Something to think about with our FB team and coach.

[slick1ru2]

Sad, Holtz could speak, not sure what happened with the players.  I would really like to get an inside opinion on that era.  

 

I'd put some of the blame on networking of coaching staffs. Hiring someone you worked with or someone you know refers them vs hiring the best available for the job. They seem to do this because they know that in coaching, you can be out tomorrow and since you've been in a circle of coaches that help each other out, you can call on a guy you employed or worked with years back to get another job. And I am hoping that same way of filling positions doesn't screw this year's team.

[TExpress]

Holtz and Taggart came in completely differently. Based on where each were, and what each was focusing on at this juncture, I feel much better about our chances this go round.

 

Yeah, Taggart came in and scouted recruits while Skippy came in and scouted golf courses.

[Who'sYourData?]

I see an interesting psychological phenomenon playing out here.

 

Holtz followed the man.  He was in a no win situation.  Some would always hate him because they were blinded by love for Leavitt, the only coach the fans had ever known.

 

Taggart follows the man that followed the man.  By definition he's a hero because he replaces the one everyone blames for getting Leavitt tossed to the street.

 

Players were excited when Holtz came in. 

 

Players are excited with Taggart comes in.

 

In the end, it's about wins on the field.  Time will tell.

[Orlando Bull]

 

Sad, Holtz could speak, not sure what happened with the players.  I would really like to get an inside opinion on that era.  

 

I'd put some of the blame on networking of coaching staffs. Hiring someone you worked with or someone you know refers them vs hiring the best available for the job. They seem to do this because they know that in coaching, you can be out tomorrow and since you've been in a circle of coaches that help each other out, you can call on a guy you employed or worked with years back to get another job. And I am hoping that same way of filling positions doesn't screw this year's team.

 

 

 

Slick, I don't know if we're saying the exact same thing here, and it's rare that we full agree, but, I am behind this 100%.... I was very happy with the Holtz hire when it happened... then, he started bringing in all of his coaches from ECU, and other mid-major guys. I started to get nervous. He paid them ridiculous amounts. He kept I believe 3 guys from Leavitt's staff and kept them at the significantly lower salaries even though they had already proven themselves at the BCS level. It immediately made me squirm.

 

The Holtz new error in my opinion was more a function of the assistants being absolutely terrible than it was the head coach. He was bad, don't get me wrong, but, the assistants were clearly thrilled with their $50k raises and they either didn't care, or, didn't have the ability to coach.

 

I love the attitude that CWT seems to bring, I am hoping that it translates into wins on the field and butts in the seats. Unfortunately, I don't know if we can overcome the damage that Skip did in the most critical 3 years of the College Football landscape. I think if we were still that great Cinderella story that Leavitt created, we would be playing in a better conference today, but, such is life. I hope that CWT can make some skippy lemonade and get us back to relevance before the next wave of changes.

 

I was at USF when we got invited to C-USA and then the BE... those were exciting times. It should have been an exciting time during this last transition, but, we were reeling in 1-6 conference records and getting left behind. What a difference...

[Orlando Bull]

 

I see an interesting psychological phenomenon playing out here.

 

Holtz followed the man.  He was in a no win situation.  Some would always hate him because they were blinded by love for Leavitt, the only coach the fans had ever known.

 

Taggart follows the man that followed the man.  By definition he's a hero because he replaces the one everyone blames for getting Leavitt tossed to the street.

 

Players were excited when Holtz came in. 

 

Players are excited with Taggart comes in.

 

In the end, it's about wins on the field.  Time will tell.

 

 

 

I disagree... one of our best players left the program when Holtz came in. C. Mitchell did not get good news on his draft status, but, rather than risking a further fall, he left early and really hurt his overall chances at making it in the NFL.

 

We have had players leave with CWT as well, so, I am not sure how excited the players are about him either. I think that you'll find that the bulk of the players were in Leavitt's court and didn't want to see anyone new come in, I don't think there were many that felt that way about Skip... wasn't it Jerrell Young that threatened to just quit football all together when Leavitt got fired? He ended up playing, but, it makes you wonder what the actual thoughts were in the locker room. I certainly didn't hear of any players stepping up to the plate to profess their loyalty to Skippy.

[Bulls Are We]

 

 

I see an interesting psychological phenomenon playing out here.

 

Holtz followed the man.  He was in a no win situation.  Some would always hate him because they were blinded by love for Leavitt, the only coach the fans had ever known.

 

Taggart follows the man that followed the man.  By definition he's a hero because he replaces the one everyone blames for getting Leavitt tossed to the street.

 

Players were excited when Holtz came in. 

 

Players are excited with Taggart comes in.

 

In the end, it's about wins on the field.  Time will tell.

 

 

 

I disagree... one of our best players left the program when Holtz came in. C. Mitchell did not get good news on his draft status, but, rather than risking a further fall, he left early and really hurt his overall chances at making it in the NFL.

 

We have had players leave with CWT as well, so, I am not sure how excited the players are about him either. I think that you'll find that the bulk of the players were in Leavitt's court and didn't want to see anyone new come in, I don't think there were many that felt that way about Skip... wasn't it Jerrell Young that threatened to just quit football all together when Leavitt got fired? He ended up playing, but, it makes you wonder what the actual thoughts were in the locker room. I certainly didn't hear of any players stepping up to the plate to profess their loyalty to Skippy.

