https://sportstalksc.com/2020/12/03/gamecocks-coaching-search-spit-blog-...
https://247sports.com/college/south-carolina/board/44/Contents/tiger-phi...
Some are saying Bud is itching to get back into coaching and could be a potential target for DC at USCe if Shane Beamer is hired as head coach. Curious how other TKPers feel about this rumor and its validity.
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Thought this may be a good topic to discuss if Joe or GuitarMan disagree and dont think this deserves its own thread then please delete and if it is deleted I also posted this in the recent forum topic "Bud discusses Data vs gut, portal, and disruption".
Otherwise I'd love to hear everyone's thoughts. If he is itching to get back to coaching why not have him be a candidate to return as our head ball coach.
Honestly I think we need a clean slate in the football program. Just rip the band aid off and move on. After the past few years I'm starting to think that keeping ties to Beamer's tenure caused more harm than good besides giving people the warm fuzzies for the first couple years.
Wait, lil Beams is candidate to be the Cock's Big Whistle?
That's better than Whistling at the Big Cock.
You ain't just whistling dickie.
I would be very curious to see how his scheme worked with SEC athletes and training and how effective it was consistently playing the best.
Everything Bud does behind the DL is what Venables does for the most part. They would do just fine. In the mid 2000's our defenses had mostly SEC athletes.
I'll do the 2006 defense just as a reference point
DE - Orion Martin 6'2 260 -- UDFA
DT - Barry Booker 6'4 290 -- UDFA
DT - Carlton Powell 6'2 310 -- 5th rd draft pick
DE - Chris Ellis 6'5 260 -- 3rd rd draft pick
B - Xavier Adibi 6'2 225 -- 4th rd draft pick (damn shame too, if he came out post ~2014 he'd probably be a 1st-2nd rd guy)
M - Vince Hall 5'11 (listed 6') 238 -- UDFA
W - Brendan Hill 6'2 211 OR Cam Martin 6'1 207
BC - Brandon Flowers 5'10 190 -- 2nd rd draft pick
Rov - Aaron Rouse 6'4 227 -- 3rd rd draft pick
FS - DJ Parker 5'11 (listed 6'0) 198 -- UDFA
FC - Macho Harris 6'0 194 -- 5th rd draft pick
None of our defenses have been Saban's-Alabama-talented (few are), but for a more recent example the 2017 or 2016 VT defenses were similar in size/speed/athleticism profile to an upper half SEC defense in terms of size and talent.
And to be honest, SC is not going to have a full roster of Alabama-LSU-UF athletes anytime soon.
Here's the thing.... I don't really think he is. Obviously it's just rumor, but it seems more like wishful thinking than anything else
Also, I think it's a rumor fueled by USCe's fan base as a (what they think) valid tie to Shane Beamer. The dude had a heart attack and wasn't looking good the last year or two. That's like saying a diabetic may be itching to have some cake. Maybe they really do, but it would probably be stupid for your health to do so. Plus, it would mean uprooting himself at this stage of life, and unless he doesn't like Claytor lake and the surrounding area, why do that. Add in the expectations of an SEC school and related stress, and oh yeah, having to go recruit again, which I understand was Bud's favorite with the related travel.
People, Bud isn't coaching again, as much as the USCe fan base may want and daydream (and delude themselves over) about having a hall of fame worthy DC on staff.
The diabetic-cake analogy probably shouldn't be funny, but I literally LOL'd.
I mean, if true then what perfect timing... right?
Every interview he's on he sounds genuinely happy in retirement. In a recent podcast he literally said he loves not waking up on gameday with a stomach ache and he loves spending time with family. In every interview I've listen to, it seems like he has no regrets about leaving.
But, what do I know?
Not saying I believe he wants to return but it's not difficult to imagine he can feel both a desire to return to the world and life he had for decades and a contentment to be done with it.
Between his health, time with his kids and grandkids and his newish wife and her job as an elected official I don't believe it.
Or it's the kind of headline that generates clicks.
Rumor that pops up from Sports Talk Radio in SCar that a coach who needed to retire because his heart literally couldn't keep up with the stresses of the job are now saying he'd come back to work for a 3rd tier school in the top league in the sport where the expectation is contend for a Natty or Bust?
Hmmmm.... methinks they're just trying to drive page clicks with this one
This sounds only marginally more likely than Bear Bryant coming back and demanding the reins at Bama.
His mind might be saying yes...but his heart and body are screaming a big "FUCK NO"
Why would Foster want to come out of retirement from an area he loves to go be a DC at an SEC school where he'd have to work twice as hard to get set back up and have to deal with SEC fans/boosters?
He and Frank had a great rapport while together at VT. I feel like that needs to be the legacy for both of them. while it's a cute rumor, I'll wait to see what Bud actually says/does himself.
This feels like USCe fans stoking this rumor since Shane is a head coach candidate for them. Just goes to show how respected Bud is nationally that their fans are hoping for him to come out of retirement if Shane gets the job.
