[msqueri]

It's never THAT difficult to fill a Power Five head coaching job. Lots of people would would want that job.


The obvious advantage for any Power Five team that moves swiftly in canning an under-performing coach this fall: potentially being front of the line for a recharged Bronco Mendenhall. That would be Christmas in September or October or November for any team that moved fast. Or, I suppose, he could wait for the landscape to be clearer. But if Nebraska comes calling, does he turn that down?

Yes, he does turn it down. Nebraska is not a good place to be in the current college football scene but the alums/fans don't get that. While it is true there are worse places to be, Nebraska is IMHO a "too hard to do" case. First tier coaches aren't going there.

I think we can all agree it would be almost unthinkable for some coach to leave one school a month into the season to go coach at another that season. The OP must be talking about being first in line for coaches that are presently unemployed. I just don't see any of these coaches joining in mid-season. I could see it under very exceptional conditions, but if the current coach is being let go for football performance issues, would anybody jump in mid-season that wasn't even at the University previously?

Frankly, I would be more than a bit suspicious of any coach who entertained offers during a football season while he is employed elsewhere. I know the Sonny Dykes of the world do that, but as a University administrator I wouldn't want to hire that type of guy. Coaches need to feel some basic responsibility to their employer and the players. After the season, it is OK to listen. During the season, IMHO, it isn't. You should be 100% focused on your current job.

Is Nebraska any harder to succeed at in major college football than BYU or Virginia? Mendenhall's niche is succeeding at mid-tier major programs. I'm not talking about Jimbo Fisher here. I think the fit could potentially be quite good. I don't think Nebraska is doomed to Frost-like performance any more than Stanford was doomed to Harris-like performance or Virginia was doomed to London-like performance.

Teams can hire people other than current head coaches. I understand your points on responsibility/focus during the season, but if Nebraska comes calling to a major team's coordinator during the season, I suspect the coordinator will listen. Bear in mind that somebody can have conversations about a job without yet leaving the current job. Maybe Nebraska identifies somebody who will join them after the conference championships, or even after the bowls. Dan Lanning kept coaching the Georgia defense weeks after he was hired as Oregon's head coach. This is just the world we're in now. Kirby Smart did the same thing, continuing to coach Alabama even after taking the Georgia job (and those are conference rivals!). Their lack of focus in grasping for the individual brass ring didn't stop them from winning national titles, and their future teams were willing to wait/let them multi-task.

I am definitely not talking about Mendenhall or anybody else joining mid-season. That would be stupid. You fire Frost in October (I guess, given the economics...if I'm Nebraska my mind is made up now that this guy needs to go), appoint an interim head coach to coach the rest of a lost season, conduct a search for however long it takes to find your guy, and lock that guy in as the guy who hits the ground running in December.

[msqueri]

It's never THAT difficult to fill a Power Five head coaching job. Lots of people would would want that job.


The obvious advantage for any Power Five team that moves swiftly in canning an under-performing coach this fall: potentially being front of the line for a recharged Bronco Mendenhall. That would be Christmas in September or October or November for any team that moved fast. Or, I suppose, he could wait for the landscape to be clearer. But if Nebraska comes calling, does he turn that down?

Yes, he does turn it down. Nebraska is not a good place to be in the current college football scene but the alums/fans don't get that. While it is true there are worse places to be, Nebraska is IMHO a "too hard to do" case. First tier coaches aren't going there.

I think we can all agree it would be almost unthinkable for some coach to leave one school a month into the season to go coach at another that season. The OP must be talking about being first in line for coaches that are presently unemployed. I just don't see any of these coaches joining in mid-season. I could see it under very exceptional conditions, but if the current coach is being let go for football performance issues, would anybody jump in mid-season that wasn't even at the University previously?

Frankly, I would be more than a bit suspicious of any coach who entertained offers during a football season while he is employed elsewhere. I know the Sonny Dykes of the world do that, but as a University administrator I wouldn't want to hire that type of guy. Coaches need to feel some basic responsibility to their employer and the players. After the season, it is OK to listen. During the season, IMHO, it isn't. You should be 100% focused on your current job.

Is Nebraska any harder to succeed at in major college football than BYU or Virginia? Mendenhall's niche is succeeding at mid-tier major programs. I'm not talking about Jimbo Fisher here. I think the fit could potentially be quite good. I don't think Nebraska is doomed to Frost-like performance any more than Stanford was doomed to Harris-like performance or Virginia was doomed to London-like performance.

Teams can hire people other than current head coaches. I understand your points on responsibility/focus during the season, but if Nebraska comes calling to a major team's coordinator during the season, I suspect the coordinator will listen. Bear in mind that somebody can have conversations about a job without yet leaving the current job. Maybe Nebraska identifies somebody who will join them after the conference championships, or even after the bowls. Dan Lanning kept coaching the Georgia defense weeks after he was hired as Oregon's head coach. This is just the world we're in now. Kirby Smart did the same thing, continuing to coach Alabama even after taking the Georgia job (and those are conference rivals!). Their lack of focus in grasping for the individual brass ring didn't stop them from winning national titles, and their future teams were willing to wait/let them multi-task.

I am definitely not talking about Mendenhall or anybody else joining mid-season. That would be stupid. You fire Frost in October (I guess, given the economics...if I'm Nebraska my mind is made up now that this guy needs to go), appoint an interim head coach to coach the rest of a lost season, conduct a search for however long it takes to find your guy, and lock that guy in as the guy who hits the ground running in December.