Meet the New Hires: Art Briles

November 28, 2007 - Head Coach - Baylor University

2003-2006 – Head Coach – University of Houston
2002 - 2002 –Running Backs Coach – Texas Tech
1988-1999 – Head Coach – Stephenville High School (TX)

While Art Briles may just now be beginning his BCS conference head coaching career at Baylor, he has spent the last two decades building up a reputation as one of the nation’s foremost offensive specialists.

Briles’ head coaching success began when he took the reins in 1989 at Stephenville High School in Stephenville, TX. There he took a team that had not been to the playoffs since 1952 and won four state titles. However, in what might be a more important development for his college coaching career, Briles picked up the spread offense in the 1990’s, and made a dominant offense historically good. In 1998, Stephenville had 8,664 yards of total offense, which set a new national high school record.

After fine-tuning his offensive gameplan with Mike Leach at Texas Tech as running backs coach, Briles took over the Houston program in 2003. This was a homecoming of sorts for Briles, as he played three years at Houston as a wide receiver. At Houston he took a team that finished 0-11 two seasons before his arrival, and went 34-28 in five years. His teams made bowl games four out of five seasons.

Briles was able to show his offensive genius while at Houston. The Cougars finished in the top 25 in total offense all but one season under Briles, but what may be more impressive is the fact that the offense was extremely balanced. In both 2006 and 2007 Houston finished in the top 10 in total offense. However, in 2006 the 8^th ranked passing attack led the way, while in 2007 Houston ranked 10^th in the nation rushing the ball. Baylor hopes that Briles can bring this same level of success to Waco.

Another reason Briles was so successful at Houston was the fact that his defense improved every season he was there. In 2003 the total defense ranked at 101^st in the country, but by 2007 Houston moved up to the 42^nd ranked defense. If Briles can build Baylor’s defense up to similar levels, he should be successful in the Big 12.

All in all this can become a very good hire for Baylor. Briles always seems to get the most out of his offenses, and does just enough on defense to be successful. While it is tough to win at Baylor, Briles might be the man that takes the Bears back to a bowl game, where they have not been since a 10-3 loss to Washington State in the 1994 Sun Bowl.

Weis recognizes errors with Tenuta hire, other moves

September 2nd, 2006 was the first sign of trouble for Notre Dame's recently anointed genius. Charlie Weis brought his 2nd ranked Notre Dame football team into Bobby Dodd Stadium in Atlanta and things didn't go as planned, despite the win. Notre Dame - optimistic due to the return of many key senior offensive weapons - was held to 14 points by Georgia Tech. The passing game led by Weis and Brady Quinn was held to only 246 yards. The offensive genius had been matched. The man on the other sideline responsible for ND's offensive downfall on that day, Jon Tenuta. A year later in front of Touchdown Jesus, Tenuta's defense sacked Irish quarterbacks nine times in route to a 33-3 Yellow Jacket win that sent ND down a path that would lead to a 3-9 record. Weis' offense plummeted to dead last in all of Division I-A football.

Weis has brought the enemy on board, hiring Jon Tenuta as linebackers coach and assistant head coach. The disastrous '07 season proved to Charlie that many of the defensive coordinators in the college game had caught up to him. Weis recognized that perhaps his players no longer had a "decided schematic advantage." Weis never was able to swing a counter punch during the '07 season. Tenuta's greatest benefit could be to help Charlie regain his advantage.

Expecting a defensive coach to improve a team's offense is a lofty goal, but Tenuta may just be that good. His last four Georgia Tech defenses were all in the top 30 in total defense and top in rushing defense. Tenuta's only North Carolina defense in 2001 led the ACC in total defense.

The role that Tenuta will serve the Irish in is surprising. Tenuta has been a defensive coordinator since 2000. Weis was able to bring him on due to secondary coach Bill Lewis taking an administrative position due to health concerns. However, as soon as it appeared as if Lewis may not be able continue coaching, Weis was proactive in attracting Tenuta. The hiring of Tenuta is much more about bringing in the best possible coach and not a criticism of defensive coordinator Corwin Brown. Brown's first ND defense in '07 ranked 2nd nationally against the pass and 39th in total defense (91st against the run). Notre Dame finished 65th in total defense in '06. Brown was also very valuable on the recruiting trail, making significant contributions to ND's top 5 recruiting class.

The key to the Tenuta job being a success will be just how he works with Brown. If there are problems between the two, things could end up poorly. Currently, there doesn't seem to be much of a plan, Tenuta said, "Obviously, with my experiences in where I've been and what I've done, with the packages that I have, and Corwin and his package, we just kind of melt the packages together. If something good, something's bad, whatever, and work it out and game plan together and get ready for practice." One gage in how things are being melted together is how much 4-3 defense is played during spring practice. Tenuta comes from a 4-3 background. Brown installed the 3-4 defense last year, but ND did run some 4-3.

The amazing thing is that Tenuta was still on the street for this to happen. "There were a lot of jobs I was interested in. There were a lot of jobs and people that were interested in me. But the first time I talked to Coach Weis, once that happened to me, this is where I wanted to be." Tenuta said about him ending up in South Bend. Weis said that the first contact between the two occurred in December. Two things contributed to Tenuta taking a positions coaching job. One is the 571 yard defensive effort Georgia Tech put up in their bowl game while Tenuta was the interim head coach. The other is Tenuta being rumored and possibly holding out for a head coaching job. He was most heavily rumored for the SMU job. Most importantly, Charlie was willing to make room for Tenuta while others - likely negligently - didn't. Auburn, South Carolina, Arkansas, Washington, and Pittsburgh, among others, had an open defensive coordinator job while Tenuta was on the street. Those schools may pay for passing on Tenuta.

Perhaps a greater indication of Weis' mindset is the changes that he is making on the offensive side of the ball and with himself. He has given up calling plays, which will now be handled by offensive coordinator Mike Heywood. The motivation is two fold. He thinks that it will allow his assistant coaches to perform better and at the same time make himself a better coach. Weis is very critical of himself in this assessment, "This is a tough one for me to do, but I'm trying to give them an opportunity to run the offense with me interjecting rather than me demanding and telling them everything that we're going to do." Further, Weis suggests that he is out of ideas and is therefore turning things over to his assistants, "But I'm going to give them an opportunity to see if we can't be more expansive on our ideas, and I think that sometimes when you have a number of good coaches, sometimes they get stymied or stifled a little bit when you have a very domineering presence when the head coach is also involved in the offense."

