Per Mark Schlabach,
Alabama defensive coordinator Kirby Smart, a former Georgia defensive back, is considered the leading candidate for the job. One high-ranking UGA official told ESPN.com that Smart, 39, had to be the “only choice.” Smart has been the Crimson Tide’s defensive coordinator for the past eight seasons and directed defenses that helped them win three national championships since 2009.
Ole Miss coach Hugh Freeze, Mississippi State coach Dan Mullen and Houston coach Tom Herman also could be candidates.
Um, scratch one name from that list. According to the Houston Chronicle’s UH beat writer,
Message sent and received? Or did he not pass a background check? You make the call.
Get The Picture 
Eh, who cares? Herman may be the next coming of Bear Bryant, but one season at Houston that was 7 points away from being 8-4 means there is no evidence that is the case.
The point is that every single suggested hire so far, to a man, is breathtakingly awful given who we just fired. I really thought it couldn’t get any worse than that last AD at Tennessee, but the universe is full of surprises 😀
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I heard that the hottest name out there for schools looking for a new coach was Mark Richt.
I think he’s been pretty successful but, how he compares to Smart, Mullen, Freeze, etc. I’m not sure.
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I’d take Richt over Mullen or Freeze for sure!
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OR….could be a Jimmy Sexton floater to Georgia to get a deal done.
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Uh…no thanks on Hugh Freeze, holy crap. Kinda hoping David Shaw would be in the mix, but as was pointed out before, IDK why he would want to leave Stanford.
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Is Hugh Freeze really not better than the other candidates mentioned?
We’re getting a turd. Hugh Freeze may be the shiniest turd McGarity can manage to get. At this point, we need to just focus on getting the best recruiter possible so that the cupboard isn’t bare when both AD and HC get the axe in 3 years.
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I’m hoping Hugh Freeze is just some name a columnist typed at random. He’s half a step above Muschamp in my book.
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In my experience, Schlabach is pretty well connected at Georgia still.
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No doubt.
Schlabach knows his stuff, doesn’t muckrake, and as a result seems to have good connections who are willing to feed him accurate information.
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“We’re getting a turd.”
Actually, I haven’t even been contacted. But, for the record, I’m interested in the opening, and would seriously consider it if offered.
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If you can guarantee top 10 recruiting classes every year, and will take a dive against a cupcake in year 3 to seal your fate, you’ve got the job. Welcome aboard, sir.
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You’ve got my vote
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I will take the job for little less than they were paying Richt.
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You can’t coach up your septic system, why should we trust you as coach?
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You’d be far better than Freeze (gotta go cause the NCAA might consider probation) and Mullen. Have you ever been “in the arena?”
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I would say he’s not better because I think he’s dirty. Withe the others I guess I just don’t know.
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+1The Tunsil mess leaves a sour taste in my mouth.
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I agree with everything you said. No thanks and I don’t see him leaving.
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Personally, I don’t think Herman was ever a serious candidate. One season of head coaching experience and no other real reasons to be considered other than being a hot name. Arguably more of a gamble than Kirby would be.
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Based on what?
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Lots of incongruities with the Georgia job. Completely different offensive philosophy, no ties to the southeast or UGA at all, Urban Meyer lineage which is at complete odds with the Georgia Way.
No denying that he is a successful coach, but IMHO he would’ve required a multi-year rebuild of the program away from Bama-lite to Ohio State-lite. For contrast, Kirby checks all those boxes, the only exception being that he doesn’t have a year of head coaching experience. The question is: how much do you value that year?
To be clear, I’m not saying I support Kirby for the job or that the program wouldn’t have been successful under Herman. I just don’t think one year of head coaching experience for a G5 school is that compelling vs. the incongruities with the Georgia job.
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Herman recruited the southeast, specifically Georgia, for Urban Meyer.
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You’re right, if only I could edit my original reply…
Even so, there are still lots of unknowns. Would he keep the current staff that has relationships in Georgia’s primary pipeline states? We know he recruited Georgia for Ohio State, but how effective was he?
