Coach Candidates Thread (OP Updated 12/22)

[AUwent 3,747]

Just now, Zeek said:

I don't think he's making up the numbers. Let's take the numbers at face value. That's a very beatable offer for Auburn.

Also, go look at houses on Zillow in Eugene, Oregon money doesn't go near as far as it can in Auburn lol.

In any case it’s absurd if this is a two way race between MC and KS. There’s a middle, yknow.

[aucanucktiger 1,789]

10 hours ago, Randman5000 said:

Can Mario Cristobal bring this guy with him? 

 

Excellent. Wouldn't Forde a field day with THAT! 

[Auctoritas 2,826]

6 hours ago, Auburn2Eugene said:

Gus was fired Sunday. Its Wednesday.  Well now Thursdays technically. Clam down.

 

You're talking about endpoints. There's no denying it may turn out fine. (Edit to add: I think it is even around 70/30 it ends up fine. But that does make me wonder what people think "fine" is...)

There's also no denying that this has been a total ish-show since Sunday. 

I am actually pretty calm about this. I was one of the few ambivalent ones about firing Gus, and I personally think this wailing and gnashing of teeth is pretty hilarious considering that I saw a lot of "anybody but Gus."

I've been saying for 4 years "ok, but who are you going to replace him with?" This is the situation and fan reaction (in general - not specifically Steele) I already knew was coming.

(Btw, that quote also mentioned TN, and part of my statement was about that)

[aucanucktiger 1,789]

Not surprised but none of my (IMO realistic) premier candidates seem to be on anyone's radar. Herman & Quinn to name two.

[AUTIGERinSC 69]

What would you do if Jeff Grimes is selected Head Coach. 
 

Offensive Line performance and recruiting has been our main issue since he left. 
 

Broyles finalist. Top ten offense. 5.4 ypc. NFL OL machine. 

[Zeek 16,613]

11 minutes ago, AUwent said:

In any case it’s absurd if this is a two way race between MC and KS. There’s a middle, yknow.

Here's what I've gathered from obsessing over the issue.

Group A (The Majority of Boosters w/a brain)

They want and have wanted Cristobal from the jump. Undoubtedly they knew Cristobal would leverage this to get a contract extension done. The idea that he was never reached out to (or his agent) is a bold face lie. How do we know that? Well the guy has been pressing their staff to get a deal done for months now but they've played an optics game all year.

Cristobal even took a pay cut this year! So, all of a sudden they can get a deal made/approve it/leak contract details to the press? Seems like they're moving oddly fast for a guy who is (3-2) on the year win falling into a conference championship game. It's obvious they're not reacting based off on solely rumors.

Group B (Literally just Harbert and whoever is afraid of him maybe)

Probably feels dumb for the Gus decision but thinks somehow that if Steele were successful he'd be vindicated in some degree or another. I don't know, justifying the Steele decision is incredibly hard. The "save money" argument makes no sense because why even fire Gus if that's a concern? Just keep coasting to 8 win seasons with top 15ish recruiting classes and wait it out. Another theory is that Steele has kissed butt, I just don't see that from what we know of Steele and based off Gus' farewell address there doesn't seem to be a "coup". Yet another theory is they leaked his name and bamboozled the press just to lower expectations. Literally anyone not named Steele and not a former Gus protégé will be viewed as a win at this point.

Still, I don't think Steele will ever happen even if we miss on Cristobal. If so it would already be the case. Harbert can keep pushing the idea all he wants but this is how it'll work:

If Miss on Cristobal -> New Main Candidate Becomes previously undiscussed coach (Lane/Napier/Etc.) -> Harbert keeps pushing for Steele.

 

My point is I think if we miss on Cristobal we go right to the next candidate (probably a list of names like Lane/Freeze/Chadwell/Napier/Campbell/Fickell/Elliott/Venables and probably a good half dozen names before they'd ever consider Steele) while Harbert kicking, screaming, and crying in the corner keeps spouting the Steele narrative through a blow horn and through his own tears.

