Who has failed with PJ's credentials?

M

mem

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I've read a lot of negative/"not sure" comments about Johnson and his past experience, which got me thinking: who is a good example of someone who had pretty much the same credentials as Johnson who failed on the big stage? First off, I'm not saying there's not anyone (I'm sure there are tons) - my brain just hurts too much to come up with anyone at this point.

And by credentials - don't give me Gailey or somebody else with 1 D-II national championship. Johnson has 2 national titles as the HC, two more as OC, both at 1-AA which is a step up from D-II. He has also turned an 0-11 team into a perennial 8+ game winner at Navy and is regarded by some as an innovative offensive mind.

Anybody see anybody else in the past that had a similar background and failed? Just curious...
 
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Jim Donnan is an example of a guy who was extremely successful at I-AA including a national title, but didn't cut it at the I-A level. I'm sure there are others - it's a tough job.
 
Jim Donnan failed. Jim Tressel has had big success. I'm not familiar with the other names on this list of 1-AA champion coaches. I'm afraid there is no simple litmus test to apply.

Probably a better indicator is the quality of the person doing the hiring. My experience has taught me that hiring and interviewing is a definite skill which is frequently not held by those in the positions to do the hiring. Unfortunately, DRad is still a green AD who has yet to prove himself with a major hire. So, we'll see.

Year​
Championship Result​
Winning Coach​
1978 Florida A&M 35, Massachusetts 28 Rudy Hubbard 1979 Eastern Kentucky 30, Lehigh 7 Roy Kidd
1980 Boise State 31, Eastern Kentucky 29 Jim Criner 1981 Idaho State 34, Eastern Kentucky 23 Dave Kragthorpe
1982 Eastern Kentucky 17, Delaware 14 Roy Kidd
1983 Southern Illinois 43, Western Carolina 7 Rey Dempsey
1984 Montana State 19, Louisiana Tech 6 Dave Arnold 1985 Georgia Southern 44, Furman 42 Erk Russell
1986 Georgia Southern 48, Arkansas State 21 Erk Russell
1987 Northeast Louisiana 43, Marshall 42 Pat Collins 1988 Furman 17, Georgia Southern 12 Jimmy Satterfield
1989 Georgia Southern 37, Stephen F. Austin 34 Erk Russell
1990 Georgia Southern 36, Nevada 13 Tim Stowers 1991 Youngstown State 25, Marshall 17 Jim Tressel 1992 Marshall 31, Youngstown State 28 Jim Donnan 1993 Youngstown State 17, Marshall 5 Jim Tressel 1994 Youngstown State 28, Boise State 14 Jim Tressel 1995 Montana 22, Marshall 20 Don Read
1996 Marshall 49, Montana 29 Bob Pruett
1997 Youngstown State 10, McNeese State 9 Jim Tressel
1998 Massachusetts 55, Georgia Southern 43 Mark Whipple
1999 Georgia Southern 59, Youngstown State 24 Paul Johnson
2000 Georgia Southern 27, Montana 25 Paul Johnson 2001 Montana 13, Furman 6 Joe Glenn
2002 Western Kentucky 34, McNeese State 14 Jack Harbaugh
2003 Delaware 40, Colgate 0 K.C. Keeler
2004 James Madison 31, Montana 21 Mickey Matthews 2005 Appalachian St 21, Northern Iowa 16 Jerry Moore 2006 Appalachian St. 28, Massachusetts 17 Jerry Moore
 
Forgot about Donnan, but his resume was pretty much generated from Marshall only, if I remember correctly. Johnson at least had success at two different stops.

And I don't mind a comparison with somebody with D-II national titles, I just didn't want somebody with only a SINGLE title b/c Johnson has done more than that.

And I would have to agree with you txsting that there's probably not a real good "apples-to-apples" example - that's why I got curious to begin with.
 
This guy has done it in the opposite direction....

Jerry Moore, HC at Appy State.

1979-1980 he was 11-11 at North Texas State
1981-1985 he was 16-37-2 at Texas Tech and fired
1989-present he is 165-70 at Appy State.

Maybe the comparison is not fair because Jerry has probably learned more and gotten better as he got older.

BTW, I taught AFROTC at NTSU when he was there. He was a good guy and funny, too. It is nice to see his success.

Now, having picked out someone with somewhat similar creds as PJ that did not fare well in D-1, I must say that my two favorites for the job are PJ and Hatcher - either one of which I will be happy with. But "happy" or not at the end of the search, I will support our coach.
 
Donnan did actually go 40-19 I think at UGA. That's pretty good, except for the fact he couldn't beat his rivals.
 
mm42 said:
Jim Donnan is an example of a guy who was extremely successful at I-AA including a national title, but didn't cut it at the I-A level. I'm sure there are others - it's a tough job.
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Dont know that 40 wins 19 losses is failing, 3iar to gt sent him packing
 
Dont know that 40 wins 19 losses is failing, 3iar to gt sent him packing
Click to expand...

40-19 is not failure. 3IAR didn't get him fired either, loss of control of the athletes, Quincy doing drugs as an example, got him fired before the whole thing came crashing down.
 
What's amazing is that Tressel and Donnan played each other for the championship three straight years, and that Donnan had his team in the championship game four straight years. Both were good hires, even if the doggies ended up with a better hire the next time around. They could've ended up with Glen Mason, which would've been a lateral move for sure.
 
Bill Lewis had good credentials and failed.

In announcing Lewis as Tech's head football coach, AD Homer Rice said, "Although I have known Bill for many years and have admired his work on and off the field, I did more research on his 29-year career than anyone I've ever been associated with. He has an impeccable background of integrity. He is a family man of high principles. He received only the highest marks from his peers.

President John P. Crecine issued the following statement prior to the press conference. "In filling any major position at Georgia Tech, I look for the person who can best lead Georgia Tech and the programs for which they are responsible into the next century, while building on the best of Georgia Tech's rich traditions.

In his most successful head coaching position, Bill Lewis lead the East Carolina Pirates, NCAA Division I-A, to an 11-1 record and a Peach Bowl victory over North Carolina State.

The program had not had a winning season since 1983 before Lewis came there. Lewis served as head coach at East Carolina for three seasons (1989-91) before departing for Georgia Tech. The 1991 Pirates finished the season with their highest national ranking (#9 AP Poll) and Lewis received 1991 National Coach-of-the-Year honors from the American Football Coaches Association, United Press International and Scripps-Howard.

Bill Lewis assumed the head coaching position at Georgia Tech in 1991 following Bobby Ross's departure to coach the NFL's San Diego Chargers.

Lewis held the position from 1992 until midway through the 1994 season; he resigned (though some reports say he was effectively fired) after a 1-7 start and was replaced by Tech defensive coordinator George O'Leary, who coached the final three games of the season, all losses.

Lewis finished his tenure at Georgia Tech with an overall record of 11-19 (.367).
 
Whew. That's some serious smelling salts to this whole hiring process.
 
Bill Lewis was a lifetime position coach who somehow got the East Carolina job and struck gold with a good OC and QB. I know a non-Tech fan whose son was recruited by him and he still thought very highly of him after the recruiting process. He apparently did a very good job interviewing and throwing Homer Rice for a loop.
 
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