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I don’t pretend to know all there is about Herman and whether he would be a good coach…but he is a QB/Offensive minded coach. We already have a defensive mind in Pruitt…so Herman may be a good fit.
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Totally agree. There are just lots of ifs if he were the guy – how long would it take to be successful with a complete 180 in offensive philosophy? Can he keep the recruiting machine going and recruit the players he needs? Coming from the Urban Meyer coaching tree, could he successfully navigate the Georgia Way?
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Check the game tape: http://espn.go.com/ncf/recap?gameId=400610178
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Herman has been successful everywhere he’s been, look at Ohio State’s offense from last year vs. this year…Kirby has also been successful where he’s at, but is it him or Saban…I would hate to think we fired Richt just because the AD was afraid Smart would go to USC
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Well, all of the signs seem to be pointed in that direction. Can’t let the ‘cocks undercut us on our guy. Un-friggin-real.
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There’s an important difference between (a) firing Richt “just because the AD was afraid Smart would go to USC,” and (b) already having made the decision to fire Richt, and then deciding to move quickly in order to get Smart before anyone else did.
(a) seems absurd, and I really hope there’s not a shred of truth to it. But (b) doesn’t sound all that crazy to me.
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He wasn’t at Iowa State.
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With Herman off the market, my mood ring just changed colors from mildly excited to somewhat disinterested. Smart will never equal his master and Mullen has peaked (IMHO, of course.)
It would take a name like Josh McDaniels to make my ring glow brightly again.
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As long as whoever we hire doesn’t wear mood rings.
I don’t think Mullen is a serious candidate because I can’t imagine UGA veering away from a pro style offense of some sort. But to be the first coach to make a team like Mississippi State competitive every single year is a huge feat. Masterful. If you’re a team who doesn’t mind a spread offense, there’s nobody better out there other than maybe Meyer or Chip Kelley. I’d be very worried if a rival hired Mullen. I’d be pumped if Georgia did. Not going to happen though. Our administration fancies themselves too good for those sorts of spread shenanigans.
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This is great news for us, as it now is evident that we have our guy already in place. Otherwise, there is no way Herman signs that extention. Remember, they badly need him more than he needs Houston, so Herman has plenty of time to mull over any opportunities.
Recall that Herman’s agent let it be known that Herman was highly interested in the UGA job less than 24 hours ago. This tells me that we told his agent, “thanks for your interest, but we have our guy.”
Good news all around.
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3andG, that probably means it’s Saban’s lackey over in T-town. Not excited in the least if that’s the case, but I’m not a Herman fan either.
If it’s Smart, he damn sure better come over here to win the press conference and make sure this recruiting class doesn’t fall apart. I don’t see him as a guy who heals the split in the fan base.
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I don’t care if he “wins the press conference”; that’s what phony politicians try to do.I just want him to get the best staff in place possible and, unlike CMR, pay attention to all the details, on both a macro and micro level.
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What I mean by that is to try to unify the fan base … And step back from some of things he has allegedly said in South Georgia about his alma mater. I would love to see a reporter from Albany, Valdosta, Thomasville, etc. ask him about that.
I want whoever is the choice to do the things you mention, but this job is the highest profile job in Georgia. He doesn’t have the brand permission Saban had to say “I don’t have time for this $#!t” when he came to T-town. If he doesn’t get the PR right, he will start his tenure with negative equity.
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Well, it’s like Bear Bryant said. Don’t worry about making friends or enemies. Just win. Because if you win, your enemies can’t hurt you, and if you don’t win, your friends can’t help you.
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Like, make sure the carpets are clean?
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Let me clarify why on the last point:
1) The negatrons are going to say “Why not Patterson? Why not so-and-so?”
2) The Richt fans are going to say “Why replace CMR with a guy who has less head coaching experience than Mike Bobo?”
