Going on the Record

[WreckinGT]

eh we’ve seen guys take over at both the nfl and college level with similar resumes and they’ve gone on to be good. i’m not saying he’s the favorite to take the job at all and i don’t have strong feelings one way or the other at this point but it makes absolutely no sense to me why people are acting like it can’t happen, and like he can’t possibly have success

i think people need to be aware of our place in college football at this point and realize that he is basically gonna be in line with what we should expect as a candidate anyway, unless we drastically change from the top down and decide to commit to spending money. otherwise expect a p5 coordinator or an FCS/g5 head coach.

also to say he wouldn’t get hired at the fbs level is a massive stretch. there’s coaches that have worse resumes and ran some good programs into the ground a la muschamp and they got another opportunity. i don’t think it’s a stretch to say a guy who led three of notre dames best ever seasons offensively can’t get a job

Ok. What in your opinion is the reason that Long couldn't get better job than analyst after being fired from ND? Why was Tulane the best job he could get after that?

 

[tmhunter52]

I know there are a “few” concerns on defense, like knowing alignments, getting a pass rush, shedding blocks, coordination in the secondary, taking proper angles, and so on, but if someone can just teach and get the players to tackle with, shall I say, enthusiasm and “bad intentions” that alone would be such an improvement.

 

[JacketFan137]

Ok. What in your opinion is the reason that Long couldn't get better job than analyst after being fired from ND? Why was Tulane the best job he could get after that?

that’s a great question and to accurately answer would take a lot of research i’m not really willing to do cause i’m sure it would involve a lot of beat writer articles with paywalls.

so pure speculations here: i would imagine some of the 2020 role as an analyst has to do with him splitting from ND late in the cycle (dec 2019) and then covid happened making college football and society in general a world of uncertainty. possibly making it a little bit of a different circumstance.

for 2021 at tulane i know he was very close with tulanes old OC that took a new job. maybe that played a role but i’m not sure.

regardless looking at his resume as a whole, he was a broyles award candidate at notre dame and is largely credited for some of the development of QB ian book who was drafted by the saints. coaches have been hired with less on their resume

 

[1BearJACKET]

that’s a great question and to accurately answer would take a lot of research i’m not really willing to do cause i’m sure it would involve a lot of beat writer articles with paywalls.

so pure speculations here: i would imagine some of the 2020 role as an analyst has to do with him splitting from ND late in the cycle (dec 2019) and then covid happened making college football and society in general a world of uncertainty. possibly making it a little bit of a different circumstance.

for 2021 at tulane i know he was very close with tulanes old OC that took a new job. maybe that played a role but i’m not sure.

regardless looking at his resume as a whole, he was a broyles award candidate at notre dame and is largely credited for some of the development of QB ian book who was drafted by the saints. coaches have been hired with less on their resume

Bill Curry. B*** L****. Geoff Collins.

 

[alagold]

I said 0-3 .Normally I don't predict til just before 1st game because SO much could happen--new transfers, key guys getting hurt, BIG breakthroughs by players,etc . But then I had sobering thought.I can't name 3 areas of the team I feel mucho confident will be BETTER than last yr. A lot COULD ,but really unlikely mostly. My 2 are QB and maybe LB (unless someone gets hurt.) and maybe TE. Scary really.

 

[tmhunter52]

I said 0-3 .Normally I don't predict til just before 1st game because SO much could happen--new transfers, key guys getting hurt, BIG breakthroughs by players,etc . But then I had sobering thought.I can't name 3 areas of the team I feel mucho confident will be BETTER than last yr. A lot COULD ,but really unlikely mostly. My 2 are QB and maybe LB (unless someone gets hurt.) and maybe TE. Scary really.

Maybe we all need to start hoping that the Coastal is even worse this year than it was last year

 

[alagold]

If we win 4 games, Collins will be gone, but I doubt Stansbury would be fired. Cabrera doesn't seem very cutthroat on athletics, and a lot of the other teams are performing well. You also mention untested coaches then suggest Long will take over, which doesn't add up. I think if Collins is fired it will be a complete changeover on the FB staff.

