BILL WAGNER'S NAVY SPORTS BLOG

dcpony · Post by **dcpony** » Fri Nov 30, 2007 9:14 am

Good insight here. The prospect of PJ coming to SMU is still unclear according to this guy.

http://www.hometownannapolis.com/blog_bwagner.html

Johnson Watch Continues

It was another long, strange day on the Paul Johnson watch. I spent most of the afternoon and evening chasing more rumors and unsubstantiated internet postings such as the one on CBSSports.com by Dennis Dodd.
Dodd wrote today that Johnson is the leading candidate at SMU and that an announcement of his hiring could come early next week. Dodd showed how much he knew by writing that Johnson runs the "flexbone" offense. Obviously, any self-respecting Navy fan knows it's the triple-option in its purest form.

Needing to perform my due diligence, I made a number of calls to various sources yesterday and talked several times with Katie Hairopoulos, the SMU beat writer for the Dallas Morning News. Hairopoulos did her homework and wisely downgraded her story for Friday's paper to merely say that SMU is very interested in Johnson.

I must admit I'd written off SMU from the get-go when I learned that former head coach Phil Bennett earned a mere $500,000. The Mustangs would need to pay four times that to lure Johnson and I didn't figure that was possible.
Apparently I was wrong. SMU athletic director Steve Orsini has raised $10 million in order to lure a top-flight head coach who is a proven winner and leader at the Division I-A level. Longtime Navy fans will remember that Orsini was an assistant athletic director at the academy and his tenure coincided with Johnson's time as an assistant to head coach Charlie Weatherbie.
Multiple sources have told me that Orsini tried to hire Johnson while working as athletic director at Central Florida. Suffice to say, Orsini knows Johnson is an outstanding head coach and I have no doubt he would pull out all the stops in effort to bring him to Dallas.
Orsini, who played football at Notre Dame and began his career in athletic administration at his alma mater, understands how the game of big-time football is played and is clearly bound and determined to make a splash with his first head coaching hire at SMU.
I find it very curious that SMU still has not named a head coach five weeks after firing Bennett following a dismal 1-11 season. Clearly, Orsini is waiting for one or more current head coaches to conclude their seasons.
However, while Johnson might well be SMU's top target, it doesn't mean that SMU is Johnson's top suitor. Others, including Nebraska, are still in the mix and it's anyone's guess how this will ultimately work out.

Dutch · Post by **Dutch** » Fri Nov 30, 2007 9:20 am

it pleases me that we have upped the ante to be pursuing the same coaches as teams like Nebraska

SMUMan02 · Post by **SMUMan02** » Fri Nov 30, 2007 9:41 am

Dutch wrote:it pleases me that we have upped the ante to be pursuing the same coaches as teams like Nebraska

It pleases me that people seem to be taking it seriously as a possibility. That must speak to the opinion of Orisini in the coaching / AD community.

dcfan · Post by **dcfan** » Fri Nov 30, 2007 9:54 am

It concerns me that teams like Nebraska (a place where Johnson would be unencumbered by recruiting and where they are used to winning with his types of offensive schemes) and Duke (located in Johnson's home state - grew up there, went to college at Western Carolina, started his career in-state) are also in the mix, that provide points of differentiation over SMU. Both, of course, are also in BCS conferences.

The more I research Johnson's record, the more impressed I am. His teams, at every level, have always, always won. And always very quickly, i.e., very successful by his second year each time.

ponyte · Post by **ponyte** » Fri Nov 30, 2007 9:55 am

CUSA defenses are not known for their tremendous athletes and ability to shut down opponents. The defenses that can shut down a triple option are loaded with athletes. Perhaps the triple option with Willis and receivers will create such havoc on opponents that we can finally concentrate our better athletes on defense.

SMUMan02 · Post by **SMUMan02** » Fri Nov 30, 2007 10:00 am

Seems to me that the Nebraska job is going to be very difficult and might scare off some coaches. The expectations for the next coach are through the roof and he, the next coach, will have a very limited amount of time to turn that thing around. Compounding that problem is that Nebraska has 0 talent on defense. And if further compounding is needed, the patron saint of Nebraska football will be there looking over your shoulder the whole time. There is no doubt that the Nebraska job is a "better" job that the SMU job - it is inarguable. But with what we are willing to pay and the fact that a coach could go 8-4 here, win a few conference championships, and never get fired - this job is not that bad anymore I don't think. Thoughts?

Stallion · Post by **Stallion** » Fri Nov 30, 2007 11:37 am

The reports I've seen is that Nebraska is not interested in Johnson and will choose between Gill, Pellini nd Grobe

EastStang · Post by **EastStang** » Fri Nov 30, 2007 11:44 am

The bloom may be off the rose for recruits at Nebraska. It is in the Big XII north, not the south, and the Nebraska HS system isn't cranking out players it used to. With other choices out there, they haven't been getting the recruits they used to get.

mrydel · Post by **mrydel** » Fri Nov 30, 2007 11:46 am

Stallion wrote:The reports I've seen is that Nebraska is not interested in Johnson and will choose between Gill, Pellini nd Grobe

I heard a report that said Pellini does not interview well and really made a poor impression at Nebraska.

LakeHighlandsPony · Post by **LakeHighlandsPony** » Fri Nov 30, 2007 1:08 pm

mrydel wrote:
Stallion wrote:The reports I've seen is that Nebraska is not interested in Johnson and will choose between Gill, Pellini nd Grobe

I heard a report that said Pellini does not interview well and really made a poor impression at Nebraska.

That must be true because he has been up for several jobs and never seems to land them despite having great credentials.