Our pitiful excuse for a school president and some misguided, irrational USM supporters it appears are going to be successful in driving away the most successful football coach in CUSA.
It appears ten straight winning seasons, six bowls in seven years, four out of eight CUSA titles and a very high graduation rate are not enough for them.
It seems winning over CUSA schools is an easy feat to Thames and these idiot fans and doesn't count for much. I imagine you fellow CUSA fans would not agree with that thinking.
Jeff Bower is a great coach and this looks like his last year at USM. The insanity of this situation is beyond explanation.



<a href='http://www.clarionledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20040822/COL0504/40822009/1173/SPORTS' target='_blank'>Bower contract trouble</a>

I hope this gets worked out. He's a class guy and USM would only hope to do as well without him, possibly worse.
>>>from the article<<<

The stunning part is that it has come to this.

Quibble over a fourth year with a guy who has been as successful and as loyal as Bower?

The only reason to do that is if you think you might have to fire him. The very idea sounds preposterous.

Bower deserves whatever the university can do for him — and then some.

He has won.

He has won against the odds.

He has won with class.

Strangely, he is appreciated from afar more so than on his own campus. Don't take it from me. Turn to pages 25 and 26 in the USM media guide. Read what others have had to say about the job Bower has done at USM.

From Gene Wojciechowski of ESPN and ESPN the Magazine: "If it weren't for Jeff Bower, people wouldn't know if it was Southern Miss or Northern Miss."

From Tony Barnhardt of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution: "I keep thinking that some day one of the super powers is going to beg Bower to leave Hattiesburg and save their program ... But then I realize that the relationship between Jeff and Southern Miss is more than that between a coach and his school. To him, Hattiesburg is not a location on a map but a place in the heart."

Inexcusable.

When I first saw your post I thought Eustachy had decided to leave.

Then I saw that you talking about Bower. But I thougt it was a joke.

I mean, c'mon, who would seriously NOT do what it takes to keep Bower at Southern Miss?

No disrespect intended to the university, but y'all must have one seriously lame president.

BTW, when Southern Miss plays in the Liberty Bowl, the Golden Eagles attend Sunday morning church service at my church, <a href='http://www.bellevue.org/templates/cusbellevue1103/default.asp?id=1360#' target='_blank'>Bellevue Baptist</a>. Our pastor, Dr. Rogers, always asks the team to stand when he is welcoming visitors.

JB is purely class. If anybody needs to go, it's the university president and whichever boosters are causing the stink.

I agree with everyone else...USM should do what it takes to keep Bower happy. I hope UH is lucky enough to keep our HC Art Briles as long as Bower's been at USM...Art's a former Cougar player who came home to coach, just like Bower is at USM.

If all he's asking for is a 4th year on the contract, then what's the holdup?!?

In the end, I'm sure you'll get it done, USM.

The crazy part is that Thames is supposedly livid over our Liberty Bowl performance. Well, what uSm person wasn't. What he overlooks is that Bower went 8-0 to get to the Liberty Bowl. Because of Bower bowl trips and CUSA titles are taken for granted at USM by some, which is rather ironic and sad.

Y'all would be insane to get rid of Bower. Completely INSANE.

You are 100% correct of course. What is insane is that this is even happening. Some USM fans claim Bower can't win the big games and he can't take us to the next level. Meanwhile Bower's teams play in a 31,000 seat stadium we can't even fill. Insane? Yes it is.

Quote:Yes, they played poorly and lost 17-0 to Utah in the Liberty Bowl

I would bet good money that the Utah loss, plus the Nebraska drubbing (in H'Burg) are playing a major role in this standoff. One can imagine the USM president thinking... "We finally got them Huskers to come to our place, and this is the best we could muster on Thursday night... on ESPN...?"

EagleRockCafe Wrote:You are 100% correct of course. What is insane is that this is even happening. Some USM fans claim Bower can't win the big games and he can't take us to the next level. Meanwhile Bower's teams play in a 31,000 seat stadium we can't even fill. Insane? Yes it is.

Using that logic, James Green should not have been fired because it's the fans' fault the arena wasn't filled.

Much of the current thinking goes back to the success in hiring Eustachy to replace Green. Apparently the admin thinks the same type of hire can be made for football.

Quote:From Gene Wojciechowski of ESPN and ESPN the Magazine: "If it weren't for Jeff Bower, people wouldn't know if it was Southern Miss or Northern Miss."

I disagree with that. Jeff Bower wasn't even the head coach the first time I heard mention of Southern Miss back in 1989 when the Golden Eagles beat Florida State in Jacksonville....

