Next coaching candidates

marylovesthelions said:
LMAROFL The dark cloud behind every silver lining. IMHO Kraft's new choice v is still coaching. An announcement will come after their last game. LMAROFL about many coaches turning down PSU. For who, Slippery Rock?
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We're looking at an imploded program, a fired coach, a team thought to be a legitimate potential national champion limping to a 6-6 record, horrendous upset losses to inferior teams, and all in all the most disastrous season in Penn State history..and Mary talks about "silver linings." Please.

A-List guys like Elko, Cignetti, and Drinkwitz effectively turned down potential Penn State offers. Matt Ruhle did the same. You gotta keep up with the news, Mary.

"After their last game"? That's gonna be late in the day to pick up the pieces.
 
Gitzit said:
Thought this was interesting
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I’ve read that almost every good college coach is a Sexton client. I never thought about the Nike/Addidas (potential) influence. Either way, Kraft’s career is on the line. I hope he didn’t bite off more than he can chew.
 
So, the paradigm has shifted as we all know. Coaches' agents, NIL, portal, playoffs, etc. Well, then Penn State needs to get out of that self-contained, conservative Penn State mentality and take things further. Do something like hire Terry Smith as the team's operational leader (aka Head Coach) for say $6m who provides the guard rails regarding scheme, culture, and the pieces to recruit. Then hire a Lavar Arrington, Michael Robinson, etc. each for $2m who, along with a scouting/analytics staff, bring in the HS and portal players. It may be that Kotelnicki and Knowles may be competent with Terry's input/insistence and without Franklin's interference. Same with Trautwein and the rest of the position coaches. The GM would manage the entire organization's operations, but has no say on what Terry does. The big hire would be the mentor(s) or consultant(s) who would look holistically at the system and personnel and make recommendations. It could be a retainer for say a Meyer, a Gruden, or Saban (or an AI summary of what's said on this board). The bottom line is to remove any leverage agents or other influences would have and separate the duties of the head coach, assistant coaches, and recruiters. A more horizontal or hybrid organization. Let each focus on what they do best.
 
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When your last guy was snapped up by another team for 8 million a year and you're down to a crew of possibilities that might justify 6 million per year based on their performance... that's ironic.
 
TheNewBoss said:
Interesting, but how much of it is true? Might never know.
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So cool story McShay. He's saying that Franklin's agent is the most powerful guy in college sports and petty as he!!. So much so in fact that he is willing to blackball a school who dares fire one of his clients. If this is true, then why would any school hire any of his clients going forward? You can't fire his clients or this agent is going to cross you. So essentially this agent owns all of the schools and conferences.

Conferences can't even observe how this guy will blackmail you into only doing what he wants and shut him out because someone that coercive isn't someone with which you would want to work now or in the future. Schools and conferences can't take legal action against an agent who is actively trying to vindictively undermine them?

I don't buy it. This all-powerful Oz, if he is that petty and vindictive, would eventually be black-balled by the sport. No one would want to work with him.
 
Jerry said:
My sense is that they're making a serious run at BYU's Sitake and if successful will dress him up as the second coming of Urban Meyer...or Knute Rockne.

Word is that BYU is trying to keep their coach on board and is willing to pay big-time to do it. This is how the game is played now.

Let's face it...things are getting desperate this late in the game after a bunch of guys on the A-List said no thanks to Kraft.

At this point we've hemorrhaged recruits and need to get a guy in place to start the process of cleaning up a very messy situation.

I'd be happy with Sitake. I'd be happy with Terry. I'd be more than willing to give just about anyone a chance.
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Terry is a position coach. Even he knows that he's not ready to jump multiple levels of experience in a job that is ever-growing in complexity due to wild west NIL and no limit free agency. Not sure why you are freaking out that we haven't made the hire as quick as possible or that we haven't already and the coach is still coaching. But you need to breath.
 
LudicrousSpeedGO! said:
Terry is a position coach. Even he knows that he's not ready to jump multiple levels of experience in a job that is ever-growing in complexity due to wild west NIL and no limit free agency. Not sure why you are freaking out that we haven't made the hire as quick as possible or that we haven't already and the coach is still coaching. But you need to breath.
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The complexity was simplified by blocking, running, and passing. If they can figure out the tackling piece, it gets even simpler. The "nickel", "dime", 3-4, 4-3, nomenclature is pretty much BS if the team can't execute blocks, the RB misses the hole, or the QB can't hit the open receiver. Michael Robinson's eloquent impersonation of Joe comes to mind, "they can't stop Larry [Johnson]" so don't stop giving him the ball. I suspect Terry understands football based on his resume as DI letterman and position coach. More so than an East Stroudsburg QB with stints at Kutztown, Idaho, and Maryland whose mantra was "explosive plays".
 
LudicrousSpeedGO! said:
So cool story McShay. He's saying that Franklin's agent is the most powerful guy in college sports and petty as he!!. So much so in fact that he is willing to blackball a school who dares fire one of his clients. If this is true, then why would any school hire any of his clients going forward? You can't fire his clients or this agent is going to cross you. So essentially this agent owns all of the schools and conferences.

Conferences can't even observe how this guy will blackmail you into only doing what he wants and shut him out because someone that coercive isn't someone with which you would want to work now or in the future. Schools and conferences can't take legal action against an agent who is actively trying to vindictively undermine them?

