My opinion on the surprising news of Bret Bielema to Arkansas: I applaud Jeff Long for some original thinking. I heard Paul Finebaum say that he spoke recently to the Touchdown Club in Fayetteville, and they discussed around 25 potential candidates for the Hog job, none of which were Bielema. They are getting a good young coach who has won at a high level of competition. Seven years after taking over for the iconic Barry Alvarez, he has averaged nearly 10 wins, although he has a poor Bowl record. This reminds me of about 12-13 years ago when a guy named Saban jumped from the Big 10 to the SEC. He knew where the talent was and knew he could win if he got his hands on it. I think it says something of Bielema that he was willing to take the challenge of facing the gauntlet of SEC West coaches, rather than staying safe in Wisconsin, where they are happy with 8-9 wins, and 10 wins makes you a hero.
As for Malzahn, I am skeptical, mostly because I view him as an Offensive Coord at heart, who might not have the skills to run a big program outside of the X's and O's. I may be proven wrong, but many times these guru's don't work out as head coaches. There is a lot of CEO stuff involved and he may hate it.
S
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2 comments:
Interesting thoughts. I am intrigued with the Bielema hire but had not thought to cpompare it to the Saban hire by LSU. I am glad the hogs went after a proven coach thoug. I find myself optimisitc about them now. As for Auburn- I think he might be in a little over his head. A quick rise with only 1 year of HC experience.
I am still in shock over the hire in Arkansas. I applaud Long for making this hire at Arkansas.
Unlike most, I think Malzahn was the best hire for Auburn. That situation is dire and will change depending on his hires. His D Coordinator is definitely not a Head Coach.
I worry more about the Vols situation.
J.
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