Weis felt that giving up play calling would make him a better head coach, "I think that play calling is my greatest strength, okay, but I'm the head coach, and I think that when you're play calling on offense, you might not necessarily be the best head coach. So what I'm trying to do is I'm trying to be a better head coach. That's what I'm trying to do. " Weis is also making an effort to be more approachable for his players, especially younger players. Weis' moves are anything but arrogant.

Additionally, Weis is scrapping the coaching organization on special teams. He is going from a system where each special teams scenario had a different coach to special teams being coached by one assistant, Brian Polian. Weis himself will serve as assistant special teams coach. Weis will be meeting with Virginia Tech head coach Frank Beamer to improve the Irish special teams, "But we already have a time set, and before spring ball starts I'll be flying over there to spend some time with them to see if we can't get this righted. Brian will be the special teams coach, it'll be his deal, but I'll be his assistant. And I think when the head coach makes himself an assistant to an assistant coach, I think it might create a little sense of urgency with us on special teams." Again, Weis self criticism is startling.

Charlie Weis has made some major changes for 2008 Notre Dame football. It is a clear indication that there was a coaching problem in '07. Weis is trying his best to fix that problem. Bringing on Tenuta is a step in the right direction. The impact of the offensive and special teams changes is less of a sure shot fix. Notre Dame football will be coached very different from what it has been under Weis, making '08 critical for Irish fans. Now that the genius realizes he has worn out his welcome, we will find out if he has any staying power.

New Coaches Recruiting Success

The new trend in college football is finding a coach with a great emphasis on recruiting to help bolster the program's status. At times the X's and O's of a coach are overlooked for their overwhelming ability to sell the program to recruits. Case in point was Ed Orgeron at Ole' Miss. He was highly regarded as the best recruiter in the nation and there was even a book written about his recruiting ability, yet he still failed to turn Mississippi into a successful program.

Ron Zook, on the other hand, is a coach who was brought in almost exclusively for his recruiting ability and has been able to bring Illinois out of the Big Ten gutter and to a BCS bowl game in 3 years. The major risk/reward in bringing in a recruiting savvy coach at the expense of coaching experience or record is whether or not your coach turns out like Orgeron or if he has success like Zook.

Here we'll take a look at last year's new hires and how they did in their 1st season of recruiting:

Improved Recruiting:
Nick Saban: Alabama
Saban was able to lock down the Nation's #1 recruiting class in his first year. Saban wasn't brought on solely because of his recruiting ability. In fact he is regarded as the total package of coaching. Alabama has been in the top 20 for recruiting for many years before Saban.

Tim Brewster: Minnesota
Brewster is a salesmen. He was brought on for his ability to sell the program, and the new facilities to the Minnesota recruits. He did not disappoint in his first season. Brewster wins the award for 1st season coach recruiter of the year as he signed the #17 class for the Golden Gophers. Before Brewster, Minnesota posted the #57 ranked class in 2007 ,#62 class in 2006, and the #55 class in 2005. It will be interesting to see if Brewster, who had a horrendous first season on the field, will turn out to be like Ron Zook or Ed Orgeron.

Butch Davis: North Carolina
Butch Davis came in being regarded as a big time recruiter, and it showed right away when he was able to land top notch DT Marvin Austin before the start of last season. This year he was able to sign the nation's #32 recruiting class to follow up from last years top 20 class. John Bunting was able to stick around as long as he did more than likely because of his recruiting ability. It will be interesting to see how Davis fares in the years to come.

Randy Shannon: Miami
In his first year of recruiting, Randy Shannon signed the nation's #4 recruiting class. Shannon was hired as head coach for his defensive track record at Miami. Recruiting for the most part has been very good for Miami over the years, however, this was the highest rated class for Miami since 2004. The interesting thing about all this was that Shannon's no nonsense/no tolerance approach to his athletes actually was able to improve his level of talent as opposed to scaring off the blue chip athletes.

Brian Kelly: Cincinnati
One coach who did very well in his first year of recruiting was Brian Kelly at Cincinnati who posted the #66 recruiting class. Typically this wouldn't look very impressive, however, Cincinnati had signed recruiting classes near #100 in the nation in the past few seasons. Kelly never has been at this level of recruiting before and the learning curve will probably be sharper for him than other new coaches this season.

Todd Graham: Tulsa
Todd Graham signed the nation's #73 recruiting class this season for Tulsa. This is an improvement from the Kragthorpe years where the team ranked consistently around #100 in the rankings. Tulsa is in a recruiting hotbed of the country, however, they have to compete year in and out with the great recruiting programs in Texas and Oklahoma.

Dennis Erickson: Arizona State
Erickson signed the nation's #21 recruiting class this past season. This is a slight step up from the norm for the Sun Devils. ASU's early season success along with Erickson's impressive resume were obviously important factors in this years recruiting success. ASU didn't hire Erickson because he was a big salesmen or for his youthful energy. This year the results spoke for themselves to recruits.

Todd Dodge: North Texas
Dodge was brought on to coach North Texas straight from high school where he was a wildly successful head coach in Texas. Dodge was able to use those high school roots to sign the #85 class this year. This was a strong improvement from the #114 class that was signed the year before by North Texas. Dodge should be able to establish himself nicely as a recruiter in Texas and be able to take N. Texas to new levels of talent.

Recruiting Remained the Same
Gene Chizik: Iowa State
Chizik was brought in to take over the program because of his great track record as a defensive coordinator, and not necessarily for his recruiting ability. In his first year as he showed his lack of experience as a recruiter by signing the nation's #62 recruiting class. This is about the norm, however, for Iowa State.

Tom O'Brien: North Carolina State
O'Brien signed the Nation's #31 ranked recruiting class in his first year as head boss at NC State. It's a step up for the Wolfpack as they had slipped in the final years under "Chesty" Chuck Amato. It's safe to assume O'Brien's struggles in the first season may have scared off some recruits.

