Bluegrassrivals

First off, I have received several PM's from others asking how upset I am with this, with the assumption that SD's favorite college sports team is UC due to the UC logo next to my Avatar. I am an Alum of UC and do have a kindred feeling towards the schools programs, but they are not my favorite college sports team (Football & Baseball - Miami Hurricanes, Basketball - UK). But I do follow the program very closely and wish them well.

Back to the thread!

Who would be best suited to step into this program.

a. Who is a legit candidate that would be open to coming to UC
b. Who best fits the program and can maintain the growth that the last three headcoaches have built
c. Who can UC afford

My wish list:

1. Chris Peterson - Boise State: His style is wide open, he has proven himself a winner and with his success, he can recruit nationally because of the attention that he has kept on the BSU program. At UC, he does not have to worry each year about getting a chance to play in a BCS Bowl, but can have a legit shot every year of winning a BCS conference. If he goes undefeated at UC, he has a chance to play for a National Championship, not a consolation BCS bowl game that the NCAA is hoping everyone will forget about. BSU is not a worse program, but will never get the respect nationally. He would not make significantly more money, but will get a significant improvement in residuals and facilities.


2. Kevin Sumlin - Houston: Exciting football and would be able to keep the same offensive style that the Cats have developed under Kelly. He may not have the national glamor, but he brings something that UC has never had _ Texas High School Football recruits! He is a hot commodity in the state of Texas. Considered the leading candidate for any opening at the Big 3 universities in the state of Texas. Has a solid group of assistant coaches to bring with him

3. Butch Jones - Central Michigan: Yep, the successor to Brian Kelly at CM. Coaches the exact same style of offense. Has had the same level of success at CM that Kelly did, but he has done it at the D1 level. He is a similar personality as BK, and would take this challenge with great pride and drive, as did BK when he came here. His biggest downside is his national recognition. Many would say that BK did not have the national recognition when he came to UC, but UC did not have national recognition at that time. IMO, Butch could bring a similar style of football, but could he get the same level of players. I think that since BK has left the cupboard so full, a new coach like Butch could take the current talent and continue a level of success that will keep UC in the top 25 (because they should stat near the top of the Big East). By keeping UC in the national media, he may be able to recruit off of the UC name, not his own.

What about Tulsa Head Coach Todd Graham? He coaches a high scoring offense and lead Tulsa to 2 straight 10 win seasons and set a school record with 11 wins in 2008! This they did only go 5-7 but they had a very high scoring offense and they only lost to Boise State by 7 and Houston by 1! I think he would be a great fit!

Jones is the guy IMO. he's a friend of BK and, like Stardust says coaches the same style offense. Hopefully whoever comes in is smart enough to keep Kerry Coombs on staff if he doesent go to ND with Kelly. He's a legend in Cincy and will help recruit the city.

Those three that Stardust listed are great candidates for the job.

I would also like to throw in Randy Edsall of Connecticut. He is a fine coach that has lead the Huskies to some nice success the last three years. They went 9-4 in 2007 with a bowl victory, 8-5 in 2008 with a bowl loss, and 7-5 this year with an appearance in the Papa John's Bowl against South Carolina coming up. Edsall was one of the top candidates for the Notre Dame job before Kelly accepted the job.

http://cincinnati.com/blogs/uc/2009/12/1...in-sumlin/

Tom Dienhart of Rivals.com reports that UC has asked for permission to talk to Houston coach Kevin Sumlin.


Sumlin
Sumlin is one of the few coaches in college football whose offense has been more productive than Brian Kelly’s this year.

Houston’s offense: Scoring offense (43.92 ppg, 1st); Total offense (581.23, 1st); Passing offense (450.00, 1st); Rushing offense (131.23, 83rd)

Cincinnati’s offense: Scoring offense (39.83, 6th); Total offense (464.25, 6th); Passing offense (320.22, 6th); Rushing offense (143.92, 65th)

His coaching bio on Houston’s web site says, “With a reputation for engineering high-powered offenses and considered one of the country’s top recruiters, Sumlin brought with him a wealth of collegiate coaching experience and a penchant for innovative ideas and styles.”

