Got a close buddy with Miami ties

[GEETEELEE]

It was a bad hire in 20-20 hindsight, but at the time, hiring the National Coach of the Year in D-1 football when we'd just been dumped for the NFL seemed like a good idea to AD Homer Rice & a lot of other people at the time. Everything else is eyewash.

My post was in response to him being a former GT & UGA assistant coach, not to any of the venom you're spewing. No one, repeat, no one, is relitigating any thing or any one. He was a good guy & a good assistant coach who couldn't handle the HC position he was handed. But neither could Carson, Fulcher, Rodgers, or Curry, all of whom seemed liked good choices at the time. I knew Bill from my time as a player at GT, which BTW, you most certainly were not or else you'd have a very different perspective.

I was excited about hiring BL; his sales pitch to Homer was his contacts throughout the state, and to be fair he recruited some quality talent. However, more scrutiny should have been given to his record and not just focused on his one exceptional season. This should serve as a warning about hiring the hot name dujour.

Another minor quibble, Curry did not seem like a good choice at the time. He had zero head coaching experience and no college coaching experience at all. However, he did develop into a pretty good coach, well able to handle a HC position.

 

[CornerBlitz]

He was also a former GT assistant, very well liked by GT players of that era - including me - on both sides of the ball.

Things certainly went south in a lot of ways after the "Charlie Ward wins the Heisman/OnsideKickNonRecoveryThatReallyWasARecovery" FSU game, and that's all that matters. I get it.

But as the 1991 National Coach of the Year, he was considered by many the best available when Boss Ross bolted for the NFL after the 1991 GT season.

Bottom line: It's always a crapshoot.

Not a head coach or leader of men. Had 1 good season at ECU. Let’s not bring up again...ever.

 

[18in32]

This should serve as a warning about hiring the hot name dujour.

+1

I just hope the institutional memory is deep enough.

 

[AugustaJacket]

 

[User 8976]

50 shades of ghey

 

[GTRules]

John Dewberry takes exception to your "always a dwag" statement

So does GTRules.

 

[GTRules]

My only question is would he still do Ford f150 commercials or would he have to switch to bmw

No self-respecting GT man would ever drive a cheap-ass half ton truck.

 

[aeromech]

That seems unlikely to me. Both O'Leary and Friedgen were position coaches under Ross in San Diego. O'Leary left the pros to come back to be GT's DC, and Friedgen left the pros to come back to be GT's OC. I think either of them would've seriously considered staying and serving as coordinator for the other.

O'Leary came back to be the HC not just the DC, as GT"s power brokers already had the pitchforks out for B*** L*****. Friedgen came back because his NFL ride was heading over a cliff.

 

[JJacket]

No self-respecting GT man would ever drive a cheap-ass half ton truck.

My dad recently got a Ford F150 and I got his Dodge Ram from him. I let him know that if he ever needs me to haul anything for him or perhaps hook up a tow rope to get him home to let me know.

 

[Diseqc]

My dad recently got a Ford F150 and I got his Dodge Ram from him. I let him know that if he ever needs me to haul anything for him or perhaps hook up a tow rope to get him home to let me know.

CSB

 

[gt2690b]

No self-respecting GT man would ever drive a cheap-ass half ton truck.

Wait what are we supposed to drive then?

 

[DressCheeseSideSeaboard]

Wait what are we supposed to drive then?

3/4 ton if you 80k.

 

[cincyjacket]

3/4 ton if you 80k.

1 ton or bust

 

[saxondawg]

Half the running backs in the NFL right now played for Richt at UGA. Recruiting has not been the reason for UGA losses in about 20 years.

Running backs are nice. But so are offensive linemen, defensive linemen, linebackers, defensive backs. Check the record and you'll find that our recruiting was good as a total, but there were always crucial absences of top-level talent. Which is why Richt rarely beat the best teams.

 

[saxondawg]

TBD that Smart is better than Richt, he might just be on the Freeze train

Keep hoping.

 

[THWG247]

" failed coach at miami"? What universe are you in?

Do you consider what he’s accomplished so far at Miami to be a success? IF he went to GT he would be playing a tougher schedule but with a lot less talent, how do you think that would work out?

 

[flushed 01]

" failed coach at miami"? What universe are you in?

I was wondering the same thing, he is proven. Kirby may be good but, he may never average over 9 wins a season as Richt did

 

[LongforDodd]

The last head coach we hired that was a former UGA coach worked out so well.

I thought you were talking about McWhorter (if only for a bowl game) but I appear to be wrong.

 

[gt2690b]

I was wondering the same thing, he is proven. Kirby may be good but, he may never average over 9 wins a season as Richt did

they had 13 wins last season and likely will have over 10 this season.. gonna take some pretty bad years in a crappy conference to not average 9 wins over the next few years

 

[GoGATech]

they had 13 wins last season and likely will have over 10 this season.. gonna take some pretty bad years in a crappy conference to not average 9 wins over the next few years

I have faith.