Lee Adams

Might be because nobody really knows what is going to happen. Here is some more speculation. Maybe the new coach hasn't been named yet because he is still coaching somewhere. That would not likely include a coordinator because most of them can levae as soon as they accept a head coaching job. Pure speculation mind you.

I've talked to the head guy @ Collegiate Sports Associates and he's got a history of finding good fits for mid-major programs. He's the one who got Hunter Y. the sweet gig @ Coastal Carolina. Oh my,another position coordinator/recruiting coordinator. Might work but nothing there to hang your hat on. Another OJT.

At least we know he can beat somebody. Ooooooh. With all due respect to anyone who has been battered.

Speaking of which,I wonder how long Wistrcill will be around after a new coach is hired?

Who interviewed Ianello for a head coaching job before Akron did, who interviewed Brookhart for a head coaching job before Akron did? Who is interviewing Winters? I would say if we hire somebody that was considered for a HC job, YouTube is taking a step. I doubt anybody can talk to Winters until his season is over?

Jason Taylor was recruited by Faust. Both Taylor and Smith were defensive guys. Winters was Offensive Coordinator. Smith was the best college player I saw playing at Akron. He could have palyed either side of the ball. I think he returned kicks and played every once in awhile on offense if I am not mistaken.

This is the guy who 'allegedly' did a domestic on his wife?

I got an e-mail reply from Wistrcill today. He is actually good about replying. He claims the 'search' is getting a good response. He also says they are looking at all levels. For what its worth.

If thats true,good for him. He deserves another shot. Maybe he learned something. Thats his alma mater isn't it?

Did you actually read what Foster said about Akron? "On Monday, Foster offered a glimpse into what sort of head coaching gig he’s looking for, openly discussing the vacancies at Memphis and Akron. Both fired their coaches after just two seasons and the Hokies defensive coordinator labeled the two schools as “coach killers” right now. “Their administration is crazy,” Foster said. “They’ve got false visions of grandeur.” It does,give more balance to what the actual perception of the Akron job is outside of Akron. It also reinforces the view that for a coach to take this job he will be looking at more than just the facility. He will be looking at who he has to work for(we have all been there),the quality of life in the area(he may have a wife and kids who will be uprooted),the weather(oops) as well as money. Kind of brings one back to earth. Many people here still refuse to be realistic. They think people trying to interject reality are "thinking small". Heck, why not hire Les Miles, Nick Saban or Mike Gundy? I exaggerate, but Akron is almost certainly not going to give a coach a $1,000,000/year contract either. Where would the money come from? If UA can double from what we paid Ianello, that would get us to $700,000. Even at that we would not be able to land a "big name". However, IF we went to $700,000 our coach would be making almost 50% more than what the next closest MAC coach makes. Would I be against UA paying a coach that much? Heck no. But I find it hard to imagine UA is going to set a new standard for pay in the MAC. Again, where is the money going to come from, and could Dr. Proenza take the heat from the greater Akron community if he did that. Not all of the taxpayers supporting the university are ardent Zip football fans. Many would be screaming for his head, unless it was funded from football operations, which it can't. If we really talked to Tressel about the coaching position, the impact he could have made for the entire university would have been truly unique. Nobody else brings anything close in terms of total impact. In that case, there may have been a couple of wealthy benefactors who said they would have been willing to put up some serious money for Tressel only. My point is that simple math suggests UA (or any other MAC school) simply cannot fund a large coaching salary from football operations. Too few tickets sold, no rich league television contract, and limited donor money. If I set my goal to get Gisele Bundchen to marry me, I'm not being realistic and I am going to be disappointed. But, guess what. I can still marry a hot, smart, and sincere non-celebrity and have a really great life. Akron is not going to move into the upper echelon of college football with this hire, but we can find a coach who can make us one of the top teams in the MAC. That's a necessary start, and we can then build from there. Is that small thinking, or being realistic? I think we got drunk on that Tressel talk last week. We need to think as if we were still trying to get the AD to fire Ianello. Who did we think we could get as a coach two weeks ago? Ya know,never thought about it that way but hiring a coach IS kinda like getting married. You do the courtship thing and tie the knot. Evrybody is happy! After a few years somebody starts to realize it wasn't what they thought and wants out. Voila...divorce. Thats a great analogy.

Did you actually read what Foster said about Akron? "On Monday, Foster offered a glimpse into what sort of head coaching gig he’s looking for, openly discussing the vacancies at Memphis and Akron. Both fired their coaches after just two seasons and the Hokies defensive coordinator labeled the two schools as “coach killers” right now. “Their administration is crazy,” Foster said. “They’ve got false visions of grandeur.” It does,give more balance to what the actual perception of the Akron job is outside of Akron. It also reinforces the view that for a coach to take this job he will be looking at more than just the facility. He will be looking at who he has to work for(we have all been there),the quality of life in the area(he may have a wife and kids who will be uprooted),the weather(oops) as well as money. Kind of brings one back to earth.

Getting a good chuckle out of all this activity on the site the last week or so. First its the Tressel thing. Then all kinds of names are being thrown around as if it would be possible to get some of them to even pick up the phone if Wistrcill called. Akron is not a plum job right now. Nice facilities,but coaches are also going to look at WHO THEY HAVE TO WORK FOR. They are also going to look at recent history to see which way the program is trending. They are going to look at quality of life in the Akron area. If they have families that and money will be important especially if they have to uproot kids and have a wife possibly give up a job. There are going to be some real limitations on who will consider coming here. Maybe the AD can catch lightning in a bottle.

