A trip down memory lane

[Taker 494]

I thought that this would be a good time to refresh everyone on what was said by JCohen when he was announced as AD...

The sky isn't falling and in fact it looks pretty much like he is holding true to his words that we were all so jazzed about a month ago. 

On the pressure of hiring a football coach…

“I’m not a big pressure guy. I just see opportunity, and Auburn is the land of opportunity. I think we have a great opportunity here. And I think the future is really bright.

On the process of hiring a football coach…

“It’s a very, very long process. In fact, I have 58 things on this piece of paper that we’ll go through as we go through this process of looking for a new head football coach. It all starts with culture. It starts with X’s and O’s and it starts with recruiting. Those three things have to be upfront but there’s a whole lot of other things that have to be answered before you get really deep into it. 

On discussion made about making big hires…

“Certainly, we’ve had those discussions. And yes, the final decision will be my own when it comes to hiring within the athletic department. But again, I’m going to go back to the 35-year-old version of myself who would have stuck his chest out and said that this is how it’s going to be. The 56-year-old version of John Cohen says, ‘I want all the information that is available to me from everyone that I can possibly get it from at Auburn and beyond.’ Information is a powerful thing. And I want that information. So again, certainly Dr. Roberts made it clear that these decisions will be my own, but it takes a village. It takes a group of people sharing information, sharing knowledge. Quite frankly, I’ve been on the phone a lot because we have to make right decisions. That’s what I’m charged with.”

 

On his process to make the head football coach hire…

“I won’t talk about the process per se. It obviously dominates my time, which it should. The football head coaching position at Auburn University is a critical decision and we take it with the utmost seriousness. There will not be anything we don’t look at. Everything’s on the table every day. But I’m not going to go into dates and times and process and when the finish line is going to be. We’re going to get there when we get there and we’re going to make the right decision for this great institution.”

On what his hiring criteria is…

“It’s some of both (to-do list and calling people), but a lot of it has to do with characteristics that you’re looking for and what questions to ask.”

 

On what he’s learned through hiring in the past…

“I’m going to drop a cliché on you right now. And I’m going to use the ‘F’ word. Fit. And everybody uses it, but it’s real. And what is a fit for Mississippi State University is a different fit for Auburn University. And that alters the paradigm and again, you have to make those considerations.”

On if he plans on using a search firm for the football hire…

“We will use a search firm strictly for logistics purposes. Search firms will not give us names. They obviously will help in background checks, and they will help us with logistics. Every other part of the search will be our own.”

On characteristics he looks for in a person when hiring a head coach…

 

“You got a couple of hours? I'm going to use the ‘F’ word again. It's about fit. There's not an exact science. There's analytics. There's a little bit of gut feel. There's a lot of factors I can read you off this list. A lot of this common sensical, but a lot of this is really important to me as I've been through the hiring process several times.”

AGAIN I WILL SAY IT- CALM DOWN

the sky isn't falling. Be patient (I know not a strong suit) and let the man do what he said he was gonna do...

Once a hire has been made then we can all be free to rage again. 

[Taker 494]

I have noticed that this gets a lot of traffic but few replies.... 

A.) Is it boring and irrelevant 

B.) Is it rational and therefore not interesting

C.) Is it real facts and doesn't feed the mob mentality narrative that we desperately crave here? 

Help me understand!

[AURealist 2,185]

Understand this:

He sounds like a full of crap politician.

Like the kind of guy who misses big opportunities while waiting for more 'information' so he can make the perfect decision.  Meanwhile, our competitors are implementing a good battle plan today and forging ahead.  

I think that's what's playing out.  It's the reason we don't have a coach, why we may not have a new coach for a long while and why we won't like him when he's finally announced.

 

 

 

[Taker 494]

5 minutes ago, AURealist said:

Understand this:

He sounds like a full of crap politician.

Like the kind of guy who misses big opportunities while waiting for more 'information' so he can make the perfect decision.  Meanwhile, our competitors are implementing a good battle plan today and forging ahead.  

I think that's what's playing out.  It's the reason we don't have a coach, why we may not have a new coach for a long while and why we won't like him when he's finally announced.

 

 

 

Realist, that is not a very realistic response. See you used words like "Sounds like" and "I Think" these are not facts and sandwiched in between is a baseless opinion. 

Nothing about what you said is remotely factual. It is all merely a baseless opinion based on faulty information from proven to be ubreliable people. Meanwhile the mob mentality of the sky is falling is taking over... 

So yeah, I guess I do "Understand this" as you ever so passive-aggressively put it. 

[AURealist 2,185]

1 minute ago, Taker said:

Realist, that is not a very realistic response. See you used words like "Sounds like" and "I Think" these are not facts and sandwiched in between is a baseless opinion. 

Nothing about what you said is remotely factual. It is all merely a baseless opinion based on faulty information from proven to be ubreliable people. Meanwhile the mob mentality of the sky is falling is taking over... 

So yeah, I guess I do "Understand this" as you ever so passive-aggressively put it. 

You make me laugh.  

