"It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye."
--Antoine de Saint-Exupery
"Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold."
--Yeats
“True, we [lawyers] build no bridges. We raise no towers. We construct no engines. We paint no pictures - unless as amateurs for our own principal amusement. There is little of all that we do which the eye of man can see. But we smooth out difficulties; we relieve stress; we correct mistakes; we take up other men's burdens and by our efforts we make possible the peaceful life of men in a peaceful state.”
--John W. Davis, founder of Davis Polk & Wardwell
This is probably a good enough hire. The O-line sucked and Finn was the least valuable recruiter on staff so not much is lost from either a coaching or recruiting perspective. We also have to adjust expectations based on where KW is right now. He has two years left on his contract, and he will be on pretty much every top 20 hot seat list going into next season. It's not an ideal position for recruiting coaching talent (although it's likely a step ahead of having a 25 yo OC).
I still think it is absolutely NUTS to have Whitt on the hot seat this year. Crazy. You want to show an unstable, Washington Redskins-type run team? Put Whitt on the hotseat.
This year will be our FIRST year having any sort of semblance of depth. This is the FIRST year that he will have a chance to compete for a whole season.
Crazy. Absolutely Crazy.
1. My understanding is that Kyle's contract is good through the 2016 season, so the two-year timetable doesn't worry about extending Kyle. If he's fired, it will be done with 1 or 2 years left on his deal. If this information is wrong, I extend him the year, but I lower the buyout the U. pays for firing him.
2. That's a damn good question, if only for the fact that nobody talks specifics about Hill's potential replacement. Is that person even on campus? You could probably get equal money on both sides of a who-lasts-longer-at-the-U. bet involving Hill and Kyle.
Yes, let's step back from the edge. Kyle is a great coach, and he wants to be at Utah, not just use it as the next career stop. Those two things are huge to me as a fan. I give Kyle AT LEAST two more years, even if we have losing seasons. He has shown how well he can coach, and considering how close several of our eventual losses last season were, it seems like we should think carefully before we let him go.
Look at the coaches the big name schools hired this year: I would argue that Kyle is a better coach than both Sarkisian and Strong, and we are paying him significantly less. So, yeah, give Kyle a chance. Great things are ahead!
Every preseason piece on PAC12 football is going to discuss the heat of KW's seat. He's going to appear on most every top 25 list for hottest seats preseason, and will crack a few top tens. I don't think it's a reality or deserved, but people had better get used to hearing it, because it's going to be the first thing discussed by outsiders when Utah football is brought up and it's going to stay that way until we hit 6 wins or KW gets the boot.
Edit: if TW comes back that will be a stronger narrative than KW's hot seat, but sans TW, the lazy blurb about Utah will be KW's hot seat. Expect to hear it as often as the lazy blurb about Dres being Flipper's kid.
Last edited by jrj84105; 01-14-2014 at 06:50 PM.
"It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye."
--Antoine de Saint-Exupery
"Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold."
--Yeats
“True, we [lawyers] build no bridges. We raise no towers. We construct no engines. We paint no pictures - unless as amateurs for our own principal amusement. There is little of all that we do which the eye of man can see. But we smooth out difficulties; we relieve stress; we correct mistakes; we take up other men's burdens and by our efforts we make possible the peaceful life of men in a peaceful state.”
--John W. Davis, founder of Davis Polk & Wardwell
If money is an issue perhaps Kyle should 'invest' $500k of his salary into a fund to hire better assistants to atone for some of his bad hires the last few years.
I would interview Greg Marsden if he was interested. If he could do across the athletic department like he did with a fringe sport in gymnastics, we'd be impact players in the Pac-12. Plus, it would allow Megan full control of the gym program and that's something that probably should have happened years ago.
"It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye."
--Antoine de Saint-Exupery
"Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold."
--Yeats
“True, we [lawyers] build no bridges. We raise no towers. We construct no engines. We paint no pictures - unless as amateurs for our own principal amusement. There is little of all that we do which the eye of man can see. But we smooth out difficulties; we relieve stress; we correct mistakes; we take up other men's burdens and by our efforts we make possible the peaceful life of men in a peaceful state.”
--John W. Davis, founder of Davis Polk & Wardwell
Coaches Hot Seat, which is pretty reasonable with this kind of thing, has Kyle 43rd in FBS. Only Pac-12 coaches on hotter seats are Mike McIntyre (39th), Mike Riley (29th) and Sonny Dykes (9th). However, I've never seen a more outlandish ranking from CHS than what it has done with Nick Saban, whose seat is 11th hottest.
Reasonable? Lazy "hot seat" journalism shares a lot of the blame for the current crazy culture of firing your coach every other year. "Well, I need to update my hot seat power ranking, who didn't go to a bowl game last year?" If we didn't let the media tell us what to think, this kind of Whittingham hot seat talk would be laughed at like it should be. We have a good coach who wants to be here. He should have a lifetime contract. I wish sports journalists could be held to the same high standard - two uninspiring articles in a row and you're gone - I don't care if you did break your hand and can't type.
No offense, but all other sports are secondary to football in this hire. ADs, from what I understand, have 3 duties that I care about: raising money, scheduling football games, and organizing new hires. We would need someone with strong football ties for the scheduling and the hiring (especially if we fire Whittingham and join the new coach every 3 years program).I would interview Greg Marsden if he was interested. If he could do across the athletic department like he did with a fringe sport in gymnastics, we'd be impact players in the Pac-12. Plus, it would allow Megan full control of the gym program and that's something that probably should have happened years ago.