You may not realize that basketball team is in last place and next yr could be worst.Tstan has a HUGE problem with both programs and most of it is his fault. hmmmm

 

[Skeptic]

By this argument, almost anyone can be a head coach. ...

Did we not just prove that?

 

[Skeptic]

No chance of an extension with 3 more years on his contract anyway and his dismal record.
Clemson will have new OC and DC. Rather catch them early than later.
Hope we start season without key injuries since we are thin and young in the DL. I saw no seniors listed on the DL. Mostly soph which could also include a COVID year. One junior. Five freshmen including 3 redshirt. Very young.

Clemson is approaching 2022 with all the cool confidence of a Christian holding four aces. sorry, Mr. Twain. Even the SEC and its lapdog Finebaum are fishtailing back their absurdities. Now if Miami, FSU, UNC, VT, and Louisville can step up. Too soon for us. One coach and four years away for that.

 

[jgtengineer]

Ok. What in your opinion is the reason that Long couldn't get better job than analyst after being fired from ND? Why was Tulane the best job he could get after that?

Most of the time when you leave a high profile job with buyout money on the books. There can be clauses that make getting a new job mean they don't have to pay the buyout. This is why you see big name assistants and head coaches spend a year in Nick Saban's analyst room after such a thing happening. This is not always the case but i do believe a lot of newer contracts are getting clauses like this due to high turnover of assistants for "better" jobs.

 

[WreckinGT]

Most of the time when you leave a high profile job with buyout money on the books. There can be clauses that make getting a new job mean they don't have to pay the buyout. This is why you see big name assistants and head coaches spend a year in Nick Saban's analyst room after such a thing happening. This is not always the case but i do believe a lot of newer contracts are getting clauses like this due to high turnover of assistants for "better" jobs.

I don't think Chip Long had buyout money. They just decided not to retain him after his three year contract ran out. Although, maybe it wasn't enough time to pursue other options. That doesn't really explain why the best he could do after that was OC at Tulane. There were plenty of other jobs open. Im not really trying to bag on Coach Long, but he wasn't a highly coveted OC and isn't coveted at all as a HC, so I just don't know how he managed to instantly climb the list for many here for potential head coach replacements. Hopefully he does something this year to warrant that kind of discussion.

 

[Randy Carson]

You may not realize that basketball team is in last place and next yr could be worst.Tstan has a HUGE problem with both programs and most of it is his fault. hmmmm

Boy, it's a good thing we've got that "Women's Basketball U" reputation, or we'd have nothing at all.

 

[Oldgoldandwhite]

“insane amounts of money” is a stretch.

he is on the very back end of ACC coaching salaries and would literally be the lowest salary in the SEC. the length of the contract is certainly a lot but i think when we decided to move to modern offense no coach wanted to come in and only have a 4 year contract. i have a feeling the next coach will not get that long of a leash

these numbers are from 2019 but the point remains. source: https://247sports.com/college/virgi...alaries-2019-USA-Today-137375898/#137375898_1

Doesn’t matter. He’s over paid.

 

[JacketFan137]

Doesn’t matter. He’s over paid.

i mean i guess anything over $0 is somewhat of an overpay but when you have one of the lowest paid coaches in p5 football idk why we should be surprised with the results.

college football success has a pretty linear relationship with money spent

 

[Northeast Stinger]

I don't think Chip Long had buyout money. They just decided not to retain him after his three year contract ran out. Although, maybe it wasn't enough time to pursue other options. That doesn't really explain why the best he could do after that was OC at Tulane. There were plenty of other jobs open. Im not really trying to bag on Coach Long, but he wasn't a highly coveted OC and isn't coveted at all as a HC, so I just don't know how he managed to instantly climb the list for many here for potential head coach replacements. Hopefully he does something this year to warrant that kind of discussion.

