DC: SMU won't hire coach with controversial past

[ponyinNC]

What is this "tying the hands" nonsense?

There's only a few coaches with "sordid pasts" - there are many, many more potentially great coaches who don't have a scandal in their backgrounds. What a shame if we had to pick from that pool.

I would support a Barnett hire, but I don't think he's the only coach on the planet capable of winning at SMU. There are lots of guys who could get the job done here, many of whom you've probably never heard of. The big name, former head coaches aren't the only guys who can coach

my point is that a potential coach's past should not matter, we hire the best person for the job. period.

and i agree with XTC, it comes off as completely hypocritical.

[OR-See-Nee]

We should hold the faculty and administration to the same standards that they want to have in a coach, to wit, any allegation of wrong-doing? Then you are out. How many faculty smoked a little wacky tobaccy at some point in their life? That's illegal. No job for you at SMU.

I don't mind someone with allegations of wrongdoing, that were proven unfounded, coming to coach. Like Barnett's situation.

And if folks are concerned about things, load the contract up with a lot of moral clauses:

--major violation of NCAA rule: terminated
--too many calls to recruits: terminated
--paying players: terminated

etc. That would stop all of this nonsense of what happened (or didn't) in someone's past and what might, or might not, happen in the future.

Hire the best person for the job. Period.

[Beanman]

I, along with most smu fans, dont give a $[deleted] about a coach's past if he produces wins, bowl games, and C-USA championships. If we came out of a plane in fatigues and had deion sanders, warren sapp, arrests and miami's reputation i would love it!! .

No! There is no excuse for a program to stoop there. Many good programs have proven that you do not have to. Any program can misjudge a kid, and even good kids will get into trouble. BUT DO NOT GO LOOKING FOR IT. I will disavow my alumni status if we ever go that route. Bad decissions got us where we are. I've lived with 20 years of ridiqule. I don't need twenty more.

[OC Mustang]

If indeed Turner is sticking to his statements regarding who SMU is hiring, then he better be ready for that pool of willing participants to either be a lot smaller or they may not get what they thought that they wanted in a coach from a BCS school with head coaching experience.

I have made the point several times. Turner has been at SMU twice as long as Pye. Pye has been blamed for the 20 year drought more than the DP. Well, what has Turner done to turn that around. Nada. Zippo. And given his prejorative reading and unnecessary narrowing of the candidate pool, it looks like more of the same.

Turner is a prodigious fund-raiser, and in that capacity, he has done a fantastic job. But don't think for a minute that he has enough rope from the Board because of that success that he can carte blanche a search. I believe it is a near certainty that the Board in general isn't as supportive of a Top 25 football program as some of the individual Board members may be. But that is a question for Sewell, Ford, & Co.

IMHO.

[ponyinNC]

I, along with most smu fans, dont give a $[deleted] about a coach's past if he produces wins, bowl games, and C-USA championships. If we came out of a plane in fatigues and had deion sanders, warren sapp, arrests and miami's reputation i would love it!! .

No! There is no excuse for a program to stoop there. Many good programs have proven that you do not have to. Any program can misjudge a kid, and even good kids will get into trouble. BUT DO NOT GO LOOKING FOR IT. I will disavow my alumni status if we ever go that route. Bad decissions got us where we are. I've lived with 20 years of ridiqule. I don't need twenty more.

the ridicule is because we have been a constant loser for 20+ years, not because of who we recruit.

look at UT, they won the BCS and nobody cares about off the field arrests. USC ok'd payments to reggie bush, or at least looked the other way. they still have their trophies. OU, ARK, CU, Auburn, Miami...i could go on and on.

rice can bask in their high academic standards and they still beat us on the field! heck, even Northwestern won in years past.

[Dwan]

If true, this is sad. It means the same old, same old. Get ready for boring assistant from a mid level Big 12 school and hope he turns out to be a diamond in the rough. That should be our motto, our players and coaches are diamonds in the rough. We should change our mascot to the Miners.

Wont take a chance on a coach with some controversy in his past, but will bring in the Presidential Library of the most controversial and unpopular President in the history of the country and world. That should do wonders for the schools reputation as an ultra conservative regional University where rich kids from Texas go to school. SMU will be a top 25 terrorist target in the nation, but got forbid we hire Gary Barnett.

All this post DP, Pye, turn the school into a Vanderbilt and shed the image of a regional party school for rich kids where they pay football players. Its sad

[ponyinNC]

If true, this is sad. It means the same old, same old. Get ready for boring assistant from a mid level Big 12 school and hope he turns out to be a diamond in the rough. That should be our motto, our players and coaches are diamonds in the rough. We should change our mascot to the Miners.

