Must read Joe Dean comments; Tedford, Ferentz not interested; Miles $1 million buyout

Originally published December 30, 2004
Dean: Difficult search ahead for LSU
Former AD feels big-time coach won't take job
By Glenn Guilbeau
Gannett News Service
ORLANDO, Fla. — Where have you gone, Mark Emmert?

The former LSU chancellor who hired Nick Saban five years ago — practically pulling the Michigan State coach out of a hat and setting the market for college football coaching salaries — may be needed for the school's current search. But Emmert left over the summer to become the president at the University of Washington.

LSU athletics director Skip Bertman is leading the current expedition in light of Saban announcing he will leave LSU to coach the Miami Dolphins after Saturday's Capital One Bowl here between LSU and Iowa.

"This is the golden era of LSU sports," Bertman said last month. "Everyone wants to coach here in all the sports. Everyone wants to be at LSU now."

On Sunday, LSU Board of Supervisors chairman Stewart Slack said, "I think LSU's the No. 1 coaching job in college football."

Apparently not, if the early public portion of the search is any indication.

"I think they're struggling," said former LSU athletics director Joe Dean, who played a supporting role in landing Saban and who now runs his own search firm with former Dallas Cowboys personnel expert Gil Brandt.

"Even as successful as LSU has been and as attractive a job as it is, it's very difficult to lure a successful coach from a big school," Dean said in a telephone interview.

LSU, which hired a search firm out of Boulder, Colo., operated by former College Football Association chairman and former Big Eight commissioner Chuck Neinas, has confirmed only that it has spoken to two coaches.

LSU says it interviewed Bobby Petrino, a well-traveled, two-year head coach at mid-major Louisville of the non-BCS Conference USA. Petrino reportedly turned down Notre Dame and Ole Miss in recent weeks. Last year Petrino allowed Auburn to secretly interview him while Tommy Tuberville, whom Petrino worked for in 2002, was still the coach.

LSU has also said it spoke briefly with Houston Nutt, who was 5-6 at Arkansas last season and whose program featured 26 player arrests from 1999 through 2003, including nine that were alcohol related and one that involved the sale of large amounts of marijuana and weapons possession. When another Southeastern Conference coach kicked a player off of his team in 2002 for a marijuana-related offense, he said he didn't want his team to turn into "another Arkansas."

Nutt, who turned down Nebraska last season after six straight winning regular seasons at Arkansas, told LSU he would be interested if it offered the job, but he didn't want to go through the interview process. LSU, which made Saban the No. 1 paid college coach in America last year at $2.3 million a year, has not offered the job to anyone.

"I spoke briefly with LSU officials about the situation," Nutt said Wednesday. "At this time, I am very happy at the University of Arkansas. I plan on being the coach here for a very long time."

Dean said the Neinas firm is an excellent one and that LSU used it in 1999, but it has its work cut out for it.

"I don't mean to sound against LSU in any way, but you'd have to say that Louisville, where Petrino is coaching, is down a notch from the SEC," Dean said. "I've also heard LSU may be looking at the Oklahoma State coach, Les Miles. Oklahoma State is in the lower half of the Big 12."

Dean's search firm, which helped Mississippi State hire Sylvester Croom from an assistant's job with the Green Bay Packers last season, has had its own problems. It struggled mightily along with Ole Miss recently before hiring USC assistant Ed Orgeron. That hire came with baggage as Orgeron was fired from the Miami Hurricanes in the early 1990s in the aftermath of a charge that he head-butted a man in a Baton Rouge bar. There were also repeated charges against Orgeron of domestic violence while a Hurricanes' assistant.

"All searches are very difficult," said Dean, who brought Curley Hallman and Gerry DiNardo to LSU. Hallman was a hot name at Southern Mississippi in 1991 and highly recommended by Brandt, who told Dean to "hire Curley Hallman and don't look back."

Hallman did not move the program forward as he went 16-28 without a winning season in four years. DiNardo came from Vanderbilt and won his first three years, but he plummeted and was fired in 1999.