Mark Dantonio: Michigan State
Dantonio was able to keep Michigan State's recruiting success at around status quo this offseason when he signed the #47 recruiting class. Dantonio was never very good at recruiting while at Cincinnati, but he was hired by Michigan State for his defensive mind and not his recruiting ability.

Jim Harbaugh: Stanford
The charismatic and outspoken Jim Harbaugh was able to capitalize on his big win vs USC and tap into the highly talented state of California for the nation's #50 ranked recruiting class in his first season. Harbaugh really was never known for recruiting, however he did have very impressive teams while at San Diego. In terms of recruiting, Harbaugh kept the program at around the same level of talent as the years before him.

Jeff Jagodzinski: Boston College
Coach Jag was no doubt able to use his NFL pull and great 1st season success to pull in the #33 class in the country. He was able to pick up where Tom O'Brien left off in terms of recruiting success. I would expect coach Jag's recruiting classes to continue to improve once he gains more experience.

Troy Calhoun: Air Force
The Air Force Academy as everybody knows does not use football as the primary selling point to recruits. Rarely will highly skilled recruits come to the Academy. This year was no exception as Troy Calhoun signed the #101 class in the country.

Bob Toledo: Tulane
Tulane took one on the chin in Bob Toledo's first recruiting season. Tulane signed the nation's #113 recruiting class. This has been a recent trend for Tulane as they signed the #112 class in 2007, and the #93 class from the year before.

Derek Dooley: Louisiana Tech
Dooley in his first season at Louisiana Tech signed the nation's #74 class. This is impressive for a school who's seen as more or less the 3rd fiddle in the state, and an after thought in most of the South. It may take some time for the Dooley family name to have much pull again in the region. A win over Hawaii last season could have sped along that process.

Stan Brock: Army
Army, much like all other service academies is at a major disadvantage when recruiting for football as opposed to a bigger cause. Stan Brock brought in the nation's #111 recruiting class this season.

Mario Cristobal: Florida International
Cristobal brought in the nation's #90 recruiting class in his first season at FIU. He's deep in the heart of recruiting country, but he's competing with 3 of the nation's top recruiting schools all in the same state. If Cristobal can win some games, he may be able to start making a dent in the area's recruits.

Recruiting Declined:
Neil Calloway: UAB
UAB is in a tough situation. The school refused to act in the best interest of the program by signing Calloway as opposed to other more qualified options as a head caoch. On top of this they have to take the table scraps of major SEC programs in the immediate area. Calloway signed the #103 class in the country this offseason. This ranking is a big dip from only 2 years ago where UAB was ranked in the top #65 back to back years.

Rob Akey: Idaho
Idaho is where recruiting goes to die. Rob Akey is not helping the situation by going 1-11 in his first season. Due to these factors Akey brought in the nation's #102 recruiting class. Don't look for Akey or the recruiting situation at Idaho to improve anytime fast. It truly is amazing how much success Boise State has had in recent years despite that area's talent levels.

Steve Kragthorpe: Louisville
Despite the on field success and exclusive exposure from several ESPN Thursday night games, Louisville has never been able to get their recruiting act together. This year was no exception as Kragthorpe slipped slightly from the norm to sign the nation's #55 recruiting class. Kragthorpe was not much of a recruiter during his Tulsa days, and he is more than likely not going to improve the level of talent for the Cardinals for years to come. Louisville consistently was able to post great season's in the past despite the lack of talent on the field due to Bobby Petrino. It will be interesting to see if Kragthorpe can do the same thing.

David Bailiff: Rice
In Bailiff's 1st season, Rice signed the nation's #114 recruiting class. A healthy mix of tough academic standards and lack of success for as long as many could remember on the field will do a program like Rice's in all the time. Bailiff will have to win on the field before he can ever hope to win on signing day while at Rice.

Early Signing Period - Will it Happen?

For most college football fans, the first Wednesday in February takes on a special significance. That is the day when high school athletes sign letters of intent and cement where they will spend their college years. It is Signing Day. However, for some schools surprise decommitments mar the day. Some have suggested that the NCAA should adopt an early signing period for football, as it does for basketball. However, is such a move really a good one for the college game? Here, CGB will take a look at the pros, cons, and likelihood of such a decision.

A primary driving force for utilizing an early signing period would be the fact that it would save college programs money in their recruiting budgets. If prospects were allowed to sign in December, for example, schools would no longer have to recruit their entire class for that extra two months. While the message boards love to speculate whether or not a five star recruit will switch his commitment or not, the recruiting battle may be stretching the competing teams’ resources thin.

In addition, an early signing period would help lessen the talent gap between top tier programs and the rest of college football. In general, the flow of decommitments is to the higher prestige programs. A good example from the 2008 recruiting season was Roy Roundtree, who was committed to Purdue for over eight months before switching to Michigan on Signing Day. While the Wolverines would have had a fine recruiting year with or without Roundtree, his loss was a major hit to Purdue’s class, one which was somewhat disappointing to begin with. If there was an early signing period, Roundtree would likely be playing in West Lafayette next season, not in Ann Arbor for a conference rival.

While the positives of an early signing date make it appear attractive at first glance, there are also a couple of key negatives that must be taken into account. First, the early date takes away some flexibility from the prospects themselves. Inevitably, there will be players pressured every year into signing early, even though they themselves do not feel totally confident about their choice. In these cases, losing an extra couple of months to evaluate and visit schools is a real detriment to the prospect, especially when he is making such an important decision.

A second, and much more important, negative is the fact that there is an inherent difference between football and basketball. College basketball does have an early signing period in November, which most of the nation’s top prospects use to sign letters of intent. However, in basketball evaluation is really a year round process, as AAU games and all-star camps take place during the summer. Football is a much different animal, as it is unrealistic to expect players to play the game all year long. Therefore, the high school season is much more important for football evaluation than it is for basketball. Because of this fact, in many cases both the school and the prospect need the extra time between an early and late signing date. This allows the school to take a closer look at a player’s film, and does not force the player to work official visits into his already packed fall schedule.

