The Lloyd Carr lesson as applied to KF-Would Mich do it that same way again???

[NCHawker]

it occured to me that it is Ideal that an AD be proactive and develop a transition plan. Think Wisconsin and FSU. An AD should at some point mandate that a coach name an heir apparent be put on staff - not necessarily announced to the public, but put in place 3 to 5 years out.

 

[SpiderRico]

Michigan has one NC after 1948, and they split it. They are not an elite program, they have not been an elite program since the early 20th century but their fans seem to think they should be in the NC picture every year. Anyone who coaches at Michigan can only be there for the money because you know going in you will never last. The goals the program and the fans have in mind for you are impossible to obtain. Iowa fans, I dare say, would be fine with a consistent 8-9 wins every year. That is the difference.

It's not even money because, until just fairly recently, UM paid their coaches among the lowest in the B1G. Sort of an "it's a privilege to coach at UM" thing....

 

[SwirlinLingerie]

it occured to me that it is Ideal that an AD be proactive and develop a transition plan. Think Wisconsin and FSU. An AD should at some point mandate that a coach name an heir apparent be put on staff - not necessarily announced to the public, but put in place 3 to 5 years out.

No thank you. I think we need to get outside the box of thinking the best candidate to replace Ferentz (or looking back, Hayden) has ties to the program.

Yes, fit is important, but a candidate shouldn't need direct ties to the university, Ferentz or Fry, Iowa or the Big Ten to be a great fit. Would anyone honestly trade Fran for Keno Davis or Steve Forbes right now?

The athletic director should always have a short list. And he or she should consult with the outgoing coach if they'd like, but ultimately, it is their job to interview and select the best candidate for the position.

 

[JHHawk]

No thank you. I think we need to get outside the box of thinking the best candidate to replace Ferentz (or looking back, Hayden) has ties to the program.

Yes, fit is important, but a candidate shouldn't need direct ties to the university, Ferentz or Fry, Iowa or the Big Ten to be a great fit. Would anyone honestly trade Fran for Keno Davis or Steve Forbes right now?

The athletic director should always have a short list. And he or she should consult with the outgoing coach if they'd like, but ultimately, it is their job to interview and select the best candidate for the position.

I think the Iowa bb program is not like Iowa fb. I do agree that an Iowa man does not need to run the football program, but it is hard to argue against it, after we get 40 years of success between Hayden and KF. Tradition and legacy mean more in football, imo. Now, Bob Commings as a hire works against my argument, I concede. BB is all about recruiting, but football is a lot of development of recruits. If KF has a good run to 2020...our succession plan could be rock solid with Brian right there....course, that is 7 seasons away. If KF has a great run, maybe Brian will be hired away by someone else. Or, conversely, if KF falls flat, Brian will have no shot.

 

[SwirlinLingerie]

Besides the fact he is the coach's son, is there any reason to think Brian should be the next Hawkeye head coach? Maybe he'll prove that over the next few seasons, but right now he has never been higher than a position coach. And I don't think the offensive line has looked all that well-coached the last two years. That's probably a debatable point, but at best, I think we could agree they are performing similarly if slightly worse than is typical for Iowa. I think it would also benefit Brian to coach outside the Belichick-Ferentz umbrella for a while.

 

[1standgoalat1]

Michigan has one of the top winning percentages. That's elite to me.

 

[Montanahawk]

Michigan has one of the top winning percentages. That's elite to me.

UM has won the most games in college football history and has the all-time highest winning percentage(although that's really tight now with ND at #2). Won the most conference titles of any team in any conference. So, historically, definitely elite and I believe UM had the 7th highest winning percentage during the Carr years, a number of Rose Bowl appearances and conference championships. But, granted less NC's than to be expected given what our overall winning record suggests. We haven't been an elite team since 2006.

 

[uihawk82]

UM has won the most games in college football history and has the all-time highest winning percentage(although that's really tight now with ND at #2). Won the most conference titles of any team in any conference. So, historically, definitely elite and I believe UM had the 7th highest winning percentage during the Carr years, a number of Rose Bowl appearances and conference championships. But, granted less NC's than to be expected given what our overall winning record suggests. We haven't been an elite team since 2006.

When Bo coached at Michigan there were many years where they stumbled one game. Either an upset in conference or losing to OSU or losing in the Rose Bowl. They were a perennial power in the 70's and 80's into the early 90's.

 

[lightning1]

I am in Detroit, Ann Arbor and Lansing/East Lansing often on business.

KF was partially UM's choice. It was mostly Coleman and Carr who wanted him. Many fans, including a few big boosters, liked KF but didn't particularly care for KOK as part of the package. As Jon has pointed out for several years now, it's not who the OC is as much as it's what KF wants to run offensively.

With that said, in my position as an armchair QB I'd take the offense KOK ran over GD. If things fall apart in Miami, is it possible for GD to retire and KOK to come back? I'm not a fan of the conservative nature of KF offensively, but are there any good alternatives out there for Iowa?

