The Dukes have fired the guy who won them a National Title put together a 109-70 record in his 15 years in Harrisonburg. He was just 33-24 over the last 5 years, though, with only one playoff appearance.
Here's a link to an article about his firing.
Not that it means a lot, but @footballscoop thinks that there will be a lot of interest in the job.
There will be huge interest in the James Madison job. Huge.— FootballScoop Staff (@footballscoop) November 25, 2013
I tweeted a minute ago there would be huge interest in the JMU jobjust got a text from a very well known FBS asst Id kill for JMU job"— FootballScoop Staff (@footballscoop) November 25, 2013
EDIT - some thoughts from Harry Minium of the Virginian-Pilot about Stinespring
Tech assistant Bryan Stinespring would be an able replacement for Mickey Matthews. He's a JMU alumnus with endless recruiting connections.— Harry Minium (@Harry_MiniumVP) November 25, 2013
@AndyBitterVT Not sure that Stinespring wants to leave Tech, but when ODU began football, he interviewed for the job there.— Harry Minium (@Harry_MiniumVP) November 25, 2013
And this one from Matthew Hatfield of VirginiaPreps.com
Hearing early candidates for the #JMU Football job include Wisconsin assistant Chris Beatty and Virginia Tech assistant Bryan Stinespring.— Matthew Hatfield (@hatfieldsports) November 25, 2013
Comments
Shoot, I thought when they beat Tech he was bound to be an FBS coach one day. Guess they went downhill after that win.
Wait for it, the "Why Beamer should be fired/forced retirement" comments will soon follow. For the record I think Beams should stay as long as he damn well pleases.
Where is O'Cain at anyway?
OC and QB coach of the JMU Dukes...I'm not up on their offensive production this past year on that side of the ball though. It could be a non factor or it could've led to Matthews firing.
Ahh thanks. I kind of thought those guys just faded into the ether.
It was probably the latter...
Off topic but your signature is just pure gold. Funniest show on TV right now.
Mike London for JMU?
His 1-AA coaching resume is impeccable.....
24-5 with a national championship in 2 years.
I guess they don't use the same kind of clocks in FCS.
Pete Clawson left him a lot of talent.
Also, JMU has aspirations about going 1-A. They're trying really hard to convince a conference to take on the bustling Harrisonburg TV market.
Might be his best shot at beating VT.
If you want to coach at a school that will take anyone regardless of grades or criminal record JMU is your place. Unlike W&M, a bastion of well-behaved student-athletes.
The second tweet is pretty juicy. I have to assume that it's a relatively local coach they're talking about. Always fun to speculate.
My worry is that Stinespring would be interested in the job as that is his alma mater. He's done well as the recruiting coordinator and Calvin Kline has looked good this year.
If Stiney has any chance to move from his current position he would have to go to FCS level to become a head coach. For JMU having a FBS recruiting coordinator become your head coach could be attractive since JMU is trying to move up to the FBS ranks. From what I hear Stiney has more of the persona of being a head coach than a deep in the Xs and Os coordinator.
No he doesn't. And he's not gonna go. Gets paid more as a recruiter than he would there.
I could definitely see him go. Even if it's a paycut, being a head coach gives the opportunity for a lot more long-term earnings, plus the prestige of being a head coach and not a coordinator/recruiter. And I also wouldn't be surprised if he's still a bit salty about being demoted...I know I would be.
Yeah, Stiney would go in a heartbeat. He's a good HC prospect, and more importantly, he was demoted at VT. Once you're demoted, time to find another place to work.
Oh really!? If that's the case then why is he still with Tech? Nobody (save the powers that be) even knows if they will call him up. He's got nowhere else to go but down IMHO. I will put $$$ that he's staying right here! Any takers?
He's still here because he hasn't gotten that call. I'm not arguing that he should/will get an HC job...I was responding to your original statement that he wouldn't even if he had the opportunity because of money.
In 2012, Stiney made almost $350k, while Matthews was making $220k. That's a big delta for Stiney to absorb if JMU can't come up with equal bucks.
Sometimes you have to take a step back in pay to make a step forward with your career. I'm sure they'd give Stiney more than the 220, but I'm sure he cares more about the position and his alma mater more than his pay. He isn't hurting for money, that's for sure.
Wasn't Stinespring rumored for some FCS head job a year or two ago? I wanted to say App State but that was O'Cain.
Yeah he was also "rumored" for a position with the Indy Colts then they snapped out of it and realized "whoa, wtf did I just smoke bro? That's some serious blow!"
If I remember correctly it was Western Michigan, but I could be wrong...
Shane.
Of the two (Stinespring or Shane) I think Stinespring would be the bigger loss right now.
And that's not intended to be a dig at Shane. Some HC experience would be good for him.
Would probably be the all around best thing to happen. Shane goes and either proves himself as a candidate capable of being a successful D-1 coach to replace Frank in 2017 or makes it obvious that the new AD would need to go in a different direction.
While hard to stomach, Shane leaving and coaching somewhere else would probably be best long term. Losing Shane as a recruiter for this 2015 class though could really hurt.
Yep, it would be great for everyone involved.
I can definitely see this happening. He's young, charmastic, and fiery. I think that would be a stepping stone for him. But...as I have learned when Georgia Southern contacted the office at Blacksburg, Shane didn't go, so I think it's just speculation.
If he does well there it will be an easier sell to bring him home when Frank retires. If he struggles there is less pressure to hire him. It works, though I would regret having to hate him.
I think I'll submit my resume, too.
Even JMU fans DO NOT want Stinespring.
I wouldn't think Shane would take basically a lateral move from USCe to VT just to leave in 2 or 3 years. Daddy wanted to Coach with his son before he retires and I'm sure Grandma Cheryl is loving the grandkids being in the 'burg. If Shane was to leave I would have to think it would be after Frank retires and then ultimately coming back to be the HC at VT when Bud retires from being the HC.
Great Point. Bud will succeed Beamer... It would be a mistake to hire anyone else after Beamer.
A big part of being a head coach is being able to recruit. Bud hasn't shown that. He also hasn't shown he can coach an entire team.
Did Bud ever coach at the high school level? Or at a FCS team?
Pretty sure he never has. He was a GA at Murray State under Frank and has been with him ever since.
Fat fingers. Any help here?
gotcha
Gotcha. And that's good enough for me to give him the reigns.
I would love to see Bud take his HC shot at VT.
That being said, I think that it would behoove the football program to not take the approach Weaver took with the basketball programs and hire the 3rd guy to get a drink from the water cooler outside the AD's office.
When the time comes to look for our next football coach, I'd like for the committee to at least conduct a bona fide search of the nation's eligible coaches.
Again, I agree that Foster looks to be The Guy, but it can't hurt to explore our options, either. I find it hard to believe that Foster would take offense if there was some competition to win the Big Seat a few years down the road.
Yeah but, it's not like Harrisonburg is 1000 miles away.
Bob Dinklemeyer would be the best choice, but what the hell do I know.