I don't buy it. This all-powerful Oz, if he is that petty and vindictive, would eventually be black-balled by the sport. No one would want to work with him.
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The $ involved makes this argument highly unlikely. It is a business. Of all people, agents know and live this. They would sell their sister if it meant 10-30% of $10 million per year for 5 years.
 
Sitake's an high character guy who knew to fire OC and BYU legend Ty Detmer. He brings in high character players who are well-disciplined. Had some bad years, okay years, and double digits win years. Sark is doing okay, Smart's team was blown up by ND last year, Riley's figuring out the defense, Cignetti caught lightning in a bottle. I'd say recruiting, Xs & Os, culture, QB, brand, and managing team turnover year after year needs to be collectively understood and managed by more than just a head coach.
 
marylovesthelions said:
The $ involved makes this argument highly unlikely. It is a business. Of all people, agents know and live this. They would sell their sister if it meant 10-30% of $10 million per year for 5 years.
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But the agent was using us to get better contracts for all his clients. Huge extensions. Great new contracts.

He even got a $9 million buyout from us for Franklin knowing full well that James was about to sign a deal with VTech which would have cancelled everything we owed him.

Using us made tens of millions for him. More for his clients.
 
LudicrousSpeedGO! said:
Terry is a position coach. Even he knows that he's not ready to jump multiple levels of experience in a job that is ever-growing in complexity due to wild west NIL and no limit free agency. Not sure why you are freaking out that we haven't made the hire as quick as possible or that we haven't already and the coach is still coaching. But you need to breath.
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I don't think you're in a position to declare what Terry thinks or "knows." After the big Nebraska win, Terry's comments left no doubt that he's more than interested in the job.

It seems clear that Terry has a lot of support from the players and staff. Would he have been my first choice after Franklin got fired? No. But as the weeks have gone by and the team has won three games in a row under Terry's leadership while one big name after another has dropped off the list...to the point where we're now dressing up Sitake as a potential high-price home-run hire even though he has no football ties to the region and was on nobody's radar as recently as a week ago...I think a case can be made for settling on Terry to stop the bleeding and giving him a shot.

I don't think I'm freaking out. I think I'm appraising the situation realistically.

All this said, regardless of who finally gets the nod, I'll support the choice and give the guy a chance. We're looking at an uphill climb and program rebuild at this point. Next year's schedule sets up very well, which should be a big help. But we shouldn't kid ourselves about the challenges facing the new coach.
 
Frank Lee said:
The complexity was simplified by blocking, running, and passing. If they can figure out the tackling piece, it gets even simpler. The "nickel", "dime", 3-4, 4-3, nomenclature is pretty much BS if the team can't execute blocks, the RB misses the hole, or the QB can't hit the open receiver. Michael Robinson's eloquent impersonation of Joe comes to mind, "they can't stop Larry [Johnson]" so don't stop giving him the ball. I suspect Terry understands football based on his resume as DI letterman and position coach. More so than an East Stroudsburg QB with stints at Kutztown, Idaho, and Maryland whose mantra was "explosive plays".
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There is a lot more to it than the basics of football or many of us would be viable candidates as well. Terry is not a serious candidate. He will be offered a job at PSU for life and a significant raise to stay, but he isn't the head guy. He doesn't have the experience to run all of the show.
 
The Spin Meister said:
But the agent was using us to get better contracts for all his clients. Huge extensions. Great new contracts.

He even got a $9 million buyout from us for Franklin knowing full well that James was about to sign a deal with VTech which would have cancelled everything we owed him.

Using us made tens of millions for him. More for his clients.
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If you conduct business the way this agent supposedly did by McShay's story, you'd be out of the business. Your clients are the coaches but they work for the schools. You use and cross the schools deliberately and spitefully then you are going to be done.
 
LudicrousSpeedGO! said:
There is a lot more to it than the basics of football or many of us would be viable candidates as well. Terry is not a serious candidate. He will be offered a job at PSU for life and a significant raise to stay, but he isn't the head guy. He doesn't have the experience to run all of the show.
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The theme from my posts is why the complexity of the job when it can be simplified. Divisions of labor like what happens when any organization grows. Let Terry do what he does best. As far as Xs & Os and on field performance, execute like Kaytron Allen running off tackle or Gronk hitting Rappleyea in stride. If Franklin learned it to a degree and failed at some aspects of it, then most coordinators and position coaches who've witnessed years of great players, playcalling, and even the dumbsh!t stuff, and particularly those with thicker skin than Franklin, could get a knack for head coaching after three games, much like Terry Smith did.
And a lot of us could be viable candidates with a few years of apprenticing as GAs, position coaches, and coordinators. It would allow for learning the processes and nuances, but we all know how the game works. Kenny Dillingham, for example, never played college ball.
 
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Is anyone else having doubts that Sitake even had any plans to go to PSU in the first place or was it just for leverage like everyone seems to be doing? I don't even know what to think anymore. 😕
 
How did Ryan Day pull off the head coaching role at OSU when he was never a head coach prior? He became the interim for a year after UM retired. Then became the permanent HC after that trial period. Now, he did have a few years of coordinator experience, something Terry doesn’t have yet. But, OSU is a preeminent college football program today winning a national championship last season and currently in the driver’s seat this year. There’s something to be said about hiring candidates that have shared values and alignment with the organization.
 
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