Offensive Coordinator Replacement Options

[Guest_Pariah]

With all this free time on my hands today, I've also been thinking about possible offensive coordinators that would be available to USF.

The first thing that popped out at  me was the total lack of experience on our offensive coaching staff. I would like to have some Wally Burnham type experience over on that side of the ball too. We need someone who has been around, seen how a few different teams run the offensive practice and formulate game plans. Someone who has also been in charge of the offense and has had success doing it.

The next thing we need is strong personality to stand up to CJL and take control of the offensive team. A person of character who can lead the team by example.

Now we get into the possible benefits. We need somone who will work kinda on the cheap, who needs to step up into a higher level of competition and would be willing to give up $$$ for opportunity.

So, with all this freetime, I poked around and found: Norman Joseph Head Coach at Mississippi College.

Norman Joseph enters his first season as the head football coach at Mississippi College and becomes the 17th head coach in Choctaw football history. The Vicksburg native ushers in a new era of Mississippi College football that has Choctaw fans excited about the program.

Joseph spent last season as the head coach of Louisiana College and quickly turned around a struggling program. The Wildcats enjoyed their best season since 1962 (5-5) and set 38 team and 41 individual LC records. Under Joseph's tutelage the Wildcat offense ranked among the best in the country finishing seventh in passing offense, 15th in total offense and 28th in scoring offense. His team led the American Southwest Conference in total receptions, total receiving yards and all-purpose yards. Three of their five losses were by a combined eight points including two overtime losses.

His team also exhibited excellence in the classroom with 14 players earning ASC All-Academic status, the most in school history.

Prior to his year at Louisiana College, Joseph spent the 2003 season as the offensive coordinator at Midwestern State University. There he built his offense around a punishing ground attack finishing second in the Lone Star Conference in rushing and leading the league with the fewest sacks allowed. Their 5.3 yards per carry average set a new school record.

During the 2001 and 2002 seasons Joseph served as the offensive coordinator at San Jose State University of the Western Athletic Conference. During his first season in 2001 his Spartan offense helped set a new Western Athletic Conference record for total offense in a single game with 849 yards. They also helped set a new NCAA record for combined total offense in a game with 1,640 yards. The Spartans ranked 18th in the country that season in passing offense.

The Spartan offense followed that season with another breakout year in which they ranked 24th in the country in passing offense and total offense, second in the WAC in individual passing efficiency and third in the WAC in team passing efficiency and scoring offense.

Before coaching at San Jose State, Joseph took on the task of starting the football program at Belhaven College in 1997 where he spent three seasons as the head coach of the Blazers. In his first two seasons he was the only NAIA coach in the nation to produce a 1,000 yard rusher and 1,000 yard receiver in back to back seasons. In his second season (1999) he led the Blazers to a Top 25 national ranking for six consecutive weeks. That season his team had ten First Team All-Conference players and ten Second Team All Conference players. His teams combined to go 16-15 in three years playing against teams who had been in competition for several years.

During the 1994-1996 seasons Joseph served as the offensive coordinator at the University of Southern Mississippi. In 1996 his Golden Eagle offense ranked second in the conference in scoring and led the nation in turnover margin. He also coached a quarterback to a #4 NCAA ranking in passing efficiency. He helped USM go 20-13 over his three years with most of the losses against nationally ranked SEC and ACC teams.

Prior to his coaching job at USM he was the offensive coordinator at Northeast Louisiana University. His NLU offense became the first NCAA offense in history to produce a 2,000 yard passer, two 1,000 yard rushers and a 1,000 yard receiver in one year. He helped NLU to four straight winning seasons ranking #1 in the conference in scoring, passing and total offense. His offense ranked eighth in the country in scoring offense in 1992 and third in the country in 1993. NLU won conference championships in 1990 and 1992. They also received Division IAA playoff berths in 1990, 1992 and 1993.

Before Norheast Louisiana University, Joseph was the passing game and recruiting coordinator at Northwestern State University in 1988 and 1989 where he won a conference championship and earned a #8 NCAA national ranking. They also led the conference in scoring, total offense and rushing offense. In 1987 he was the passing and recruiting coordinator at Louisiana Tech University. He was a position coach at Northeast Louisiana University from 1978-1986. He also served as a volunteer coach at Vanderbilt University in 1977.

Joseph played college football for the Mississippi State Bulldogs and gained Churchman All-American honors in 1976. He earned his Master of Education Degree from Northeast Louisiana University in 1979 and his Bachelor of Science Degree from Mississippi State in 1977.

Joseph and his wife Jane have three daughters, Elizabeth (17), Grace Anne (15), and Sara Catherine (9).

http://athletics.mc.edu/football/coaches/josephbio.htm

It took me 10 minutes and I think that may be more than USF spent before hiring Rod Smith.

Lets build a list of candidates and send them to the athletic office to make it easy on them this off-season.

[Guest Justin Boza]

not gonna happen.. CJL doesnt know him, and in order to be hired/promoted in this program, you have to know CJL personally.. we could have bill walsh knocking on our door, but as long as CJL doesnt know him, he aint gettin the gig

[Markeymark]

CJL doesnt know him, and in order to be hired/promoted in this program, you have to know CJL personally..

how do you know that CJL does not know him - I didn't see that stated in the article.

I would tend to agree with the second part of your statement. Bill walsh or a spurrier type would be more of a distraction but if a highly qualified person was willing to work for peanuts, I think CJL would give him a shot.

USF is hamstrung by money right now, more specifically, the lack of it. I wish somebody could post the athletic budget of all the teams in the Big East - you might be surprised at how little money we have in comparison to other schools and what we are able to do with the little we have.

[Bishop of Bulltown]

http://tampatrib.com/News/MGB4ITOUFDE.html

Countryside Head Coach John Davis and/or his son Jay after he graduates as a G.A.

I had the pleasure of both playing for Coach Davis and with his son Jay at CCC. I'm trying to be as unbiased as possible, but Coach Davis really knows his stuff and his strengths are molding QB's and building a system that works with the players he's got. Him and CJL went to high school together, and he's sent a lot of players over to USF (Jon Simmons, Mark Feldman, etc.). I also know that Jay wants to get into coaching when he graduates; it would be phenomal to land him as a GA to work with our QB's. Just my two cents, anyone agree with me here??

[smazza]

leavitt has ego issues

that is why he hired smith

[USFMikeB]

He hired Smith because of two very simple reasons:

1) Timing - nobody is available at that time of the year

2) Financials - no budget for quality assistants

I fully expect we'll see a change after the season ends.  Leavitt will have time to look, and maybe we'll have some extra BE cash lying around to bulk the budget.

[Guest AstroBull]

I can do it.  I led USF to 5 national championships on NCAA 06

[Guest S.  Bien]

He hired Smith because of two very simple reasons:

1) Timing - nobody is available at that time of the year

2) Financials - no budget for quality assistants

I fully expect we'll see a change after the season ends.  Leavitt will have time to look, and maybe we'll have some extra BE cash lying around to bulk the budget.

One can only hope.  Clearly the issues he was faced with made the decision an obvious one, however Hobbie was never a world beater in his own right.  If things don't change much, and even if we muster out 6 wins, it would behoove Leavitt to search for a new OC.  He can't spend another 2-3 years fielding a top 25 defense, and an offense that struggles to be in the top 100!

[BiggTipp]

i think we need to look for a college with succesful qb's year in and out and take the qb coach and offer him the OC position

[bulls96go]

a warm body that will hand off to a top 10 RB