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Top Head Coach Candidates

Liberty City El said:
Disclaimer: I KNOW RICHT IS NOT GETTING FIRED THIS YEAR, YOU DON'T HAVE TO TELL ME, I KNOW.

With that out of the way, these are a just some of the Coaches I think would great for us in the event they were hired.

Josh Heupel - I know I know everyone hates UCF, but I think he would kill it here in Miami due to his Offensive background. He comes from the Bob Stoops coaching tree, was QB coach & OC at Oklahoma from 06-14. He's developed QB's like Bradfrod, Landry Jones & Drew Lock at Mizzou. He was OC when Okla beat Bama in the Sugar Bowl in 2014 when Trevor Knight lit'em up.

Obviously I don't think he would go undefeated at Miami, but I do feel his Offense would be more than enough to bring Miami into the 21st century & we would win those games against lesser opponents because we would put games away early with a high octane uptempo Offense that puts up points at will. Team him up with Diaz & our Defensive talent and I think we have a team that could actually compete for the ACC.

Mike Norvell - Another young offensive innovator that has done a great job in QB & offense development, he made below average QB's like Paxton Lynch & Riley Ferguson look like good passers. When he was OC at AZ St they won 10 games back to back in 2013-14 & made another below average QB like Taylor Kelly look like a legit passer.

Plus currently at Memph he has the #2 rusher in the nation Darrell Henderson. And yes I'm aware the talent level is different from G5 to P5 football, but the point is the man understands how to maximize his players strengths & utilize his weapons without having elite talent.

Ryan Day - Came from that New Hampshire system when Chip Kelly was the OC & was also a Steve Addazio guy at Temple & BC. Followed Chip Kelly to the NFL with the Eagles & Niners, before getting brought on to be QB/OC coach with Urby at Oh St. Has Dwayne Haskins playing at an elite level being 3rd in the nation in passing with 3,280yds 33TD's & 6INT's & considering this is his 1st season as a starter and is a True Soph.

He's the hottest name in coaching right now due to his connections & how he handled being the HC when Urby got suspended for 3 games. He's someone that Oh St boosters would back up the brinks truck to keep him in house if Urby left, so I don't think we have a realistic shot at getting him, just think he could do a good job here.

Dino Babers - Long Coaching history most of you know his background (if not look it up), but as a HC is 53-34 all-time. Did well at Eastern Illinois going 19-7 where he had Sterling Gilbert as his OC & guess who his QB was... Jimmy Garoppolo. Also did well at Bowling Green going 18-9. Currently has Cuse at 8-2 with an opportunity to destroy Notre Dame's playoff potential next week & even has a bum QB like Eric Dungey playing pretty solid.

He's a very good Offensive minded HC & usually has good OC's under him, he gets a lot of his players without having high caliber 4/5-star talent. His resume obviously doesn't stack up to Richt's (none of these coaches do), but I think he would kill it on the recruiting trail in South Fla due to his personality & approach to the game. Most importantly if you've ever seen the locker room celebrations after they upset teams it's pretty clear he gets his guys motivated, they play for him, which is something we need & a Coach that can lite a fire under his team and have them respond.

Neal Brown - Was with KC Keeler at Delaware for a brief stint, was OC at TTech with Tubberville & with Stoops at Kentucky, but is basically a Larry Blakeney disciple from Troy. Has a 33-15 record with back to back 10/11 win seasons in 2016/17 & wins against 2 P5 teams (Neb this year & LSU last year), also almost beat Clemson in 2016 (lost 30-24), the same Clemson team that won the National championship that year.

Now almost doesn't count I know, but when you look at how wide the talent gap is between Troy & Clemson that's still pretty crazy the game wasn't a blowout like it should have been. I know some would say ridiculous even considering him, but I wouldn't necessarily put him at the top of the list but he's an interesting name IMO as an unconventional hire. He seems like a coach that will eventually take on a job in the SEC, and the fact he's only being $810,000 a year it basically a forgone conclusion he'll get a big pay day somewhere in the SEC.

There are others many of you have talked about extensively in dozens of other threads, Matt Campbell at ISU, Mike Leach, even Briles etc., I'm not a Leach guy at all but the thinking of brining in an Offensive guru & pairing him with Diaz & our Defense, along with the very good skill players at their disposal is the right direction we should move IMO.