Wont take a chance on a coach with some controversy in his past, but will bring in the Presidential Library of the most controversial and unpopular President in the history of the country and world. That should do wonders for the schools reputation as an ultra conservative regional University where rich kids from Texas go to school. SMU will be a top 25 terrorist target in the nation, but got forbid we hire Gary Barnett.

All this post DP, Pye, turn the school into a Vanderbilt and shed the image of a regional party school for rich kids where they pay football players. Its sad

= Dave Christiansen

[mustangxc]

If true, this is sad. It means the same old, same old. Get ready for boring assistant from a mid level Big 12 school and hope he turns out to be a diamond in the rough. That should be our motto, our players and coaches are diamonds in the rough. We should change our mascot to the Miners.

Wont take a chance on a coach with some controversy in his past, but will bring in the Presidential Library of the most controversial and unpopular President in the history of the country and world. That should do wonders for the schools reputation as an ultra conservative regional University where rich kids from Texas go to school. SMU will be a top 25 terrorist target in the nation, but got forbid we hire Gary Barnett.

All this post DP, Pye, turn the school into a Vanderbilt and shed the image of a regional party school for rich kids where they pay football players. Its sad

Forget the miners more like fools gold. A miner strikes it rich every once in a while.

[dcpony]

If true, this is sad. It means the same old, same old. Get ready for boring assistant from a mid level Big 12 school and hope he turns out to be a diamond in the rough. That should be our motto, our players and coaches are diamonds in the rough. We should change our mascot to the Miners.

Wont take a chance on a coach with some controversy in his past, but will bring in the Presidential Library of the most controversial and unpopular President in the history of the country and world. That should do wonders for the schools reputation as an ultra conservative regional University where rich kids from Texas go to school. SMU will be a top 25 terrorist target in the nation, but got forbid we hire Gary Barnett.

All this post DP, Pye, turn the school into a Vanderbilt and shed the image of a regional party school for rich kids where they pay football players. Its sad

I agree with you. Turner's logic is puzzling. He doesn't want to hire the best available coach, even if he has a questionable past, but he wants the Bush Book Mobile on campus?

One could argue Dubbya's administration has been Nixonian its ethics. SMU acceptance of Bush's library and oxymoronical "Think Tank"could equal support for torture, elimination of habeus corpus, corruption, incompetence etc...

I don't rember Barnett, Bowden, Neuhesial wire tapping their players phones, or torturing players for bad play, or practicing gross nepotism. etc...

If that President Turner's standard then the library shouldn't be here.

[The Spaz]

Mark Norris is a known habitual liar...

[PonyKai]

If true, this is sad. It means the same old, same old. Get ready for boring assistant from a mid level Big 12 school and hope he turns out to be a diamond in the rough. That should be our motto, our players and coaches are diamonds in the rough. We should change our mascot to the Miners.

Wont take a chance on a coach with some controversy in his past, but will bring in the Presidential Library of the most controversial and unpopular President in the history of the country and world. That should do wonders for the schools reputation as an ultra conservative regional University where rich kids from Texas go to school. SMU will be a top 25 terrorist target in the nation, but got forbid we hire Gary Barnett.

All this post DP, Pye, turn the school into a Vanderbilt and shed the image of a regional party school for rich kids where they pay football players. Its sad

I agree with you. Turner's logic is puzzling. He doesn't want to hire the best available coach, even if he has a questionable past, but he wants the Bush Book Mobile on campus?

One could argue Dubbya's administration has been Nixonian its ethics. SMU acceptance of Bush's library and oxymoronical "Think Tank"could equal support for torture, elimination of habeus corpus, corruption, incompetence etc...

I don't rember Barnett, Bowden, Neuhesial wire tapping their players phones, or torturing players for bad play, or practicing gross nepotism. etc...

If that President Turner's standard then the library shouldn't be here.

Why don't you stick to talking about the football coach and spare us opinions on the current president. If you have to, say "it's questionable that he would welcome a controversial library, but takes this standing on a football coach."

I really don't want your opinion on the president.

[mrydel]

If SMU decides to go the assistant route and his name is Chow, Malzahn, Applewhite, or Steve Logan then I'm done with SMU football. I am tired of being the on the job training ground for ambitious wannabe coaches.

What do you expect? SMU is in a spare conference. And the job is percieved as a career killer.

Steve Logan was the HC at ECU for a while and has some skins on the wall.

Chow has never been a HC but he has the NFL and USC pedigrees ...he'll probably take the UCLA job if its open.

Malzahn and Applewhite would bring us some publicity. and hel p with recruiting.

