3 Under the Radar DC options

#26
#26
ABINGDON VOL FAN said:
So?
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He’s the DC for a coach who is a defensive guy. Top 10 in Total D. 2nd/3rd over a two year period in 3rd down stops. Theres nothing that a reasonable person wouldn’t love about him. He’s doing it against lesser competition but with much lower ranked guys.
 
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#30
#30
TNHopeful505 said:
My thing is....if you want competitors as players, then you need competitors as coaches.

In my mind, if Washington is a competitor then he WANTS to take on a challenge and go up against the best.

If he isn't in the boat by now, after what we are offering, then I don't know he is the competitor we need.
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Withdraw the offer and give osu the chance to withdraw theirs.
 
#31
#31
sonofUT62 said:
He’s the DC for a coach who is a defensive guy. Top 10 in Total D. 2nd/3rd over a two year period in 3rd down stops. Theres nothing that a reasonable person wouldn’t love about him. He’s doing it against lesser competition but with much lower ranked guys.
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This right here is my biggest concern, how much of it is the HC's scheme/coaching and how much is him?
Another thing is, he's in Saban's back yard, if hes got so much promise how come he's not been plucked up by "The Great One"?
Lastly (and lower in importance) is the competition level. Mid to high production in SEC can sometimes out way being the best against lower competition.

Maybe bring him in as a position coach and promote when/if ready.
 
#33
#33
tngivm6 said:
Waiting patiently for my “This just in” email...
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Yeah ..,,pick one already! If we offered someone and countered and more than a day has gone by with no answer, they don’t want to come here... go to the next one, or maybe go with the one we’ve already got on staff for $900k.
 
#34
#34
BigOrangeTrain said:
I am sure the rest of the SEC would love it if we took him too. Glad you aren’t a decision maker.
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I’ve been noticing something, you sit back and take potshots at other folks posts, basically being an uninformed critic, without ever offering up your “solution“. While I may not agree or like a post, at least I do try and give another option, rather than a potshot then leave.
 
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#35
#35
VolNGA1 said:
First off, the past 2 days have returned to the circus reporting of the level we had during the Head coach search 3 years ago. It seems as if all the leaked info is coming out of OH. I'll have to agree with AD DW that we are better off doing our business in a fairly clandestine manner, rather than have the local Knoxville yokels throwing out any and everything they can link to a "linked nugget" of some sort. I seriously doubt Washington leaves OSU. Which leads to my next thought.

3 guys that I see as DC's that have been successful at lower-tier programs:

Gillespie - Tulsa
Reeves - UAB
Watts - Fresno St.

The thing that stands out to me is these guys have done well in leagues that are more offensive focused. And they have done well at schools that haven't been top of their league's programs in the past. That probably says they are playing with equal or less talent, and coaching them up to be successful. As bad as our defense looked last year, there is no doubt that our players would benefit from a fresh start on basic techniques.

Where these guys would probably be lacking is on recruiting at the Power 5 level. It would probably take a couple of years for them to prove themselves to really make headway on the recruiting front. To that, you'd hope some of the position coaches could step up in that role. But what kind of assistants would work for an up-and-comer?

I know these guys don't fit the big name, homerun hire that people were hoping for. But realistically, we just need to instill some basic skills back onto the defensive side of the ball at this time. There were just too many times that our guys weren't lined up properly, or even seemed that they knew what their assignment was. In 3 years, I never really knew what our outside LB/Rush end players were doing? They never seemed to cover backs in the flat, maintain outside leverage on outside runs, or generate much pressure on the passer.

I'll hope that whenever we get an announcement of our coaches, we'll have some stability and can begin the rebuilding process.
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I like Reeves at UAB. JMO
 
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#36
#36
Nasavol said:
I’ve been noticing something, you sit back and take potshots at other folks posts, basically being an uninformed critic, without ever offering up your “solution“. While I may not agree or like a post, at least I do try and give another option, rather than a potshot then leave.
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I have no real solution just like anyone else. I would just promote Steele. I get your erroneous opinion about him. But he is well respected, good recruiter and developer and has a ton of SEC experience. But it seems we may have to scrape the bottom of the barrel for a no name DC. I mean UABs DC??? Some fans will bring up anything to justify a hire.
 
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#38
#38
BigOrangeTrain said:
I have no real solution just like anyone else. I would just promote Steele. I get your erroneous opinion about him. But he is well respected, good recruiter and developer and has a ton of SEC experience. But it seems we may have to scrape the bottom of the barrel for a no name DC. I mean UABs DC??? Some fans will bring up anything to justify a hire.
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My opinion is not erroneous, it’s based on fact. He is a good recruiter, but as a DC, he is about Chavis level, he will get you beat with his bend but don’t break defense. And Fulmer hired him, knowing good and well they were going to fire Pruitt. If he didn’t know that, well, he is a bigger idiot than I thought. I have zero doubt, that he thought his job was safe, and he was going to bring in Marrone to be HC with Steele as DC. I may be wrong, but, as far as Steele and DC, see Chavis, John.
 
