So Lane Kiffin gets a job as the head coach at Tennessee even though he's: a) 33 years old, b) never had a head coaching gig in college, c) is coming a year and a half 'tenure' as head coach of the Raiders that can best be described as a failure. Again, this guy gets hired as the head coach of an SEC school that just fired a national championship winning coach when his biggest career accomplishment is that he got fired by Al Davis. OK.......... I have to admit that I've always been of two minds on the whole black college head coach situation. On the one hand, it's pretty damn obvious that the brothers aren't getting anywhere the type of opportunities that they should. But on the other hand, I'm not for any kind of quotas or minimums, be they official or of the wink wink variety. And I also cannot fault any school that has an opportunity to hire a Steve Spurrier or Nick Saban and does so instead of giving a worthy Black candidate a shot. But this is just ridiculous.
What the hell has Lane Kiffin done to deserve this? And please Lane, if you or any of your guys are reading this, don't take it personal. You were offered the gig and you took it. We would all do the same thing. I don't fault you for seeking it either. Nothing wrong with asking for it. But I do take fault with those people who thought it was a good idea to give it to you. Have you demonstrated on any level that you can even recruit? I sure as heck don't think so. If Phil Fulmer, who'd won a national title and was regularly getting to the SEC Title game, was having trouble recruiting against Saban, Les Miles, Mark Richt, and Spurrier, what the heck makes anyone think you'll do better?
And seriously, why haven't these college presidents and athletic directors realized that ex-NFL coaches don't necessarily make for successful college coaches? Al Groh, Dave Wannestadt (I have no idea how to spell his last name), Charlie Wies, and Bill Callahan are all guys who thought they'd ride their NFL pedigree to instant success at the college level only to find out that coaching in college is an entirely different animal altogether. (Think about that Bill Cowher, before you take some college job). The only former NFL guys who make it are guys who were previously college coaches like Saban and Spurrier; they were college guys all along and had no business in the NFL. But Lane Kiffin hasn't shown that he's a college or NFL head coach at this point.
But hey, it isn't my money so maybe I should just let it go.
He white that is all you need to know
I'm still outraged by the whole situation on the Hill, but I'm also fully aware of the politics and personalities of the powers-that-be in Knoxville. This move was not supported by John Thornton, a former Trustee and powerful booster at UT. However, many others whose names will remain unknown clamored for change going back to 2005. There was absolutely no support for a black head coach although at least one was unofficially contacted. I would love to see a "Rooney Rule" in I-A sports, but it would be impossible to implement due to various laws regarding affirmative action in different states.
Sorry to highjack your story, but I wanted to make one more point. It may very well take something radical to enact change at these universities. Former players with deep pockets need to start putting pressure on their schools to hire minority coaches. Miami (FL) hired Randy Shannon due to outside support from many famous former players. At a place like Tennessee, there are scores of former players who have or are still playing in the NFL. The pressure generated by these players could at least get more minority candidates into the interview process.
It's all good Frank; and I do think you have a point there about the former players with money starting to ante up. It's just like the political process in that you need to do more than vote, you need to donate. What's the point in going to the school, helping it get paid off of your efforts, and repping for it after you're gone, if you're not going to throw your weight around when the opportunity presents itself. There's no reason why people like Warrick Dunn, Derrick Brooks, and even Charlie Ward couldn't make their presence felt at FSU in the way of putting their money where their mouths are and getting some sway on big decisions.