Coach PJ Fleck is rowing the boat all day today in Bristol, CT at ESPN. This is the first time ever that ESPN has had a coach make a car wash appearance during the football season, and Coach Fleck is the first MAC coach to ever be on.
Here is a list of the shows that Coach Fleck will appear on today:
* SportsCenter, AM
* ESPN.com
* The Championship Drive
* Russillo & Kanell
* College Football Live
* ESPNU: Championship Drive: Power Hour
* The Paul Finebaum Show
* SportsCenter, PM
* College Football Playoff Top 25 Show
Coach Fleck is also one of 23 coaches currently on the Paul "Bear" Bryant Coach of the Year watch list.
This is great exposure for WMU obviously, but it's also fantastic exposure for the MAC. The WMU Football twitter feed and Facebook has been posting pictures and videos and will continue to do so all day. As Coach Fleck said, "Bringing MACtion to Bristol"! There's a pretty funny video on the twitter feed of Coach Fleck giving the Cubs a motivational speech for the World Series.
Love it. Great exposure for the MAC!
Fantastic exposure for Fleck himself also... and to possible P5 suitors in a month or so.
Any thought of retaining him at WMU is probably now officially over...
I'm hearing Herman to Texas. Wouldn't Fleck's charismatic personality be a perfect fit to replace Herman at Houston? Houston seems like a school that allows its coach freedom.
WMU is working on a financial package to try and keep Fleck at WMU for a long time. And he has the freedom to do as he likes.
(10-25-2016 03:54 PM)broncos1123 Wrote: [ -> ]WMU is working on a financial package to try and keep Fleck at WMU for a long time. And he has the freedom to do as he likes.
Hopefully that package is for $2 million a year or more and big increases for his staff. Even the low level P5 jobs are paying that now. No one in the MAC has been able to stop a good coach from leaving yet.
PJ will never leave. We will be the next Alabama... the end.
He seems ambitious and the MAC ceiling is way below the ceiling at most P5 schools. Money aside, it's inevitable that he will want to prove himself at a higher level. Even if WMU could and would match the pay for him and his staff that he would be offered, which isn't likely, they can't change the fact that WMU is in the MAC which has some built in limitations.
(10-25-2016 05:31 PM)broncos1123 Wrote: [ -> ]PJ will never leave. We will be the next Alabama... the end.
You are going to be sooo disappointed.
NIU gonna offer 3 mil for him to return to his alma mater and right the ship.
(10-25-2016 08:55 PM)MacLord Wrote: [ -> ]NIU gonna offer 3 mil for him to return to his alma mater and right the ship.
One has to wonder where NIU would be today if they hired him after the Orange Bowl instead of Carey.
(10-25-2016 03:23 PM)Warhawks222 Wrote: [ -> ]Fantastic exposure for Fleck himself also... and to possible P5 suitors in a month or so.
Any thought of retaining him at WMU is probably now officially over...
ADs aren't relying on "ESPN Car Wash" to find their next coach. I do agree he's gone though.
To his credit, even if he's gone the Broncos aren't playing like it. Memphis last year and Houston now look like they're mailing it in after rumors exploded about their respective coaches, WMU has stayed sharp.
(10-25-2016 05:48 PM)axeme Wrote: [ -> ]He seems ambitious and the MAC ceiling is way below the ceiling at most P5 schools. Money aside, it's inevitable that he will want to prove himself at a higher level. Even if WMU could and would match the pay for him and his staff that he would be offered, which isn't likely, they can't change the fact that WMU is in the MAC which has some built in limitations.
I agree with this. I think most people believe that he will leave after this year though, and I don't necessarily agree with that, unless he gets a monster offer from one of the top programs in the country, he has no reason to rush it.
I think the one thing that keeps him from staying at WMU, is that the odds of making the playoffs and winning a national championship are probably slim to none. I think for that one reason, he eventually leaves. But I think that eventually will come much later than most people expect.
Yeah, I don't see him doing this promo tour impacting his job offers this offseason, however, it might attract a few more eyeballs to midweek MACtion.
Edit: I imagine the midweek games starting up and ESPN wanting to market those played some impact as well.
Many MAC coaches would be better off renegotiating a higher MAC contract than rushing off for a weak P5 job and then getting fired 4 years later. Look at Hazel at Purdue, Beckman at Illinois, Turner Gill who went to lowly Kansas, etc... I think some of the veteran coaches who have already seen the pressure at the top like Solich, Amato, and Bowden understand this. Making $1.2 million at WMU may be better than making $2 million at Purdue. Sometimes purely chasing money isn't the best career decision. Look at Brock Osweiller.
Age is what will discourage teams from targeting a coach like Bowden or Amato. Not that they have achieved enough at Akron at this point to receive them yet. Similarly I feel age is why no team bigger than Duquesne has tried to court Dambrot. Programs like stability. They want a coach that if they do well, they can keep for 10 years. For this reason I don't know why the MAC doesn't target more coaches like Bowden who have had prior success, but fell out of favor with P5 programs. Young coaches are either awful or coach themselves out of the MAC in 5 years.
(10-26-2016 09:14 AM)kreed5120 Wrote: [ -> ]Age is what will discourage teams from targeting a coach like Bowden or Amato. Not that they have achieved enough at Akron at this point to receive them yet. Similarly I feel age is why no team bigger than Duquesne has tried to court Dambrot. Programs like stability. They want a coach that if they do well, they can keep for 10 years. For this reason I don't know why the MAC doesn't target more coaches like Bowden who have had prior success, but fell out of favor with P5 programs. Young coaches are either awful or coach themselves out of the MAC in 5 years.
The answer to this is easy. WMU hired a coach by the name of Bill Cubit. Prior experience at P5 programs. WMU and Cubit were then stuck in mediocrity for a long, long time and won zero bowl games.
WMU then hires a young coach by the name of PJ Fleck. Year #2 they make a bowl game. Year #3, they win a bowl game. Year #4, they are undefeated at 8-0 and ranked #20 in the nation.
Even if Fleck is gone within five years, it was worth it.
Dick Crum. All time KSU Hall of Shame for what he did to the program at a critical time. Worst retread ever.