LSU is an extraordinarily stronger program now than it was during searches in 1986 when it promoted assistant coach Mike Archer, in 1991 when Hallman was hired, in 1995 when DiNardo got the job and in 1999 when Saban came on. LSU won the national championship last season, its facilities are among the best in the nation, the second stadium expansion this decade is under construction and it returns most of a 9-2 team that features members of the nation's No. 1 ranked recruiting classes of recent years. There's also a brand new football-only facility set to be done in July for the new coach.

"Go and call Mark Richt at Georgia," Dean said. "You're not going to get him. You're not going to get Bob Stoops from Oklahoma. You're not going to get the California coach. Because those schools will match anything you offer them."

Preliminary work by the Neinas search firm advised LSU that it would be wasting its time if it went after California coach Jeff Tedford, Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz or Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops because if those coaches leave it would likely only be for an NFL job.

"You have to take a chance," Dean said. "We got lucky in 1999. Nick Saban called us."

Dean recommended someone whom LSU at the moment has no plans to look into — former Colorado and Washington coach Rick Neuheisel. Neuheisel won at both Colorado and Washington, but he was fired at Washington after it was discovered he bet a large amount of money on an NCAA basketball tournament office pool.

"He has some baggage," Dean said. "But so does Nutt."


Originally published December 30, 2004

Thursday, December 30, 2004
By Mike Triplett
ORLANDO, FLA. -- Arkansas coach Houston Nutt removed himself from consideration for LSU's head coaching vacancy Wednesday, leaving Oklahoma State coach Les Miles and Louisville coach Bobby Petrino as the early front-runners for the job.

LSU is expected to contact at least one or two more potential candidates, including Jacksonville Jaguars coach Jack Del Rio. A source said that LSU officials were planning to speak with Del Rio before the end of the week and wanted to know why he'd be willing to leave Jacksonville.

Del Rio, 41, has not confirmed or denied interest in the LSU job, telling reporters this week, "I don't care to talk about it. I don't care to think about that kind of thing."

An LSU athletic department spokesman said the school has not offered the job to anyone.

Arkansas athletic director Frank Broyles confirmed that Nutt was not offered the LSU job.

But Miles' contract does include a buyout equal to "approximately one year's salary," roughly $1 million, according to Birdwell.

According to the Tulsa World, Miles' wife Kathy told someone close to the OSU program, " we're not going anywhere."

That leaves Petrino, 43, as the only confirmed candidate on LSU's list.

LSU may also consider speaking with interim Cleveland Browns coach Terry Robiskie and LSU offensive coordinator Jimbo Fisher, among others.

Despite getting off to a quick start, the Tigers' coaching search could last into next week.


CITY COUNCIL WEIGHS IN: A resolution introduced by New Orleans Council president Eddie Sapir and passed 6-0 by the council called on LSU officials "to give strong and serious consideration to Louisiana's own (ex-Grambling player/coach) Doug Williams in their search for LSU's next head football coach."
Sapir used to be Williams' adviser.


By Glenn Guilbeau
Louisiana Gannett News
ORLANDO, Fla. —The search firm headed by former College Football Association chairman Chuck Neinas that LSU has hired informed LSU recently that if Ferentz ever leaves Iowa it would likely be for an NFL job. Ferentz did hint at the fact, though, that there may be a ceiling at Iowa, which has gone 30-7 the last three years with an Orange Bowl, an Outback Bowl and a Capital One Bowl. There obviously isn't one at LSU.

Iowa does have an extremely loyal and strong fan base, and Ferentz loves living in Iowa City with his wife and five children. He also makes $1.5 million a year.

"It would take a helluva good reason to make me leave," Ferentz said.

LSU paid Saban $2.3 million a year last season.

 

Wow, alot of good info... the Neuhiesal thing sounds solid. But I still would like to see where Del Rio falls. Ferentz would just use LSU to boost his paycheck.

 

Joe Dean is pissed because his search firm wasn't used and he's pissed that he is no longer at LSU. He is not in the know anymore and anything he says should be taken with a huge grain of salt.

Don't look for anything to happen until the NFL regular season ends this weekend.

Neuheisal can coach and his transgression was not that shocking. I mean, C'mon. He bet in an office pool.

I still like Del Rio.

So Petrino coaches at a mid-major? So did Woody Hayes, Bo Schembechler, Ara Parseghian, Bear Bryant and Nick Saban.

