Candidates 6 years ago? (2001)

[IHateLaState]

_ Dude this job is always going to be viewed as a stepping stone, or a tombstone. I sure hope we get a lot of great coaches who use us as stepping stones and move on after a few great years here. _

Agreed... But there is nothing wrong with providing that platform and being the beneficiary of that platform... Maybe after a couple of "steppers" our program will have become established enough to be seen as a permanent gig for a coach...

I think this next time (hopefully Bustle proves me wrong and the next time is a long time from now) we go out and find a young, agressive coach wanting to make a name for himself and is not going to hide behind excuses... Give us 5 years... Take this program to 9 or 10 wins... a couple of bowl games... then move on up... Then we do it again... works for me

[DestinCajun]

Dude this job is always going to be viewed as a stepping stone, or a tombstone.

rotflol...

[Just1More]

_ Dude this job is always going to be viewed as a stepping stone, or a tombstone. I sure hope we get a lot of great coaches who use us as stepping stones and move on after a few great years here. _

Or a kidney stone. One that is getting more painful by the second and is hard to get rid of.

You are correct... and I have always wanted to get some stepping stone stud that builds us up, finally reaches our full capability, and then goes on (unless we come up with the bucks)to a $ behemoth that is cycling coaches at the time. That is probably our best future in football. To me, that will be a rising young HC star in D1AA who doesn't take one ounce of excuse to force his will on the admin he signed up with. Why? Because his goal is to be a star.

[CajunNation]

_ By the time Dave Cully, Rich Rodriguez and Chris Scelfo had taken themselves out of the running,

Did they really want to coach here or was it a steppin stone for something better. _

You take your name out of the running when you are told the money you are asking for is supposedly too high, which is what pretty much Leach and Rodriguez did.

You see, at this point, funding the football program was put on the same level with building a new CajunDome.

By the way, the next coach of UL will make pretty close to what they wanted.

[CajunNation]

_ Turbine I was looking for the names of the other candidates when Bustle was hired in 2002? not when Baldwin was hired.

The list from when Baldwin was hired is pretty impressive though lol _

I can tell you for sure 2 of them were Bustle and Blakeney.

The discussion at the time revolved around Bustle, Blakeney, and Lewis Cook.

[Turbine]

_ Turbine I was looking for the names of the other candidates when Bustle was hired in 2002? not when Baldwin was hired.

Sorry

2001:
Bobby Wallace - Temple head coach
Clint Conque - Central Arkansas head coach
Ricky Bustle - Virginia Tech Offensive Coordinatior

and yes Blakeney and Cook were in the mix.

[CharlieK]

From what I've been reading one of the defenses of Bustle is that we are young, and that next year we will be better. Well, I look at it this way......if that is true, than after this season would be a good time to recruit an up and coming head coach. He will not have to come into a situation with no talent, and he will have a experienced QB. He will just be expected to do more with what he has and continue improving recruiting. I think the collapse last year coupled with the inability to put a competitive team onthe field 6 years into a tenure are cause for us to look elsewhere. There is another Rich Rodriguez, Mike Leach, etc out there. If we find him, we will win....if not we'll be having this same conversation in 5 years.

Conque is intriguing.

[CajunNation]

_ Conque is intriguing. _

VERY intriguing.

He's my choice.


I think Bustle did about the best he could with the situation he was given. He laid a good foundation(full roster), but I believe he's taken it as far as he can.

This would be an excellent time to pass the baton. We would get a HUGE bump in recruiting, and get another one when all of the young guys playing now are Jr and Sr.

Then, I don't think there woul'd be much of a lull anyway with Desmo and Fenroy.

[VObserver]

_ VERY intriguing.

He's my choice.


I think Bustle did about the best he could with the situation he was given. He laid a good foundation(full roster), but I believe he's taken it as far as he can.

This would be an excellent time to pass the baton. We would get a HUGE bump in recruiting, and get another one when all of the young guys playing now are Jr and Sr.

Then, I don't think there woul'd be much of a lull anyway with Desmo and Fenroy. _

Before we annoint Mr. Conque as our savior, why don't we wait until he has won more than the heart of Robert Trahan's daughter? Not saying he's a bad coach, just saying that he hasn't won in the Southland yet, and that hiring him now would REEK of 'good ole boy' politics.

[CajunNation]

_ Before we annoint Mr. Conque as our savior, why don't we wait until he has won more than the heart of Robert Trahan's daughter? Not saying he's a bad coach, just saying that he hasn't won in the Southland yet, and that hiring him now would REEK of 'good ole boy' politics. _

VO, you are the 3rd guy that has said that to me this week. The thing about he hasn't won a title yet.

Hmmmmm.

Sounds like you guys got your stories straight already huh?

I'll tell you the same thing I told Guru.

In the last 2 weeks, he's played the '04 SLC Champs and the '05 SLC Champs.

In those games, UCA has amassed 61 first downs, 1138 total yards, and an average margin of victory of 49-17

In UCA's 1st year in 1-AA last season they finished the year RANKED.

IN UCA's 1st game vs a 1-A school, they dominated La Tech everywhere but the scoreboard.

Over the past season and a half, they have the second best record of any team in the SLC.

Of all of the 1-AA HC's that will apply for this job, if it's available, he will probably be the only one who already has 1-A OC experience and the only one that has actually built the program they are now coaching.

It's hard to have the little SLC trophy if you have never competed for it. This is their 1st year in the league.



The man has already proven he is a winner. Hiring him now would be the smart thing to do, and I have no idea what you're talking about with the politics reference.

Anyway, hiring a HC who actually has strong ties to the area would be something we haven't tried in a looooong time. We need this.