My top candidates were always guys like Gary Patterson or David Shaw, just basically guys who were proven program builders & winners at their previous spots but I doubt they would want to leave their comfortable situations to come deal with the pressure of Miami. I think we need to go in the same direction that Oklahoma went & hire a young upcoming innovative Offensive guru like Lincoln Riley. It would improve our Offense over night, which would get us W's vs these weak Coastal teams we keep losing too, which would also make us a more attractive destination for both local Fla & OOS recruits that would be salivating at the opportunity to play for Miami.

I know the hardcore Richtians will hate this thread, that's fine, I'm not even going to engage with yall. But for the rest of you, go ahead & let me know what other Coaches you guys think would be great here.
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@Liberty City El what do you think about Matt Wells at Utah State?
 
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Canesfan1899 said:
Give me Babers, Matt Campbell, or Heupel.
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Been following cambell for awhile. He is clearly my #1.

I have concerns about Heupel. Stoops fired him at Oklahoma and made a huge upgrade by replacing him with Lincoln Riley. Keep in mind Heupel was Stoops’ former national championship qb and he fired him.

At Central Florida he inherited what Scott frost built.
 
There only 4 current head coaches that have won a title. Here’s a question:

Who do you guys think is the #5 coach to win a title? Who’s even close right now? Harbaugh? Riley? Herman? Cause I don’t see anyone beating saban dabo or urban. Fisher needs time to build up tam
 
Dwinstitles said:
The only question i will have with the next HC is recruiting. Can he beat Saban and other blue blood teams for elite homegrown kids. Until we find that we r done. The last four coaches have one thing in common.....they could not stop the sfla bleeding thats what thwy all have in common and thats why they failed. Some guys we had can do certain things well but this is the one most common thing they all did. I am a believer in until that happens they will lose


Facts

And if the next coach can change that it means he recruits well nationally as well. Mix that with sfla elites and u have what we had whwn we were at our best
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I disagree. Butch didnt beat the likes of Bama for elite homegrown kids. Neither did Schnellenberger. Butch was possibly the best ever at evaluating recruits and seeing underrated potential. Maybe a kid just hadn't ever had three square meals a day so he was way undersized for a LB and was only a 2 star "project." Butch could see that. Going back decades, if the kid was a Dade 5 star, the SEC schools would drop bags- it was way worse in the 80s and 90s since there was no social media and the NCAA could bury its head in the sand. Schnelly similarly recruited hard luck kids with a chip on their shoulder and channeled that angst into explosiveness on the field.

You know what happens when you fill up a team with entitled 5 star recruits who have been the center of attention since middle school? You get FSU now- a bunch of "me" players with no heart or Coker era Hurricanes. Miami's game was and will always be player development and schematic innovation.

Rick is an elite recruiter but is absolutely horrendous at finding coaches who can develop talent. That's why his coaching tree is a stick. Rick won in the SEC the same way Coker won games- many of the 5 star recruits have been to very expensive football camps and already have the fundamentals down, so his coaches didn't have to do anything. The nightmare scenario is happening right now- the elite recruits aren't interested in playing for a .500 team, so Rick has to recruit lots of projects, but he doesn't have a staff (he cant ID coaching talent and is an awful CEO) that is ever going to get these kids playing at an elite level. That is why when evaluating the next potential coach, you have to find a coach whose teams outperformed relative to their talent level. By this metric, given the massive resources Rick had at UGA, his record is abysmal (2 SEC championships in 15 years?!)

Which head coaches fits the criteria of outperforming relative to talent level: Babers, Leach, Campbell, and Butch.
 
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BoxingRobes said:
The list i've been posting on here for a minute...

Dino Babers
Neal Brown
Lance Leipold

First two are at the top of my list. The third is a leap of faith candidate. The man knows how to win.

I also like Mike Leach for the fun factor.

Matt Campbell
Matt Wells

Only problem with these two is I don't know if Miami gives them time to develop what they need to develop here.

Future considerations, guys to keep on the radar.

Scott Satterfield
Josh Huepel
Ryan Day
Seth Littrell
Jason Candle
Luke Fickell
Blake Anderson
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Luke Fickell? The same guy that Golden coached circles around? No thanks!
 
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Mike Leach told President Trump that he would never lose another game in his career if he was the head coach of the Miami Hurricanes. That really happened. I'm not sure any other coach ( or even most Canes fans) believes in the Miami Hurricanes as much as Mike Leach.
 
If tomorrow the HC job came open at any perennially successful program does anyone on here think Mike Leach would even be considered a serious candidate? Would he even be interviewed?