3) The realists are going to say “How in the hell did we determine he was the best available?”
On the other hand, maybe he does unify the fan base … Against Greg McGarity.
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Not up to the new coach to heal the split in the fan base. It’s his job to win championships. At least, that was the standard for CMR.
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I think at the beginning of the new coach’s tenure, he does need to put the fan base’s apprehension to rest especially in this case when a popular coach was forced out/resigned under pressure.
That coach will eventually be judged by his on the field performance, but the PR side of this is damn important at the beginning. See any executive transition for examples of poorly done and well done.
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“I guess I have to say it,” Saban said. “I’m not going to be the Alabama coach.”
12.21.06
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Lincoln Riley.
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Hell to tha yeah Will T he saved Stoops’s bacon.
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Not a done deal yet, but Kirby looks like our next HC.
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I just heard the same scuttlebutt.
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If McG is really thinking Freeze he needs to be chased out of GA, I though the mention of Mulllen was bad but Freeze, hell might as well interview Petrino too.
This will go down in the dictionary beside the term “Monkey F’in a football”
Next I expect McG to announce he is letting the SEC media vote on who gets the job.
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I really hope we at least explored the Shaw possibility. Kirby is not a proven commodity.
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You remember Shaw’s reaction to a reporter’s assertion that he runs Stanford’s program like an SEC team? He is not leaving Stanford for the SEC.
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Out of those options I’d pick Kirby, but I’m biased towards him a bit.
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Listening to the weekly Saban presser…getting a lot of Smart questions.
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So what do you think of Smart? Saban lackey? Capable coach groomed under Nick?
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In the early years I figured he was a lackey. Today, I feel like he should be well-prepared to be a head coach.
He’s a good recruiter.
He’s good a DC (not just a CEO type)
He seems like a decent guy
He’s been around a winning formula
He’s an alumnus of your school
He’s also a guy who could have already been hired away probably half dozen times…and stayed by his own choice. (One of those times, by the way, being Auburn.)
I’m also convinced he would have been the head coach at Alabama at some point as well.
Seems like y’all could do a lot worse.
BD
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Thanks BD
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Lot of yardage between “agreed in principle” and “signed on the dotted line.”
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Yep.
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I guess I’ve mellowed out here at the ripe old age of 30-something, but I just don’t follow every development on this stuff with baited breath anymore. Even the people who are seemingly reliable and well-connected seem to be wrong as often as they are right, so I’ll just wait until the press conference when McGarity shows us the guy to whom he’s hitching his future in Athens and then make up my mind from there.
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Smoke doesn’t always mean fire, but Smart’s name is producing the most smoke right now. If indeed he is McGarity;’s choice I hope the lawyers are busy working out the details now. I’ve posted here before that my main concern in this entire debacle is our 2016 recruiting class. Name the guy asap and save this class. There are rival recruiters this very minute targeting our verbal commits. I, like all of you, hope there is a solid plan in place to enable us to act quickly…
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Is Kirby sticking around T-Town for the playoff? If so, I wonder how that affects recruiting and whether it affects our hiring decision.
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My guess is that would be Saban’s call. If Saban asked him to stay through the playoffs, I’m sure he would out of loyalty, and essentially pull double duty the same way Richt did when he was first hired.
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I think if Kirby’s the guy, before the ink is dry all his stuff is out on the lawn in the campus quad and all the locks are changed.
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ive spent a lot of time in oxford…I would put freeze on same level as richt as far as “good person” (since this is what qualifies as a suitable head coach to some of you) and put him on a higher level as a coach.
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Lots of rumors on NCAA violations in recruiting at Ole Miss. Might just be that…rumors. But there is enough of it to make me wonder.
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Yep. Just rumors, but they’re practically in my backyard, and my “source of a source” friend says Freeze may be looking for a job before the whole athletic department gets burned to the ground.
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Well, he certainly talks the talk.
