The difference is Shannon had no track record of being able to get it done. We have actual proof that Al can get it done, and put together a good defense as well.
That is wrong....we have proof that Al can get a team that has NO EXPECTATIONS to an 8-9 win season.....Like Jethro did at Vandy.
We have NO PROOF that he can get a team that is EXPECTED TO WIN to 11-12 win type seasons.
We have NO PROOF that he can beat a good team.
We have HOPE not PROOF.
getting temple to 8-9 wins is a huge success..that's proof enough for me.. temple had won like a total of like 5 games the 4 seasons previous to al's arrival.. getting that to 8-9 wins is like getting is to 11-12 wins.. go check out what temple has done since golden left.. and you're right.. we have no proof that he can take a team that's expected to win .. to 11-12 wins.. he hasn't coached that type of team yet though.. none of his teams thus far have been 11-12 win caliber teams.. that's just the truth.
Weren't they in the Big East the prior years? The Big East might not be some super conference like the SEC or even the Big 12 etc, but they are far better than the MAC and those other crap conferences. So of course this team that is a horrible team, looks even worse when in a BCS conference, even if its the lowest BCS conference. Big East 2004, Independent 2005, MAC 2006.
Since we like to talk bout trends so much, lets talk about the schedule Temple played while Al was there. His first year, his worst year, they played 5 BCS teams, Clemson (nothing special back then), Louisville, Vanderbilt, Minnesota, and Penn St.
Over the next 3 years the schedule got worse. They played Penn st 3 years in a row and Connecticut 2 years (07 & 08). No other BCS teams. Then in 2009, they only played one BCS team in the regular season and then had to play UCLA in the bowl game. While these teams mentioned were not exactly world beaters, they were BCS level teams, better than the average bowling green and army type teams.
The only thing Al proved is that with an easier schedule (less BCS teams, and moving into the MAC where he could get free wins against scrub teams, his numbers would improve.
