Did anyone catch the article in the Times-Picayune this morning? It said that Smoke is upset with LSU fans' criticism, and he is considering the head coaching job at Oklahoma. Of course, Smoke, Skip, and the athletic director at OU all deny the "rumors". Please, please, please, let it be true!!!!! I don't know about y'all, but I'd be more than happy to pitch in for his plane ticket. :thumb: :thumb: :thumb:
I'd hate to see him go, but if he did, it would be great for all of you front runners to learn that Smoke's as good a college coach as there is.
That's exactly why I don't like him. His teams play with absolutely no emotion whatsoever. Look at the teams that are in this year's CWS. With every hit, every strike out, every great defensive play, the teams are running out of the dugout and hi-fiving each other. This includes Texas, a team that most of us would think a being jaded because they've been there so often. LSU needs a coach that will fire up the team and the fans. I do agree that Smoke is a good coach, in the Chuck Knox/Marty Shottenheimer mold. He'll always have a winning team, but he'll never win the big one. I know that alot of people will mention guys like Bianco and Gaspard, but I think that LSU is a program that needs a coach that has won a national championship. I'd really try to go after Horton from CS-Fullerton. However, I wouldn't be displeased if they went after Jones either.
Who would want the job? Bianco? Jones? The guy from NSU (can't remember his name, what does that tell you?). Either way, you go from a proven coach to an up and comer. As for proven coaches, why come to a place where the shadow of 90s LSU baseball looms over you. If you don't win it all, you suck. If I'm a Garrido, Horton or Wells, I'm saying "Thanks, but no thanks."
Once again, my tolerance for stupidity is put to the test. :dis: I believe the high-fivers are the winners. I didn't see Tennessee, Tulane, Baylor and Oregon State heading to the bus singing "Skip to My Lu".
Huh??????? I didn't intend to imply that the losers were hi-fiving their loss. What I said was these teams show emotion during the game, whether it's good or bad. LSU under Smoke is like watching "Dawn of the Dead". I know that successful teams are supposed to be business-like, but the fans want to watch a sporting event, not a group of accountants.
I'm not gonna talk about Smoke but the thing that makes me wonder is that the Picayune has this story and the LSU paper of record, the Advocate does not. This story has been brought up for a week or so now and the Advocate can't call anyone and just run a little story on it. Couple more things about the Advocate.....Brady met with Bertman after the season for their season-end deal. Was his contract reupped, was he told he had to win? Bertman said in the Picayune article on Smoke that he doesn't know how these rumors get started. They get started when a local newspaper won't just make a few calls and see about things......then it's left to radio talk show guys and fans to speculate. LSU fans want as much as they can on all the programs. Not some handout from the SID. Next thing, why haven't they written anything about Canaveri's troubles at SLU.....he's pretty much out as coach from what I hear because of the AD. Maybe they wrote something but I didn't see it. What is the AD doing over there at my alma mater? Who knows cause no one calls to ask what's going on. I feel better now. Maybe no one really cares but me.
It's still Skip's program, he is the boss. Smoke is guy. When LSU baseball was "Six-Pack" Jack Lamabing, BREC was building softball fields all over East Rouge and many people knew only the softball rules. It took Skip AND Smoke four years to teach fans not to yell "balk" at every throw over to first. Right now it looks like maybe Smoke needs to go back to forumla that first put LSU on the map, Juco's from any place other than Louisiana. It was the Wes Grisham's of the world that paved the way for the Catholic High kids to finally accept LSU as a real baseball power. Smoke needs to adopt a to hell with signing local kids and their idol worshipers. Go bring kids from California, Florida, Oklahoma who don't carry the baggage of the suddenly know it all fans. Since college baseball moved the season back a month, opportunites in places like Nebraska, Oregon State, Michigan give athletes more places to pick from. Right now a top flight player may pick playing at Nebraska, in their new park, with supportive fans rather than established LSU where some of the fans will jump you vocally for taking a strike on the first pitch. Eight teams go to Omaha. There are 11 pretty good baseball program in the SEC alone. There are 5 good baseball programs in the state. Over 260 other colleges and universities play D-1 baseball. People are fawning of Rick Jones for making it twice to Omaha in FIVE years, but some LSU fans are ready to lynch Smoke because he didn't make three trips in a row to the CWS. Oh, yeah, baseball is still turning a profit. Smoke isn't the problem.
This doesn't surprise me one bit. The Pic-ya-nose scoops the Advocate on a regular basis. The Advocate sucks.
