Lee Adams

Things have changes a bit ( ) since this story first surfaced, but Crist is now officially available. But it looks like he'll most likely wind up at Wisconsin, Utah, or San Diego St. Or UT?

Boy thats a fact. Not like anybody here can do anything about who is hired.

I see a lot of people saying Proenza/Wistrcill need to hire 'the best man for the job'. As has been the problem for the last 20+ years nobody seems to be able to define what the phrase 'the best man for the job' means. Lot of generalities being thrown around. Maybe its Winters. Maybe its Campbell. Maybe its ??? What we do know is the last coach who had a winning record at this school hasn't been here for a long time. Whoever the next coach is needs to rebuild a foundation for the entire program. He needs to be able to show current improvement on the field. In other words he needs to be able to 'coach up' players he inherits. Needs to build a recruiting base. Needs to TRY to reinvolve the community in the program. And on and on and on. This problem isn't just the fault of coaches either. Its also the responsibility of a succession of AD's. Its the responsibility of others in the administration. I fear that no matter who comes in here its still going to be a few more years before this team becomes consistently competetive in the MAC. That doesn't mean we shouldn't see improvment,it means they better get the 'right' guy this time.

Is Lombardi still available?

Just like everything else here some speculation. Maybe Wistrcill has 'some guidance from above' on this one. Maybe some folks who sign his checks and pay the bills are guiding this search more than the last. Don't look behind the curtain.

I don't think the candidates with current jobs would appreciate being on an announced short list. Said that.

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.