As you can see, both sides can make decent arguments about the issue of an early signing date. Regardless, at the moment the odds of it happening are slim. The main reason for this is the fact that the teams with the most to lose are the teams who make the most money. While Arizona and Iowa might be in favor of an early signing date, USC and Ohio State would likely not agree. In addition, the fact is that the current system is not really “broken”, so there is no pressing need to change it. Therefore, expect to relive the Signing Day frenzy, at least for the foreseeable future.

Photo Legend: Billy J. Murphy

Billy Jack Murphy was the longtime coach and AD at Memphis. This past week he passed away. He coached the Tigers from 58'-71' posting a Memphis record 91 victories. "Spook", as he was often referred to from his playing days at Mississippi State, was an all SEC athlete before cutting his Bulldog career short to become a Marine. Murphy was a highly decorated WW2 veteran earning the Bronze Star, the Presidential Citation and the Navy Citation during his service.

Upon returning from the war Murphy finished out his career and graduated from Mississippi State. His coaching career began as an assistant at Memphis State, Mississippi State, and Minnesota before taking over for Memphis is 1958. In 1966 Murphy took on the role of AD in addition to keeping his coaching post. During his span he was credited with increasing the football team's profile by taking on major programs in the south. As an AD he saw overwhelming growth in the the athletics budget and enhanced several different sports team's performance levels at Memphis.

Meet the New Hires: Bobby Petrino

Dec. 11, 2007 – Head Coach - Arkansas
2007 – Head Coach – Atlanta Falcons
2003-06 – Head Coach – Louisville
2002 – Offensive Coordinator – Auburn
2001 – Offensive Coordinator – Jacksonville Jaguars
1999-2000 – Quarterbacks Coach – Jacksonville Jaguars
1998 – Offensive Coordinator - Louisville
1995-97 – Offensive Coordinator – Utah State
1994 – Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks Coach – Nevada
1992-93 – Quarterbacks Coach – Arizona State
1990-91 – Offensive Coordinator – Idaho
1989 – Quarterbacks Coach - Idaho
1987-88 – Wide Receivers/Tight Ends Coach – Weber State
1985-86 – Offensive Coordinator – Carroll College
1984 – Graduate Assistant Quarterbacks Coach – Weber State
1983 – Graduate Assistant Coach – Carroll College

One of the biggest coaching splashes this offseason was the hiring of Bobby Petrino by Arkansas. The move sent shock waves from the collegiate level all the way to the pros. There has been much discussion about the manner in which he left the Atlanta Falcons. Many of his former players were furious about his abrupt departure back to the college ranks in the middle of the season. However, one thing's for sure, Bobby Petrino has been awfully successful coaching in college.

His only collegiate head coaching experience comes from his years at Lousiville from 2003-2006. In that span he brought Louisville to unprecedented levels of success. During that time he posted a 41-9 record over the course of 4 seasons. The success he brought Louisville was a primary reason they were able to jump into the Big East from Conference USA.

His two most notable seasons at Louisville were 2004 and 2006. In 2004 he guided the Cardinals to an 11-1 record, a Liberty Bowl victory over highly ranked Boise State, a Conference USA championship and a #7 ranking in the final polls. In 2004 Petrino's offense lead the nation in yards per game and points per game. Not to be outdone by that spectacular season, in 2006 Louisville showed they could really contend with the big boys. In 06' the Cardinal's ranked #6 in the nation at season's end after posting a 12-1 record and knocking off ACC champ Wake Forest in the Orange Bowl. That game was the school's first ever BCS game. That season also marked the school's first and only Big East title.

Petrino is highly regarded as a quarterback's best friend. He's mentored the likes of Jake Plummer, Chris Redman, Mark Brunell and most recently Brian Brohm. If history holds true to form, Bobby Petrino and highly regarded transfer Ryan Mallett should be a match made in hawg heaven. Mallett was arguably the #1 prospect to come out of high school last year when he signed with Michigan. After the hiring of Rich Rodriguez, Mallett decided to transfer to Arkansas due to Petrino and the proximity to his Texarkana, TX home.

From his first stint coaching as a graduate assistant at his alma mater Carroll College, to his days as an offensive coordinator at Idaho, Nevada, and Auburn to the most recent stint in college as head coach at Louisville, Bobby Petrino has always had wildly successful offenses. The Lewistown, MT native has been a winner everywhere he has gone, and he should be able to make Arkansas an annual contender for the SEC crown.

Recruiting Over and Underachievers

The following is a review of schools who have orerachieved and underachieved relative to their recruiting success as selected by the SportingNews' Tom Dienhart. For the ACC, Big 12, Big Ten, Pac 10, and SEC Dienhart ranked each conference based on recruiting. He averaged each school's Rivals.com recruiting ranking from 2003-2007. From that list he selected over and underachievers. Following is a critique of his selections and a look at other factors, especially coaching, that have landed each school on Dienhart's list.

ACC
Overachievers
Wake Forest: AD's at big time programs around the country don't understand why Jim Grobe is so content in Winston-Salem. It makes absolute sense that his name gets tossed around for the biggest jobs each year. At some point, he'll bite.

Boston College: The poor recruiting is just another thing in a long list of things that BC does worse than its competitors. However, winning football games isn't on that list mainly due to having made some great coaching hires. Time will tell if Jeff Jagodzinski will fit the bill. The concern with BC football is that they are always one bad coaching move away from really slipping.

Georgia Tech. Chan Gailey did the opposite of what most ex-NFL guys do in college and that is coach better than he recruited. On the other side is that the offensive minded Gailey won on the strength of his defense. I think Jon Tenuta is the reason the Jackets make this list.

Underachievers
Florida State. How to deal with the aging legend is a challenge for many programs. FSU is banking on Jimbo Fischer to get them off this list.

Miami. The 'Canes are similar to BC in that they don't have the history to justify their continued football success. Their recruiting prowess, however, can keep them afloat during a poor coaching regime. String too many bad regimes together and the swagger could be gone. The jury is still out on Randy Shannon, however.

North Carolina. Mack Brown left this program in fantastic shape, but they haven't been able to capitalize. Now with Butch Davis, UNC is in great shape to step forward in the mediocre conference. The hire of Everett Withers as defensive coordinator is a head stratcher though.