Zero chance
I am surprised everybody is so confident that he wouldn't come back. Yes he had a heart attack. But, if it was so serious to absolutely keep him out of coaching, why did he coach his final season? Every coach wants back. People bounce back from heart attacks. I would not rule it out at all. 60/40 he stays retired.
How true you guys think this is
The "young kid" would be Galen Scott, right? We got bad on D after he left. So not true at all and pure speculation would be my guess.
Our defenses in 16 and 17 were downright baller. I don't know how much to attribute to Galen, but we haven't had good LB play until Ashby tore things up last year. But that didn't translate to 2020.
Too bad Galen really really liked recruits' moms.
I thought it was using University funds for an affair while on recruiting trips, not with actual moms of recruits.
Why not both?
If this is true, it should immediately end any hope of Fuente ever running another football program again, at least at the P5 level, and at least for another 5-10 years.
Bud Foster is a legitimate Hall of Fame caliber DC, and its a damn shame that coordinators aren't allowed to be inducted. He's proven it for over 20 years at the P5 level, including multiple national Top 10 units while winning national awards for his abilities. To think that his guy would be better than that would be pure insanity and should make anyone seriously question the judgement of the man in charge.
For that reason, I think this is all complete bullshit. I mean hell, Whit made Fuente get Bud's approval, and vice versa before we decided to hire him. To think Fuente would do that and then immediately stab him in the back is pure internet conspiracy crap.
Bud even came out and said he had less oversight from Fuente than he did with Beamer there. Fuente let Bud do Bud on game prep and gamedays.
Yeah, I would agree with this statement as well. I specifically remember Fuente saying he's doesn't "poke his head into the defensive room" that often when Bud was around. If you have a Michelin-star chef, let the fucker cook.
2018 was awful because of Bud's health and losing our three best defensive players "before the season started" (Alexander, Mook & THill) along with playing so many damn young guys.
Literally all of the details here are wrong, the "memphis guy" was gone after 2017, and was there for two very good to elite defenses. The only person on the defensive staff that wasn't 100% Foster's was Nix, and he lasted one year, and again was gone the year before Foster retired. I get how USCe fans might fall for something clearly wrong like this, but you definitely know better. Let's keep the criticisms to the many real shortcomings, and not run wild with complete nonsense from other fanbases who don't even follow the program.
I'm not sure Mitchell was 100% Fosters, but he wasn't Fuente's guy either.
Like any great lie, there are elements of truth. The "elements of truth" being that Bud is known to have some demons, and that Fuente brought his DC with him from Memphis. Everything else is obvious bullshit. Galen Scott was brought over so Bud could mentor him for when he retired, this guy doesn't even have his facts straight.
1. I dont think this is true.
2. On the chance it does happen. The entire universe couldnt contain my anger as I watched SOMEONE ELSE have Baby Beamer as their HC and Foster as DC on their coaching staff and not us.
Side note: not saying I think Shane will be a great HC, but optics of him and Foster being somewhere else together would be HORRENDOUS. I honestly think it would be worse than us not offering a scholarship to Steph Curry
While you never say never, I think that is a lot of wishful thinking. Some of the national guys think Beamer isn't super in play there and his agent is pumping the interest to try and get VT to make a move.
That would make sense with all the former players also pumping him up.
Health concerns, enjoying retirement, wife is an elected individual in the NRV. Going to Columbia?
When I get to drinking I will occasionally look at Porsches and Ferraris and I start to get an itch to order me one...then I sober up and that itch becomes something to laugh at.
None of this is true. Fake news. USCe fans have stirred up more rumors about their coaching search than you can imagine. They legitimately think they are a destination program.
What do VT fans think we are?
I'm not saying we are either, but USCe really waves that SEC banner hard in trying to justify their place as a program.
Woah there buddy. You're talking about the conference that won like 20 CFB national titles in the last 10 years alone. It doesn't matter that USCjr wasn't one of them, they were adjacent to greatness and that's all that matters.
Uh, Vandy is also in the SEC. Being in the SEC does not make you a destination program, and saying that a program is not a destination program just because they're in a good conference is not a slight on the conference. Or was that a /s type comment?
I'll give you a hint
Lol - I COMPLETELY did not read that closely enough. Wow. {sheepishly walks away from this conversation}
Somehow also missed "adjacent to greatness" which cracked me up. I blame it on taking a quick break to look on here during work hours {gasp!}
A better job than USCe in many ways.
From the most objective point of view, USCe pros:
- You're an SEC HC. Destination title.
- Probably higher salary (it's closer than you think though, I think Fuente's around 4m to Muschamp listed at 4.6m)
USCe cons:
- You have almost no chance of winning your division with a fanbase that thinks you should. Guaranteed matchups every year with Florida, Georgia, crossover with A&M, and Clemson. You rotate in an LSU, Auburn, Alabama, Miss school, or Arky school. The fans expect 9-10 wins. Good luck, and hope Mizzou, Kentucky, or Tennessee isn't also having a good year.
- Because of the previous reason, probably a one contract job, or one contract + fired early into your extension job.
