First and foremost, even I was surprised that Golden was fired yesterday. Given Blake's previous comments and the University's historical reluctance to fire head coaches mid-season, I thought that Golden would be allowed to coach the remaining five regular season games, despite the fact that almost all of us knew the inevitable was certain.
That said, it makes sense that Blake did what he did. Losing at home 0-58 to Clemson wasn't just a record setting loss, it was the proverbial straw that broke the Hurricane community's back. I'm not going to spend a lot of time piling on Golden because we all received what we asked for- his firing. What I will say is that Golden deserved everything he received. His unwavering loyalty to a defensive coordinator who has consistently fielded mediocre defenses; his James Bond escape to Pennsylvania under the cover of night to pursue the Penn State head coaching job; his stubbornness to change the culture and adopt new ideas; forcing his square peg conservative personality onto these naturally aggressive play making athletes; his ego and pride... All things which led to a 0-58 loss to Clemson. I don't wish ill will on Al Golden, but I certainly don't feel sorry for a man who was given over 50 games and 4 years to field a successful team in one of the weakest Divisions in all of football- on top of the fact that he is still making millions of dollars because of this football program's inability to step to the plate and spend more money for a quality proven head coach.
Which transitions me to where we are now... Who do we hire...???
- Upgraded Facilities
- Recruiting Hotbed
- Adidas Deal
- First Class Stadium
- Winnable Division
- Quality Talent In Place
- Improved Budget
- No Sanctions
- Great Location
- A Chance To Rebuild A Dynasty
Although many of you believe that this program does not attract top head coaches, I respectfully disagree and FIRMLY BELIEVE that this program REMAINS an EXCELLENT DESTINATION for head coaches. This University is as strong as ever, and this football program is in a TREMENDOUS POSITION to EXPLODE back on to the national scene. It takes the RIGHT HIRE- but the PIECES ARE IN PLACE, and YES, even GOLDEN deserves some credit for restocking a lot of talent that we have now, and keeping a clean program for the next head coach.
I've seen names from Chip Kelly to Mario Cristobal and seemingly everyone in between them... AT THIS POINT IN TIME, I am NOT endorsing a particular candidate. I want to learn more about who is available, and do some research on my own before summarily throwing all of my support behind a particular person. What I WILL say is that I think names like Chip Kelly and Gary Patterson are about as realistic as Jimmy Johnson. Please... There's a difference between reasonable optimism and delusional homerism and some of you clearly cross line of who constitutes a realistic candidate... lol.
That said, I expect names like Mario, Schiano, Chud, and a few others who have been stated by people like Gary and others to be more of the realistic short list. What I DO KNOW is that we are NOW in a GREAT POSITION to hire a "homerun" coach. A "homerun" coach isn't just a "big name"- it is someone who TRULY UNDERSTANDS THE CULTURE HERE and what it takes to WIN... Jimmy, Howard, and Butch understood it- Coker and Golden didn't...
Simply summarized, I couldn't be happier for the state of the football program right now. I respect Blake James for making what had to have been a tough decision, but the RIGHT BUSINESS DECISION. The focus now is continuing to support the players through a difficult time for them, and being happier than a pig in shit that we will hire what should be an EXCELLENT COACH.
Go Canes...!!!
Prost! (Cheers!)
That said, it makes sense that Blake did what he did. Losing at home 0-58 to Clemson wasn't just a record setting loss, it was the proverbial straw that broke the Hurricane community's back. I'm not going to spend a lot of time piling on Golden because we all received what we asked for- his firing. What I will say is that Golden deserved everything he received. His unwavering loyalty to a defensive coordinator who has consistently fielded mediocre defenses; his James Bond escape to Pennsylvania under the cover of night to pursue the Penn State head coaching job; his stubbornness to change the culture and adopt new ideas; forcing his square peg conservative personality onto these naturally aggressive play making athletes; his ego and pride... All things which led to a 0-58 loss to Clemson. I don't wish ill will on Al Golden, but I certainly don't feel sorry for a man who was given over 50 games and 4 years to field a successful team in one of the weakest Divisions in all of football- on top of the fact that he is still making millions of dollars because of this football program's inability to step to the plate and spend more money for a quality proven head coach.
Which transitions me to where we are now... Who do we hire...???
- Upgraded Facilities
- Recruiting Hotbed
- Adidas Deal
- First Class Stadium
- Winnable Division
- Quality Talent In Place
- Improved Budget
- No Sanctions
- Great Location
- A Chance To Rebuild A Dynasty
Although many of you believe that this program does not attract top head coaches, I respectfully disagree and FIRMLY BELIEVE that this program REMAINS an EXCELLENT DESTINATION for head coaches. This University is as strong as ever, and this football program is in a TREMENDOUS POSITION to EXPLODE back on to the national scene. It takes the RIGHT HIRE- but the PIECES ARE IN PLACE, and YES, even GOLDEN deserves some credit for restocking a lot of talent that we have now, and keeping a clean program for the next head coach.
I've seen names from Chip Kelly to Mario Cristobal and seemingly everyone in between them... AT THIS POINT IN TIME, I am NOT endorsing a particular candidate. I want to learn more about who is available, and do some research on my own before summarily throwing all of my support behind a particular person. What I WILL say is that I think names like Chip Kelly and Gary Patterson are about as realistic as Jimmy Johnson. Please... There's a difference between reasonable optimism and delusional homerism and some of you clearly cross line of who constitutes a realistic candidate... lol.
That said, I expect names like Mario, Schiano, Chud, and a few others who have been stated by people like Gary and others to be more of the realistic short list. What I DO KNOW is that we are NOW in a GREAT POSITION to hire a "homerun" coach. A "homerun" coach isn't just a "big name"- it is someone who TRULY UNDERSTANDS THE CULTURE HERE and what it takes to WIN... Jimmy, Howard, and Butch understood it- Coker and Golden didn't...
Simply summarized, I couldn't be happier for the state of the football program right now. I respect Blake James for making what had to have been a tough decision, but the RIGHT BUSINESS DECISION. The focus now is continuing to support the players through a difficult time for them, and being happier than a pig in shit that we will hire what should be an EXCELLENT COACH.
Go Canes...!!!
Prost! (Cheers!)