Big 12
Overachievers
Kansas. Amazingly, Mark Mangino's name hardly got mentioned for a different gig despite 18 openings. Jayhawk fans must have a grin the size of their coach's waistline over that fact.

Texas Tech. Offensively Tech doesn't require the typical type of talent to be successful. They could, however, use some road grates on the defensive line to tighten up their run defense which has plaqued Mike Leach his entire tenure in west Texas.

Colorado. It's very simple. Gary Barnett should be back in college coaching.

Underachievers
Nebraska. The oddity of it is that Callahan may have strung together better recruiting classes than Bob Devaney or Tom Osbourne ever did, but he also strung together worse seasons than they ever did. Bo Pelini has returned to clean up the mess left by ex-defensive coordinator Kevin Cosgrove.

Texas A&M. Similar to Nebraska, Texas A&M went with a slickster coach and in the process lost a lot of football games and a lot of their identity. It's pretty clear R.C. Slocum got a bad deal.

Oklahoma State. Good Ol' Boone Pickens has put up way too much cash for OSU football to be most known for "I'm a man, I'm 40."

Big Ten
Overachievers
Northwestern. The Wildcats are far from the laughingstock they were in the '80s. Expect the youngster Pat Fitzgerald to get better as a coach and a recruiter in the coming years.

Purdue. In a time when programs like Alabama, Notre Dame, and FSU struggle, Cowboy Joe Tiller has been amazingly steady in West Lafayette.

Minnesota. They will be on the other list in a few years. When poor recruiting meets poor coaching, you get the embarrasing 1-11 season that the Gophers just went through. Glen Mason is another guy who deserves another coaching gig.

Underachievers
Michigan. When good recruiting meets a great coach, things can be pretty amazing. Don't buy into the talk that it will take Rich Rodriguez a lot of time to get things going in Ann Arbor.

Illinois. The '06 Illinois team that went 2-10 may have been the best 2 win team ever. A little bit better ball secruity put them in the Rose Bowl the following year.

Penn State. A little bit of the Bowden factor going on here. The list of Big Ten underachievers shows that no one in the conference has really fallen flat on their face.

Pac 10
Overachievers
Oregon State. Charlie Weis won 19 games during his first two seasons at Notre Dame and was rewarded with one of the biggest college coaching contracts ever. Mike Riley has won 19 games the past two seasons and has hardly made a peep. Wake up people, the Beavers are good.

Arizona State. Dirk Koetter is a good coach. A flip-flopping quarterback decision cost him his job in the desert. He should get a second look at the college game, but he could be lost to the NFL for the long haul.

Underachievers
Washington. Is there a school playing further under their historic norm than Washington? Keith Gilbertson really screwed up this once proud program.

California. This is a stretch, but Jeff Tedford hasn't taken that next step everyone expected him to take. I don't know if this program has recovered from losing in the Coliseum like they did in 2004.

SEC
Overachievers
Arkansas. Ole Miss is getting a solid coach in Houston Nutt. The Rebels may have more talent that what he had in Fayetteville. The Grove will be rocking in short order.

Auburn. The Mississippi River Boat Gambler Tommy Tuberville picked up a huge recruit this off-season in offensive coordinator Tony Franklin. Watch out SEC West.

Alabama. The appearence of these guys on the list shows how well the SEC recruits. Former boss Mike Shula did do a nice job during the difficult probation years.

Underachievers
Florida. I think its pretty clear the days of underachieving are over, assuming they ever existed.

Tennessee. Bringing back David Cutcliffe probably saved Fat Phil his job. Now that he's gone, we'll see how long Fulmer can hang on.

South Carolina. I think everyone is a little surprised that the OBC hasn't gotten the offense going more in Columbia.

Recruiting Roundup Part 2

In the second part of our recruiting series we'll be focusing on the SEC, Big 12, Big East and Notre Dame. All in all the talent levels in the SEC and Big 12 were very high in this year's class along with a very highly regarded Notre Dame class. The Big East, however was rated the worst BCS conference for recruiting this season.

SEC
The SEC once again ranked out to be the #1 conference in America for recruiting this season according to Rivals.com. The conference as a whole had 5 schools in the top 20 rankings, and 10 schools in the top 45. Alabama under 1st year coach Nick Saban was able to obtain the #1 class in the nation, thanks largely in part to the signing day commitment from Julio Jones, the nation's #1 WR from nearby Foley, AL. Joining Jones are two other 5-star commitments OL Tyler Love and ATH Burton Scott. The biggest noise that was made by Saban was his ability to lock down the top talent in the state of Alabama. There was obviously a changing of the guard in state at least in terms of recruiting this season.

Joining Alabama in the top 10 were Florida and Georgia who respectively ranked #3 and #6 in the nation in recruiting according to Rivals.com. Florida surprisingly looked outside the state for the majority of their players as only 10 of their 22 commitments were from Florida this season. The biggest signing for Florida was Will Hill, the nation's #1 athlete who should see plenty of playing time this season. Georgia's outstanding class includes the nation's #2 wide receiver, AJ Green, and the #2 athlete in the country Richard Samuel. Both are expected to start immediately between the hedges next fall.

LSU, Auburn, and South Carolina round out the other teams in the top 25 this recruiting season. The Bayou Bengals were able to snag prep school standout Deangelo Benton to highlite next season's receiving corp. They also signed the nation's #1 cornerback Patrick Johnson from Gator country. This season will truly test the talent level at LSU after losing highly regarded Bo Pelini to Nebraska.

Auburn had to really look outside the state this season due to Alabama's renewed presence with the recruits. Only 10 of their 29 signings came from within the state. Of those committed, Tommy Tubberville dove into the JUCO and prep school ranks to pull his most talented players this season. The Old Ball Coach put a premium this off season on signing defensive stars as they were able to reel in five 4 star defensive recruits to bolster an already impressive unit.

Possibly the biggest acquisition however this off season was the transfer of Ryan Mallett from Michigan to Arkansas. He should be perfect for the Bobby Petrino pass happy system. The fit was too good to pass up for the kid from Texarkana. It will be interesting to see what impact Petrino can make in the coming years at a school who can recruit much greater than Louisville.

