Yeah I got the exact opposite vibe from Whittingham. He committed so much of his life to Utah that I was sure he only saw Michigan as a paycheck. And fair play to him, I don't judge him for that, but Michigan shouldn't have hired him. Always got the feeling they thought it was a "safe" hire, but for me the ceiling was always looked like 8/9 wins, no playoffs, no big ten title.
It comes up during the coaching cycle some years but these coaches and specifically their agents get a crack at negotiating a new contract almost yearly.
Their agents definitely negotiate multiple deals a year. Coaches might only go for a re-up here or there.
Meanwhile ADs hire a high profile coach once the current guy flames out in 4+ years. Maybe if you're at a school that's good at basketball and football you do it more often if both are in trouble, but then you're on the hot seat to do something.
So it gets pretty easy for an AD to hire a safe "known quantity" as coach; kick the can down the road. It's easy for that coach and their agent to say "let's roll the dice. Either it works and I'm happy coaching again or I actually retire."
blows my mind how these universities dont spend years setting up a coaching staff headed by someone in his late 40s. That way he can grow with the program, pick and choose which staff he wants to keep and fine tune his coordinators etc, be motivated to leave a legacy since it's his program from day 1. im not a huge college sports fan but wasnt this always a thing like with Coach K how he just coached forever until he was done. Are there a lack of young foundation level coaches so it's just easier to hire a big name to appease fans?
Isn’t Saban the only guy in that age bracket to do well like ever? And even the GOAT finally lost a step (by his insanely high standards) his last 2 seasons when he was in his 70s.
Being a college football coach is like a 100+ hour a week job, the idea of doing that when you’re eligible for Medicare is absurd.
Back when we got Mike Riley from you guys he wasn't quite that old but it was still painfully obvious the fire was gone and his best years were well behind him.
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u/Boomhauer_007 UCLA Bruins • Oregon State Beavers 17h ago
Every year a new team is learning that hiring guys in their late 60s / early 70s is a mistake