The attrition HAS to stop and some leaders have to step forward within the roster. If this happens, this program will be fine. The attrition and lack of leadership is what I find more troubling than the 7-6 record. If it continues, KF will definitely have to start answering some VERY tough questions. The next 8 months will certainly be very interesting for KF and the Hawks. I agree with the title, 7-6 shouldn't be acceptable, especially coming off one of the most underacheiving seasons in my lifetime.
But I am quick to stop myself when the "life is greener on the other side of the KF era" thought enters my mind. The realization I come to is Barta better hit a home run with his next hire, and that could prove to be very difficult. And that home run will have to come from taking a chance on a DC or OC, a retread HC, or a NFL assistant. Most coaching hires are risky, but when you take a chance on those 3 categories, the risk is even greater. Look what the basketball program has gone through. I am a big supporter of KF. But I have questioned KF more and more over the last 2 years, and I have asked "what direction is this program going", and some of what KF has done and said over the last 2 years has made me scratch my head.
But while the last 2 years have been VERY frustrating, I think it is important to sit back and watch how KF handles the next 8 months. With the uncertainty surrounding Coker and McCall, replacing RK and Norm and how those hires affect the rest of the staff, the questions he'll inevitably be asked about JVB and the QB situation, and the attrition on the DL and the very thin numbers there, KF will have plenty of opportunities to prove whether 2012 and beyond will be acceptable.