Quote:Blazers football program at crossroads
Tuesday, December 12, 2006
How often does a program get the chance to reinvent itself? How often do you get the chance to wipe the slate and start writing a new story?
The answer is not very often. And yet, that's where UAB football finds itself today.
The good folks over on the Southside have the chance to find a new athletics director, one not tied to or beholden to any coach or athletic director who has gone before.
UAB has the chance to bring in a completely new football staff, to create some excitement and to give Blazer fans some hope.
And with plans in place for the first phase (a $2.65 million weight room and training room facility) of a long overdue facilities upgrade, UAB can show its athletes that it wants to help them compete, too.
No, the budget isn't without limitations. UAB can't afford to go on a holiday spending spree. This program isn't self-sufficient, much less showing a profit. The Blazers have to bargain shop, use coupons, hunt for discounts.
But it can be done. There are enough good football coaches out there - head coaches at lower levels looking to step up into Division I, top assistants at high-level programs looking for that first head-coaching job - who have expressed interest in the UAB job to breathe some fire into the dragon's belly.
More than anything, what UAB needs is to start selling tickets. UAB needs to change the perception among football fans in this city that there is no reason to pay full price for tickets to a game because there are so many discounted or even free tickets available.
That means a fresh start.
Of course, it also means taking a chance. Former head coach Watson Brown was making $360,000 a year when he left. His staff was in the bottom half of Conference USA in compensation.
Insiders say UAB is willing to improve on that, to maybe even come close to doubling the budget on salaries for the right coach and right staff.
Can UAB afford that?
Can UAB afford not to?
This is a crossroads moment for UAB football. The program can choose to continue on the same path, follow the same budget, hope a new coach gets those couple of wins a season Brown couldn't seem to get and that, in turn, eventually brings in the money needed to grow.
Or the program can choose to invest a little more now to create a reasonable splash and give hard-core Blazer fans a reason to hope, as well as cause potential UAB fans to entertain the idea of going to Legion Field to see the Blazers play.
Fans have to have hope. They want to believe their own passion is matched by the people in charge. They want to believe the people calling the shots care about them.
Right now, UAB football has created an atmosphere where giving up has become easy. After all, if the people in charge don't seem to care about the football program, why should they?
Someone needs to explain to the UAB administration that there is a shelf life on hope.
And UAB football is fast approaching the expiration date. Ray Melick's column appears Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. Write him at rmelick@bhamnews.com.
Overall a decent article, but too many pot shots on the side.
Melick should take a lot more pot shots at Bammer instead. They seem to have done a lot worse in the administration than UAB.
This is what I wrote in October
PostPosted: 25 Oct 2006 01:42 pm Post subject: UAB At The Crossroads - ATTALLA's Wramblings Reply with quote Edit/Delete this post Delete this post View IP address of poster Report Post
[color=green][size=18]UAB is at a crossroads when it comes to football. All indications are that Watson Brown has agreed to step down as head football coach at the end of the season. The only decision that has not been made apparently is weather he will become the full time Athletic Director or if he will just ride off into the sunset and find another head coaching or a coordinator gig elsewhere.
The hiring of a head football coach at UAB will send a loud and clear message on the commitment the University will be making towards its football program. Already UAB has clearly showed it indeed has made a commitment to basketball with not only the hiring of Mike Davis but the base salary and incentive laden package he was given.
Hire a unproven (at the college level) high school coach or a college re-tread that has not tasted consistent success and no matter how good the coach might become, the perception will be to the media, boosters, fans, potential recruits, fellow conference mates, and most importantly business leaders and donors, is that UAB is not really serious about football and is content to save as much money as it can and it is ok with mediocrity.
Hire a hot up and coming top assistant or steal a quality I-A or I-AA head coach that is on the rise and put together a competitive salary with a heavy incentive laden package like George O
That plagiarizin' bastage.
You think they read BlazerTalk?
ATTALLABLAZE Wrote:You think they read BlazerTalk?
To answer your question, Rick Karle said Bob Davie's name was being bandied about in the UAB search.
So, yes. lmfao
UAB would be sending a very strong, positive signal with any of these candidates ...
1) Jimbo Fisher -- proven offensive coordinator who is very respected in the south and has been a rising hot candidate for several high-profile openings recently. Much like Mike Anderson in that he has ties to Birmingham and a national championship ring as an assistant.