 

So what would your 5 list be at the end of NFL regular season... mine would be:

1. Del Rio
2. Petrino
3. Robiskie
4. Miles (even with the blowout)
5. Fischer

If I were being unrealistic, it would be:

1. Ferentz
2. Tedford
3. Del Rio (because I still don't know how realistic this is)
4. Spurrier
5. Chow (just b/c I don't think this guy will ever be a HC)

DarkHorses:

1. Mike Riley
2. Rick Nueheusal
3. Jim Tressel
4. Dennis Erickson
5. Mike Belloti / Mike Price

 

dumbass joe dean

i dont guess he realizes that even great coaches..just cant start off at the top...at a major program. MSU was in the lower half of the big 10.

like in every profession...you have to start at the bottom and work your way up. there are good coaches out there coaching for the "lower half" teams.

for a head coach...Petrino is a young guy. he's paying his dues and moving up.

i am soooo very glad joe dean is gone.

 

The more I think about Robiskie, the more I warm up to him. He's got tons of NFL experience, he can obviously coach, he's got LSU in his blood and I suspect this would be his final stop, especially if he succeeds. Can he recruit? That's the question we don't know the answer to.

 

Yeah Joe and if Saban were here he wouldn't consider Georgia, Oklahoma, USC or any other school and vice versa.

 

If Del Rio left his HC position with Jax, to come to LSU as HC, I would think he would stay for a long time also. Would remind me of Pete Carroll going to USC after sucking in NY except for the simple fact the Del Rio didn't suck. I guarantee if LSU and Del Rio strike up a deal he will be here for a long time. The problem is what do we have that he wants. We can pay him more than he makes at Jax, but I have a feeling their owner will just come back over the top of us to a sum we can't match. So he may just be showing interest to get a nice bank roll from Jax. I just don't see what this guy would want with LSU when he has a good Jax team, that could make the play offs and soon could be a contender.

 

The kicker to me is the New freakin Orleans CITY COUNCIL, for God's sake, calling on us "to give strong and serious consideration" to Doug Williams. And what the hell is an "advisor"? Was Sapir his agent, or perhaps just a friend with two thoughts to rub together?

I've got no problem with considering black candidates, but Williams has a well documented history of using blatantly racist "us against them" recruiting tactics that sicken me. Frankly I'm not sure that he would be interested in coaching at a "White School" anyway. He'd be a traitor to his people, just like he accuses recruits of being who chose non-traditionally-black colleges.

Poison that man would be!

Edit. I notice on rereading my post, next to a confederate soldier as my avatar, that some folks might get the wrong idea. FOr those who don't know, that is Colonel Angus (say it fast ten times with an exagerated southern accent), beloved SNL character played by Christopher Walken, who "loves it 'down south', where it's hot, and wet". Please don't construe his prescence as an endorsement of slavery or bigotry or have it disallow me from a frank discussion of race relations visa vis NCAA football. Rather, let it show that I have an appreciation for crass low-brow humor due to my underdeveloped maturity.

 

Joe Dean needs to keep his mouth shut. I am very thankful that I was not as interested as I am now in LSU athletics when Dean was the AD, everything is so clear now. He has no clue. While other schools may be able to offer the same amount of money, LSU can offer access to the best facilities in the country and some of the best recruiting ground in the country. We all just learned the Dean is the worst salesman in the country, no wonder all of his hires sucked. Why in the hell did Ole Miss hire Dean to find them a coach? I guess we all know what there fate will be in the next five years.

I did not know that we are using the same search firm that we used when we hired Saban. I thought that Saban's name was passed along through some back channels, not through a search firm. If this is the case, then this firm didn't really find Saban. They never lived up to their agreement. Why are we using them again? When is LSU going to learn to not outsource their consulting jobs? I know that no one has forgotten the cartoon character that LSU paid $65,000 for. I honestly believe that if a group of LSU fans could come up with a list of 5-7 coaches and have $65,000 to spend on selling one of them on coaching LSU then it would have happend by now. However, the search is not over (that we know of) and hopefully another group of interviews will take place starting monday (after bowl games and the NFL season is over).