That role goes to boosters, hands down. And what college program fires its coach every other year? And while I like Kyle and would love to see him another 10 years, the idea that he should have a lifetime contract is absurd.
As for the "important" AD duties, I could pick a dozen people on this board to schedule games and lead hiring committees. (Our previous AD of Ticket Operations led our scheduling efforts). How much football experience did Chris Hill have before getting his position? But he could raise money and that's largely why he got the job.
The boosters often get their impatience from the media. The media needs hot seat lists, controversies, etc, to stay alive, especially in the off season. They create a good portion of it all.
I think we agree that fund raising is #1-100 on the list for an AD. Go ahead and put scheduling at #101 if you like. But fund raising doesn't really matter to me as a fan, and scheduling does.
More programs should do the lifetime contract thing. It's always a little hard at the end when the coach is 85 and doesn't want to stop, but it's a great ride for players and fans.
I disagree with the lifetime hiring thing. There's a reason why successful corporations/football programs have fairly constant turnover at the top and it's not all attributable to fussy shareholders and donors. The leadership demands for an organization change as the competitive environment changes. Every leader has personal strengths and weaknesses and unless somebody is basically the complete package, even most top notch executives (and coaches) will eventually find that their skillset is no longer a great fit for the current environment. Then they move on to another company/team that does need their skillset. Moving up and down the career ladder and making horizontal moves are an expected and necessary component of these jobs.
Agreed. I love Kyle, but I don't want anyone on a lifetime deal. I understand the angst among Utah fans over the football team, but I'm still of the opinion that we are a reliable QB away from good things. We'll never be a top dog in the Pac, but I think Kyle can win the South every 5 years or so if given a chance. That would be great.
Getting back to the neW OL coach, my only fear is that he might be in over his head. We'll see.
"It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye."
--Antoine de Saint-Exupery
"Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold."
--Yeats
“True, we [lawyers] build no bridges. We raise no towers. We construct no engines. We paint no pictures - unless as amateurs for our own principal amusement. There is little of all that we do which the eye of man can see. But we smooth out difficulties; we relieve stress; we correct mistakes; we take up other men's burdens and by our efforts we make possible the peaceful life of men in a peaceful state.”
--John W. Davis, founder of Davis Polk & Wardwell
Again, I have to ask why?
Is there really some magical skill learned by coaching at Washington State versus Wyoming? Is OL really different in the Pac12 vs MWC?
I really liked his analogy that the difference is really about who you're playing versus how you play.
I thought he gave a decent interview considering he has all of 8 hours around the program.
I liked his interview and I liked that answer. My worry is that he will be seeing PAC-12 size and speed (other than the Utes' size and speed) for the first time when the season actually starts. (Baseball analogy: Can a minor-leaguer hit big-league pitching? Only way to find out is to let him try.) That's why I hope the new OC can learn what he's in for by watching film.
"It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye."
--Antoine de Saint-Exupery
"Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold."
--Yeats
“True, we [lawyers] build no bridges. We raise no towers. We construct no engines. We paint no pictures - unless as amateurs for our own principal amusement. There is little of all that we do which the eye of man can see. But we smooth out difficulties; we relieve stress; we correct mistakes; we take up other men's burdens and by our efforts we make possible the peaceful life of men in a peaceful state.”
--John W. Davis, founder of Davis Polk & Wardwell
"It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye."
--Antoine de Saint-Exupery
"Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold."
--Yeats
“True, we [lawyers] build no bridges. We raise no towers. We construct no engines. We paint no pictures - unless as amateurs for our own principal amusement. There is little of all that we do which the eye of man can see. But we smooth out difficulties; we relieve stress; we correct mistakes; we take up other men's burdens and by our efforts we make possible the peaceful life of men in a peaceful state.”
--John W. Davis, founder of Davis Polk & Wardwell
"It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye."
--Antoine de Saint-Exupery
"Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold."
--Yeats
“True, we [lawyers] build no bridges. We raise no towers. We construct no engines. We paint no pictures - unless as amateurs for our own principal amusement. There is little of all that we do which the eye of man can see. But we smooth out difficulties; we relieve stress; we correct mistakes; we take up other men's burdens and by our efforts we make possible the peaceful life of men in a peaceful state.”
--John W. Davis, founder of Davis Polk & Wardwell
He was the OC for a top 5 offense at Missouri (Big 12 team). He was also OL coach while at Missouri. SOOOOO, whoever the new hire is, whatever his experience, Christensen has shown he can coach an ELITE BCS offense and OL.
This is all MUCH ado about NOTHING. We have upgraded our coaching at the WR, TE and OL positions with the Christensen hire, and yet, all we do is whine.
Amazing.
"It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye."
--Antoine de Saint-Exupery
"Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold."
--Yeats
“True, we [lawyers] build no bridges. We raise no towers. We construct no engines. We paint no pictures - unless as amateurs for our own principal amusement. There is little of all that we do which the eye of man can see. But we smooth out difficulties; we relieve stress; we correct mistakes; we take up other men's burdens and by our efforts we make possible the peaceful life of men in a peaceful state.”
--John W. Davis, founder of Davis Polk & Wardwell
"It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye."
--Antoine de Saint-Exupery
"Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold."
--Yeats
“True, we [lawyers] build no bridges. We raise no towers. We construct no engines. We paint no pictures - unless as amateurs for our own principal amusement. There is little of all that we do which the eye of man can see. But we smooth out difficulties; we relieve stress; we correct mistakes; we take up other men's burdens and by our efforts we make possible the peaceful life of men in a peaceful state.”
--John W. Davis, founder of Davis Polk & Wardwell