Pretty telling Article

Harry · December 5, 2006

Scott Ferrell: Tech problems deeper than coach

December 4, 2006

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Louisiana Tech fired head football coach Jack Bicknell on Monday.

On the surface, the move is understandable. The Bulldogs lost more games this season (10) than any in school history. With their coach's job on the line Saturday, they surrendered 50 points in a loss at New Mexico State.

The truth of the matter is Bicknell's firing isn't the answer to what ails Louisiana Tech football. The Bulldogs' problem is much deeper than a head coach.

But since Tech made the move to change coaches, let's start there.

Bicknell earned a total package of $208,500 according to USA Today's coach salary research. He was the lowest-paid coach in the Western Athletic Conference.

The school will have to more than double that figure to lure a big-time assistant coach to the Tech head coaching position. It will also need to get to at least $350,000 to get in the middle of the pack of WAC head coach salaries.

Will Tech boosters put up that kind of money?

Money matters and it doesn't matter just to the head coach. Assistant coach salaries will have to be improved as well to keep the revolving door from continuing.

After boosting those salaries, there is the matter of increasing the recruiting budget. Tech ranked seventh among the nine WAC schools in football recruiting expenses ($70,909) according to the Indianapolis Star's NCAA database.

Will Tech boosters give the program an infusion of dollars to boost the recruiting budget and, in turn, expand the recruiting base?

Then there is the matter of the schedule.

Bear Bryant wouldn't have won eight games with the ridiculous schedule Tech played this year. Never mind games at Nebraska, Texas A&M and Clemson, how about playing for 12 consecutive weeks without much depth?

It may be time for the Tech administration to look at the "Anyone, anywhere, anytime" scheduling philosophy.

Boise State will play in a BCS bowl game this season. The Broncos played exactly one team from a BCS conference this year (Oregon State) and one team (Oregon State) in the final AP top 25.That's how you schedule for success.

But how do you make up the money lost from not playing the "money" games to fund the rest of the athletic program? That's where boosters and attendance come into play.

Will Tech's fans and boosters support the program to the point where the schedule can ease up in the future? Will Tech's administration market the program to bring in maximum dollars?

It's going to take more than a football coach if Tech wants to improve its program. It's going to take dollars.

Either Tech is going to have the financial support and move forward or the financial support won't be there and the school will be left with unmet expectations.