He is 18-8 in two season at Houston is was named the 2009 Conference USA Coach of the Year, leading the Cougars to first place the C-USA West and their second Armed Forces Bowl appearance in as many years

Before taking over Houston on Dec. 14,2007, Sumlin was offensive coordinator/wide receivers coach at Oklahoma under Bob Stoops for five seasons. His last Sooner offense was first in the nation, averaging 44 point points per game.

Sumlin has also been rumored to be a candidate for the Kansas coaching job.

For all you Twitter birds out there, you can follow him here.

And here is a nice little ESPN video showing Sumlin coaching practice.

THE SUMLIN FILE (uhcougars.com)
Birthdate: Aug. 3, 1964
Hometown: Indianapolis, Ind.
High School: Brebeuf Prep (Ind.)
College: Purdue, 1988
Family: wife, Charlene; daughters, Courtney and Shelby; sons, Jackson and Joey

COACHING HISTORY
2008-Present • Houston • Head Coach
2006-07 • Oklahoma • Co-Offensive Coordinator/Wide Receivers
2003-05 • Oklahoma • Special Teams Coordinator/Tight Ends
2002 • Texas A&M • AssIstant Head Coach/Offensive Coordinator/Wide Receivers
2001 • Texas A&M • Assistant Head Coach/Wide Receivers
1998-2000 • Purdue • Wide Receivers
1997 • Minnesota • Quarterbacks
1993-96 • Minnesota • Wide Receivers
1991-92 • Wyoming • Wide Receivers
1989-90 • Washington State • Graduate Assistant

PLAYING HISTORY
1983-86 • Purdue • Linebacker

Peterson is not going to leave his current job. I would love to see Sumlin come in. I think it would be a great move for him. BK's OL coach and OC is someone that may get the job. The guy from CMU would not be bad either.

Tulsa was putting up those numbers when Malzhan was there. I believe Herb Hand is their HC. He use to be the OL coach for Rich Rod I believe.

Now I'm hearing they want to talk to Skip Holtz. That's irony at it's best right there.

Skip wouldn't abe a bad choice, not my top. Great thing about it is that with Skip, you get Lou for fundraisers. That would be great at UC

Stardust, I am very sorry that Kelly pulled a Rich Fraud on his Cincy team. If the guy had any class, he would have told Notre Dame that I will be your coach, but I want to finish the season with Cincy.

Butch Jones and Todd Graham both are old Fraud hands at WVU. Both know the Spread Offense inside out. Either would be a good choice, but Jones probably has the inside track. I know that Marshall has talked to Jones about their HC position. If he would leave CMU for Huntington, he is taking a step down.

I can only imagine what Collaros would do under Peterson. And Peterson has BCS experence. If someone does not grab him soon, he is destined for either a Pac10, Big 10, or Big XII job.

dangerousdaneerfan Wrote:Stardust, I am very sorry that Kelly pulled a Rich Fraud on his Cincy team. If the guy had any class, he would have told Notre Dame that I will be your coach, but I want to finish the season with Cincy.

Butch Jones and Todd Graham both are old Fraud hands at WVU. Both know the Spread Offense inside out. Either would be a good choice, but Jones probably has the inside track. I know that Marshall has talked to Jones about their HC position. If he would leave CMU for Huntington, he is taking a step down.

I can only imagine what Collaros would do under Peterson. And Peterson has BCS experence. If someone does not grab him soon, he is destined for either a Pac10, Big 10, or Big XII job.

My understanding with Peterson is that he has an ill child that requires attention from a specilist in the Boise area.

Jeff Quinn is seriously considering an option to stay on and be the head-coach. At first, it was announced that Quinn would be joining Kelly in South Bend. From what I have heard, Kelly was in a battle for salary's for his assistants, one being his top guy Quinn. Kelly felt that it ND did not match what UC would likely pay Quinn to stay, that Quinn would not come to ND and would likely apply for the UC job. I'm now understanding that Quinn would be open to the discussion with UC, and AD Mike Thomas are in talks.