 

 

That was more about loyalty to The Jim rather than dislike for Skippy. I don't think that would have been different no matter who was hired.  

[Who'sYourData?]

 

 

I see an interesting psychological phenomenon playing out here.

 

Holtz followed the man.  He was in a no win situation.  Some would always hate him because they were blinded by love for Leavitt, the only coach the fans had ever known.

 

Taggart follows the man that followed the man.  By definition he's a hero because he replaces the one everyone blames for getting Leavitt tossed to the street.

 

Players were excited when Holtz came in. 

 

Players are excited with Taggart comes in.

 

In the end, it's about wins on the field.  Time will tell.

 

 

 

I disagree... one of our best players left the program when Holtz came in. C. Mitchell did not get good news on his draft status, but, rather than risking a further fall, he left early and really hurt his overall chances at making it in the NFL.

 

We have had players leave with CWT as well, so, I am not sure how excited the players are about him either. I think that you'll find that the bulk of the players were in Leavitt's court and didn't want to see anyone new come in, I don't think there were many that felt that way about Skip... wasn't it Jerrell Young that threatened to just quit football all together when Leavitt got fired? He ended up playing, but, it makes you wonder what the actual thoughts were in the locker room. I certainly didn't hear of any players stepping up to the plate to profess their loyalty to Skippy.

 

 

I recall the team being 50/50 on wanting Leavitt to stay or go. 

 

But Leavitt is largely irrelevant to the conversation.  It's about the old adage.

 

You don't want to be the man to follow the man, you want to be the man that follows the man that follows the man.

 

Even if Holtz had won big, some would have given all the credit to Leavitt.  If the team wins 10 game this year, none of the credit will go to Holtz.  That's just the way it is.

[Dhambuc]

Problem is Skip was too Passive and defeated, Didn't know or appear to know how to do the simple things like manage the game, call time outs ect...  Think to all the games in which Skippy Do Dah  left Time outs on the board,  Think to the FSU game when Floyd came in( first play got sacked ,fumbled and they scored a td) Skip and Company didn't even know Floyd was coming in because the starter was hurt standing on the sideline next to them.  

Think back to all the Late 4th qt meltdowns and the soft defense( prevent).    

 

Skip has no Killer instinct and needed to go.  Was he good man off the field( more than likely). Was he a BCS type coach, Absolutely not.   If you really examine Skippy's  pedigree you will see it was mostly his Daddy's name and ECU.   

 

Coach T has more Fire, passion, ect... Does he have the pedigree?  About the same as Skip,  But has the other things mentioned above Skip didn't have. If he learned just 1/4 of what the Harbaughs taught him, He will be a step up from Skippy Poop.

[Who'sYourData?]

Problem is Skip was too Passive and defeated, Didn't know or appear to know how to do the simple things like manage the game, call time outs ect...  Think to all the games in which Skippy Do Dah  left Time outs on the board,  Think to the FSU game when Floyd came in( first play got sacked ,fumbled and they scored a td) Skip and Company didn't even know Floyd was coming in because the starter was hurt standing on the sideline next to them.  

Think back to all the Late 4th qt meltdowns and the soft defense( prevent).    

 

Skip has no Killer instinct and needed to go.  Was he good man off the field( more than likely). Was he a BCS type coach, Absolutely not.   If you really examine Skippy's  pedigree you will see it was mostly his Daddy's name and ECU.   

 

Coach T has more Fire, passion, ect... Does he have the pedigree?  About the same as Skip,  But has the other things mentioned above Skip didn't have. If he learned just 1/4 of what the Harbaughs taught him, He will be a step up from Skippy Poop.

 

Yep.  Definitely a return to the passion.  The difference now is that it is a positive passion.  I really hope the coaching skill matches the passion.

[cmhatter]

This is a great thread.

Full of optimism after the Holtz/Woolard trilogy of failure.

I, too, have seen this program grow from the grass roots and have often lamented about how some - usually newer to the program - lost their minds during the program's 10-12 years.

Some expected way too much of a team 10 years old then ranked #2 in the country. Expectations were foolishly raised to unrealistic levels.

Most of those fools no longer post here.

I hope we don't have a second generation of fools should Willie not get 10 wins.

Holtz taught us one thing - be careful what you wish for.

As fans, let's get back out there with a pre-2007 mentality. Let's not expect things not earned. We know the coaches and the team are going to be working hard - old days.

I'm ready for the rebound and this program getting back on its feet. I also have patience and am watching for the things that matter, and not just Ws or Ls.

 

Rewinding expectations for the program would discredit the past. We've seen what we are capable of, I expect this program to get back to that level and eventually add some consistency. We've earned some recognition, we recruit with big schools who've played a lot longer (and in MANY cases, outrecruit), we spend with big schools that have played a lot longer. Jim and Co put us on the stage, we should stay there (save things out of our control like re-alignment).

 

This program, especially in the AAC, should eventually be seriously competitive, annually.

 

Do I think this is a 8/9 win team? Of course not. But we should make strides to get back to where we were and find a way to exceed it.