Is Texas Tech Football Dead?

The shine that Leach had? What shine was that? Everything I've read about him was that he was a prick who was impossible to get along, from players to assistant coaches to administrators to whomever. I never met the guy, so can't say first-hand.

What I will say is winning games is no pass to conduct yourself as a jackass. Better to be a gentleman and go 1-11 than be a jackass and win some trophy. Leach did neither, so I'm not real sure what people saw in him. He was a decent offensive coordinator under Bob Stoops who wasn't a good head coach.

 

If that was the case, Dan McCarney would still be a head coach.

In my limited dealings with Mike Leach, he was direct and honest, if not exactly friendly. He's also a character, and people latch onto characters. Someone will make him an offer he can't refuse before too long.

 

The Buffs didn't have enough big money boosters to buy out Hawkins after last year. All the stories during the whole move to the Pac-10 was about how cash-strapped the University is.

I still think Leach is a no-brainer for that job.

 

If it becomes available think Leach would be perfect for The U.

 

To add MacDaddy, Colorado is cash-strapped across the board. They can't afford to whack Hawkins, even if they really wanted to.

Mark, being an gentleman and going 1-11 will get your ass fired quicker than John Calipari bolting a school before they get put on probation. Ask Ty Willingham and Gerry Faust about being nice and getting your ass and head handed to you every week. Boosters, ADs, and fans don't give a shit about being nice anymore.

Can you win games? If yes, then we don't care if you're nice or a jerk (see Nick Saban).

Pollyanna isn't walking through that door, Mark.

 

This, in a nutshell, is what is wrong with college sports. All sports. Of course, I exaggerate to make a point.

But this is, of course, the same university that hired Bob Knight as a basketball coach. It's a terrible double-standard. Companies fire people everyday for boorish behavior far less than what these coaches engage in. Yet somehow we've come to believe that winning a few ball games makes them immune. Disgusting.

 

It's absurd to compare someone coaching athletes to someone who works in an office.

 

Amen. Same thought process would apply for drill Sergeants.

 

Heck, Mark Mangino took Kansas to the Orange Bowl, for crying out loud. But it didn't make up for the way he treated people.

I don't buy the notion that coaching athletes means you have to be a first-class A-hole. At the very least, you should temper your temper when dealing with non-athletes.

 

OK, this I gotta hear: why is it acceptable for a coach to be like a drill sergeant, instead of like a more positive type of corporate manager?

 

Name a successful coach who is known for his positivity. There are a couple, but very few.

 

Tony Dungy, John Gagliardi ... Rick Neuheisel?

Sports is a results-based business, obviously. If you can achieve and sustain success, you can pretty much act as you please (at least within the bounds of the law). Once the results stop coming, a tyrant's act wears thin quickly.