[Auctoritas 2,826]

22 minutes ago, aucanucktiger said:

Not surprised but none of my (IMO realistic) premier candidates seem to be on anyone's radar. Herman & Quinn to name two.

As a Falcon fan, the hardest of passes on Quinn. Dude was a terrible head coach and his defensive philosophy amounted to "hope my CBs can cover someone."

[auburnphan 6,050]

James did not hate Auburn.  He enjoyed his time here and took his job as a professional with no bias.  Which upsets some of you.   The one thing that he did hate was a certain Athletic Director that would lie to his face and then in return make his stories off.  He has said so in conversations.  

Sadly, the one thing that James seemed to always point out is that Auburn was Auburn’s worst enemy.  While we would say this always, for some reason it upsets people when others say it.   I felt James was tough, but was always fair.

Now Marcello, he was dedicated, but he was all about the clickbait and I hated that.  And a bit smug.

I really do enjoy our group of beat writers that we have now.  Gus was so paranoid about leaks it was tough to get information but these guys worked hard to get what they could for us.

[auburnphan 6,050]

22 minutes ago, Zeek said:

Here's what I've gathered from obsessing over the issue.

Group A (The Majority of Boosters w/a brain)

They want and have wanted Cristobal from the jump. Undoubtedly they knew Cristobal would leverage this to get a contract extension done. The idea that he was never reached out to (or his agent) is a bold face lie. How do we know that? Well the guy has been pressing their staff to get a deal done for months now but they've played an optics game all year.

Cristobal even took a pay cut this year! So, all of a sudden they can get a deal made/approve it/leak contract details to the press? Seems like they're moving oddly fast for a guy who is (3-2) on the year win falling into a conference championship game. It's obvious they're not reacting based off on solely rumors.

Group B (Literally just Harbert and whoever is afraid of him maybe)

Probably feels dumb for the Gus decision but thinks somehow that if Steele were successful he'd be vindicated in some degree or another. I don't know, justifying the Steele decision is incredibly hard. The "save money" argument makes no sense because why even fire Gus if that's a concern? Just keep coasting to 8 win seasons with top 15ish recruiting classes and wait it out. Another theory is that Steele has kissed butt, I just don't see that from what we know of Steele and based off Gus' farewell address there doesn't seem to be a "coup". Yet another theory is they leaked his name and bamboozled the press just to lower expectations. Literally anyone not named Steele and not a former Gus protégé will be viewed as a win at this point.

Still, I don't think Steele will ever happen even if we miss on Cristobal. If so it would already be the case. Harbert can keep pushing the idea all he wants but this is how it'll work:

If Miss on Cristobal -> New Main Candidate Becomes previously undiscussed coach (Lane/Napier/Etc.) -> Harbert keeps pushing for Steele.

 

My point is I think if we miss on Cristobal we go right to the next candidate (probably a list of names like Lane/Freeze/Chadwell/Napier/Campbell/Fickell/Elliott/Venables and probably a good half dozen names before they'd ever consider Steele) while Harbert kicking, screaming, and crying in the corner keeps spouting the Steele narrative through a blow horn and through his own tears.

I hope you are right!!!!

[aucanucktiger 1,789]

3 minutes ago, Auctoritas said:

As a Falcon fan, the hardest of passes on Quinn. Dude was a terrible head coach and his defensive philosophy amounted to "hope my CBs can cover someone."

I hear you but my take on Falcons fans is they never forgave his choke with a monster lead in the super bowl. Impressive resume but he's been away from the college game maybe too long.

[Zeek 16,613]

5 minutes ago, Auctoritas said:

As a Falcon fan, the hardest of passes on Quinn. Dude was a terrible head coach and his defensive philosophy amounted to "hope my CBs can cover someone."

Quinn and Herman?  I think aucanuck might be on the board with picks like that.

Quinn couldn't succeed with one of the better qbs in the last decade despite have bundles of weapons around him and a solid OL (most of the time). Plus he's the biggest choker in the world. Not to mention a team doesn't look well coached when they stare at a damn onside kick.

