Todd Graham just fired Pitt

[zls44]

Last one! I swear!

 

[RS9999X]

Sadly, Randy is the gold standard for classless departures.

>> Graham took a sledgehammer to Pitt football in every way imaginable, gutting the true essence of what this program represented. He was flashy. Self-absorbed. Concerned for his own advancement. When his high-octane offense looked as exciting as a jalopy riding in a NASCAR race, he blamed his players -- not himself.

And when his first opportunity came to bolt, he did, taking a page out of the Randy Edsall Book of Class to deliver the message to his players via text message. Graham lasted less than a year at Pitt, compiling a 6-6 record after setting preseason expectations so high, the Panthers were picked to finish second in the conference.

The Graham way indeed.

The disaster started before Graham, of course, when athletic director Steve Pederson decided to fire coach Dave Wannstedt

http://espn.go.com/blog/ncfnation/tag/_/name/todd-graham-to-asu

 

[Jimmy Serrano]

In all seriousness, can you imagine as a parent of a recruit letting this guy into your living room for a visit? I wouldn't let him walk on my front lawn.

 

[J187Money]

No, obviously, he didn't. But at least he had the decency to call someone with a speakerphone.

As a side point. I'd love to get the history of all of the Boneyarders job changes along with the surrounding circumstances. I'm sure that lots of those that scream and yell aren't lifers at their jobs.


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I am here: http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=40.853273,-73.896223

 

[MilliniumPrince]

So in a 13 month span Pitt fired the most gun-ho Pitt guy in the field...The Stache because of his un-matched ability to snatch defeat from the all but clinched jaws of victory. They then hire up and coming Mike Haywood who scares the living crap out of the players by demanding a higher level of responsibility and accountability (as he should have). He then promptly gets fired for beating the mother of his child. Then DH a.k.a. Mr High Octane swoops in to save the day...for a season...in which the team went 6-6...then quickly exits stage left to take the head job at the power-house that is Arizona State.

WOW!! Simply wow......

 

[zls44]

As a side point. I'd love to get the history of all of the Boneyarders job changes along with the surrounding circumstances. I'm sure that lots of those that scream and yell aren't lifers at their jobs.

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I am here: http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=40.853273,-73.896223

One job, out of college, 5 years, never thought of leaving. Wanna try again?

 

[gars44]

So in a 13 month span Pitt fired the most gun-ho Pitt guy in the field...The Stache because of his un-matched ability to snatch defeat from the all but clinched jaws of victory. They then hire up and coming Mike Haywood who scares the living crap out of the players by demanding a higher level of responsibility and accountability (as he should have). He then promptly gets fired for beating the mother of his child. Then DH a.k.a. Mr High Octane swoops in to save the day...for a season...in which the team went 6-6...then quickly exits stage left to take the head job at the power-house that is Arizona State.

WOW!! Simply wow......

Just Pittiful for all the little pitties who joyfully did the same thing to the BE. Have fun in the ACC. They're still Pitt, can't change that. Pitt sucks. Now they're all outraged at how classless TG is.

 

[gars44]

Sadly, Randy is the gold standard for classless departures.

>> Graham took a sledgehammer to Pitt football in every way imaginable, gutting the true essence of what this program represented. He was flashy. Self-absorbed. Concerned for his own advancement. When his high-octane offense looked as exciting as a jalopy riding in a NASCAR race, he blamed his players -- not himself.

And when his first opportunity came to bolt, he did, taking a page out of the Randy Edsall Book of Class to deliver the message to his players via text message. Graham lasted less than a year at Pitt, compiling a 6-6 record after setting preseason expectations so high, the Panthers were picked to finish second in the conference.

The Graham way indeed.

The disaster started before Graham, of course, when athletic director Steve Pederson decided to fire coach Dave Wannstedt

http://espn.go.com/blog/ncfnation/tag/_/name/todd-graham-to-asu

Actually, his offense looked pretty high octane against us this year.

 

[UCDaveD]

 

[jpm25]

As a side point. I'd love to get the history of all of the Boneyarders job changes along with the surrounding circumstances. I'm sure that lots of those that scream and yell aren't lifers at their jobs.


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I am here: http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=40.853273,-73.896223

To me, it's not IF you leave, it's HOW you leave

 

[TouchdownHusky]

The end of your season. Including bowl game if you're playing in one.

And therein lies the first problem. Teams not making a bowl game and committed to making a coaching change are anxious to get the new guy on board ASAP. It's a big part of the "marketing" regarding the program's new direction, "new hope", new "breaktroughs" in recruiting efforts.

If the target of that affection is coaching at a program going to a bowl game, that slows the process for the school looking to make the hire. They stand to lose anywhere from 3-5 weeks of "recruiting", alumni contacts,etc. Understandibly they are reluctant to wait.

And then there's the program going to a bowl game, who is faced with losing its coach. Understandibly, they don't want the distraction of a coaching taking on a new job and they want their team coached by "one of their own".