Fair point. We shall see.

 

[Jmonty71]

“insane amounts of money” is a stretch.

he is on the very back end of ACC coaching salaries and would literally be the lowest salary in the SEC. the length of the contract is certainly a lot but i think when we decided to move to modern offense no coach wanted to come in and only have a 4 year contract. i have a feeling the next coach will not get that long of a leash

these numbers are from 2019 but the point remains. source: https://247sports.com/college/virgi...alaries-2019-USA-Today-137375898/#137375898_1

All of this seems plausible except Long getting the job. I wish someone would tell me where this fascination of Long becoming the head coach has come from. What exactly has he done in his career that screams good head coach?

Simple answer... None. However; it may be a right place, right time type deal. If Collins gets canned, during the season, which is possible. Long steps up as interim coach. I think he impresses enough, to get a shot. Just my opinion.

 

[Jmonty71]

By this argument, almost anyone can be a head coach. That doesn't mean there aren't better options out there. I think he will improve our offense but we are talking about making him the head coach when the last few years he got fired from a major coordinator job, worked as an analyst for a middling program, and then took an OC job at a mediocre G5 school. I doubt he could get a HC job at any FBS school right now, but we seem to be pining for him for some reason.

By this argument, almost anyone can be a head coach. Yep. Collins became one... So, yes....

 

[kg01]

Why are y'all even here?

Seriously. Why? Just leave and leave the site to the folks that want meaningful discussion.

This whole "Georgia Tech sports" thing clearly dismays you.

 

[Vespidae]

I don't think Chip Long had buyout money. They just decided not to retain him after his three year contract ran out. Although, maybe it wasn't enough time to pursue other options. That doesn't really explain why the best he could do after that was OC at Tulane. There were plenty of other jobs open. Im not really trying to bag on Coach Long, but he wasn't a highly coveted OC and isn't coveted at all as a HC, so I just don't know how he managed to instantly climb the list for many here for potential head coach replacements. Hopefully he does something this year to warrant that kind of discussion.

Long left ND because he and HC Brian Kelly had philosophical differences and that's that. He joined Tennessee as an analyst which is not uncommon. Usually, and what no one talks about, is the agent (probably Jimmy Sexton) places a coach in an available program until he can re-sign at a higher rate later. Had Pruitt stayed at UT and Long been hired elsewhere at a better position/salary, Pruitt would have gotten a cut of that. So it's not an unusual practice to park someone and try to get their value up. As to Tulane, his best friend and college roommate was the OC at Tulane and spoke daily with him about Tulane, the players, the schemes and when he left Tulane to be HC at Southern Miss, Long was probably the person most familiar with the team and a good fit. And since UT was crashing and burning under Pruitt, it was probably a safe place to land before getting canned.

As to Tech, why leave Tulane and go to Tech unless there is a roadmap to a better position? Tech is no longer a coveted job and we can't afford someone with a real track record as a HC. We can afford either a) a young, unproven HC; b) an older coach whose best days are behind him (e.g., a Les Miles situation), or c) a coordinator looking to break into a HC role.

I personally think Long was hired for two reasons. First, he describes his offense himself as a "fast, NFL offense" with a 55/45 split on passing/running. So it fits the basic pitch Collins/TStan have made about how to prepare players for the NFL if that's what they want. (That's one reason Malzahn was fired at Auburn. He didn't. And it hurt recruiting.) Second, he has P5 experience and a decent coaching tree ... mores than Collins. That's why I think he's going to be OC and we will see if Geoff can win 6 this year (I don't think he can, but that's another story) and if he does, fine. If he doesn't, I think TStan will dump Collins and move Long into the role. He can't afford another disaster of a coaching search and he will want to make any transition as smooth as possible and maintain continuity. He has no more equity to spend given all the turmoil in college sports right now. Stability is essential.

 

[Randy Carson]

Long left ND because he and HC Brian Kelly had philosophical differences and that's that.

Does anyone have any idea what those differences were?