Herman? He was interesting coming out of Houston but the dude is (22-13) in conference play with the following records despite the resources and talent at Texas:

(7-6)

(10-4)

(8-5)

(6-3)

 

[McLoofus 35,182]

9 minutes ago, auburnphan said:

James did not hate Auburn.

He hated Gus. And I don't blame him. But I think it led to him making some poor choices about the questions he would ask players. To be fair, it's been a few years and I don't recall the specifics of how I came to think that way- on the second part; I'm certain about the first because of a specific situation at the Montgomery Quarterback Club early in Gus's tenure and the subsequent scathing article that Crepea wrote- and the years might have built it up a little extra in mind, as tends to happen. 

[johnnyAU 3,630]

35 minutes ago, aucanucktiger said:

Not surprised but none of my (IMO realistic) premier candidates seem to be on anyone's radar. Herman & Quinn to name two.

Quinn wants the Arizona job

[Auctoritas 2,826]

9 minutes ago, aucanucktiger said:

I hear you but my take on Falcons fans is they never forgave his choke with a monster lead in the super bowl. Impressive resume but he's been away from the college game maybe too long.

You're right, that choke still burns, but I think most of us feel that's more "Falcons" than "Quinn." I can point to several dozen other times throughout his stay that coaching decisions just left us scratching our head. (That onside kick will haunt my dreams. Arthur Blank showed great restraint that day.)

Quinn seems like a great guy, but I think he rides the success of those around him. It's easy to look good when you have the best DBs and the head coach is Pete Carroll or your OC is Kyle Shanahan.

The one thing I will give him: he's a players coach. They apparently would run through walls for him.

[DAG 33,955]

22 minutes ago, Auctoritas said:

The one thing I will give him: he's a players coach. They apparently would run through walls for him

 Being a players coach is overrated if the play is subpar. Heard the same thing about Gus.

[McLoofus 35,182]

17 minutes ago, Auctoritas said:

You're right, that choke still burns, but I think most of us feel that's more "Falcons" than "Quinn." I can point to several dozen other times throughout his stay that coaching decisions just left us scratching our head. (That onside kick will haunt my dreams. Arthur Blank showed great restraint that day.)

Quinn seems like a great guy, but I think he rides the success of those around him. It's easy to look good when you have the best DBs and the head coach is Pete Carroll or your OC is Kyle Shanahan.

The one thing I will give him: he's a players coach. They apparently would run through walls for him.

Quinn is very Chizik-like IMO. I think he might even say "energy vampires". 

Agreed about how Falcons fans view the SB choke. My main hate target for it is Shanahan, and I was delighted to see him choke away a SB as a head coach. Probably not fair, but I allow myself that indulgence. 

It will hurt really badly forever, though. I had my party pants on. That city was 30 minutes away from exploding. It's a weird feeling. Very different from the feeling in 2013. Auburn fans are a diaspora. There aren't a few million of them in one spot. 

[McLoofus 35,182]

2 minutes ago, DAG said:

 Being a players coach is overrated if the play is subpar. Heard the same thing about Gus.

He's the perfect example. We probably won some games we shouldn't have because of it. But we lost more games we shouldn't have because he didn't have the actual coaching acumen our program needs. 

[tigeraddikt 1,590]

48 minutes ago, auburnphan said:

James did not hate Auburn.  He enjoyed his time here and took his job as a professional with no bias.  Which upsets some of you.   The one thing that he did hate was a certain Athletic Director that would lie to his face and then in return make his stories off.  He has said so in conversations.  

Sadly, the one thing that James seemed to always point out is that Auburn was Auburn’s worst enemy.  While we would say this always, for some reason it upsets people when others say it.   I felt James was tough, but was always fair.

Now Marcello, he was dedicated, but he was all about the clickbait and I hated that.  And a bit smug.

I really do enjoy our group of beat writers that we have now.  Gus was so paranoid about leaks it was tough to get information but these guys worked hard to get what they could for us.

