Thursday Evening Update

Just got back from a business trip to Monterrey Mexico. It's pretty hard to keep up with things when you are out from the crack of dawn until later in the night at dinners, etc - and you're in Mexico. Unfortunately I missed the GT / Indiana hoops game, but I did record it and will watch it this weekend.

In the meantime, let's do an update on some coaching rumors. By the way, you watch the D-Rad press conference of Coach Gailey's firing:

CHRIS HATCHER
He was in the ATL for another function but denies he was contacted by GT. Of course that doesn't mean his agent didn't talk to someone - or that he made first contact. My guess is that it's safe to say Hatcher is in the mix.

JIMBO FISHER
Was in the ATL this week, although he claims he was there for recruiting. He said he wasn't at GT at all - but he didn't way he wasn't contacted by GT people. In the meantime, FSU is working on re-doing his contract, but won't say a lot about what could be in it - like a guarantee that he'll take over for Bowden when he sails into the sunset. Of course don't forget that if Les Miles goes to Michigan, Fisher could be a serious candidate for the LSU job.

RANDY EDSELL
Jim Donnan on 680thefan reported that one of the ESPN people saw Edsell on a plane headed to Atlanta today and it sounds like he's probably going to be interviewed Friday.

Here is an interview with Edsell (1:25 mark) a couple of weeks ago. Gives you an idea of how he carries himself.



Why he should get the job: Very professional, spent a year at GT so he understands how to sell Tech, almost got UConn to a BCS game and built the program after Skip Holtz brought it out of the ashes. The one year he was DC at GT we had an record number of defensive touchdowns - flash in the pan?
Why he should NOT get the job: Solid but is he the "flashy" guy D-Rad wants, does he have the fire, is he a solid recruiter, spent a lot of time in the North so probably has weak southern recruiting ties, does he have a high upside?

PAUL JOHNSON
Not saying much and there is no indication that he's been contacted. Of course they have a game to win against Army this weekend. If there's going to be contact, maybe D-Rad is waiting until it's over.

CHARLIE STRONG
Reportedly has been interviewed this week. No word on that.

WILL MUSCHAMP
Reportedly has been interviewed. Don't forget his ties with D-Rad from LSU.

Here's an article about WM with some quotes from Saban.

Evidently Will is VERY energetic when it comes to game day. For proof check out this video of Muschamp as a pumped up, profanity laced coach - right on live TV.

WARNING - EXTREME LANGUAGE


To be fair, here's video of Muschamp in an interview to give you a flavor of his "swagger" and how he carries himself.



RICK NEUHEISEL
The rumor yesterday was that Neuheisel wanted the GT job and he was being aggressive in trying to get it. Evidently the rumor is absolutely true. Jim Donnan was talking about it on 680thefan today and said he had an impressive staff already in place should he get the job.

Evidently Rick's boss, Baltimore Ravens head coach Brian Billick, is quite eager to get rid of him. How else can you explain the quotes in this article - just dripping with sappiness and excuse making for the fact that the Ravens offense is in the bottom third in the NFL. I know guys support their assistants getting head coaching jobs, but he sure seems to go overboard selling his guy.

"Was I trying to be creative? Yes. Was I trying to be aggressive as a young
33-year old head coach trying to make it in a world that is extremely
competitive? Was I out there trying to win favor, and so forth? There is no
question. Nearly all of these issues could have been avoided had I checked, and
more importantly, probably double-checked with the compliance officer at the
University of Colorado," Neuheisel said in the report.

Here's a wikipedia entry for those curious about his background.

Lastly, you really should read this article about Rick and his history. He may have had his ah-hah moment since then, but there should be some serious questions asked about this guy.

Why he should get the job: Big name, energetic, collegiate head coach & winner, NFL experience
Why he should NOT get the job: Unethical reputation, recruiting violations at Colorado which led to probation, fired from Washington after "gambling" charge - although he sued the school and won after proving someone had authorized participation in an NCAA tourney pool (albiet he had winnings of $12,000). He won at Colorado and Washington - however, he tended to win early in his tenure then tail off. Never staying in one place long enough to get a feel for building a long-term program.

JON TENUTA
No rumor necessary here. His audition is the next month. He IS the head coach now, which should give him more opportunity than anyone. He has already begun opening up to the media with rounds on the ATL radio stations.

Why he should get the job: Defensive master, knows GT better than ANY candidate, understands our unique challenge, kids love him, paid his dues
Why he should NOT get the job: Not historically a media friendly guy, reputation as a gruff personality, not a strong reputation as a guy who likes to recruit.