The resultant? Either the new school/new coach announces early and disrupts the "just deserts" of the bowl bound "jilted lover". Or . . . you get the Randy Edsall, have your "cake and eat it to" approach and gladly suffer the "outrage and name calling" of your former fanbase.

Solution? One date for all schools - those bowl bound, those done at the end of their regular season. Have a set date (Jan 15th or some such date) when it is open season on coaching changes. Move the signing dates to a different time frame so the lateness in putting coaches in place doesn't handicap their recruiting.

 

[Jarhead_1775]

And therein lies the first problem. Teams not making a bowl game and committed to making a coaching change are anxious to get the new guy on board ASAP. It's a big part of the "marketing" regarding the program's new direction, "new hope", new "breaktroughs" in recruiting efforts.

If the target of that affection is coaching at a program going to a bowl game, that slows the process for the school looking to make the hire. They stand to lose anywhere from 3-5 weeks of "recruiting", alumni contacts,etc. Understandibly they are reluctant to wait.

And then there's the program going to a bowl game, who is faced with losing its coach. Understandibly, they don't want the distraction of a coaching taking on a new job and they want their team coached by "one of their own".

The resultant? Either the new school/new coach announces early and disrupts the "just deserts" of the bowl bound "jilted lover". Or . . . you get the Randy Edsall, have your "cake and eat it to" approach and gladly suffer the "outrage and name calling" of your former fanbase.

Solution? One date for all schools - those bowl bound, those done at the end of their regular season. Have a set date (Jan 15th or some such date) when it is open season on coaching changes. Move the signing dates to a different time frame so the lateness in putting coaches in place doesn't handicap their recruiting.

No one at the NCAA will go for this. It makes sense.

 

[Santini35]

Or you can be Ohio State and get to have 2 coaching staffs at once.....

 

[ctchamps]

No one at the NCAA will go for this. It makes sense.

I was going to write the same thing.

 

[Waquoit]

Graham just got raked over the coals on Around The Horn. Funny bit at the end when Reali asked why this was any different than any other coach ever. Bomani Jones implied that it was worse: "No, this was Randy Edsall!"

(Too bad he mispronounced ED -sol)

 

[HuskyNan]

Whipple to Pitt?

Graham got the AZ State job over Whipple

 

[J187Money]

One job, out of college, 5 years, never thought of leaving. Wanna try again?

Ahh...the sample size of one.


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I am here: http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=40.840737,-73.903236

 

[J187Money]

To me, it's not IF you leave, it's HOW you leave

Fair point. But you can't always control that. And the only people you really need to worry about is your family because nobody else will be there for you if it goes bad.


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I am here: http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=40.869569,-73.878117

 

[zls44]

Fair point. But you can't always control that.

But Edsall and Graham could have. But they chose not to. They behaved as reprehensible men and deserve to be called out on the carpet for it.

They didn't leave for any once in a farking lifetime jobs. They left for Maryland and Arizona State.

duckk outta here.

 

[J187Money]

But Edsall and Graham could have. But they chose not to. They behaved as reprehensible men and deserve to be called out on the carpet for it.

They didn't leave for any once in a farking lifetime jobs. They left for Maryland and Arizona State.

duckk outta here.

Probably. But we weren't in the room. We don't know what kind of pressure that might have been applied.

And of course it is more important to be good to your new employer than the old one.


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I am here: http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=41.046984,-73.541473

 

[zls44]

Probably. But we weren't in the room. We don't know what kind of pressure that might have been applied.

Were Todd Graham or Randy Edsall in any danger whatsoever of being fired from their current jobs? They had all the leverage.

 

[J187Money]

Were Todd Graham or Randy Edsall in any danger whatsoever of being fired from their current jobs? They had all the leverage.

If they wanted the new opportunity more than the current opportunity they did not, in that regard.


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I am here: http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=41.200953,-73.121212

 

[jpm25]

Fair point. But you can't always control that. And the only people you really need to worry about is your family because nobody else will be there for you if it goes bad.


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I am here: http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=40.869569,-73.878117

There really is no excuse for not doing the right thing.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

I personally think Graham made the right move, but not because ASU is that great a job. I think if he had another year like this one, he would be history at Pitt. Pitt was the wrong program for him, and he was not going to survive the transition from Pitt's pro-style offense and standard 4-3 defense to the spread and whatever the hell he called the pretend defense he was trying to implement. Wanny's game coaching problems were overstated, and he didn't have losses like the Iowa game this year.

If Graham didn't leave this year, he was never going to leave. I am sure ASU fans, or at least the semi-intelligent ones, are scratching their head as to why ASU fired a proven guy with a National Championship to bring in Todd Graham.

 

[FDNY99]

I don't think Edsall or Grahm would look any different in the court of public opinion if they had left for Maryland and Arizona State or Penn State and Ohio State. Only difference between the two of them (and it isn't much) is Edsall at least talked to his former team via phone.

But Edsall and Graham could have. But they chose not to. They behaved as reprehensible men and deserve to be called out on the carpet for it.

They didn't leave for any once in a farking lifetime jobs. They left for Maryland and Arizona State.

duckk outta here.