One school that stands out unfavorably in this recruiting class was Vanderbilt. It's incredibly tough for them to compete with the big boys in conference. They have one of the highest academic standards in the country and are forced to compete with some of the lowest standard schools in the nation, let alone the ones with the highest player talent, and deepest pockets. Vanderbilt was ranked #88 in the country, right below the likes of Eastern Michigan and North Texas.

Big 12
The Big 12 did very well for themselves this off season posting the #2 rank in the Rivals.com conference rankings. Oklahoma was the gem of the conference in this year's signing period, bringing in the nation's #5 class. The conference as a whole has 4 teams in the top 20 and much like the SEC, 10 teams in the top 45. The conference was strong throughout in recruiting this season with Iowa State ranked #62 as the conferences worst recruiting team this season. The majority of the talent was spread from the very talent rich state of Texas.

Colorado and Oklahoma were able to pick up the nation's #1 and #2 running back respectively this season. This seems to be a common occurrance for Oklahoma as of late with the signings of Adrian Peterson and Demarco Murray in recent years. This season the nation's #2 running back, Jermie Calhoun, joins that impressive list of running backs the Sooners have signed. Blocking for Calhoun in the coming years will be 5 star recruit Stephen Good, a prototypical Texas hog volley coming in at 6'6'' and 300 lbs. Oklahoma was also able to sign the nation's top DE in RJ Washington out of Keller, TX.

Texas as usual didn't have to look far for their #14 recruiting class. Only 1 of their 20 commitments is from outside the state. There are no 5 star commitments from that class (the first time since 05'), but there are a healthy amount of 4 star players in the class who should keep the talent levels high in Austin for years to come. Texas A &M was very much in the same recruiting mindset of Texas. They did however reach outside the state more than the Longhorns. This season TAMU was able to get 2 of their 24 recruits from outside of Texas! It wasn't, however, one of the better classes for Texas A&M.

Colorado was the big surprise of the Big 12 recruiting season, coming in with the nation's #15 recruiting class. Highlighting the class is the nation's #1 running back, Darrell Scott, who chose the Buffs over offers from just about everybody including nearby hometown teams USC and UCLA. It seems Dan Hawkins is finally starting to make his mark amongst West coast prospects.

With the success of Missouri last season and the spot lite being put on Chase Daniels, the Tigers were able to wrestle in the the nation's #1 pro style quarterback, Blaine Gabbert from nearby Ballwin, MO. The same however can not be said for the Fighting Mangino's of Kansas who never seem to bite off more than they can chew........in recruiting. This year's class is pretty similar to their past season's with a splattering of 3 star recruits and a couple of 4 star recruits. Look for a recruiting spike for Kansas this coming season as prospects now have the team on their radar after last season's overwhelming success.

Boone Pickens impact is starting to be felt on recruiting year-in and year-out at Oklahoma State as they've secured the nation's #26 recruiting class. Since the huge donation by Pickens, the recruiting classes have improved to compete with the big boys in the Big 12.
Meanwhile Nebraska has brought in the nation's #30 class on the heels of the coaching transition from Bill Callahan to Bo Pelini. Callahan was always a very successful recruiter for Nebraska, but his defense never was successful in Lincoln. It will be interesting to see how well the notorious X and O coach that Pelini is does on the recruiting circuit.

Elsewhere around the Big 12, Kansas State was able to put up a very nice recruiting class coming in at #27 in the nation. Surprisingly it seems K State has been able to establish a pipeline in California as they signed 12 kids from there this season. Rounding out the Big 12 were Texas Tech (#45), Bayor (#51), and Iowa State (#62). Top to bottom, there really was no dud recruiting class for the Big 12 this season, a lot of that is due to the on field success from last year as well as the impact of new coaches in the league.

Big East
Year-in and year-out the conference who does more with less is the Big East. Contrary to popular belief, even the powerhouse teams like West Virginia and Louisville have problems bringing in talent. Take a guess as to who's had the most talent brought in over a 3 year span in the Big East. West Virginia? Rutgers? Louisville? No. It's been Dave Wannstedt's Pittsburgh teams. Pitt is the equivalent of Nebraska in the Big East. A lot of talent has come through the program, but the team has struggled under the pro style system that Wanny has incorporated.

This season there were a total of 1- 5 star player and 18- 4 star players brought into the Big East. Alabama's recruiting class alone has 3- 5 star players and 19- 4 star players. It's really tough to gauge why the Big East has struggled so greatly over the years in recruiting. The conference has many things going for it including: Great coaches, the easist road to a BCS game and the National Championship, many games with exclusive Thursday night showcase coverage on ESPN, etc.

Pittsburgh leads the way this season in the Big East with the conferences sole 5 star player, Jonathon Baldwin. This 6'6'' monster heads the Panther's #28 recruiting class. It will be interesting to see how many more years of good recruits and disappointing season's the Pittsburgh AD is willing to put up with.

West Virginia posted the nation's #43 recruiting class on the heels of the departure of Rich Rodriguez. My gut tells me Bill Stewart will be the beginning of the downfall of West Virginia both in terms of recruiting and on field success. Rutgers has come in as the country's #46 recruiting class with the addition of 3- 4 star recruits who should make a quick impact on the program.

One surprising item noticed from recruiting is South Florida only coming in as the nation's #54 recruiting class. I would have thought that the early season success coupled with the buzz around the program and being located in the talent rich state of Florida would have had an impact on the recruiting success of the program.

It will be be interesting to see what the addition of Steve Kragthorpe will bring the Louisville Cardinals in the coming years. This season they came in at #55 in the nation in recruiting. They may turn out to be a pretty decent team on the field despite their recruiting.

Rounding out the Big East, Syracuse has brought in the #48 team in the country and Brian Kelly is still trying to establish the Cincinnati program with recruits; coming in at #66 nationally. Randy Edsall's program at UConn, despite last season's success, has come in last in the conference in recruiting (#70 nationally).

