10-14-2014, 01:19 PM
I know this has shaped up to be a disappointing season but I really feel good about where we are.
App. Alphabetically the first of our mini-market schools. Fan support is there and as a friend says, the key to success is the mob in the parking lot. App fans are going to demand success. Satterfield may get a pass this year because of transition but the fans will demand success.
AState. Foundation is being laid. I'm still skeptical how we perform the second half because of youth but the community is all in. The amount of money that has flown into the program the past 12 months tells me the support is there. Anderson looks like a good fit at the halfway point of his first season. Still working on filling the remaining bandwagon fan spots.
Georgia Southern. Three for three on the list with small markets. But the fan support is there. I've watched Willie for a number of years and was impressed that the Eagles hired him. I believe incremental change is the best path to maintaining success. Hiring a guy who could build on existing talent and concepts while making a few changes was just smart and speaks well of the leadership.
Georgia State. Most depth plagued team in the league. I was intrigued by the hiring of Trent, he understands building. It's going to be a tough market to crack (nearly as tough a market as Miami in my opinion) but the abundance of talent in region makes me believe the biggest challenge is just keeping the guys mentally into the game.
Idaho. It's always going to be hard when your late season games and late season recruiting visits come against teams with little brand awareness in the region. Idaho administration seems to be committed to devoting as much as they can afford. To me the big question mark is the ability to sell the fans and get money raised on top of what the school puts in. There is a recipe for success at Idaho because I've seen them be good before.
Louisiana. I'm not counting the Cajuns out of this season yet, but I like that their administration has taken the approach AState has by trying to capitalize on success by going aggressive into facility investment. This year's squad from a distance smells like one with some sort of locker room problem. Thought Hud was the right hire when he was named and despite the stumbling this year, still think he's the guy.
ULM. Two years ago, I thought ULM was a zombie program. New AD seems to be changing that. One thing ULM has going for it is the vast amount of talent reachable in an easy day's drive. I admit, I didn't like the Berry hire. Made no sense to me to hire a guy with a nearly identical resume to the guy you fired but with the new AD I think he'll get better support than he had and yes I underestimated Berry.
NMSU. History tells us NMSU has performed better in football when they were the western edge of their conference instead of the eastern edge. Think the saber-rattle about evaluating football as a sport woke some folks up.
USA. Love this market. My favorite stat is that the closest P5 program is LSU. I'm a big fan of Joey. In his short time he's already hired two DC's worthy of call-up to bigger things. Speaks very well of his eye for coaching talent.
Texas State. What I've seen of TXST so far creates this impression. One Fran was a great hire for the time. I'm not fully convinced Fran will take the Bobcats to their full potential but he was the right guy for the circumstances faced. Stuck between two huge markets and no "tv market" of its own, Texas State fits right in culturally with so much of this league by being the game in town and I think the fan base has a lot of growth room.
Troy. Another small market where the school is the game in town. Just need the right hire and greater emphasis on four and five year players. I'm a huge believer in player culture being a key to success and it is often better to take the guy a little less talented a little less polished and get them fully engrained in the tradition and the schemes than the better player who doesn't have time to build tight bonds with the other players. I'll take a junior who has known the seniors for three years (or four) who can dig down for that extra effort to not let the seniors down over a guy who hasn't developed the team bond. Obviously the past tells us Troy can be very successful.
App. Alphabetically the first of our mini-market schools. Fan support is there and as a friend says, the key to success is the mob in the parking lot. App fans are going to demand success. Satterfield may get a pass this year because of transition but the fans will demand success.
AState. Foundation is being laid. I'm still skeptical how we perform the second half because of youth but the community is all in. The amount of money that has flown into the program the past 12 months tells me the support is there. Anderson looks like a good fit at the halfway point of his first season. Still working on filling the remaining bandwagon fan spots.
Georgia Southern. Three for three on the list with small markets. But the fan support is there. I've watched Willie for a number of years and was impressed that the Eagles hired him. I believe incremental change is the best path to maintaining success. Hiring a guy who could build on existing talent and concepts while making a few changes was just smart and speaks well of the leadership.
Georgia State. Most depth plagued team in the league. I was intrigued by the hiring of Trent, he understands building. It's going to be a tough market to crack (nearly as tough a market as Miami in my opinion) but the abundance of talent in region makes me believe the biggest challenge is just keeping the guys mentally into the game.
Idaho. It's always going to be hard when your late season games and late season recruiting visits come against teams with little brand awareness in the region. Idaho administration seems to be committed to devoting as much as they can afford. To me the big question mark is the ability to sell the fans and get money raised on top of what the school puts in. There is a recipe for success at Idaho because I've seen them be good before.
Louisiana. I'm not counting the Cajuns out of this season yet, but I like that their administration has taken the approach AState has by trying to capitalize on success by going aggressive into facility investment. This year's squad from a distance smells like one with some sort of locker room problem. Thought Hud was the right hire when he was named and despite the stumbling this year, still think he's the guy.
ULM. Two years ago, I thought ULM was a zombie program. New AD seems to be changing that. One thing ULM has going for it is the vast amount of talent reachable in an easy day's drive. I admit, I didn't like the Berry hire. Made no sense to me to hire a guy with a nearly identical resume to the guy you fired but with the new AD I think he'll get better support than he had and yes I underestimated Berry.
NMSU. History tells us NMSU has performed better in football when they were the western edge of their conference instead of the eastern edge. Think the saber-rattle about evaluating football as a sport woke some folks up.
USA. Love this market. My favorite stat is that the closest P5 program is LSU. I'm a big fan of Joey. In his short time he's already hired two DC's worthy of call-up to bigger things. Speaks very well of his eye for coaching talent.
Texas State. What I've seen of TXST so far creates this impression. One Fran was a great hire for the time. I'm not fully convinced Fran will take the Bobcats to their full potential but he was the right guy for the circumstances faced. Stuck between two huge markets and no "tv market" of its own, Texas State fits right in culturally with so much of this league by being the game in town and I think the fan base has a lot of growth room.
Troy. Another small market where the school is the game in town. Just need the right hire and greater emphasis on four and five year players. I'm a huge believer in player culture being a key to success and it is often better to take the guy a little less talented a little less polished and get them fully engrained in the tradition and the schemes than the better player who doesn't have time to build tight bonds with the other players. I'll take a junior who has known the seniors for three years (or four) who can dig down for that extra effort to not let the seniors down over a guy who hasn't developed the team bond. Obviously the past tells us Troy can be very successful.
