Friday, August 17, 2007

Possible replacements for Fran

I always like to keep a list of candidates ready for the A&M football job, just in case we need to fire our head coach.

My current list:

1. Rich Rodriguez - West Virginia: Yes, I know he turned down the Alabama job and the multi-millions that would have gone with acceptance to stay in his native West Virginia, but I still feel he is someone you have to approach. I am someone who believes that 'perception' really doesn't matter when you conduct your coaching search, so if your #1 candidate says he isn't interested, it doesn't doom your program. The important thing is to hire a winner, not worry about what sportswriters think. Rodriguez is a winner.

2. Bill Cowher - retired, former head coach of Pittsburgh Steelers: He won a Super Bowl and was a very successful coach in the NFL for many years. His NFL pedigree and winning ways would attract recruits galore, and his defensive-minded, ball control style would fit in with many die-hards at A&M. Only knock against him is I've heard rumors that Penn State may be looking at him to eventually replace Joe Paterno, whenever he decides to leave. Cowher may also be looking for another NFL job whenever he ends his current 'sabbatical'.

3. Steve Kragthorpe - Louisville: Krag did an outstanding job building Tulsa into a respectable program, and is stepping into the bigtime in a BCS conference with the Louisville job. Coach Krag has a history with A&M, having spent time here as our offensive coordinator and wide receivers coach from 1997-2000. Only knock on Krag is that he would be a one-year guy at a 'major' program before we hired him.

4. dark horse - Todd Dodge, University of North Texas: Todd Dodge has been the best high school coach in the State of Texas in the last 5 years, leading Southlake Carroll High School to a 79-1 record, including three consecutive undefeated seasons and three straight state titles before leaving after last season. I think Coach Dodge is going to be very successful at UNT, making him a candidate for bigger and better jobs. Similar to Krag, only knock on hiring Dodge would be that he has only been the head man for one year at a minor program. Also, with such a short tenure, we would have no idea of how well his program develops/his recruiting benefits the program. However, if UNT wins 8 games this season and goes to a bowl, I think you're going to see plenty of people after Coach Dodge.

Those are just a few names at the top of my list. Who is on yours?

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