(12-03-2018 10:08 AM)JMad03 Wrote: We have a ton of coaching threads and most of them focus on the people themselves. However, there are a lot of things in this search that give me concerns. These are my top 3:
-No head coaching experience. This is a big one for me. If we are looking at a guy that has none, I am very concerned about his ability to be a head coach. A great coordinator doesn't mean a guy will be a great coach.
-Lack of success. This one goes without saying. This doesn't mean only W's and L's. What was he able to do with what he was responsible for in the past? If he was an offensive coordinator at one time, was his offense a success? While Withers had coaching experience and was a part of a national contender, his defense was suspect. While he was co-defensive coordinator at Ohio State he was in charge of the secondary, which was the weakest part of that defense.
-Over-emphasis on JMU ties. This one concerns me quite a lot. Nothing wrong with getting a guy with ties to JMU, but I get this bad feeling too much weight may be put on it. Will a guy with less experience get the nod over another more experienced coach purely due to the guys previous ties to JMU? I have a bad feeling its going to be a guy with a JMU connection but with no experience as a head coach. That terrifies me.
Agree? Disagree? I'd like to know your thoughts in addition to any other concerns.
This happens at every institution and is not unique to JMU. A year ago due to my ties to Tennessee, I followed their HC search to replace Butch Jones. Come to think of it, everybody followed it because the AD (since fired) was a complete moron and played this thing out in public.
Once Jones was fired, everybody threw their pet name out and it all starts with drumming up every former Vol FB player who could come back and regain glory for his alma mater.
My alma mater, Georgia Tech, last week saw Paul Johnson retire. Within 2 hours the message boards lit up with every former Jacket known (maybe some even deceased) who could come back and be the head coach.
Thank goodness the vast majority of folks on fanboy message boards have no clue about what goes on and have no inputs into the process. Talking about it for fun makes sense, though some folks take it way too far. I know a few GT folks years ago who swore off support for the program just because their pet name wasn't hired. That's dumb.
Bourne has a pretty good track record hiring head coaches across multiple athletic programs, not just football where he's done pretty good there too. I have faith in him, the search firm he's contracted with, and the quality of candidates who likely will pursue the job.
We're in a position of strength all the way around.