VT definitely offers some of lofty fan expectations, but the job itself offers a much easier path to satiating that 9-10 win desire of the fanbase. A much, much easier schedule in a division that in almost any given year is wide open and winnable. Eight conference games in one of the weakest divisions, but no locked OOC rival (Clemson) and 4 OOC's to play with. You can schedule a big one and still likely swing 3 easy wins.
As a result of this, it's a lot more likely that a coach going mostly 9-3, 10-2 with occasional 8-4's or a tough schedule rare 7-5 can hang around for multiple contracts here. As long as you manage to recruit at a decent (not elite level, most in the fanbase expect classes between 20-30, you only get in big trouble when you let it go 40+ multiple times. Both schools have fanbases that love football, but the path to keep our fans sated is much easier terrain to traverse.
If I'm Tony Elliot, for example, why would I take one of the toughest P5 jobs in the country in USCe, where my % chance of getting run out of town in 4-5 years is likely over 50, or take the VT job in a winnable division, with an easier schedule to create a 9/10 win program where VT can either be a longterm destination or you do well enough that it becomes a jumping off point to an elite job. The latter happening at USCe is very improbable.
Couple of things. I think most of these coaches want to create programs to compete at the highest level. If you believe you can do that, No other team should be considered as "in the way". I also think SEC is easier to recruit to. I find it a bit odd that you would think USC might run a coach out of town while we are literally doing that as well. Bottom line, I don't think either school has a particular advantage. If you have what it takes, you can make it work at either place. If you don't have what it takes, you may not get fired quite as quickly at VT.
The point is, our expectations are substantially similar to USCe's. The biggest difference is that those expectations are significantly easier to reach at VT than they are at USCe, given all the reasons listed above. We don't have any annual opponents we are expected to lose to every year, whereas USCe has 4. That alone is a huge difference.
One or two more years under Fuente and we'll have just about the same number of annual opponents we're expected to lose to each year. Miami, UNC, Pitt, and (gasp) Uva. Not to mention some regional G5 or FCS team (Liberty, ODU, ETSU, or something)
If you're adding Miami, UNC, Pitt, and UVA to VT's list, you might as well add Mizzou, Kentucky, Tennesse, and their rotating SEC West opponent to USCe's list.
In short, trying to compare Miami, UNC, Pitt, and UVA to Georgia, Florida, Clemson, and Texas A&M is laughable, at best.
You're completely missing the point. I'm saying that VT will be so bad those teams will routinely beat us.
I see. Well in that case it seems you missed the entire point of this subthread, which is that VT should be a slightly more attractive destination in 2020 than USCe, not that it will be a less attractive destination by 2022 if Fuente stays.
But I guess the whole point is moot now, anyways.
I was making a joke about how bad Fuente is as a coach for this program. But if you want to get into a dick measuring contest I'm here for it
NSFW fellas
Quick recap:
There was a brief discussion of the relative quality of the VT and USCe coaching jobs right now.
You replied to a comment I made with an unrelated "joke" stating how much worse ours will be in 2 years if Fuente isn't fired.
I misread it as being a an on-topic take about how much worse it is right now
We cleared up that misunderstanding, but are now somehow in a dick-measuring contest (???)
Cool. Well.
via GIPHY
I think anyone who's watched Bud work at all could see that he wants to coach. But want and can are two different things. He's retired for a reason.
I could see him taking an advisory role for Shane if he asked. But that's about it. I can't see him taking on the stresses and pressure of running the defensive side of the field again, and certainly not for a team in a P5 conference with National Title aspirations (that aren't close to being met).
Bud was also never a big fan of recruiting. I imagine as tough as Tech fans can be about that, USCe fans really won't accept that outcome either. Maybe it's less of a big deal there because Shane and company would do a lot of the work for you, but I imagine it's tough to be in a top 2/3 position at football-centric SEC school and not really care about recruiting.
Total rumor based on a lack of knowledge and wishful thinking
Not happening all BS from delusional Gamecock fans. IF Shane gets that job I could see Bud having a temporary Jerry Kill type role for him but nothing more.
I heard a rumor that Nick Saban is "very" interested in coaching at VA Tech. His plan is to bring his DC and hire Tony Elliot to be OC and already has Elliot's buy-in on the move. Granted, I 100% just made that up, but I intend to spread it around as a rumor. See how a rumor is done? I took the same approach at work "I heard our 2 pm meeting was cancelled." Meeting organizer, "really, did something happen?" Me: "no, just a rumor I'm starting."
Just in case this isn't a rumor; I shared it with ten of my best friends. Better to be safe than sorry.
No way.
Some news about this. Not really saying much, but it might not be the foregone conclusion we thought it was.
Bud getting tired of not making $1M/year? He'd have to recruit at Cocky, so I don't see that working out too well.
This may piss a lot of people off
That USCe started a rumor that has no validity to it? If Foster goes there as an analyst, which I mostly also doubt, it's not the same as coaching there.
A virtual/work-from-home advisory/analyst position that he can do from his dock at Claytor Lake?