Notre Dame
One of the major misconceptions in college football over the past couple years is that Notre Dame doesn't have the talent to be successful. Much of the heat that Charlie Weis should have been receiving this past season was passed off as bad recruiting years by Ty Willingham towards the latter end of his coaching career at Notre Dame.

While it's true his last 2 recruiting classes were subpar for Notre Dame, they still ranked very favorably compared to the rest of the nation. It's also true that Charlie Weis has done very well in recruiting thus far at ND. Last season they were able to secure the commitment of all-world QB Jimmy Claussen. This season they signed the #2 recruiting class in the country. Below is the list of recruiting rankings Notre Dame has had since 2002 according to Rivals.com.

2008- #2 (Charlie Weis)
2007- #8 (Charlie Weis)
2006- #8 (Charlie Weis)
2005- #40 (Ty Willingham/Charlie Weis)
2004- #32 (Ty Willingham)
2003- #12 (Ty Willingham)
2002- #24 (Bob Davie/Ty Willingham)

This season Weis was playing with talent that came from a #40 recruiting class at worst. A 3-9 record with that level of talent is unbelievably bad. Apparently the days of losing to the Purdue's and Michigan State's of the world are not over Charlie.

Recruiting Roundup - Part One

Recruiting season has come and gone, and we here at CGB want to get the new season started with a week long recruiting wrapup. Today we will look at how the Big Ten, ACC, and Pac Ten did in recruiting this season, as well as one mid-major surprise.

Big Ten – The Big Ten took a beating from the media during the season for a down year, and at the moment the 2008 class looks like a below average one for the conference. While some teams locked up solid classes, the bulk of the conference underperformed. Ohio State leads the way with another top ten class nationally. The strength of this group is the offensive line, where Mike Adams, Michael Brewster, and J.B. Shugarts give the Buckeyes three top 100 players. The class also has solid talent at almost every position, with quarterback being a notable exception. However, that may soon change, with the nation’s top prospect, Terelle Pryor, choosing between Michigan, Ohio State, Penn State, and Oregon in the upcoming weeks.

Michigan will have a solid class coming in next season. However, the story in Ann Arbor is the timing of a couple of their key commitments. Both WR Roy Roundtree and RB Michael Shaw decommitted on signing day from Purdue and Penn State respectively. This led to some pointed comments from Joe Tiller regarding the Roundtree decommitment.

Minnesota and Illinois both also had solid classes. Minnesota’s was a real shocker to some people, but with the recruiting guru Tim Brewster at the helm it should not have been that big of a surprise. That said, Minnesota is rolling the dice with some Juco players and academic risks. However, if the mild risks pan out this could be a foundation class for a rebuilding program. QB MarQueis Gray out of Indianapolis is the feature recruit for the Gophers. Illinois does not have the star power of last year’s class, but has added depth across the board. In particular, look for the wide receiver group to be much improved from last season, with Ohio’s Cordale Scott and Florida’s A.J. Jenkins expected to pay immediate dividends on the field.

Penn State and Wisconsin both had classes that will make it tough for them to stay among the conference’s elite. While Penn State had a fantastic linebacker haul, with Brandon Beacham and Mike Zordich leading the way, they only signed 14 athletes, and lost some key signing day battles to other Big Ten schools. Wisconsin did not manage to sign any surefire stars, though they added a couple of solid line prospects in DL Tyler Westphal and OL Peter Konz. However, Wisconsin has managed to win in the past without highly ranked recruiting classes, so it remains to be seen how this class will affect the program.

The rest of the Big Ten had an extremely poor recruiting showing. Michigan State, Iowa, and Purdue all made the news more for the prospects they lost than the prospects they signed. While they each managed to sign a couple of solid prospects, such as WR Fred Smith for MSU, QB John Weinke for Iowa, and OL Ken Plue for Purdue, in many cases they had to settle for "MAC level talent." All this does is make the struggle back to the top of the conference more difficult for these three programs.

Northwestern and Indiana bring up the rear for the Big Ten this recruiting season. Northwestern signed some solid offensive lineman such as Brian Mulroe and Indiana brought in local star RB Darius Willis, but until these players show something on the field it is tough to say that any of them will be quality Big Ten players.

ACC – The ACC had a very good recruiting season, with new hires at Miami and North Carolina making an impact, and some of the traditional powers locking up solid classes. However, the story of the conference’s recruiting year was Miami’s return to the top. The Hurricanes had a marvelous signing day haul, one which was rated in the top five by almost every ranking service. Miami signed an incredible defensive class, with LB Arthur Brown and DT Marcus Forston leading the way. The other major theme in Miami’s class was the hometown flavor. The Hurricanes did a great job keeping Miami talent at home, as more than 10 of their signees hail from the city itself. Coach Randy Shannon did a great job recruiting during his first season, and this class could provide the base for Miami’s return to the glory days.

Florida State and Clemson complete the trio of elite classes for the ACC. Florida State’s class is headlined by star LB Nigel Bradham. They also hope to have found their quarterback of the future in E.J. Manuel. Clemson’s star recruit was home state DE Daquan Bowers. They also added some fantastic running back depth in Andre Ellington and Jamie Harper. These classes should go a long way towards restocking talent at these two schools.

Virginia Tech, NC State, North Carolina, Boston College, and Maryland form the next tier. Virginia Tech’s class is highlighted by RB Ryan Williams, who hopes to be the next in the Hokies recent run of good running backs. NC State’s class is led by QB Mike Glennon, and instate prospects LB Terrell Manning and ATH Brandon Barnes. Butch Davis has a solid class to show for his first full year of recruiting. LB Zach Brown and DE Quinton Coples should bring some talent to the Tarheel defense next season. Boston College backed its surprising season with a deep class led by RG Josh Haden and S Okechuckwu Okoroha. Finally, Maryland was able to keep star wideouts Kenny Tate and Kevin Dorsey at home to headline its class, one which Terps fans hope will bring them back to the Fridge’s early glory days. What is interesting about these five classes is the disparity in signees. Virginia Tech, NC State, and Boston College all signed 25 or more prospects, while North Carolina and Maryland only signed 19 and 18 respectively. It will be interesting to see which approach garners the most success during the next five seasons.

