CFB Postseason Thread

[maroontide06]

9 minutes ago, MSTSatchmo said:

I know State had someone with the OC title, but how much input and game day calling did the OC do?  I thought the majority was Coach Leach and the rest was Rogers at the LOS.  

Coach Miller is the Run Game Coordinator and Coach Spurrier is the Pass Game Coordinator.  Coach Leach was Head Coach/Offensive Coordinator/Quarterback Coach.

[maroontide06]

Our team should be in good hands coaching wise for the bowl game.  We just won’t have Coach Leach on the sideline.

[maroontide06]

Back in the old days when Coach Twig Branch was the quarterback for Coach Slick Morton’s T formation offense, Twig was the only one who was allowed to call the plays.  The head coach wasn’t allowed to do so.  Coach Branch had to know the offense and quite frankly that’s the only reason he got the starting job because he ran it for Coach Holden at Pascagoula and then at PRCC.

[MSTSatchmo]

You hate to even think about it, but it is an unprecedented situation the State program is in.   They don’t have an AD, they will need to hire a HC, the best players in the transfer portal are being recruited hard at this time, and the early signing period is coming up.  I know the coaches are doing their best, but they are in a very tough situation recruiting wise.  
 

That being said, nothing compares to what the family and friends (many, many friends) of Coach Leach are going through.  It’s still hard to believe.  
 

Our conversations are for the most part State and OM oriented on here, and it has been tough to watch Kiffin being interviewed.  How much he admired and enjoyed Leach is obvious.  

[Dawg83]

16 minutes ago, MSTSatchmo said:

You hate to even think about it, but it is an unprecedented situation the State program is in.   They don’t have an AD, they will need to hire a HC, the best players in the transfer portal are being recruited hard at this time, and the early signing period is coming up.  I know the coaches are doing their best, but they are in a very tough situation recruiting wise.  
 

That being said, nothing compares to what the family and friends (many, many friends) of Coach Leach are going through.  It’s still hard to believe.  
 

Our conversations are for the most part State and OM oriented on here, and it has been tough to watch Kiffin being interviewed.  How much he admired and enjoyed Leach is obvious.  

The timing is partially why I have a hard time justifying anyone other than Arnett. And why it probably needs to be made official by the end of the week.

 

I do worry that you’ll start to see the ugly side of the transfer portal with this. If guys want to leave with Leach not here anymore I can understand that. But opposing coaches and handlers exploiting this situation to try and convince guys to leave is going to be pretty despicable if it ends up happening. But as ruthless as recruiting has become, I’m concerned you’ll start to see it.

[Bulldogs4]

Definitely agree that we should make Arnett permanent soon as possible. 

That would be awfully bad if other coaches started trying to cherry pick our roster, with regard to the TP. As bad as recruiting has gotten that would go to a new low. 
 

Also the signing date is next week. That would be another reason to solidify Arnett and keep the current staff intact. Hopefully most of those commitments will then still sign. 

[Dawg83]

I won’t pretend that keep up with recruiting much anymore, but the messages from Chris Parson (State QB commit) about this group being the last class Leach ever recruited and wearing that like a badge of honor are pretty powerful.

[maroontide06]

2 hours ago, Dawg83 said:

I won’t pretend that keep up with recruiting much anymore, but the messages from Chris Parson (State QB commit) about this group being the last class Leach ever recruited and wearing that like a badge of honor are pretty powerful.

Yes that definitely is a powerful statement.  One that should make Bulldog fans want to keep the recruiting class intact and the coaching staff intact.  I think State needs to get interim tag removed off of Arnett pretty soon.  (Like before the bowl game and before an AD is hired).

[Bulldogs4]

I would think after the Funeral would be the appropriate time to announce that. 

[MSTSatchmo]

Rumors of coaches using third parties to try and contact State players about transferring because of Leach’s passing.  Of course that was “reported” by Robertson, so who knows.  He didn’t name any names, but one of the replies said Freeze and Kiffin were among them.  
The transfer portal and NIL have made college football strictly business.  

[pancho]

Some definite "snooping around" is underway.  I trust Steve on this and believe him when he says that he will make em famous. It's just the cut throat nature of the college football business. 

[maroontide06]

Zach Arnett is our new football coach.  Hail State!

[Dawg83]

I feel like Arnett was the only move you could make here. Awful situation. But I like Zach a lot as a coach and think he can be a good leader for State.

[maroontide06]

6 minutes ago, Dawg83 said:

I feel like Arnett was the only move you could make here. Awful situation. But I like Zach a lot as a coach and think he can be a good leader for State.

I think so too because the players and staff need time to grieve and heal.  With Zach at the helm they can do that and you'll be able to keep things in tact and also stop the threat of poaching from other programs.

[Dawg83]

He’ll have to figure out both coordinator spots so that will be interesting to monitor.

[maroontide06]

You hate to have to make a head coaching hire so quickly, but State didn’t really have an alternative and it’s honestly the best option for us now.  I’m glad we will get to see what he does and how he will handle things.