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Glad we dodged a bullet on Herman, but I think we’re jumping in front of this one instead:
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And Mark Schlabach retweeted it.
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Herman = Bobo with a slightly better record.
Smart = Muschamp ca.2010
Hugh Freeze = Sandra Bulloch as Offensive line coach
Just friggin’ hire Bobo and be done. We know he’ll work for lots less than any of the competition. Look how long he put up with the Georgia Way™ at Georgia. I’ll chip in for an 8 pack of those fat-ass Crayolas.
Please G-d, let this be done soon.
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I think your analysis of those 3 coaches is pretty accurate.
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Question: Why does Smart = Muschamp and not Smart = Dantonio? Because they both went to Georgia and Muschamp didn’t make it at UF? Surely your analysis goes deeper than that.
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If Smart = Dantonio, why ain’t Kirby coaching Sparty?
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I’d be really surprised if Smart took the job. Expectations would already be high enough without him being a Dawg.
I really don’t know how I feel about him being our HC.
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I think if we offer and Smart turns it down it’s b/c he doesn’t feel he can jive with McG.
If Smart is as much like Saban as advertised, he’ll negotiate hard for the autonomy & budget he needs to get it done.
Whether he gets it done or not is a different question.
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Smart hasn’t earned what Saban has – total autonomy and control. I wouldn’t give it to someone who hasn’t run anything like this in his career. If that’s a problem, I would tell him we have plenty of qualified candidates.
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I could definitely see him not being able to work with our AD.
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I realize he’s getting on up there in age, may not be able to recruit as well, etc. but I like Mark Dantonio. Seems to do well in big-time games. Just wanted to throw a different name out there.
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Yes but is a Gamecock alumnus. If he comes to the SEC East, it won’t be for UGA.
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Yeah, I just figured he’d decided to move on from past mistakes.
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Why not the Pirate
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I agree with you but don’t see that happening at all. I just don’t see us taking a successful head coach from another power conference program. It’s just not realistic to me.
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I just had a revelation. I was thinking about this stat:
Only 3 coaches have recruited at least 100 ESPN Top 300 prospects since 2006.
Nick Saban, Urban Meyer, and Mark Richt.
Saban and Meyer parlayed their 100+ ESPN300 recruits into 6 national championships. Richt has 0 and has played for 0.
Both Saban and Meyer have won titles at 2 schools.
If Saban wants to really solidify himself as better than Urban Meyer, he needs to go win a title at a THIRD school.
You heard it here first, folks:
Nick Saban, your new head football coach at the University of Georgia!
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We’re either gonna have to go with a successful coordinator from a big program or a HC from a Houston or Memphis type of program. Anything else seems unrealistic to me.
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I know people will disagree with this, but they’ll be wrong: The only statistically probably scenario is a lateral move being our BEST possible outcome. Mark my words. And that’s what we fired Mark Richt for.
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What in the hell are we doing considering hiring a 39 year old assistant just because he worked for a MNC team????
/sarcasm font = ON
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Memo to Smart…bring Bobo home via a visit to grab Eason first.
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Ohio State 42 Bama 35….OC was Herman, DC was Smart…
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Hello all. Just my simple opinion, but the only coach that would strike fear in opposing D coordinators is Chip Kelly. It may take a season or two of recruiting, bit could you imagine that offence with Pruitt’s defense?
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Chip Kelly intrigues, but he sounds like a misanthrope and has no ties to the state (for recruiting) which might be hard to overcome
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What about Larry Fedora? Don’t know much about him, but he has now turned two programs around as a head coach.
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Shaw. Spike puts down the crack pipe now.
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Sounds to me that Saban’s telling Smart to be careful what he wishes for:http://www.al.com/alabamafootball/index.ssf/2015/11/is_nick_saban_to_blame_for_sec.html#incart_2box
He’s also telling the chili’s of the world how unreasonable they are.
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These comments leave me with considerable respect for Saban and his thought process. He’s obviously not just an OCD workaholic.
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