There were some rumors floating around that Lloyd Carr was having health issues (mental), around the time that he got fired, coming from MICH fans. Any truth to that? Or did you hear similar rumors. The more I see less of Lloyd Carr, the more I start to believe them. You never see him do interviews or TV appearances, unlike Bobby Bowden and some other coaches that retire, etc.
MICH might not have had much of a choice in replacing Carr.

 

[HawkeyeFever]

The truth of the matter is that Ferentz will be gone eventually.

Whether that results from a buyout in the next year or so, he decides to walk away before his contract expires, or he rides his contract to the end. I do not believe that we will see his contract extended again, even if he achieves 8-11 win seasons from here on out (he will retire anyway).

As the OP stated, you need a good plan and not a knee jerk reaction. Even that does not guarantee success on the field.

My point is that Iowa should not be afraid of change just because change resulted in failure for X, Y, or Z program. There are just as many examples where change resulted in success. Huge success.

Signed,
Hayden Fry

 

[LASBUR]

I agree there is a good chance KF will not stay for the extent of his contract. I also agree a AD should always have a plan. Im not so sure one can find as many cases where change works out. Other wise we would many more teams with 10-2 records. There is a reason OSU, Alb. USC those type of schools have powers for long. One of those reasons is they can get the best coaches.

The truth of the matter is that Ferentz will be gone eventually.

Whether that results from a buyout in the next year or so, he decides to walk away before his contract expires, or he rides his contract to the end. I do not believe that we will see his contract extended again, even if he achieves 8-11 win seasons from here on out (he will retire anyway).

As the OP stated, you need a good plan and not a knee jerk reaction. Even that does not guarantee success on the field.

My point is that Iowa should not be afraid of change just because change resulted in failure for X, Y, or Z program. There are just as many examples where change resulted in success. Huge success.

Signed,
Hayden Fry

 

[DJL]

Does anyone else think Bret Bielema has a good chance of being the next Iowa head coach? He's proven he can do it in a school like Iowa, he already has a Hawkeye tattoo...I can really see it happening.

 

[uihawk82]

Does anyone else think Bret Bielema has a good chance of being the next Iowa head coach? He's proven he can do it in a school like Iowa, he already has a Hawkeye tattoo...I can really see it happening.

I am sure depending on when and what happens going forward from here BB would or could be a top choice. The guy can coach but I have seen him make some questionable in game decisions, play soft on 3rd and long, etc etc. nature of coaching

 

[DJL]

I am sure depending on when and what happens going forward from here BB would or could be a top choice. The guy can coach but I have seen him make some questionable in game decisions, play soft on 3rd and long, etc etc. nature of coaching

I agree, and even though the guy kind of makes my skin crawl, and he's made some questionable coaching decisions, I think he would be pretty good at Iowa. I think we may find out in 3 years or so.

 

[hawkinn3]

Does anyone else think Bret Bielema has a good chance of being the next Iowa head coach? He's proven he can do it in a school like Iowa, he already has a Hawkeye tattoo...I can really see it happening.

I'm not sure he will be able to move in a few years.

 

[HawkeyeWalker]

Can't get much more chit brown at this point though.

Oh...but it could...much more.

 

[ICHawk24]

My point is that Iowa should not be afraid of change just because change resulted in failure for X, Y, or Z program. There are just as many examples where change resulted in success. Huge success.

This is simply not true. There are many many many more examples of failure than huge success when replacing your head coach. By about a 100 to 1 ratio.

 

[HawkeyeWalker]

This is one of the best threads I have read on here in months.

Thank you to all who posted. Damn fine reading....

 

[hawkdrummer1]

This is simply not true. There are many many many more examples of failure than huge success when replacing your head coach. By about a 100 to 1 ratio.

Huge exaggeration. But let's say it's 10-1 (which is still a bit inflated). There's a good reason for that.

Losing teams and losing programs are the ones that replace their coaches. (ISU, Purdue, Minnesota, Wash St, etc etc) Therefore they are more likely to remain losers with the new coach. It often takes several hires to find somebody who can turn around a lousy program.

The number of programs like a Michigan or Nebraska, for example that are still winning but fire a guy because they have uber expectations are rare. So of course it's statistically skewed in the way you describe.

And just to remind you KFz is just under 7-5 career at IOWA (.584). It's a lot easier to find a guy who can go 7-5 consistently than a 10-2

 

[LASBUR]

I could see it. Depending on what he does between now and when KF decides to retire. Would guess he would have a few things to work on to get the Big money in his corner. Besides he has a tough road to hoe to win at Ark. You have to get down and dirty to win in the SEC. You get to dirty and your Bruce Pearle

Does anyone else think Bret Bielema has a good chance of being the next Iowa head coach? He's proven he can do it in a school like Iowa, he already has a Hawkeye tattoo...I can really see it happening.