It's decision time right now over at the University of Washington. Dr. Mark Emmert has heard all the input he needs to make a decision about Husky football. The word on the street is he is being pushed hard to make a change, but there is also a smaller contingent of major boosters who still want to retain Ty who have been just as vocal.
Most of the urgency has to do with local favorite Jim Mora Jr.. I think most people would be content giving Ty another year if the heir apparent wasn't sitting over there in Kirkland ready to go. Jerry Brewer and other make a good point in questioning whether Mora has what it takes to be a great coach, let alone a better college coach than Willingham is at this point.
I think it comes down to more than simply coaching. I think what really matters is how the program is perceived. I think Ty has done an absolute lousy job at promoting the program at a critical juncture. I feel he has alienated fans, boosters, and the media which isn't the right tack to take when you are trying to raise $400 million to redo Husky Stadium.
I think Mora, or Peterson have what it takes to rally all the Husky fans together to make great things happen. I don't think Ty has the ability, or the urgency to do that, and that is why I think a change would be a good thing.
A good friend asked me in Hawaii if I thought Ty would be a better coach next year even if he landed a top ten recruiting class? The answer of course is no because the man is very resistant to change. I personally would be very surprised if he makes any changes to the coaching staff even if he is retained. I like Ty, but he hasn't shown me enough to prove to me that he is the guy we need to take it to the next level.
I will say this, Ty is doing the one thing right now he needs to and that is recruiting well. Washington is headed towards their most successful recruiting year since the early days of Neuheisel. Personally I think this current class may finish as being the strongest since the early 1990's. One point that the anti Ty contingent was making is that we were going to lose all the top in state recruits this year, but that hasn't happened. You have to hand it to the staff for bringing in a highly rated class. Expect Ta'amu, and Thompson to commit very soon which would for all intents and purposes show that Ty was successful putting a fence around the state this year.
It is decision time, and we should know within the next twenty four hours which way the UW administration is going to go....stay tuned.
Fogerson
Johri Fogerson from O'Dea was the last Washington kid offered and he may be looking to go elsewhere because he feels he was snubbed early in the process by the UW staff. Anyone who saw Fogerson in the championship game has to admit this kid has some talent, but it seems to me that he could be a step slow like JR Hasty when it comes to playing TB. Only time will tell on that one, but a good friend who is very knowledgeable in the HS game feel that Fogerson could be the real deal.
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6 comments:
If Ty has done such a lousy job of promoting the program why are we having such a stellar recruiting year?
The major drag on the program has been a declining ability to lasso in-state bluechippers. That started under Neuheisel.
This year, for the first time in a while, we're getting the lion's share of them.
Read what the coach at Lakes High says about the competitiveness and recruiting methods of Willingham and his coaches. Nothing but praise for them, and this from someone who has seen a lot of Huskies coaches.
Read what Roy Lewis said this weekend about the current staff.
'A complete 180' from when he got there in 2004.
For the record: Jim Mora Jr. did not say that coaching the Huskies was his dream job. He said that saying the Huskies was his dream job was 'a joke.'
Very funny. I'm sorry but that's an awfully slender reed to hang your hopes on.
Stick with Ty. And if you don't, go the WAC coference or the MAC and find some good up and coming young college coach with recruiting zeal and some kind of collegiate track record. Like Don James. Jim Mora is just asking for another Charlie Weis.
I think the relationship with the media and the fan base has been a big problem.
I am glad the Lakes kids are coming here, but the truth is they were coming here no matter who the coaches were. Middleton said he made his mind up two years ago to stay home, and close to family.
I don't think any of us know if Mora is the right guy, but we all have a pretty good idea that Ty isn't a great game day coach.
JohnB, it seems Ty cant win as far as recuitniks go. They criticize him for signing/competing against Idaho st and Wac schools but also get torqued when he doesn't pull the trigger on guys like Fogerson. I think he has done what most coaches do, and thats evaluate the plan 1B kids during their Sr year and then offer them after further study and maybe some 1A guys decide on elsewhere. So as far as recruiting goes, he has done well, now if he could only lighten up and be in the public eye like he is in private.
"I think the relationship with the media and the fan base has been a big problem.
I am glad the Lakes kids are coming here, but the truth is they were coming here no matter who the coaches were. Middleton said he made his mind up two years ago to stay home, and close to family."
Ty was the coach who made the offer to Middleton 2 years ago. I don't think it is at all established that the Lakes recruits were headed to the UW anyway. Kearse said he made up his mind the night before he announced.
Recruiting is a major issue. I reviewed the last several years of recruits and didn't see this quantity of quality or of in-state blue chippers. The recruits' form their relationships with coaches. We're now thinking of raiding UCLA (now that Dorrell's gone.)
Half of Ty's 2004 class at Notre Dame transferred after his firing. Why do we think these kids will stay committed if Ty's fired?
Two final points: First, will the media and fan base suit up if a new coach tanks and the recruits transfer? I didn't think so. Second, where does it end? The next guy will be inherit a bad situation, struggle, get fired after three years; then his successor, then his successor. For all you Saban lovers, remember that LSU fans were at first horrified at his appointment. They wanted an SEC guy, one of their own, not an uptight Don James disciple from Ohio. Now they like it. But he couldn't "connect" with them either, lacked flash, sizzle, what have you.
Looks like everyone's vented out. I'm not happy either but that's the hand we as fans have been dealt. I'll always be a Husky fan and I hope TW gets it together so I might one day want to watch them play in person again.
This move, or lack of a move, has obviously alienated quite a large section of the fanbase and it will be interesting to see if the threatened backlash comes to fruition.
How much of this do you think is a matter of someone changing the guard with respect to pseudo-control and access to the program? Is that a good or bad thing? Next year should be even more interesting and if it's again unsuccessful a lot of people will be crawling back out of the woodwork to be heard again. I don't feel anyone can just "quit" the Huskies.
ABG...We have done a great job in state this year, but except for Noble all the guys we have gotten out of California are of the Plan B variety. We didn't go head to head with USC,UCLA,Cal,and Oregon down there.
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