RockTheRock Wrote:

EagleRockCafe Wrote:You are 100% correct of course. What is insane is that this is even happening. Some USM fans claim Bower can't win the big games and he can't take us to the next level. Meanwhile Bower's teams play in a 31,000 seat stadium we can't even fill. Insane? Yes it is.

Using that logic, James Green should not have been fired because it's the fans' fault the arena wasn't filled.

Much of the current thinking goes back to the success in hiring Eustachy to replace Green. Apparently the admin thinks the same type of hire can be made for football.

Green's success at USM is not comparable to Bower's. I liked James and wish him the very best, but the situations are not the same.
No doubt after the hiring of Joyce-Lee and Eustachy, Thames has grand thoughts on a similar hire in football. Problem is that Mike Price and George O'Leary already have jobs. Thame is a disaster for USM. Many that supported him against the profs are now thinking some of the faculty's comments might just have some merit.

MongoSlade Wrote:

Quote:Yes, they played poorly and lost 17-0 to Utah in the Liberty Bowl

I would bet good money that the Utah loss, plus the Nebraska drubbing (in H'Burg) are playing a major role in this standoff. One can imagine the USM president thinking... "We finally got them Huskers to come to our place, and this is the best we could muster on Thursday night... on ESPN...?"

Comment removed because it was evidently offensive to one mod. Believe me, it wasn't.

i love starting a thread then someone else comes and starts another one exactly like mine :stupid: oh well

EagleRockCafe Wrote:

RockTheRock Wrote:

EagleRockCafe Wrote:You are 100% correct of course. What is insane is that this is even happening. Some USM fans claim Bower can't win the big games and he can't take us to the next level. Meanwhile Bower's teams play in a 31,000 seat stadium we can't even fill. Insane? Yes it is.

Using that logic, James Green should not have been fired because it's the fans' fault the arena wasn't filled.

Much of the current thinking goes back to the success in hiring Eustachy to replace Green. Apparently the admin thinks the same type of hire can be made for football.

Green's success at USM is not comparable to Bower's. I liked James and wish him the very best, but the situations are not the same.
No doubt after the hiring of Joyce-Lee and Eustachy, Thames has grand thoughts on a similar hire in football. Problem is that Mike Price and George O'Leary already have jobs. Thame is a disaster for USM. Many that supported him against the profs are now thinking some of the faculty's comments might just have some merit.

I'm not talking about the coach, but the logic. You can't say the fans are staying away from basketball because they don't like the product and then say that fans are staying away from football because they're poor fans. You're drawing from the same fan base for both sports. The psychological makeup of the fanbase doesn't change between seasons.

And once again, now people who stood behind Thames in the professor debate and had no problems with Green being fired are up in arms against Thames' actions. Isn't that ironic?

EagleRockCafe Wrote:

MongoSlade Wrote:

Quote:Yes, they played poorly and lost 17-0 to Utah in the Liberty Bowl

I would bet good money that the Utah loss, plus the Nebraska drubbing (in H'Burg) are playing a major role in this standoff. One can imagine the USM president thinking... "We finally got them Huskers to come to our place, and this is the best we could muster on Thursday night... on ESPN...?"

Comment removed because it was evidently offensive to one mod. Believe me, it wasn't.

I quite enjoyed the original comment! :ecu:

Argh.........we'll_be_glad_to_take_him_off_your_hands.


Hell...we_could_even_offer_an_AD_position

safetyeagle Wrote:i love starting a thread then someone else comes and starts another one exactly like mine :stupid: oh well

You started a trend, safety! You should be proud.

Fire the President. He must be an absolute buffoon not to keep a well respected coach like Bower. If Watson ever gives up the team, we would love to see him on our sideline in B'ham. Who would y'all get? The President's brother-in-law?

RockTheRock Wrote:I'm not talking about the coach, but the logic. You can't say the fans are staying away from basketball because they don't like the product and then say that fans are staying away from football because they're poor fans. You're drawing from the same fan base for both sports. The psychological makeup of the fanbase doesn't change between seasons.

And once again, now people who stood behind Thames in the professor debate and had no problems with Green being fired are up in arms against Thames' actions. Isn't that ironic?

The difference (as you well know) is that our attendance was dropping every year under Green and is rising every year under Bower. I think everyone is right that Thames thinks he can make the wonder hire, but the coach just isn't out there. We can not afford Steve Spurrier. I will give hames the benefit of the doubt though that there is probably more to this than a 4th year of the contract.