Can't totally agree with this one Don. Miles is the most winning coach in LSU history. Only 2 have ever won 100 games here. O's still looking for win #49 - in year 6. I'm not going all Tap on you, but c'mon 114 wins on 11 seasons & 2 NC trips is a damn good hire for any school. Whether you like him or not matters as much as Tap not liking O. Bith redundant now. Wins & losses do matter.
Saban/Miles are the Golden Age of LSU Football. Eddie O is not part of that era. He's more in line with Curley or Gerry era - the 90s. Maybe the new coach can usher in the Platinum era.
What I would like to see in this hiring:
1. Hire a proven coach that can win on a high level. Understanding you must be able to run the football as well as pass to win in the SEC. LSU is best known for a strong rushing game & great Defense. We currently have neither working.
2. Give him complete control of his own staff. Don't need to keep a coach because he's a fan favorite. If he wants to clean house & and start over, then so be it. LSU is a rebuild job now anyway.
3. Do Not hire a recruiter. If they are
winning at a high level they can already recruit & are already a Leader.
4. Do not hire a Derek Ponamsky/ Jen Psaki media advisor, adjuster & fixer. Good coaches don't need them. If something sucks on the team or in coaching, just say admit it & move on. Let the new head coach correct it. Paid to do so. There is no need for false positivity. It's disingenuous to everybody.
5. If you are Scott Woodward, you are already responsible for O's huge & unnecessary "Buyout". LSU fans know it. No other school wanted him. Knowing that, see #1. Don't come back with an "I settled" type of hire. If so, you're likely moving yourself into the Joe Alleva zone. Maybe a "settled for" coach might work out. But ideally you bring home the gold not a 4th place participation copper medal.
#6 Hiring a good coach really is not that damned difficult. Somebody out there with huge potential, will gladly take the $9 Million per year you gave an assistant coach & shrimper to run the football program. But you've showed your hand as far as money. Don't try to low ball an elite coach. The current big names: Cristobal, Fickell, Franklin, Riley, Stoops, Kiffin, Aranda etc. The first few are complete coaches. Kiffin is a bigger gamble without buying him a really good DC. He's in a fairly crappy job & jackassary is at a higher level with him, but may be easiest to pull.
7. Make new coach aware of certain radio types, good ol boys like Bobby Hebert, Mike Detillier, Scott Rabalais in print media, etc. People that don't necessarily want to advance LSU football too much. If LSU sucks, it helps them get more clicks & bigger audiences. Sad but true. Not much Mike Valenti talent on radio these days. Now that's real anger & real passion. It's epic.
Pucker, pucker, pucker!
8. Besides #1, I really would like a coach that fans will rally around. Can't please everyone, but hopefully a huge majority. We have not had that here since Nick Saban left in Jan 1st, 2005.
Nothing made that more clear than watching 4 post game Kentucky loss podcasts & the hosts on all 4 were watching Saban lose, during their LSU shows. 15 seasons into coaching Bama, the #1 interest still appears to be Nick Saban happenings.
LSU seems to want kind of a jackass, uptight coach who can back it up. Backing it up is very important though. They want to see asses chewed on TV. They want a coach that tells the media "You're on my time, now, ask better questions or get out." I like the last one.
9. Recruiting is a non-issue with a brand new coach, imo. Plus we'll likely go to a 3-4 rather than current 4-3 Defense. New coach may want different type players. There will be a high level of excitement for playing for the new coach. All our recruits except 3, are in- staters that want to stay home & play for LSU. One of the OOS recruits is Brad Johnson's other son, a 5 star TE. Plus I think a known coach can easily grab recruits we never thought of or never thought we could get.
While O lost 6 or 7 big time in-stater recruits, mostly to Bama, when he pissed off the N.O. coaches in 2016, that wasn't good. But Miles only had 6 spots left in a small class in 2005 & a very cold recruiting trail. His first 6 recruits were Ryan Perriloux, Ricky Jean- Francios FL) , Brandon LaFell (TX), R.J. Jackson(TX), Ciron Black(TX) & Lyle Hitt. Pretty strong 6. All played at LSU. I think we could get something like that with a good coach hired. I'd take S- Jacoby Mathews & maybe Arch Manning gives is a look in 2023, or maybe not. But good possibilities in recruiting.
10. Strength & conditioning is important obviously. I hope the new coach takes a hard look at this area. I don't know if Tommy Moffit is a problem or not. Or if it's the type players were getting from recruiting. Not sure why players are getting injuries just trying to get out of bounds.
FR. WR Deion Smith, injured 1st play, by own teamate. (Out for UF, according to O).
https://m.youtube.com/watch?t=4790&v=zzeakZIOLtc&feature=youtu.be
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Seems just about everyone has said O's teams are soft. They do look soft. Is it the training they are receiving, did O change the program for conditing & training? Has Tommy Moffitt run his course? Maybe a combination?
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