[Insideradvantage]

No way to know if or how long this hiring will work out, and that's something you can probably say about every coaching hire ever made. It's also about all they could do given the timing. 

[MSTSatchmo]

2 hours ago, Dawg83 said:

I feel like Arnett was the only move you could make here. Awful situation. But I like Zach a lot as a coach and think he can be a good leader for State.

I agree.   You don’t know how this will end up, but it was what needed to be done.  

[rebmus]

3 hours ago, MSTSatchmo said:

Rumors of coaches using third parties to try and contact State players about transferring because of Leach’s passing.  Of course that was “reported” by Robertson, so who knows.  He didn’t name any names, but one of the replies said Freeze and Kiffin were among them.  
The transfer portal and NIL have made college football strictly business.  

 

 

 

More details before I'm rushing to judgement either way.

For example:

IF Freeze is contacting Will Rogers for the first time right after Leach's passing... yes, that's a douche move and he should be called out on it. 

IF it's players that have already been contacted by other coaches, it's part of the business of portal/NIL that almost everyone here was applauding... including Steve Robertson. 

 

MSU picked up two CBs in the portal this week, they aren't stopping recruiting (as they shouldn't) and neither will anyone else. 

[pancho]

I agree, the filth is referred to as filth for a legitimate reason

[MSTSatchmo]

1 hour ago, rebmus said:

 

 

 

More details before I'm rushing to judgement either way.

For example:

IF Freeze is contacting Will Rogers for the first time right after Leach's passing... yes, that's a douche move and he should be called out on it. 

IF it's players that have already been contacted by other coaches, it's part of the business of portal/NIL that almost everyone here was applauding... including Steve Robertson. 

 

MSU picked up two CBs in the portal this week, they aren't stopping recruiting (as they shouldn't) and neither will anyone else. 

I’m not sure what is allowed and not allowed as far as schools contacting players at other schools.   I would guess a player couldn’t be contacted unless he has entered the portal?   
The phrasing that Robertson used when he referred to “using third parties” made it seem as some schools are contacting players, that aren’t in the portal, because there is an obvious lack of leadership and uncertainty during a time like this.  

I doubt anyone would have an issue with any school contacting a player that had entered the portal.  
I guess that will be the new “illegal recruiting” in the new era of college football.  

[rebmus]

30 minutes ago, MSTSatchmo said:

I’m not sure what is allowed and not allowed as far as schools contacting players at other schools.   I would guess a player couldn’t be contacted unless he has entered the portal?   
The phrasing that Robertson used when he referred to “using third parties” made it seem as some schools are contacting players, that aren’t in the portal, because there is an obvious lack of leadership and uncertainty during a time like this.  

I doubt anyone would have an issue with any school contacting a player that had entered the portal.  
I guess that will be the new “illegal recruiting” in the new era of college football.  

I'd wager MANY players that aren't in the portal are getting contacted by third parties, it's really no different than how recruiting worked before during "dead periods" where coaches couldn't contact HS recruits but third parties definitely did... every school was guilty of that and I'm betting still are guilty of that. 

 

 

[Dawg83]

2 hours ago, MSTSatchmo said:

I agree.   You don’t know how this will end up, but it was what needed to be done.  

It’s just one of those things where if you look up in a couple of years and it’s just not working then you can move on and have a normal hiring process. But it was impossible for it to be normal this time.

 

And look, I’ve already seen some of the Matt Luke comparisons. Maybe it ends up being another one of those kind of tenures, I don’t really know. But I do think there’s a level of upside that Arnett has that somebody like Luke never really had. You just have to hope Zach is able to reach that level.

 

One thing that I don’t think will ever be a problem with Zach is the locker room culture. This is a really intense dude that has a reputation of not taking any crap whatsoever. There’s a running joke among State fans that they’ve never actually  seen the guy crack a smile.

[rebmus]

27 minutes ago, Dawg83 said:

 

And look, I’ve already seen some of the Matt Luke comparisons.

I haven't seen those comparisons but it's very silly. 

 

Arnett has had a hot name for DC at a larger program or a HC job the past couple of years... it was a matter of time before he became a HC. 

 

Was Matt Luke mentioned for any HC job before OM promoted him to HC? If so, I don't recall it. 

 

[Dawg83]

1 hour ago, rebmus said:

I haven't seen those comparisons but it's very silly. 

 

Arnett has had a hot name for DC at a larger program or a HC job the past couple of years... it was a matter of time before he became a HC. 

 

Was Matt Luke mentioned for any HC job before OM promoted him to HC? If so, I don't recall it. 

 

I always felt like they kinda put Luke in a no win situation. He always felt like the stop gap coach that was just there to get them through probation. Never once thought he would be there long or had much shot of being a long term success. He was an Ole Miss guy that loved his school and he won an Egg Bowl where Nick Fitzgerald broke his ankle… those are pretty much the only reasons they went with him.

 

With Arnett, I could see a scenario where he really thrives. It’s far from a given, first time head coaches are a total roll of the dice. But unlike Luke, I can see a path forward for Arnett.

Edited December 15, 2022 by Dawg83