Respectfully COMPLETELY disagree about Crepea. About 95% of his beat articles had a negative, smarmy, stir-the-pot tone that was obvious. Even Gus finally questioned why he always had to be so negative at one of his pressers. If Crepea were on the Bama beat, Saban would have turned him inside out and run him out on a rail long before he would've decided to leave on his own. IMO it is a beat writer's job to report unbiased info without editorializing the info with manipulated subtext. 

[johnnyAU 3,630]

Just now, tigeraddikt said:

Respectfully COMPLETELY disagree about Crepea. About 95% of his beat articles had a negative, smarmy, stir-the-pot tone that was obvious.

That is my memory as well. 

[tbone1430 1,346]

So just some stuff I’ve seen recently, don’t know how accurate it is. If the rumors are true that UO BOT’s offer is 6 yrs $27.3 mil, Auburn should be easily able to match or beat that for Mario Cristobal. I’d give him a 6 yr $34 mil contract with ample assistant coach salary pool if I’m out BOT and make him tell us no. That would put his salary at around 5.67 mil a year which is 5th in SEC and 13 overall which would seem reasonable. 

[wcware 1,365]

Soooo waking up this morning, does anyone feel any better or worse about our chances with MC. If their offer is accurate there is no way that we don’t outbid them by a long shot.

[JFDTiger80 790]

16 hours ago, McLoofus said:

So my family's standard order at a barbecue place is mandu (fried pot stickers), haemul pajeon (seafood pancake), and japjae (glass noodles) for appetizers, and bulgogi (beef that is thin sliced, similar to that on a cheesesteak, and marinated) and galbi (thin sliced short ribs). That's all fairly standard stuff and none of it is particularly spicy. 

If I'm eating solo, it's almost always going to be kimchi jigae, which is a kimchi soup that usually has tofu and pork belly. (Amazing hangover cure, btw.)

As for places, Honey Pig is the standard in ATL for barbecue, or at least was for a long time. We actually liked Han Il Kwan a lot on BuHi, just inside the perimeter. Iron Age is a really interesting place if you want to do all you can eat and enjoy a very distinct (some might say weird) vibe, with Korean War themed decor and KPop videos playing on all the TVs. Woo Nam Jeong Stone Bowl is great for kimchi jigae and dolsot bibimbap. Oh yeah, bibimbap! It's a rice dish where you basically make your own fried rice at the table. They bring you a bowl with a bunch of ingredients. The authentic dolsot version will come with a little broth. After you've eaten most of the dish, there will be crunchy rice stuck to the edges of the bowl. You pour in the broth and let it soak a little bit and then have a nice little toasty rice soup. 

I'm sure other ATLiens could recommend a bunch of other places. Also, definitely check around as who knows what undiscovered gems are out there. Soooooooooo many options. 

Oh, you can also hit the food courts at a Super H or the Nam Dae Mun farmers market for a quick, cheap Korean lunch. 

Loof:

I owe you for this. I have tried some of those dishes but definitely not all. My wife and I are addicted to Gochu Jang. The complex flavor is addicting. We use it at the house for chicken and hamburger dishes. We are blessed in Atl to have Buford Hwy. I call it the United Nations of Atl. I have found great Vietnamese restaurants on Bhwy, like Pho Bac but have found it complicated to figure out Korean. I will definitely try some of these. 

Hankook Taqueria towards town, Collier Road (not on BHwy) is a great very inexpensive place and made Alton Brown's best thing I ever ate list for the Bibimbap. Love breaking the over easy egg over the beef and crispy rice. So good. 

[GwillMac6 20,607]

52 minutes ago, johnnyAU said:

Quinn wants the Arizona job

Quinn wants the anyone who would be dumb enough to hire him job.

[wcware 1,365]

2 minutes ago, GwillMac6 said:

Quinn wants the anyone who would be dumb enough to hire him job.

Me too. All I need is one contract and I think I could invest that properly and 🏌️‍ for the rest of my days

[johnnyAU 3,630]

1 minute ago, GwillMac6 said:

Quinn wants the anyone who would be dumb enough to hire him job.

Don't we all?