at UNT. Who really knows

Edited November 14, 2022 by MeanGreen4Life1998

GMG_Dallas · November 14, 2022

I would be absolutely shocked if Memphis hired Deion considering he's the football version of Penny Hardaway. Since Memphis hired Hardaway and his 3 years basketball coaching experience, his name has brought two number 1 recruiting classes, a number 25 recruiting class, and a number 30 recruiting class. The result? Their best conference finish is 3rd, their March Madness ceiling has been the round of 32 (only once, same as us with McCasland), and a season win total high of 22. Coaching experience matters.

MeanGreenGlory · November 14, 2022

1 hour ago, GMG_Dallas said:

If a guy with a 54-22 HC record, 5-0 bowl record, bowl win against Florida State 2 years after they win the natty at a NY6 bowl, who's never had a losing season, and just recently was the HC at Texas doesn't energize the fanbase then there's no fanbase to be energized. Herman does all the same things, albeit in different ways, with a much more accomplished coaching resume.

I'm not going to say Deion or bust. I still think Tom Herman would be a good hire all things considered, and if we did hire him I'd be excited and I think he could slowly re-energize the fanbase over time.

That being said, here's why I think Deion has the potential be the home run hire this time around...

Let's say that Herman, Fuente, and Sanders are all hired to be the next HC at UNT next year in parallel universes.

Let's say they all have identical success on the field in their first year, and they all achieve the same 7-6 record against the same teams. While the on-field success is identical, I have a hunch that there would be a noticeable difference in attendance, fan engagement, and program visibility by the end of year one in Sanders' universe compared to Herman's and Fuente's.

That may seem like a moot point, but the question is: what impact does the difference in the level of engagement and visibility have as each coach rolls into year two? Is Sanders able to land better recruits than Herman and Fuente as a result? Does Sanders land the conference "Coach of the Year Award" because the buzz around him and the program made an impression on the committee? Do we have additional revenue to retain quality coaches or expedite facility improvements? Does it increase the average attendance at home games which could help make the difference in a close game that helps Sanders win an extra home game in year two that Herman and Fuente lost? How do all of these things compound and impact the program over time?

Winning on the field is obviously mission-critical, and to that end, someone like Herman is the safer bet.

What I'm saying is that I think Sanders has some intangibles that other candidates don't. Those intangibles may not seem like a big deal on paper, but they could be difference makers over time IF he's able to pair it with consistent winning. I previously dismissed sanders because I thought he was too much of a gamble, but I'm starting to think these intangibles may be worth betting on IF you can guarantee he brings in an OC and DC with great college experience to help hedge the risk.

As a parting analogy, I think Herman/Fuente and Sanders are like two different types of stocks:

Herman and Fuente are like a blue chip dividend stocks. If you get Herman or Fuente, you're likely going to get a solid performer that will pay off consistent dividends year after year.
Sanders is like a young tech stock. He has shown potential and isn't fully vetted yet so he's undervalued and a bit risky. However, he shows a lot of promise and if he succeeds, it'll be a rocket ship up the charts that blows the dividend stocks out of the water. More risk, but more reward (IF it works out).

I could see UNT going either direction, and I see both directions having the potential to work. It's all a matter of risk tolerance and deciding what tradeoffs we're willing/able to make.

Edited November 14, 2022 by MeanGreenGlory