For those who question Johnson's ability to recruit Texas

[J.T.supporta]

why is everyone ganging up on Stallion these days?

[angryfan04]

Because he is not brining sunshine to the sunshine board

[Stallion]

Bottom Line is that Academy Model has gone to 23 Bowls since the SMU Model has. And don't worry, I can make rational arguments on my own bahalf-that's what bothers these guys the Conventional Wisdom's knowledge is about a milimeter thick

[J.T.supporta]

very true

[George S. Patton]

What I find telling is that the Naval Prep Academy never publishes a roster of their team. Yet when you search for stories on Navy players they inevitably say they started at the Naval Prep Academy. I posted a story about I believe the 2004 Navy starting lineup that said half their players started at the Naval Prep Academy. They run huge numbers of players through their Varsity and Prep teams-they are not restricted by NCAA rules on recruiting, roster limits plus they have their academies. As I posted earlier the Navy Roster has 160 players-about 90% above NCAA restrictions. Assuming 160 on their Varsity Roster and say 50 on their Prep Roster per year then during a 4 year period that is 360 sleepers they can run through their rosters-that's over 15 players for each position on the field. The Academy Model has lead to something like 23 Bowl Games (if Navy and Air Force go bowling this year) since SMU last went to a Bowl Game. The last 7 or so transfers to SMU from these Academies/Prep Schools have immediately started at SMU. I posted the backup on this within the last 2 months-find it if you don't believe me. Once again SMU is picking a Coach who has built his program on a Model that does not fit logically with the requirements of the SMU job.

Go ask Virginia -- one of the toughest public schools in the country -- if it got a bad deal when it hired George Welsh away from Navy in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

In fact, it was Welsh's popularity that basically drove Jim Copeland out of Charlottesville to SMU.

Also, you are presuming that Johnson cannot work within this system. And we don't how these changes that Orsini has talked of that will change in coming years will fall out.

If you do believe this has not been discussed in great detail between Orsini and the candidates, then I don't what to tell you.

Sir, I guess we'll find out in 5 years won't we. And it would be fair to say that you would rather win the argument above all things.

[angryfan04]

Why do we have to wait 5 years? I thought PB had the pieces in place and couldn't get it done becauase he couldn't "coach em up"......

[George S. Patton]

Why do we have to wait 5 years? I thought PB had the pieces in place and couldn't get it done becauase he couldn't "coach em up"......

Dude, you need to get laid.

[thefamousguy]

How come coaches before Johnson at Navy went 1-20 and the other service academies blow as well?

How dare you pose a very valid question to Stallion which clearly discredits his numbers game/prep school theory with regards to Navy?

Some coaches are able to do more with less. To me that's a true coach. Almost anyone can stand on the sideline with a headset on and watch top 100 national players run over the opponent. A good coach is one who can take the second, third and fourth tier players and do what Graham did at Rice, what Johnson is doing at Navy, etc.

I would still prefer a big name coach but I do think this guy will succeed here. SMU's problem contrary to what Stallion says isn't all about the talent. It's been Bennett's inability to get the athletes we have, to reach their full potential.

[thefamousguy]

What I find telling is that the Naval Prep Academy never publishes a roster of their team. Yet when you search for stories on Navy players they inevitably say they started at the Naval Prep Academy. I posted a story about I believe the 2004 Navy starting lineup that said half their players started at the Naval Prep Academy. They run huge numbers of players through their Varsity and Prep teams-they are not restricted by NCAA rules on recruiting, roster limits plus they have their academies. As I posted earlier the Navy Roster has 160 players-about 90% above NCAA restrictions. Assuming 160 on their Varsity Roster and say 50 on their Prep Roster per year then during a 4 year period that is 360 sleepers they can run through their rosters-that's over 15 players for each position on the field. The Academy Model has lead to something like 23 Bowl Games (if Navy and Air Force go bowling this year) since SMU last went to a Bowl Game. The last 7 or so transfers to SMU from these Academies/Prep Schools have immediately started at SMU. I posted the backup on this within the last 2 months-find it if you don't believe me. Once again SMU is picking a Coach who has built his program on a Model that does not fit logically with the requirements of the SMU job.

Stallion the coach before Paul Johnson worked within the same model that Coach Johnson has and he didn't succeed. The difference is coaching.

I would also challenge anyone who thinks Navy's current roster(including the guys who went to PREP School and made it through the weed out process) has more talent than SMU. It just isn't true regardless of the model.

[George S. Patton]

The last 7 or so transfers to SMU from these Academies/Prep Schools have immediately started at SMU.

Would Pete Fleps agree with that statement? Hmmmm

[mustang91]

I think the most important point is Johnson has won Div 1 games aginst good teams with academy players. Stallion, everyone knows the academy players overall aren't as good and as highly recruited. That's the reason Orsini wants him, the guy wins with inferior talent, what is so hard to understand? Stallion, I agree with a lot that you say on this board. But this time you got it wrong and like the General said your not going to back off your points because you don't want to look like you've lost credibility on this subject. The guy is a winner and if we get him we will be damn lucky!

[Dwan]

I 've asked the question at least 3 times on this board so I will ask it a fourth to all those Johnson is the a terrible hire posters. Not trying argue but they seem to be saying that Navy can have 160 players on their roster and from this number, it is easier to find 50 guys who can fill out a 2-deep. I get this, it is simple math, if SMU could have 160 scholarships to find 50 guys who can play, it would be a lot easier to win. So my question in how come the previous Navy staff went 1-20 with the same recruiting advantage. Logic would dictate that not only is Johnson a good coach, but he is better than average at identifying talent no? I think there are too many recruiting junkies on this site who look at stars, 40 times, and Top 50 lists. At the end of the day, unless we go to about 3 bowls games in a row, we are never going to be getting large numbers of 4 star, 3 star, texas top 150 type players. There is too much competition. The skill set we need in a coach is a guy who can identify talent. Mark Mangino is a perfect example of this. The majority of the players he has recruited to Kansas that have done well were not widely recruited players but he and his staff do an excellent job of finding the not so obvious talent.

[Pony94]

Is it really accurate to compare recruiting for Navy to recruiting for SMU? The reason why Navy has so many Texas kids is because of simple math, Texas is one of the three largest states that can send kids to service acadamies. In order to attend Navy or Army...and I think Air Force, you have to have an endorsement from a senator or congressmen, for which they can only provide one letter per academy. So, because of the size of Texas, you have more opportunities for letters, hence more Texas kids.

I may not be 100% accurate here, but the recruiting is not exactly the same as with all other colleges.

[Maryland78]

Don't forget Johnson had tremendous success at Georgia Southern., which has a completely different MODEL than Navy...bottom line he has had success where ever he has been, including Hawaii, with a different offense...

...Personally, I am more concerned about defense...I hope he doesn't bring (if hired) his whole staff from Navy...I think we need a top notch Defensive Coordinator and some experienced Texas recruiters...

[Pony in SA]

Could not agree more and said it yesterday.

Defensive side of the ball and getting a defensive coordinator who can properly assess and use our current talent, come up with defensive game plan that works, etc. is the important hire. This is where I remain most concerned as well.