The campus atmosphere is quite a bit different now, then it was in the 70s. So they don't show up in 2011,why? Winning or not in our case apparently is the variable. Point was that students still don't come out in any significant number just to watch football. More might show up if there is a winner. But just to watch a football game? Obviously not. Well,time to go unhitch the buggy and head for the general store y'all.

Good post. Very exciting game. NIU's coach didn't just inherit decent team with talent, he inherited lots of veteran players. Taking over a team with a successful fifth year senior is a great start. The experience probably helped them stay composed last night. Not to mention the likely MVP in the MAC,Chandler Harnish. Boy wouldn't it be nice just to have a chance to get to that game again?

You and U of A need to get out of the 80's with your marketing. Plenty of firms can create a great campaign for minimal cost. And we'll get what we pay for. I'll match what I know about sales and marketing against anyone on this board. Toledo packs in their stadium with winning. OU is packing in their stadium with winning. We pack our stadium with free tickets...and you know who I'm talking about. The Athletic Department needs to get people to pay to watch the team play, not contrived buzz backed up with free tickets. OU average attendance for 2011 = 19,890 I guess that is pretty good for where they are located. But I would hope for more when we “pack” the Info.. I agree that wining is the only way we will get butts in seats (other than signing Tressel...and that would only be a one year phenomenon). The biggest group that needs to be addressed are the students. Come up with ideas that get students involved enough to actually attend games and I will be very impressed. Maybe free beer. But students at Akron have never attended in significant numbers. I go back to 1970 as a student. Thats when the program was a winner. Never saw too many of us college kids on a regualr basis.

Can we move on from Tressel...please! My goodness, don't we think if he were coming here to coach it would have been done already?

How long has Getsy actually been a coach at IUP? Just this season. Too bad Curt Cignetti the HC coach there hasn't been on the job a little longer at IUP. This was his first year. IUP went 7-3. He was on Nick Saban's staff at Alabama for quite a while. He was also on Pitt's staff at different times. His dad,Frank was a legend at IUP. Has a solid pedigree. Might at least be worth a call. He might bring Luke with him. Recruits same area as Akron. Western Penna,Ohio(there are some Ohio kids on the team) etc.

Point being,if the AD and Proenza do a REAL search there are plenty of possibilities out there who have some sort of track record as a head coach. They are not all going to be interested but pick up the phone and talk to more than just a few people this time.

IF,its down to these 3, Winters has the BETTER quals. for THIS job in my humble opinion.

He's "advising" us to take a position coach with no experience running a team or calling plays. That's not encouraging at all. Lets hope not. May be a nice guy but even with Tressel recommending him thats way too much of a reach. Too much OJT needed there.

I'm gonna sound like Dave when I say this, but there is no recipe for a good choice. Some great HC's had their first job as a HC in the MAC. Previously their highest position was a coordinator. Urban Meyer, Brady Hoke, Al Golden, Gary Pinkel... Point is, we need to find the right coach for us. He may have been a head coach for 30 years, or never. Problem is figuring out who the 'right' coach is before he and Wistrcill make another mess of things.

We need to get off the hiring of the 'hot' young coordinators with no HC experieince. This program needs stability. It doesn't need another assistant with no experience running a program trying to learn on the job. Its time for Wistrcill to get on the phone and contact some of the HC's in the GLIAC,Gatweway,Penna State Athl Conf,the OVC etc. who are having some success now. These guys recruit the same areas as Akron,they are familiar with the turf. They may be older guys. They may not have the name recognition of the names being thrown around here. But there are some guys with track records who might be conviced by the facilities and the right $$$ to come here. Winters probably falls into that category. Its tiring watching these guys try to learn on the job then leave with the program in worse shape than when they arrived.

Now that it appears that the Tressel storm has finally passed back to what may actually help this program. Maybe instead of going after the latest 'hotshot' coordinators or even 'hotshot' younger coaches at a lower level,maybe what Wistrcill needs to look at is the possibility of stability. If Wistrcill is interested there are some more established coaches at I-AA and D-II who have been successful where they are. It seems like all the AD's in recent history have gone after assistants from bigger programs with very limited success here. Maybe he needs to actually look this time at people who don't jump off the page or who are not his friends. Maybe he needs to look at coaches who have been winning at lower levels who might listen to an offer. But to do that you actually have to do some research. There are coaches in the Gateway,GLIAC,PSAC,OVC etc who are familiar with this area and are successful where they are. I am getting tired of watching coaches with no coaching track record trying to learn how to run a program on the fly. We know Faust didn't work but he probably never should have been in D-I to begin with. Get somebody on the sidelines who has a clue before they get here for c....t sake.

Not that Bowden wouldn't be a great hire....but. Why at this point in his career after he has coached in the real big time and has been successful with non-football gigs as well as his current gig would he need or want to come to a place like Akron? He is not oriented to this part of the country. He has stated he wants one more shot in the SEC if he could get. But,he hasn't gotten some bigger jobs he has interviewed for. He is going to get more exposure down south by doing what he is doing now. But,you can always make an offer.