[Taker 494]

2 minutes ago, AURealist said:

You make me laugh.  

That's what I'm here for, to share actual facts that are able to be backed up with more facts and not live in a world that is predicated on my emotions and expectations of someone who doesn't even know I exist and probably doesn't care what my opinion is... especially when he told me(not directly) that he wasn't going to rush nor take lightly this hire. 

[AURealist 2,185]

The only fact is that the guy said some words. 

It doesn't mean they're true or that he actually means them or that he even cares if we believe them.  They are words for public consumption.  One can choose to take them at face value and believe them or not.  

Trust me on this, I've worked a lot with ad agencies and PR people, if he didn't care about who the new hire was going to be and whether he was a good man or a good coach or foreign agent, he'd have said the exact same thing. 

[Taker 494]

9 minutes ago, AURealist said:

The only fact is that the guy said some words. 

It doesn't mean they're true or that he actually means them or that he even cares if we believe them.  They are words for public consumption.  One can choose to take them at face value and believe them or not.  

Trust me on this, I've worked a lot with ad agencies and PR people, if he didn't care about who the new hire was going to be and whether he was a good man or a good coach or foreign agent, he'd have said the exact same thing. 

Oh I agree, I have been in sports media and relations before for a while,  but everyone that you talk to with actual knowledge of John they all say the same thing. Stand up guy, doesn't bull crap you, straight shooter, etc... I haven't heard anyone say that he is a sleeze that will tell you want you wanna hear. 

And the fact is I only said that what he said was fact because I have proof that he said it. 

[AURealist 2,185]

2 minutes ago, Taker said:

Oh I agree, I have been in sports media and relations before for a while,  but everyone that you talk to with actual knowledge of John they all say the same thing. Stand up guy, doesn't bull crap you, straight shooter, etc... I haven't heard anyone say that he is a sleeze that will tell you want you wanna hear. 

And the fact is I only said that what he said was fact because I have proof that he said it. 

Okay.  It's a fact that he spoke some words.  It's up to each of us to believe those words or not.  Given the words he spoke, I have a first impression of the man and I described that impression a bit in my first response to the original post.  

Others may take a different view.  

Only time will tell. 

That said, some decisions are time sensitive and I've seen analysis paralysis kill some great possibilities in my time.  I hope we aren't already a victim of it here. 

[AURex 2,055]

Nobody here liked it when I said that Kiffin was not coming, because everyone wanted him and facts/logic are irrelevant.

My personal preference was Rhule, but he chose the Nebraska dumpster fire over the Auburn dumpster fire.

As for Cohen ..... yep, he's got his long, long, long list of REQUIREMENTS, so that means we are going to just have to wait for his *perfect* candidate. (Apparently, it wasn't Kiffin or Rhule.)

Reality is, that long list of requirements is irrelevant. At some point, Cohen will have to decide on some guy who .... OMG .... doesn't qualify for all 50+ requirements .......... and may not even meet, like, 3 of them.

 

 

[Taker 494]

15 minutes ago, AURealist said:

Okay.  It's a fact that he spoke some words.  It's up to each of us to believe those words or not.  Given the words he spoke, I have a first impression of the man and I described that impression a bit in my first response to the original post.  

Others may take a different view.  

Only time will tell. 

That said, some decisions are time sensitive and I've seen analysis paralysis kill some great possibilities in my time.  I hope we aren't already a victim of it here. 

Oh I agree, I hope we aren't either but I refuse to die on the hill of overreaction as opposed to letting it breath and not believe all the spoke blah... 

Question- Would you rather have a GREAT hire and maybe miss out on ESD and Portal this year to reap rewards in the coming or name someone now that isn't the best option and still hit the mark of ESD and Portal for this year and it not pay dividends. 

[Taker 494]

3 minutes ago, AURex said:

Nobody here liked it when I said that Kiffin was not coming, because everyone wanted him and facts/logic are irrelevant.

My personal preference was Rhule, but he chose the Nebraska dumpster fire over the Auburn dumpster fire.

As for Cohen ..... yep, he's got his long, long, long list of REQUIREMENTS, so that means we are going to just have to wait for his *perfect* candidate. (Apparently, it wasn't Kiffin or Rhule.)

Reality is, that long list of requirements is irrelevant. At some point, Cohen will have to decide on some guy who .... OMG .... doesn't qualify for all 50+ requirements .......... and may not even meet, like, 3 of them.

 

 

I like this Rexy... good take.

What were the requirements btw? 

When I hire someone I have a list of requirements albeit not 58 but again I am not hiring a multi million dollar position either and most of them are basic requirements related to the job at hand... and believe it or not most people knock off a significant portion of them if they are qualified for the position that they are applying for. 

Now real question: Would you rather miss ESD and Portal for a Shownuff good one or would you rather name a hugh Freeze type so we can make ESD and portal this year

[AURealist 2,185]

1 minute ago, Taker said:

Oh I agree, I hope we aren't either but I refuse to die on the hill of overreaction as opposed to letting it breath and not believe all the spoke blah... 

