Jacie
12/22/2010, 11:41 AM
Just read on article on the 2010 season of the Cincinnati Bearcats, a team that Oklahoma beat by a mere two points. The 2007-2009 Cincy teams compiled the best W-L records in school history winning 10, 11, and 12 games respectively. Compared to the 2009 Cincy team, the 2010 offense did not lose a step. They were the best in the Big East on the offensive side of the ball this season. But instead of winning the conference and going to a bowl game, the bearcats finished 4-7, quite a fall from 12-0. Some things standout from the 2010 team versus the 2009 one. Unlike the 2009 team, the 2010 defense was terrible, their turnover margin was much worse from the previous year (five turnovers in OUr game) and oh yeah, they had a new coach as Brian Kelly cashed in his hard-won fame for the head spot at Notre Dame.
Kelly went undefeated and won a BCS bowl at Cincy. Short of winning the national championship he could not have reached any greater heights there. So he took the money and ran.
This is not what happened at another Big East school that had a similar experience. Over at Rutgers, coach Greg Schiano took that school's team to heights not previously seen when in his sixth year there the Scarlet Knights went 11-2. He was the flavor of the month among schools looking to hire a new head coach over the winter/spring of 2007, but Greg stayed put.
And what has he done lately? After three good (by Rutger's standards) seasons since 11-2, his team slipped to 4-8 in 2010, and a last place finish in the Big East. No one is calling Greg asking him to come coach their team this year.
The moral of the story? When you take a low-to-mid level team to the heights usually reserved for the big boys in Division 1, enjoy the moment with your kids then accept the best offer from a school that has something resembling a football tradition and get the hell outa dodge while you can.
Kelly went undefeated and won a BCS bowl at Cincy. Short of winning the national championship he could not have reached any greater heights there. So he took the money and ran.
This is not what happened at another Big East school that had a similar experience. Over at Rutgers, coach Greg Schiano took that school's team to heights not previously seen when in his sixth year there the Scarlet Knights went 11-2. He was the flavor of the month among schools looking to hire a new head coach over the winter/spring of 2007, but Greg stayed put.
And what has he done lately? After three good (by Rutger's standards) seasons since 11-2, his team slipped to 4-8 in 2010, and a last place finish in the Big East. No one is calling Greg asking him to come coach their team this year.
The moral of the story? When you take a low-to-mid level team to the heights usually reserved for the big boys in Division 1, enjoy the moment with your kids then accept the best offer from a school that has something resembling a football tradition and get the hell outa dodge while you can.