Who do you think that Applewhite or Malzahn would bring in as a staff. I guess Gus could call his old buddies at Springdale HS. Applewhite could test the HS market also. The primary problem with bringing in a coordinator is that they do not coordinate anymore. They are now HCs and they do not have the pull or contacts to attract good support. Folks like Bowden, Barnett or Mason have contacts even if they have been out of the direct coaching for a while. Current HCs have staffs they could draw from if they wish, and are in the current circle to attract new ones if they so desire.

We can not afford to go the coordinator route again. There may be one out there that would be great eventually, but I think Orisini knows he needs someone who can hit the ground running in both coaching and recruiting and not having to spend the next 3 months in hiring a staff of unproven coordinators and postion coaches.

[mustangxc]

If true, this is sad. It means the same old, same old. Get ready for boring assistant from a mid level Big 12 school and hope he turns out to be a diamond in the rough. That should be our motto, our players and coaches are diamonds in the rough. We should change our mascot to the Miners.

Wont take a chance on a coach with some controversy in his past, but will bring in the Presidential Library of the most controversial and unpopular President in the history of the country and world. That should do wonders for the schools reputation as an ultra conservative regional University where rich kids from Texas go to school. SMU will be a top 25 terrorist target in the nation, but got forbid we hire Gary Barnett.

All this post DP, Pye, turn the school into a Vanderbilt and shed the image of a regional party school for rich kids where they pay football players. Its sad

I agree with you. Turner's logic is puzzling. He doesn't want to hire the best available coach, even if he has a questionable past, but he wants the Bush Book Mobile on campus?

One could argue Dubbya's administration has been Nixonian its ethics. SMU acceptance of Bush's library and oxymoronical "Think Tank"could equal support for torture, elimination of habeus corpus, corruption, incompetence etc...

I don't rember Barnett, Bowden, Neuhesial wire tapping their players phones, or torturing players for bad play, or practicing gross nepotism. etc...

If that President Turner's standard then the library shouldn't be here.

Why don't you stick to talking about the football coach and spare us opinions on the current president. If you have to, say "it's questionable that he would welcome a controversial library, but takes this standing on a football coach."

I really don't want your opinion on the president.

It is relevant because if he does not want to be associated with controversial figures he should be consistent. Bush like him or not is the most controversial figure in the world.

Edit: I am criticizing President Turner, not President Bush!

[PonyKai]

If true, this is sad. It means the same old, same old. Get ready for boring assistant from a mid level Big 12 school and hope he turns out to be a diamond in the rough. That should be our motto, our players and coaches are diamonds in the rough. We should change our mascot to the Miners.

Wont take a chance on a coach with some controversy in his past, but will bring in the Presidential Library of the most controversial and unpopular President in the history of the country and world. That should do wonders for the schools reputation as an ultra conservative regional University where rich kids from Texas go to school. SMU will be a top 25 terrorist target in the nation, but got forbid we hire Gary Barnett.

All this post DP, Pye, turn the school into a Vanderbilt and shed the image of a regional party school for rich kids where they pay football players. Its sad

I agree with you. Turner's logic is puzzling. He doesn't want to hire the best available coach, even if he has a questionable past, but he wants the Bush Book Mobile on campus?

One could argue Dubbya's administration has been Nixonian its ethics. SMU acceptance of Bush's library and oxymoronical "Think Tank"could equal support for torture, elimination of habeus corpus, corruption, incompetence etc...

I don't rember Barnett, Bowden, Neuhesial wire tapping their players phones, or torturing players for bad play, or practicing gross nepotism. etc...

If that President Turner's standard then the library shouldn't be here.

Why don't you stick to talking about the football coach and spare us opinions on the current president. If you have to, say "it's questionable that he would welcome a controversial library, but takes this standing on a football coach."

I really don't want your opinion on the president.

It is relevant because if he does not want to be associated with controversial figures he should be consistent. Bush like him or not is the most controversial figure in the world.

Never mind, won't say another thing, just I think we'll wind up with a decent football coach. I just find it hard to believe that these things were said in a public arena.

[Dwan]

aside from politics, SMU has been so worried about it's image since the DP and that is the reason for these insane academic restrictions and no athletic friendly majors. It's image at the time of the DP was of a regional party school, where rich kids from Texas attended, ultra conservative, and a place where ultra rich, white, oil men alumni paid the football players to play. And football was more important to those rich, white oil men than integrity and academics. Hell, one of them was the Governor of the State of Texas!

Everything Pye did was to change that image. 20 years later, SMU is now going to be internationally known as the home of the Bush Library. But we wont hire a football coach with allegiations in his past because, we are SMU, we are an Ivy league school or at worst a Vanderbilt.....[deleted], all of them. I ask you this, what confirms the above sterotypes more, Gary Barnett or the George W. Bush Library?