Question- Would you rather have a GREAT hire and maybe miss out on ESD and Portal this year to reap rewards in the coming or name someone now that isn't the best option and still hit the mark of ESD and Portal for this year and it not pay dividends. 

LOL

Sure.  I'd love to have the GREAT hire, but given Auburn's track record for hiring football coaches, I have absolutely no real  reason to expect one.

[Taker 494]

4 minutes ago, AURealist said:

LOL

Sure.  I'd love to have the GREAT hire, but given Auburn's track record for hiring football coaches, I have absolutely no real  reason to expect one.

Well I hope for your sake that you are surprised and happy with the way this shakes out... if you are be sure to let me know... if your not, be sure to let me know also. 

Thanks for the good convo buddy

War Eagle always

[TeamZero77 1,786]

1 hour ago, Taker said:

Realist, that is not a very realistic response. See you used words like "Sounds like" and "I Think" these are not facts and sandwiched in between is a baseless opinion. 

Nothing about what you said is remotely factual. It is all merely a baseless opinion based on faulty information from proven to be ubreliable people. Meanwhile the mob mentality of the sky is falling is taking over... 

So yeah, I guess I do "Understand this" as you ever so passive-aggressively put it. 

It's the "microwave generation" we live in. They've got to have everything NOW. Nobody has any patience whatsoever. And alot of it is due to social media. Nobody has to wait for the evening news or for Sportscenter to show you all the highlights from the entire day. Nobody has to wait until they get a newspaper tomorrow to learn all the news. Everything is instantaneous now and while it's a good thing in many ways, it is also bad in many ways. Nobody can wait 15 minutes these days, let alone 15 hours or 15 days. 

I agree with all you've said btw.

[AURealist 2,185]

5 minutes ago, TeamZero77 said:

It's the "microwave generation" we live in. They've got to have everything NOW. Nobody has any patience whatsoever. And alot of it is due to social media. Nobody has to wait for the evening news or for Sportscenter to show you all the highlights from the entire day. Nobody has to wait until they get a newspaper tomorrow to learn all the news. Everything is instantaneous now and while it's a good thing in many ways, it is also bad in many ways. Nobody can wait 15 minutes these days, let alone 15 hours or 15 days. 

I agree with all you've said btw.

 Who is "they"?   If you're referring to me, you are way off base.  

[AUINSY 2,228]

1 hour ago, Taker said:

I have noticed that this gets a lot of traffic but few replies.... 

A.) Is it boring and irrelevant 

B.) Is it rational and therefore not interesting

C.) Is it real facts and doesn't feed the mob mentality narrative that we desperately crave here? 

Help me understand!

I think this is good info. Personally, I’m kinda burnt out on the entire thing. I’m watching forums and checking a few sites, b/c I have a ton of free time since I dropped my masters courses this semester and don’t have kids. But this entire season, past two years, and this search has left me apathetic about it all. 

[Taker 494]

8 minutes ago, TeamZero77 said:

It's the "microwave generation" we live in. They've got to have everything NOW. Nobody has any patience whatsoever. And alot of it is due to social media. Nobody has to wait for the evening news or for Sportscenter to show you all the highlights from the entire day. Nobody has to wait until they get a newspaper tomorrow to learn all the news. Everything is instantaneous now and while it's a good thing in many ways, it is also bad in many ways. Nobody can wait 15 minutes these days, let alone 15 hours or 15 days. 

I agree with all you've said btw.

💯 77 I can't begin to describe how frustrating it is to try to make a decision of this magnitude and be second guessed and pressured by everyone who believes anything someone with a credential says.

[Taker 494]

1 minute ago, AUINSY said:

I think this is good info. Personally, I’m kinda burnt out on the entire thing. I’m watching forums and checking a few sites, b/c I have a ton of free time since I dropped my masters courses this semester and don’t have kids. But this entire season, past two years, and this search has left me apathetic about it all. 

I understand that sentiment completely... I am just trying to bring reality back for a fraction of time to some people here.

[TeamZero77 1,786]

6 minutes ago, AURealist said:

 Who is "they"?   If you're referring to me, you are way off base.  

You're not coming across as patient. You're mad as hell based on what some media guys are telling us. They don't know anything. They whiffed on Harsin and Cohen. They throw out daily clickbait because they have to, not because its correct. I know you'll go back and forth on this like you did with Taker. I don't have time so I'll just say WDE and hopefully we are all happy with the hire.

[AURealist 2,185]

1 minute ago, TeamZero77 said:

You're not coming across as patient. You're mad as hell based on what some media guys are telling us. They don't know anything. They whiffed on Harsin and Cohen. They throw out daily clickbait because they have to, not because its correct. I know you'll go back and forth on this like you did with Taker. I don't have time so I'll just say WDE and hopefully we are all happy with the hire.

I'm not particularly impatient.  Nor am I mad as hell.  And I'm certainly not listening to what some media guys are telling "us". 

I'm merely seeing other programs getting their guys and moving forward while we have not.  That's concerning because we've been through this before and it ended badly.

All that other stuff is in your own head.