Barnacle

Haven't been in Florence since we talked, but I'm definitely checking them out when I do. Only Italian I've ever eaten there is Ricatoni's.

This is a really thoughtful compliment, Cole. I appreciate it. But, @augolf1716 just messaged me and warned that as long as @bigbird is around, I should stay where I am, or in the least request hazard pay.

100%

Not sure if this is a compliment or an insult! 🤣

Got this from @bigbird https://mgoblog.com/diaries/dj-durkin's-defensive-scheme-part-1 https://www.goodbullhunting.com/2022/9/5/23336953/film-room-durkins-defense-dominant-in-texas-a-m-aggies-season-opener-college-football-video-review https://baltimoresportsandlife.com/crash-course-d-j-durkin/

If you don’t find value in the conversation, I wouldn’t blame you for moving on.

It’s worth talking about the facts of what happened, in my opinion. There are a lot of people who have accepted the narrative that Durkin was directly involved in what happened.

I don’t think being eviscerated for being an a**, is my point. He’s being eviscerated because of the claim that a culture of degrading players for not pushing hard enough led to a player dying. Like I said, if no one died, Durkin wouldn’t be under scrutiny.

It came about because a player died, and I don’t think Durkin is under scrutiny otherwise. The S&C coach was a clown, however.

There is a lot in there, but most of the complaints center around the strength and conditioning coach, Rick Court. Court was Durkin's first hire, and they were apparently close. Court was a hard-ass who, in addition to placing high expectations on his players, relied upon humiliation and questioning player's "manhood" in order to motivate. Almost universally, players reported that he would regularly use homophobic epithets against platers. F'ing p***y and f'ing fa***t were the two phrases most commonly used in the report. When he got heated he would throw or break things. Many players felt he regularly crossed the line, while some defended him. The personal complaints against Durkin himself were more benign, and the internal investigation doesn't touch on the death or the circumstances surrounding it at all. However, it does mention that prior to the tragedy, Durkin had requested that a licensed physician be present for all practices, which was never fulfilled. I don't think it's fair at all to directly attribute what happened to Durkin based on the limited information I have read. Importantly, the investigation that was conducted cleared him as I understand it. The report concludes that the medical staff also bears responsibility for the death. The athletic department was in disarray at the time and the report concluded that Durkin and the program did not receive the support or oversight that it needed, particularly in light of Durkin being a first year head coach with a boat load of novel responsibilities. Moreover, at least one prior complaint about Court was circulated between the AD's office, the President's office, and the Compliance office. It was never attended to. It "slipped through the cracks." Maryland conducted player surveys prior to and after the tragedy. Unsurprisingly, player sentiment shifted negatively toward the program, Court, and Durkin after McNair passed. There are a lot of quotes from disgruntled players, but there were many players, coaches, and player's family members who supported Durkin. I think Durkin is an intense guy and hired some intense people to go and turn a program around, and one of them in particular went overboard. Durkin was a first year head coach, trying to establish a culture, and I think he wanted hard lines to be drawn in the sand. I think he drew them too far. Durkin says that it wasn't his responsibility to oversee the S&C coach, that it was someone in the AD's office (this had been the case under the prior coach). He said he was unaware of the majority of the specific complaints levied against Court, but I think those denials lack credibility. I find it hard to believe he wasn't aware of how things were being handled. I'm sure everyone can make up their own mind about Durkin, but the problem with the court of public opinion is that it generally operates without all the facts. I have questions, but I'm sure Auburn did too, as well as Ole Miss, TAMU, and hell, even Alabama. I guess those questions were answered to Auburn's satisfaction.

The Maryland report is pretty enlightening, btw: https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/13335075/maryland_report.0.pdf

Thanks - so this was not an instance of Roberts being too "hard-nosed"? Glad we can put that rumor to rest.

I don't think he did a bad job either, or at least not one that warranted being let go. That, and the fact that McGriff essentially left the program, support the narrative that there was something sour about Roberts, whether it was his treatment of players or his treatment of his assistant coaches.

@bigbird is it true that Roberts was let go primarily because of his personality and fit within the culture Freeze is trying to establish at Auburn? It's impossible to tell what is true and what is message board gossip. But, accepting the message board narrative that Roberts was too hard-nosed with his players to be a good fit here, it seems to me that Durkin, if we accept the reporting about him, is a nonsensical hire. Logically, at least one of the narratives - either that Robert's personality was toxic, or that Durkin's personality is toxic, must be a departure from reality.

I think this is probably the case, and I think Auburn fans need to understand that Ryan Williams also genuinely appears to love Alabama. Although he may not have strong relationships with the current staff, he has strong relationships within their 2024 class, and it was always going to be a tough pull. The thing about RW's recruitment, as well as many others, is that it's clear that our staff will not simply lay down and move on from kids they want. They are going to fight to the end. It nearly paid off here, but we will reap the rewards of that strategy more and more often moving forward.