Georgia Tech, Wake Forest, Virginia, and Duke are at the bottom of the ACC heap this season. Georgia Tech had a turbulent season with the firing of Chan Gailey and hiring of Paul Johnson. OL Omoregie Uzzi is the top prospect for Tech this season. Wake Forest never lights up the recruiting rankings, but they have been productive on the field during the past few seasons. The Deacons hit up Florida well this season for their redshirts, with OL Ramon Booi and LB Scott Betros leading a solid crop of Sunshine State prospects. On the other hand, Virginia has had highly rated classes that have not necessarily panned out on the field. This season, their recruiting fell apart during the season, with key decommitments at the end of the signing season. Torrey Mack leads the way for this class, one which has to disappoint most of the Cavalier faithful. Last, and unfortunately usually least, Duke came in with the worst class in the ACC. While QB Sean Renfree may become a solid player for Duke, most of their offseason optimism will come from the solid hire of David Cutcliffe.

Pac-10 – The story of Pac-10 recruiting this decade has been a simple one – USC. While USC still managed the top class this past season, other conference teams have stepped up their efforts, and as a result the Pac-10 had a great recruiting year. The Trojans built this season’s class on the lines. Offensive linemen Matt Kalil and Tyron Smith, along with DT Armond Armstead lead the way for this top ten class nationally. However, there is depth throughout the class, and this class should help the Trojans reload next season.

Closely following USC is their crosstown rival, UCLA. Coach Rick Neuheisel did a great job of adding skill position talent. The class is headlined by defensive backs Aaron Hester, Rahim Moore, and E.J. Woods, and the depth and quality is there for UCLA to make a real run at the top spot in conference.

Oregon, Arizona State, Washington, California, and Arizona all brought in quality classes, and they provide the depth that made the Pac-10 so successful on signing day. Oregon loses Dennis Dixon, but in Chris Harper and Darron Thomas they hope to have found a worthy replacement. However, even if neither quarterback turns into a star, the Ducks have enough quality across the board to complement the players already on campus. Arizona State won the in state battles with Arizona, as top prospects ATH Gerell Robinson and DB Jarrell Barbour both signed with the Sun Devils. However, the biggest name of the class is QB Jack Elway, who is indeed John’s son. Although Washington struggled on the field this season, they brought in a solid class led by local DE Kavario Middleton. It is possible that the potential of this class allowed Ty Willingham to keep his job, so the group probably needs to produce if they want to keep their coach around. California’s class has a heavy in state feel, but they also went into Arizona for a couple of solid players in DB Marc Anthony and RB Covaughn DeBoskie. The Bears also hope that WR Marvin Jones can help the team deal with the loss of Desean Jackson. Arizona did not have much success in state, but they were able to tap California and Hawaii for DB Robert Golden and DT Solomon Koehler respectively. Mike Stoops is another coach who may be on the hot seat, so this class will need to perform on the field if they want to spend their college career under a single head coach.

Stanford and Oregon State did not bring in the quality depth that other Pac-10 programs did, but each class had some star power at the top. QB Andrew Luck has been viewed as a potential program changer for Jim Harbaugh. If he performs to his potential, the class will be a success for the Cardinal. Oregon State’s class is headlined by the junior college standout DE Simi Kuli. Kuli was heavily pursued by top programs across the nation, so Beaver fans are ecstatic about his potential in Corvallis.

Washington State is a class full of sleepers and borderline Pac-10 prospects. However, the key for Paul Wulff is to build momentum during the season, and hopefully carry it into the 2009 class.

Mid-Major – The mid-major recruiting job of the year has to go to Southern Miss. Coach Larry Fedora did a tremendous job bringing talent down to Hattiesburg. The class is highlighted by potential star WR DeAndre Brown. The in state talent turned down the entire SEC. In addition, WR Freddie Parham and OL Bo Tillman turned down numerous high major offers to sign with Southern Miss. I cannot remember a similar situation, where a new coach had such immediate recruiting success at a mid-major. It will be extremely interesting to see if Fedora can keep up this success, and whether or not he can create a Jeff Bower-like legacy at Southern Miss.

Photo Legend: Amos Alonzo Stagg

Coach Amos Alonzo Stagg is the first legendary figure of college football. He was a member of the first ever All-America team as an end for Yale in 1889. He later became a charter member of the College Football Hall of Fame in 1952, being inducted as both a player and coach. Under his watch his University of Chicago Maroons were a charter member of what became the Big Ten Conference.

He guided Chicago for 41 years and totalled 270 victories, a victory total not topped until Bear Bryant did so. He lead the Maroons to the 1905 National Championship and seven Big Ten titles. Unfortunitly, the academic power house University of Chicago couldn't maintain the gridiron success established by Stagg. The school dropped football all together in 1939, only 7 years after Stagg last coached there. The school brought back football in 1969 and now competes in Division III. Stagg finished up his coaching career with 14 years at the University of the Pacific. He finished with a record of 329-190-35 in 55 years of coaching.

The Stagg legacy lives on in name. Two high schools, one in Palos Hills, IL and one in Stockton, CA carry Stagg's name in addition to a Chicago elementry school. The Pacific soccer stadium carries his name (used for football until the school discontinued the program in 1995). More famously, the site of the first nuclear reaction took place under the stands at Stagg Field in 1942 as part of the Manhatten Project. The stadium, located on the U of C campus in Chicago's Southside, reached a capacity of 50,000. The majority of the field was demolished in 1957, but what remains is designated as a National Historic Landmark. A new, smaller field built on the U of C campus now carries Stagg's name.

Stagg's remarkable career includes being a charter member of the Basketball Hall of Fame and serving as coach for the United States track and field team during the 1924 Olympics in Paris. "The Grand Old Man" died at the age of 102 in Stockton, CA.

Stagg, who's likeness has served as the College Gridiron Boss logo throughout the site's history, will give way in the coming weeks to other legendary college gridiron bosses. Every Monday a new coach will be profiled and have his photo serve as the site's logo for the remainder of the week.

The Boss Is Back On Monday

College Gridiron Boss is emerging from the end of season hibernation on Monday. We have a lot of great new ideas for the coming season. Have a good weekend, because come Monday, the boss is back in the office.