NCAA Foootball 2017

[alfred russel]

Just hire a good offensive assistant coach?

So the offensive assistant coach will install a system that the head coach hasn't worked with in at least 15 years.

That will free up the head coach to focus on recruiting. Which is going to be an issue when the coach is coming from 15 years of living in Annapolis, Maryland and doesn't have relationships with the high schools in Arizona.

[crazy canuck]

Just hire a good offensive assistant coach?

So the offensive assistant coach will install a system that the head coach hasn't worked with in at least 15 years.

Is there is a reason this is not possible?

That will free up the head coach to focus on recruiting. Which is going to be an issue when the coach is coming from 15 years of living in Annapolis, Maryland and doesn't have relationships with the high schools in Arizona.

Is it important to hire a head coach that has previously recruited within the state or do teams have people who help identify the talent who should be recruited?

[alfred russel]

Is there is a reason this is not possible?

It is definitely possible. It is just unusual.

Is it important to hire a head coach that has previously recruited within the state or do teams have people who help identify the talent who should be recruited?

Yes, it is very important.

It is less about talent identification--obviously coaches have staffs to evaluate game tape and actually do some of the recruiting.

The problem is that high school coaches have a lot of influence where their players go. Personal relationships between college coaches and high school coaches is very important. If a high school coach is meeting with one of his players/family, and says, "These four schools that are recruiting you are all great. I know 3 of the coaches--they are great too. I've sent players to them and they were taken care of. I don't really know the 4th guy." That is an issue.

That can also be overcome by assistant coaches. Coaches move across the country with regularity - they typically hire a staff with local ties. But a problem is that he probably won't know a lot of the Arizona coaches he will need to hire.

[dps]

Just hire a good offensive assistant coach?

So the offensive assistant coach will install a system that the head coach hasn't worked with in at least 15 years.

Is there is a reason this is not possible?

The thing is, if your new head coach has a defensive background, you generally want him to hire a good offensive coordinator and let the OC run the offense, and it shouldn't be a big deal if it's an offense that the HC is used to or not.  But in this case, we'd be dealing with a head coach whose background is on offense.

That will free up the head coach to focus on recruiting. Which is going to be an issue when the coach is coming from 15 years of living in Annapolis, Maryland and doesn't have relationships with the high schools in Arizona.

Is it important to hire a head coach that has previously recruited within the state or do teams have people who help identify the talent who should be recruited?

What Dorsey said.  Personal relationships with HS coaches can be important in recruiting.

[katmai]

Well he reconfirmed staying at Navy, so on to the next for Arizona.

[dps]

Maybe if 6 or 7 other guys turn Arizona down, Tennessee fans will start feeling less bad about nobody wanting to coach the Volunteers.

[Berkut]

Looks like Kevin Sumlin took the job after Niumatalolo decided he wanted to keep winning 65% of his games as an Academy coach, rather than try to swim on the Pac-12 pond.

[grumbler]

Sumlin will certainly be in a better spot scheme-wise than Niumatalolo.  Tate has to be pleased. 

I hope Arizona gets Houston Kevin Sumlin and not A&M Kevin Sumlin.

[Berkut]

http://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/22125232/washington-state-qb-tyler-hilinski-found-dead-apparent-suicide-police-say

WTF?

[Berkut]

Ive been arguing for a long time, through Stoops and Macosuck and Rodriguez, that Arizona will never reach and stay in the top third of the Pac-12 if they don't recruit better. The occasional Scooby Wright gem found amongth the 3 star recruits is great. A kick ass scheme is great. But at the end of the day, you cannot compete at the upper level if you cannot recruit at the upper levels, period. At least not consistently.

What is funny is that you can get into arguments with Arizona football fans who will argue that stars don't matter, it is all hype and bullshit, and a shitload of three start athletes is a fine recruiting class. Then those exact same fans will go over to the hoops board and crow about how awesome Miller for grabbing the latest set of 5 star recruits.

So every time there is a new coach, I ask - is he going to recruit better? Is he going to go after 4 star athletes as the core of his recruiting, rather than 3s hoping they might turn out to be 4s? Might he even go after a 5 here and there?

So back when Sumlin was coach of Texas A&M, he got a commitment from a 6-6 pocket passer QB to go to A&M, Grant Gunnell. Gunnell committed to A&M, and then of course Sumlin was fired. Gunnell is still committed to A&M< but Sumlin just offered his a scholarship at Arizona.

Whether he gets him to switch or not, I like the aggressiveness of the move. Sumlin is supposed to be a great recruiter, and very much dialed into the Texas scene.

The Arizona Wildcats have given a scholarship offer to quarterback Grant Gunnell of Houston, an intriguing development on multiple fronts:

Gunnell, a four-star prospect for the class of 2019, is committed to Texas A&M. He committed to the Aggies in June 2017, when Kevin Sumlin was their coach.
Gunnell was recruited by Noel Mazzone then and has been offered by Mazzone now. Mazzone is expected to be named Arizona's offensive coordinator any day now. A staff announcement could happen as soon as today.

Gunnell is a 6-foot-6, pro-style quarterback. The Wildcats haven't been in the market for pro-style QBs since the Mike Stoops era.
If Sumlin and Mazzone plan to recruit pro-style quarterbacks, how will they cater their offense to Khalil Tate? And what does the future hold for Jamarye Joiner, another dual-threat quarterback who officially will join Arizona's 2018 class on Feb. 7?

Arizona also offered Gunnell's teammate, three-star receiver Chase Lane, who committed to Texas A&M on the same day as Gunnell.

I think any concerns about what going after a pocket passer means for Khalil Tate is pretty silly. Tate is an exceptional talent, and Sumlin isn't worth a sack of rocks if he cannot figure out how to exploit his legs while turning him into a much better passer, even if Tate is not a pocket passer in the pro style sense.

If I were a freshman dual threat QB coming into Arizona, I would be concerned.

[Berkut]

SOmeone on reddit (so you know it must be true) is saying Sumlin will be the highest paid college football coach in history next year. $10.4 million for his buyout from A&M, and $2 million from Arizona puts him ahead of Sabans $11 million.

Of course, Saban with get that $11 million next year as well, but still. These buyouts are just ridiculous.

[grumbler]

So, Michigan has apparently hired John "Shark Boy" McElwain as their new OC and WR coach, demoting last year's co-OCs to position coach status.  Alas, the shark jokes will bite more now, for us fans.

[PDH]

So, Michigan has apparently hired John "Shark Boy" McElwain as their new OC and WR coach, demoting last year's co-OCs to position coach status.  Alas, the shark jokes will bite more now, for us fans.

Jim McElwain?  The guy who took Colorado State on their rise to mediocrity then jumped to Florida?  Oh god.

[Rasputin]

The issue has never really been whether mclewin fucked that shark.  The issues is, and has always been, that the allegations were so credible, that the Florida press office felt they needed to issue a formal press release denying that mcelwin has ever fucked a shark.


Think about that.

[Eddie Teach]

I think if he did fuck a shark he'd probably make a pretty badass football coach.