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#42
#42
The one defense that cannot be yoked to a fast strike offense is a bend-don't-break defense. It actually encourages the one weakness in Heupel's scheme--the opposition using time of possession to keep our offense on the sideline.

If that's Steele's philosophy (and it's certainly a sound defensive philosophy) then he's not the DC Heupel's offense requires.
 
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#43
#43
We see UAB-to-Tennessee as a step up. But at this moment in history... is it?

These three coaches have been paying their dues, earning respect in smaller conferences. When the time comes to cash that in, why would they choose a recently mid-to-lower tier SEC program, that's about to be hit with who knows what external limitations on improvement?

These coaches have proven they can do more with less. To move to a wounded and soon sanctioned Tennessee right now would be a lateral career move. When they take the opportunity to step up and prove they can be successful against stiffer competition, they will want every advantage working with them--not further handicaps.

The hiring search question is... what kind of good coach will be willing to start the next leg of his career race by strapping on ankle weights provided by the NCAA, and shouldering the weighted backpack of a disenchanted, entitled fanbase? For whom will that be a move up? ...an opportunity to prove himself?

Washington's case seems to show it takes more than a significant raise in pay to go with the job title. Heck, until the sanctions are announced, it may be that the first reason for eliminating a prospective coach from the list is if they want the job!

For now, we may just wind up with an old DC who only needs another 2-years of paychecks to get to retirement, whose aging parents live in Maryville, and who dreams of building a cabin on the Tellico.
 
#44
#44
Wow............we have so many knowledgeable coaches on this site. Why aren't they all in coaching rather than sitting behind a keyboard telling all our coaches what they need to do.
 
#45
#45
rgcvols98 said:
David Reeves enters his fourth season as defensive coordinator and his fifth season overall at UAB.

A two-time Broyles Award nominee, Reeves’ unit has been one of the most disruptive defenses in the country over the past two years. In 2018, the Blazers finished ninth nationally in total defense and in 2019 moved up one spot to finish eighth.

Over the past two seasons, UAB has been among the nation’s best in getting to the quarterback, compiling 92 total sacks and 217 tackles for loss. Additionally, UAB has been able to get off the field when it counted the most, finished No. 2 nationally in third down defense in 2018 and No. 3 in 2019.
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Spot On - Everyone needing a DC should look at Reeves, consistently over achives with his players. Being at UAB he is looked over because people just won't check on him.
 
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#46
#46
Just hire Jancek and be done with it. He got a bad rap bc of the Florida game. He was a good dc, kept things simple and aggressive. He got fired bc he basically told Butch what a dumbass he was/is. He has previously worked with Willie Martinez even as co-dc with him. They forced a decent amount of INTs which is what Heupels O would need.
 
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#47
#47
SmileyVol_c/o_10 said:
Just hire Jancek and be done with it. He got a bad rap bc of the Florida game. He was a good dc, kept things simple and aggressive. He got fired bc he basically told Butch what a dumbass he was/is. He has previously worked with Willie Martinez even as co-dc with him. They forced a decent amount of INTs which is what Heupels O would need.
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Oh and he wants to be here
 
#48
#48
CAVPUT said:
I really like Gillespie. He'd be a very solid hire. Hey, if he's able to keep Heupel's super duper offense in the 20's, he's got my vote.
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Plus, if he has a defense practicing against that kind of offense daily, just imagine how much better his defense would really be.
 
#50
#50
VolNGA1 said:
First off, the past 2 days have returned to the circus reporting of the level we had during the Head coach search 3 years ago. It seems as if all the leaked info is coming out of OH. I'll have to agree with AD DW that we are better off doing our business in a fairly clandestine manner, rather than have the local Knoxville yokels throwing out any and everything they can link to a "linked nugget" of some sort. I seriously doubt Washington leaves OSU. Which leads to my next thought.

3 guys that I see as DC's that have been successful at lower-tier programs:

Gillespie - Tulsa
Reeves - UAB
Watts - Fresno St.

The thing that stands out to me is these guys have done well in leagues that are more offensive focused. And they have done well at schools that haven't been top of their league's programs in the past. That probably says they are playing with equal or less talent, and coaching them up to be successful. As bad as our defense looked last year, there is no doubt that our players would benefit from a fresh start on basic techniques.

Where these guys would probably be lacking is on recruiting at the Power 5 level. It would probably take a couple of years for them to prove themselves to really make headway on the recruiting front. To that, you'd hope some of the position coaches could step up in that role. But what kind of assistants would work for an up-and-comer?

I know these guys don't fit the big name, homerun hire that people were hoping for. But realistically, we just need to instill some basic skills back onto the defensive side of the ball at this time. There were just too many times that our guys weren't lined up properly, or even seemed that they knew what their assignment was. In 3 years, I never really knew what our outside LB/Rush end players were doing? They never seemed to cover backs in the flat, maintain outside leverage on outside runs, or generate much pressure on the passer.

I'll hope that whenever we get an announcement of our coaches, we'll have some stability and can begin the rebuilding process.
Click to expand...

Just checked the websites of the programs you listed. Gillespie and Reeves are on the Tulsa and UAB websites. But Watts is not on the Fresno State site. If you mean Bert Watts? Just hired by Auburn.
 
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