The answer is an indisputable no.

If that’s the case, then why the **** would we?

People here want us to recruit, bring in he best assistants and win like a big time program, then clamor for a dude who’s openly says he doesn’t care to recruit, has never won **** and after seven years at a program is six or seven games over .500.

Makes total sense.
 
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People are always on about how we're a major program and recruits and coaches should be proud if we want them. But then it's time to fantasize about who the next HC should be, and who do they pick? Who are the two names that come up the most these days?

Mike Leach. Butch Davis.

For some fcking reason, it suddenly means nothing that no other major programs want these two. If I was pushing a guy for OC who had an average record at a lesser school, I'd be crucified on here. People would be offended that I would disrespect Miami by thinking that was the best they could get, that we shouldn't aim higher. But suddenly with the top job it doesn't matter. Every other major program is wrong, these two are the answer to our problems.

I know the Butch people will especially take this personally, but doesn't it mean anything that nobody else wants to hire these guys? And if not, why does it then matter for other guys?

Obviously I'll just get shouted at, but how about a real answer. Why doesn't it matter with these two?
 
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TimeB0mb said:
I disagree. Butch didnt beat the likes of Bama for elite homegrown kids. Neither did Schnellenberger. Butch was possibly the best ever at evaluating recruits and seeing underrated potential. Maybe a kid just hadn't ever had three square meals a day so he was way undersized for a LB and was only a 2 star "project." Butch could see that. Going back decades, if the kid was a Dade 5 star, the SEC schools would drop bags- it was way worse in the 80s and 90s since there was no social media and the NCAA could bury its head in the sand. Schnelly similarly recruited hard luck kids with a chip on their shoulder and channeled that angst into explosiveness on the field.

You know what happens when you fill up a team with entitled 5 star recruits who have been the center of attention since middle school? You get FSU now- a bunch of "me" players with no heart or Coker era Hurricanes. Miami's game was and will always be player development and schematic innovation.

Rick is an elite recruiter but is absolutely horrendous at finding coaches who can develop talent. That's why his coaching tree is a stick. Rick won in the SEC the same way Coker won games- many of the 5 star recruits have been to very expensive football camps and already have the fundamentals down, so his coaches didn't have to do anything. The nightmare scenario is happening right now- the elite recruits aren't interested in playing for a .500 team, so Rick has to recruit lots of projects, but he doesn't have a staff (he cant ID coaching talent and is an awful CEO) that is ever going to get these kids playing at an elite level. That is why even evaluating the next potential coach, you have to find a coach whose teams outperformed relative to their talent level. By this metric, given the massive resources Rick had at UGA, his record is abysmal (2 SEC championships in 15 years?!)

Which head coaches fits the criteria of outperforming relative to talent level: Babers, Leach, Campbell, and Butch.
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This is maybe one of the most concise and accurate post I’ve read in a minute. Wish I can upvote this more.
 
Go Canes!! said:
If tomorrow the HC job came open at any perennially successful program came open does anyone on here think Mike Leach would even be considered a serious candidate? Would he even be interviewed?

The answer is an indisputable no.

If that’s the case, then why the **** would we?

People here want us to recruit, bring in he best assistants and win like a big time program, then clamor for a dude who’s openly says he doesn’t care to recruit, has never won **** and after seven years at a program is six or seven games over .500.

Makes total sense.
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Jimmy Johnson got passed over for his dream job at his alma mater, Arkansas. He wasn't in huge demand. Bill Belichick was considered a failure of a HC in Cleveland. Coaches are losers until they arent. Sometimes a coach won't be "successful" until finds the perfect match, where the coaches system is perfectly suited for a particular school. JJ's 4-3 defense might not have been as successful had he taken a job in the midwest, where you tend to have big slow players. It was perfectly suited for the small fast aggressive athletes in S Fl. Likewise, I think Leach would annihilate scoring records with Florida kids. It's the perfect system for receivers like Thomas and Pope, and the TEs would simply be unstoppable. DJ Dallas would be a revelation as a receiver and RB.

Neither JJ or Erickson had particularly distinguished coaching records but they had schemes that were ideal for Miami. I think Leach falls into that same category.
 
Papa Rox said:
This is how we ended up with Shannon and Golden. The fans need to demand a great, proven, up and coming coach. We are pretty much 20 years into sucking at this point
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A lot of people thought Golden was "up and coming" and his improvement at Temple made people think he was "proven." Face it. Nothing is guaranteed.
 
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