2) Bob Davie -- wow, what a lineup. UAB would have the former basketball coach from Indiana and the former football coach from Notre Dame. Doesn't get much more high-profile than that. Davie was a solid coach at Notre Dame, much like Davis at Indiana, but wasn't truly accepted and never seemed comfortable in that big of a position. But he's probably highly motivated and also has been in the spotlight through his TV work. Plus, he doesn't have the baggage of Neuheisel.
3) Rick Neuheisel. Obviously, this would be a major national splash. He won 10 games and New Year's Day bowls at two schools. The baggage, obviously, is still pretty heavy though even though he was cleared and awarded a settlement from the NCAA for his tournament bracket-pool firing at Washington. Those NCAA rules violations issues at Colorado and Washington are a bit troubling, though. He wasn't named but there was a definite stench ...
4) Tyrone Nix. He's a well-regarded assistant and would get major attention as the state's first I-A African-American coach. He reminds me of Anderson a bit, minus the championship ring. He knows C-USA and obviously knows Alabama. The biggest plus for him is his intensity -- UAB needs someone with passion after being shoulder-drooped for a decade.
Flying Mouse Wrote:UAB would be sending a very strong, positive signal with any of these candidates ...
1) Jimbo Fisher -- proven offensive coordinator who is very respected in the south and has been a rising hot candidate for several high-profile openings recently. Much like Mike Anderson in that he has ties to Birmingham and a national championship ring as an assistant.
2) Bob Davie -- wow, what a lineup. UAB would have the former basketball coach from Indiana and the former football coach from Notre Dame. Doesn't get much more high-profile than that. Davie was a solid coach at Notre Dame, much like Davis at Indiana, but wasn't truly accepted and never seemed comfortable in that big of a position. But he's probably highly motivated and also has been in the spotlight through his TV work. Plus, he doesn't have the baggage of Neuheisel.
3) Rick Neuheisel. Obviously, this would be a major national splash. He won 10 games and New Year's Day bowls at two schools. The baggage, obviously, is still pretty heavy though even though he was cleared and awarded a settlement from the NCAA for his tournament bracket-pool firing at Washington. Those NCAA rules violations issues at Colorado and Washington are a bit troubling, though. He wasn't named but there was a definite stench ...
4) Tyrone Nix. He's a well-regarded assistant and would get major attention as the state's first I-A African-American coach. He reminds me of Anderson a bit, minus the championship ring. He knows C-USA and obviously knows Alabama. The biggest plus for him is his intensity -- UAB needs someone with passion after being shoulder-drooped for a decade.
+1
4) Tyrone Nix = Dicipline Something this program lacks......
Each one you posted makes a splash and sends a clear message that UAB is dead serious about football. Hire a Gred Davis or another re-tread.
I feel UAB should adopt the Hollywood Philosophy . . . "all press is good press!" Ray Ray, ABC, NBC, FOX, ESPN as many people that are willing to talk about UAB and our coaches search the better off we will be. The pot shots will always be there. Think about it, they are really taking pot shots at University of Alabama.
All I can say is, because we are desperate at this point (recruiting, team unity, publicity) we cannot act too regal or we will hurt ourselves. Let's get off our pride for a second and pick out battles carefully. I am surprised we are getting attention in the shadow of UA's coach search. This parallel might actually help us recruit a new head coach and open our options up to more possibilities outside of the 4-5 names that we keep mentioning
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the_blazerman Wrote:Overall a decent article, but too many pot shots on the side.
I wouldn't call it potshotting. When it comes to UAB, Finebaum potshots...he overhypes the negatives while ignoring both positives and potentials. We know his ulterior motives, and as a reslt, we shouldn't take much stock in what he says.
Melick's column contained honesty and realism, two ideas lacking in serious deficiency when discussing the Tuscaloosa branch of UAB. Call him a 'Bama homer' if you must, but at least he's believably optimistic (or competent, at the least) when discussing Blazer athletics.
He isn't saying much different than what Attalla, Matt, The Mouse, and others have been saying here in this forum--further making me believe he really DOES lurk here. Though it's not as if he's gonna get this kind of chatter on Rivals...