Raid on Big 12 coaches?
10:16 PM CST on Friday, November 20, 2009
If Big 12 football were a Fortune 500 company, it might have qualified for a federal bailout this year.
And still they're coming for our coaches.
By "them," of course, I mean the media.
Bob Stoops is a hot rumor for Notre Dame, no matter how much he growls.
Bloggers are trying to talk Mike Leach into liking Louisville.
And then there's the other end of the spectrum: Two Big 12 coaches made the Coaches Hot Seat site, and one of them isn't even Mark Mangino.
Herewith, the chances that any of the above actually happens:
Bob Stoops and Notre Dame – zero. This rumor stems from the fact that Irish boosters are still mad they didn't hire a guy with college head coaching experience when they got Charlie Weis, and they'd like a big name. The percentages are better with the latter. Literally. Since Ara Parseghian retired in 1974, the Irish have hired two big names (Dan Devine and Lou Holtz) and five not-so-big (Gerry Faust, Bob Davie, George O'Leary, Tyrone Willingham and Weis). The bigs won two national titles ('77 and '88) and 77 percent of their games. The rest? 57 percent.
But good luck getting Stoops or another big rumor, Urban Meyer, who has already turned down the Irish once. Yes, Notre Dame still has all that tradition. But in case you hadn't noticed, most kids don't like ancient history, which is anything that happened before they were born. College football has evolved into an arms race, where you're measured by the size of your indoor practice facility and alumni suite/lounge/spa retreat, and Notre Dame has resisted those advances. Helps if you have a beach, too.
The reason rumor mongers think Stoops might want to leave OU is because of fan discontent over four losses in his last five games with Texas and his five-game losing streak in BCS bowls. Hey, at least he's been in a BCS bowl five of the last seven seasons. And he's still tied with Mack Brown in national titles. For at least another seven weeks.
Mike Leach and Louisville – 10 percent. The only reason we give this any credibility is that it involves the Pirate, the game's most unpredictable coach. Bloggers argue that Tech doesn't require a buyout and winning the Big East's automatic BCS bid would be easier than butting heads with Texas and Oklahoma every year.
Couple of problems: Kentucky is not exactly a football hotbed, especially for recruiting. And it's the Big East. If he leaves Lubbock, the Pirate will sail West, for its golden beaches, not to mention free spirits who don't wince when he gets up to talk.
Mike Sherman, out at Texas A&M – 15 percent. Hard to figure what's been the Aggies' biggest loss. Was it a 28-point deficit to Arkansas or 48 to Kansas State or one point to Colorado? Had it not been for a 22-point win in Lubbock, Sherman might actually be in trouble. But coaches don't get fired after just two years, except for scandal. Unless someone has pictures, Sherman's only scandal would be a loss to Baylor and a record-setting loss to Texas. Otherwise, he's safe.
But his defensive coordinator, Joe Kines, shouldn't renew any magazine subscriptions.
Dan Hawkins, out at Colorado – 75 percent. Personally responsible for the most-asked question by every AD who considered hiring his Boise State successor, Chris Petersen: "What if he's another Dan Hawkins?" Only other question is whether Colorado can afford to buy him out. Blow a winnable game against Nebraska, like he did in a 31-28 loss to Oklahoma State on Thursday, and Colorado fans might host a telethon to back his pink slip.
Mark Mangino, out at Kansas – 100 percent. Gruff, even physical treatment of players is one thing. Using their private lives to humiliate them in front of teammates is another. The potential damage to recruiting is too great to bring him back, which apparently wasn't what Kansas had in mind, anyway. If they can show cause for firing, they don't have to pay him off.
Just one question: Wouldn't it be nice if we had the same ethical standards for coaches whether they're winning or not?