Athletic: There are far more college football jobs on the market than quality coaches

[bleedsmaroonandgold]

I'm just wondering when the pendulum swings back. The days should be gone where it is nearly mandatory to lock up a coach for the next 5+ years in order to win recruits. Every recruit is free to leave now whenever they like so the universities should be moving more towards 2-4 year deals with heavier financial compensation, but lower on the guaranteed money.

I can't believe how many ADs are duped into the idea that you have to give a coach neverending extensions otherwise it will be used against recruits. Whenever one of our football or basketball coaches gets an extension after a bad season, and someone complains about it on the Gopher Hole, the predictable response is "hey dummy, the buyout didnt go up and this is just something they have to do for recruiting." But if the extension is so illusory that it is obvious to us knuckleheads on a message board, then assuredly recruits (especially now that they have agents) are also able to recognize that the extension doesnt actually impact the safety of the coach's job, thereby eliminating any impact the extension could have on recruiting.

 

[Scottsdale Gopher]

• Najarian obviously has significant connections in the world of finance and investors - the people who can pay large NIL sums; Coyle's connections are to other ADs.
• Najarian obviously understands marketing and is good at it, Coyle, from what we've seen, does not.
• Najarian is great in front of a camera and being a spokesperson, Coyle obviously is not.
• Coyle has not delivered on NIL, you don't even hear his name mentioned with any of the NIL efforts. He's basically an invisible AD.

My first note seemed like a defense of Coyle, which was not my intent. I think he's a very average, but also a very safe AD. Unless the Board of Regents / University President wants a higher-performing athletic department, he's the sort of person that will lead it. Part of that leadership style is to take a back seat to coaches publicly and I believe that's how the BoR and President Cunningham like it.

I'm open to the idea that a change needs to be made in order for the core Gopher sports programs to take a step forward. But I don't believe Najarian's connections in finance and investing will matter much unless they also intersect with individuals who have a previous connection to the University of Minnesota.

 

[upnorthkid]

My first note seemed like a defense of Coyle, which was not my intent. I think he's a very average, but also a very safe AD. Unless the Board of Regents / University President wants a higher-performing athletic department, he's the sort of person that will lead it. Part of that leadership style is to take a back seat to coaches publicly and I believe that's how the BoR and President Cunningham like it.

I'm open to the idea that a change needs to be made in order for the core Gopher sports programs to take a step forward. But I don't believe Najarian's connections in finance and investing will matter much unless they also intersect with individuals who have a previous connection to the University of Minnesota.

agree on all matters.
Coyle ain't gonna rally up money but also isn't going to be caught schmoozing money from less reputable areas or get you in trouble and is going to try run a clean enterprise.
Najarian I think would be fine ruffling feathers and with a focus on winning with what it takes to do so. That said, though he will do a much better job of PR, unless it inspires the average Joe to start donating or the MN equivalent of someone like Cuban to start becoming interested in Gopher sports (which would be very odd unless Sanford loves him or something and now decides he'll donate), we're probably not drumming up money as well.
As a state, we grudgingly give to sports and are rather fiscally conservative compared to our colleagues at even in sports we should kick ass in (see hockey and our comps with NIL money and PSU and Michigan and even MSU). Part of that is the common man thinks that their donation doesn't matter (it does) and part of that is not winning for fucking ever which killed interest from multiple generations who now have money that in theory could be donated. Pete Najarian doesn't change that unless you also gut the BoR (and maybe the Prez) to a group that decides to prioritize athletics like LSU where you have the Gov clearly very comfortable saying it is a state obligation to pay for football coaches salaries/buyouts showing just how much a priority the University winning is in that state as compared with here where all our board does is complain about PJs salary and talk about that we need a college of basketweaving and we can't eliminate it because it graduated 1 person in 1954

 

[Panthadad2]

Cignetti at Indiana certainly doesn’t help.

I have a feeling FBS coaches across the county think Cignetti is a bastard for raising the bar too high. Still, it will be near impossible for Indiana to keep winning at current levels. Their schedule next year is much harder.

 

[WHB Brewer]

Cignetti at Indiana certainly doesn’t help.

Cignetti shows that all these speculative coach carousel articles are just a farce. you think anyone would consider a head coach at JMU 2 years ago a viable candidate for P4 program other than a school like Indiana (who needed to take a chance on something different)? Jerry Kill was the same non-viable candidate type and many hear just hoped for the best after the Brew disaster.

 

[Ski-U-Ham]

But if the extension is so illusory that it is obvious to us knuckleheads on a message board, then assuredly recruits (especially now that they have agents) are also able to recognize that the extension doesnt actually impact the safety of the coach's job, thereby eliminating any impact the extension could have on recruiting.

I like to think the intelligence of the average GopherHoler is far beyond that of a recruit (if you allow me to remove a few posters from the pool at least)

 

[GopherGrit]

Let's say the Gophers hire another Curt Cignetti and the schedule makes it plausible for a 10-11win season out of the gate, does anyone see Minnesota's version of Mark Cuban coming out of nowhere to keep that level of success for many years after?

Let's say that Cignetti talked Cuban into bankrolling the IU roster.

Let's say he even kicked in $5-10M of his own money, per year. That much is still a huge chunk of change ... so even that much I could see as too much for one guy, despite how rich he is.


What did he get out of it? What was the tangible benefit? A bunch of wins over Big Ten teams that they probably could've beaten without it? No league titles. No playoff wins.

Now, if Mendoza wins the Heisman ... that is something. Fair enough, if it happens.


My point is .... that money ... it evaporates into thin air at the end of the season. It's just ... gone. You don't have your name on a building or a weight room or the field.

You get glad handed by the coach, AD, maybe even school president at a banquet.


I can't see Cuban, or anyone, doing that year after year after year, for that kind of money, with no guaranatee of something game changing and/or tangible and lasting.

Also why rich guys don't pay the salaries of pro sports players each season. It doesn't make sense.

 

[Nax5]

So should I make a career pivot or?