Quinn is preparing the Cats for the Bowl game, as he did when Kelly left CMU to come to UC. When Kelly left, it was felt that CMU would have a letdown in their bowl game against Middle Tennessee State, but Quinn coached the team to victory. It's my understanding that none of the UC coaches have signed with ND (They can't while still coaching the UC team), thus this makes it open for UC to see how Quinn deals with this very distraught team. I'd say this is both a tryout for Quinn as a headcoach, as well as an opportunity for him to decide if he wants to be a head coach.

I like Quinn, but can he recruit the way Kelly did?

How about Coach Mueller from Highlands.

^ Coach Mueller would not want to take a step down...

Seriously, there is no HS coach in the Nation that could step right into a College Head Coaching roll with a top 25 team in the Nation. The College game is Sooooooo much different.

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story...NHeadlines

"After speaking with representatives with the University of Cincinnati yesterday and today, I declined an interview," he said in a statement. "I am looking forward to our first bowl practice later this afternoon and later honoring our seniors at the football banquet tonight."

The Bearcats are in the midst of leadership change after former coach Brian Kelly left the program for Notre Dame on Thursday.

Kelly posted a 34-6 record in three years at the school and has guided Cincinnati to consecutive BCS bowl appearances in the past two seasons.

Sumlin, who took the Houston job in 2008, came to the Cougars after a five-year stint as an Oklahoma offensive assistant under Bob Stoops.

The Cougars are 18-8 under Sumlin and will play Air Force in the Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl on Dec. 31

Stardust Wrote:^ Coach Mueller would not want to take a step down...

Seriously, there is no HS coach in the Nation that could step right into a College Head Coaching roll with a top 25 team in the Nation. The College game is Sooooooo much different.

I know, I was only kidding. He has to be considered one of the best high school coaches in the country.

I dont see Chris Peterson going anywhere. He's got a good program going on at Bosie St. And IMHO Bosie is already better then Cincinnati anyways so why would he leave.

dangerousdaneerfan Wrote:Stardust, I am very sorry that Kelly pulled a Rich Fraud on his Cincy team. If the guy had any class, he would have told Notre Dame that I will be your coach, but I want to finish the season with Cincy.

Butch Jones and Todd Graham both are old Fraud hands at WVU. Both know the Spread Offense inside out. Either would be a good choice, but Jones probably has the inside track. I know that Marshall has talked to Jones about their HC position. If he would leave CMU for Huntington, he is taking a step down.

I can only imagine what Collaros would do under Peterson. And Peterson has BCS experence. If someone does not grab him soon, he is destined for either a Pac10, Big 10, or Big XII job.

That is almost impossible to do if he wants to salvage any kind of recruiting for this off season. In fact he will already be in a huge hole as far as recruiting at Notre Dame this off season is concerned.

OrangenowBlue Wrote:I know, I was only kidding. He has to be considered one of the best high school coaches in the country.

In all seriousness though it may be a pretty shrewd recruiting tool to at least have the guy in for an interview and connect his name with the program; considering the talent that comes out of Highlands and Norther Kentucky.

How about Phillip Fulmer? I know it sounds ridiculous but think about it. A guy who was a proven winner at Tennessee, fell on hard times in more ways than one to end his tenure with the Vols. Probably still has at least some level of a recruiting leverage for some of the middle of the pack SEC talent. This could be his oppurtunity to redeem himself as a guy who was considered a very good football coach for a while in the toughest conference in college football. It wont happen but it might not be such a bad idea.

^ what is Fulmer doing now

Everything seems to be pointing to Butch Jones as UC goes back to the Central Michigan well one more time.

It appears he accepted the job overnight and will be announcing it to his team this morning with a news conference to be forthright

Will be interesting to see what happens with 4* WR Dyjuan Lewis. He committed to UC over UK because of Kelly and announced yesterday he would visit UK, Purdue, and UC again.

I'd almost bet money they hire a defensive or offensive coordinator. Central Michigan's coach would be a good fit.