Tracy Claeys Hired as Washington State DC

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Cruze said:
WSU fans will like Claeys. I can't say the same for the other assistant coaches at WSU though. No matter how much they think Claeys might like them they will always be wondering if Claeys will fire them if he becomes head coach just like he fired Limegrover and Zebrowski. They both got 5 second telephone calls from Claeys and nothing more. Limegrover was pissed off by it and so was Kill.
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It appears you don't follow other coaching hires very closely. What Claeys did when hired happens all the time. It was probably surprising in that situation because most of the staff had been together for so long.
 

GopherWeatherGuy said:
I agree that many coaches would love that type of advancement, but name the 'many' current head coaches that have resumes that look like that? Claeys first time being a head coach was at a P5 program at the age of 47. Many coaches are born natural leaders and want to lead at a young age. I don't think Claeys fits that mold. Look at the other head coaches in the B1G. The following is the age of their first head coaching experience:

Illinois - Lovie Smith - NFL - 45
Indiana - Tom Allen - High School - 34
Iowa - Kirk Ferentz - College - 35
Maryland - DJ Durkin - College - 38
Michigan - Jim Harbaugh - College - 40
Minnesota - PJ Fleck - College - 32
Michigan St - Mark Dantonio - College - 47
Nebraska - Scott Frost - College - 41
Northwestern - Pat Fitzgerald - College - 32
Ohio St - Urban Meyer - College - 36
Penn St - James Franklin - College - 38
Purdue - Jeff Brohm - Arena - 30
Rutgers - Chris Ash - College - 42
Wisconsin - Paul Chryst - College - 46

So Chryst and Dantonio are really the only two that are comparable in college to Claeys. Lovie was also similar age but worked his way up in the NFL. The average age of the current B1G head coaches first head coaching job is 38, nearly 10 years younger than Claeys was.

On top of that, if Kill didn't have health issues, I think he'd still be here and Claeys would still be the DC. I don't think Tracy ever really wanted a HC job, but gave it a shot because it was offered, and increased his pay by 2.5 times. Based on everything I've said, plus what happened last year, I think it's an easy prediction to say he'll never be a HC again.
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You're focused on age. Claeys was a high school teacher for a few years. He had 20 years as a college assistant before getting a head coaching job. That's a few more than normal, but in the ballpark. Here's the experience a few others had (not counting high school):

Will Muschamp - 16
Sonny Dykes – 16
Dave Doeren – 16
Justin Wilcox - 16
Kevin Sumlin - 17
Nick Saban – 17
David Cutliffe – 17
Gary Patterson - 18
Chris Ash – 19
Tracy Claeys – 20
Bobby Petrino - 20
Derek Mason – 20
Ed Orgeron - 21
Mark Stoops - 23
Bill Snyder - 23
Paul Chryst – 23
Mark Dantonio – 24
Pat Naruzzi – 25
Jim McElwain - 27
Mike Zimmer – 35
 

In final polls, WSU landed at 26th. So, after a year off, Claeys lands a DC job at a top 26 school. Not bad.
 

I'll be the outliner on this hire. I don't think Claeys and the Pirate are a good fit. Claeys and the Pirate are both more along the lines of "friends" with players versus "parents" that enforce behavior. I think Claeys is paired best with a HC that is more of a discipline type of guy, like Kill was. And likewise for the Pirate, I think he needs coordinators that are going to be "enforcers" on behavior. Of course both the Pirate and Claeys have been burned in the past by players getting in trouble, so maybe they'll do a bit more of discipline (e.g., mess up and you don't play) then they've done in the past. Hope I'm wrong, give it a couple years and we'll see.
 

Livingat45north said:
I'll be the outliner on this hire. I don't think Claeys and the Pirate are a good fit. Claeys and the Pirate are both more along the lines of "friends" with players versus "parents" that enforce behavior. I think Claeys is paired best with a HC that is more of a discipline type of guy, like Kill was. And likewise for the Pirate, I think he needs coordinators that are going to be "enforcers" on behavior. Of course both the Pirate and Claeys have been burned in the past by players getting in trouble, so maybe they'll do a bit more of discipline (e.g., mess up and you don't play) then they've done in the past. Hope I'm wrong, give it a couple years and we'll see.
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From what I was reading on the WSU message board it sounded like the exact opposite of what you just said. Sounds like they think Leach is a strict rule enforcer.
 


Word said:
From what I was reading on the WSU message board it sounded like the exact opposite of what you just said. Sounds like they think Leach is a strict rule enforcer.
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Yeah, I’m shocked individuals in our society still break laws and rules despite known consequences. /s

When Fleck has his first discipline issue, particularly if his recruit, it will be interesting to gauge the reaction.
 

Pompous Elitist said:
Yeah, I’m shocked individuals in our society still break laws and rules despite known consequences. /s

When Fleck has his first discipline issue, particularly if his recruit, it will be interesting to gauge the reaction.
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Fleck already has, and he dealt with it, benching the starting QB who then ended up transferring. The message sent was pretty clear, follow the rules or you don't play.
 

Word said:
From what I was reading on the WSU message board it sounded like the exact opposite of what you just said. Sounds like they think Leach is a strict rule enforcer.
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Great. In the past he didn't have that reputation, but I haven't followed him while he's been at WSU. So many coaches (e.g., Fisher when he was at FSU) let anything slide. Urban Meyer also had that reputation at Florida, but it seems he's changed that at OSU.
 

Livingat45north said:
Fleck already has, and he dealt with it, benching the starting QB who then ended up transferring. The message sent was pretty clear, follow the rules or you don't play.
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The first incident was the door breaking incident which he denies but who knows. Guilt by association. Then there was the incident after Wisconsin. Let's face it, Fleck is oil and water with certain personalities and he rode D.C. all year. Never his guy which is fair. He's the head coach and this is his baby.
 



Livingat45north said:
I'll be the outliner on this hire. I don't think Claeys and the Pirate are a good fit. Claeys and the Pirate are both more along the lines of "friends" with players versus "parents" that enforce behavior. I think Claeys is paired best with a HC that is more of a discipline type of guy, like Kill was. And likewise for the Pirate, I think he needs coordinators that are going to be "enforcers" on behavior. Of course both the Pirate and Claeys have been burned in the past by players getting in trouble, so maybe they'll do a bit more of discipline (e.g., mess up and you don't play) then they've done in the past. Hope I'm wrong, give it a couple years and we'll see.
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Leach Friends with the Players, are you kidding??


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uZaOFTp5_C8&t=74s
 


PJ so tough. That is what he tells us, so that is what I say.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

Great Plains Gopher said:
In final polls, WSU landed at 26th. So, after a year off, Claeys lands a DC job at a top 26 school. Not bad.
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Claeys is perfect for them. Talk about a school that's forced to get underrated recruits on defense. Claeys is foaming at the mouth getting ready to turn these .82 rated freshmen lb's and cb's on 247 and turn them into nfl players. Happy for him.
 




Cruze said:
WSU fans will like Claeys. I can't say the same for the other assistant coaches at WSU though. No matter how much they think Claeys might like them they will always be wondering if Claeys will fire them if he becomes head coach just like he fired Limegrover and Zebrowski. They both got 5 second telephone calls from Claeys and nothing more. Limegrover was pissed off by it and so was Kill.
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If Limey would have had any success at recruiting and developing a quarterback, receivers and depth on the O-line, we would have had 10+ wins in TC's inaugural season at head coach. And PJ would not have been in defcon 5 all season with his offense. The phone calls should have been 4 seconds.
 

GopherBulldog said:
If Limey would have had any success at recruiting and developing a quarterback, receivers and depth on the O-line, we would have had 10+ wins in TC's inaugural season at head coach. And PJ would not have been in defcon 5 all season with his offense. The phone calls should have been 4 seconds.
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You might be right. But let's put to rest the fiction that Claey's is a nice guy. He is a first rate jerk. We know at least three or four times where he proved it at the U. Nice guy's find a better way to fire coaches they have been working with for 10-15 years. Just ask Kill. He knows how to do it.
 

Cruze said:
You might be right. But let's put to rest the fiction that Claey's is a nice guy. He is a first rate jerk. We know at least three or four times where he proved it at the U. Nice guy's find a better way to fire coaches they have been working with for 10-15 years. Just ask Kill. He knows how to do it.
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Please cite all the examples of him being a jerk. If you think firing Limey proves it you are way off base to begin with. Any person in their right mind would have fired Limey.
 

T

Word said:
Please cite all the examples of him being a jerk. If you think firing Limey proves it you are way off base to begin with. Any person in their right mind would have fired Limey.
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You don't fire some one over the phone. Certainly not someone you have worked with for years. That is a definition of a jerk.
 

Cruze said:
You might be right. But let's put to rest the fiction that Claey's is a nice guy. He is a first rate jerk. We know at least three or four times where he proved it at the U. Nice guy's find a better way to fire coaches they have been working with for 10-15 years. Just ask Kill. He knows how to do it.
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I'd love to hear the proof that TC was a dispicable person. Please elaborate. Your post is puzzling to me. You are ripping Claeys for how he let go an OC that left so many holes on that side of the ball that it has set the program back three years. Yet you defend the debacle that Coyle made of firing Claeys. An approach that now makes him look exceedingly hypocritical given what's going down with Gopher b-ball. I would be much more happy with our administration if Coyle had gone to the Tracey Claeys Firing School.
 

They both got 5 second telephone calls from Claeys and nothing more.

100% false. He did it in person after the team banquet. The only coach that couldn’t have that conversation at all was fleck. He made the HR dept call each coach and fire them. So much for “having tough conversations for breakfast”. Fleck didn’t have the balls to tell them they weren’t being retained and he knew every single coach on staff.
 

Wasn't Cruze banned?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

Cruze said:
You might be right. But let's put to rest the fiction that Claey's is a nice guy. He is a first rate jerk. We know at least three or four times where he proved it at the U. Nice guy's find a better way to fire coaches they have been working with for 10-15 years. Just ask Kill. He knows how to do it.
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Classic! The wounds must have cut deep.

I sincerely wish you all the best in the future and hopefully you can get over this.

FYI, all successful coaches are "jerks" at times while they are at work.
 

Pete smith said:
You don't fire some one over the phone. Certainly not someone you have worked with for years. That is a definition of a jerk.
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Ask Doug Mientkiewicz about that. He got fired by phone while cleaning up debris from a hurricane. That's classy. But the new Twins brain trust knows all about analytics, so they must be good.........
 


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