UT hires Heupel
Wowser.
OK, so UT has hired Josh Heupel to be the next football coach.
We'll say it again. Wowser.
Seeing the outrage on social media led my crooked cranium down several thoughts.
A) No one does a coach search like UT;
B) No program has a fan base as social media emotional as UT;
C) UT has way, Way, WAY more coin than we realized considering:
- C1) They paid six figures to a search firm for Danny White to hire a dude that worked down the hall from him at UCF;
- C2) They gave Kevin Steele two years at $450,000 per and who knows if he will be little more than a Butch-type intern on the next regime.
D) All things considered, the Auburn search and final choice of Bryan Harbin looks better and better.
I hope it works. Truly. It's more fun around these parts when UT is good.
But of the names we have all heard - Jamey Chadwell and even James Franklin among them - and the guys available from Muschamp to Herman to Malzahn and even the outlaws linked to the gig like Freeze and Kiffin, this hire feels dire, no?
You have to wonder how many said 'Thanks but no thanks' to the millions UT wanted to pay.
It also has started the clark on the new AD, who is getting an avalanche of grief on Twitter for the search and this outcome.
But, here's the thing, and this is important.
Heupel is 0-0. Will it work? Will it fail? Impossible to know, because judging a hire on Day 1 is like judging art before paint is put to canvas.
He has to be better than Pruitt, right? RIGHT?!?!?! And, not unlike the Auburn search, in which all I really wanted was a) a change and b) it not to be Kevin Steele, UT's disgruntled fans have every reason to be skeptical considering the last decade I think the biggest mistake on the board was Clemson OC Tony Elliott.
Heupel has head coaching experience and is a bona fide offensive mind. Were there better candidates out there? No doubt. But there were way worse names linked too.
Thoughts?
(Late addition: It appears that the UCF players have found out about Heupel leaving on social media. So there's that.)
Empty Hall
So the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown will not have a new inductee through the traditional voting. Sure, COVID willing, there will be a ceremony in July for Derek Jeter and Larry Walker, who were voted in last year and who knows the veterans committee may decide that Biff Pocoroba or Darrel Thomas deserve consideration. (No Bruce Benedict, though. Stupid Bruce Benedict.)
Curt Schilling was the closest to the 75% threshold in the voting, which was released Tuesday. He finished with a smidge more than 71% but announced on social media that he wants off the ballot for the next cycle, which would be his 10th and final year of eligibility.
Schilling contends that his politics have kept him short. That's likely true, but voicing support of the deadly insurrection earlier this month is more than politics. It's lunacy.
And D-baggery. (Side question: Intern Scott was aghast Tuesday with using the verb 'cook' as the active part to describe letting someone do their thing. Are we OK using D-baggery on a family-oriented, interweb-based sports conversation?)
Big picture, I don't think Schilling should be in the Hall. His career was good and at times he was great. But not Hall-worthy. In fact, I don't think half the dudes who have been elected in the last decade should be in the Hall.
It also appears that heading into their final year on the ballot, Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens will fall short. Both finished in the low 60s and it's hard to see either jumping all the way to 75% this time next year.
Another thing that will be intriguing next year will be the addition of A-Rod to the ballot, considering the PED conversation and how A-Rod has revamped his rep and become the Romo of baseball broadcasting.
SEC hoops
Lots of SEC basketball on Tuesday, including all of the teams that should be mentioned atop the league.
As we discussed around these parts a week or two ago, Alabama is the class of the league. The Tide are athletic, experienced, long and extremely well-coached.Everything after that has been tossed into a bowl and mixed thoroughly.
UT? Somehow the Vols have become extremely offensively challenged of late. Rick Barnes believes leadership is lacking. Hard to doubt him and it's becoming hard to watch UT try to score.
UK? The Wildcats are going to miss the tournament, which feels strange to even type, much less believe. The churn of the one-and-done and a broken chemistry that feels impossible to repair at this juncture make this the worst team Coach Cal has ever assembled.
Missouri? As Chas suggested this may be one of the best jobs Cuonzo has done. These Tigers have several NCAA-likable traits, including serious size.
And finally, what about the new Sharife in town? That's right, the Auburn Tigers are a different bunch with point guard Sharife Cooper on the floor. The five-star freshman point guard was declared eligible by the NCAA in early January and his presence has made this bunch exponentially better.
Are they a tournament team? I think so, but can go a long way to putting an exclamation point on their résumé Saturday vs. No. 2-ranked Baylor.(Side note: While we are here, and all apologies up front Alejandro, but Cooper is the third consecutive super recruit from the Atlanta-area. Bruce Pearl got Chuma Okeke, Isaac Okoro and now Cooper from the suburbs of the A-T-L.)
This and that
- So, Volvo will give away $2 million worth of cars if there's a safety in the Super Bowl.
- What? Please say it ain't so John (Dutton). There are rumors that Season 4 of Yellowstone will be Kevin Costner's last. I blame COVID.
- Super pleased that Hamilton County is doing everything in their power to try to get the kids back in school.
- Super not pleased that Marjorie Greene is the way she is.
Today's questions
Which way Wednesday starts this way:
Which word would you use to describe the hiring of Josh Heupel?
Which eligible candidate on the ballot for the baseball Hall of Famers would you have voted for?
Which SEC basketball team is second-best right now behind Bama?
As for today, Jan. 27, let's review.
On this day in 1970, the PG movie rating was added. Side question: Without looking it up, do you know the first PG-13 movie? I am pretty sure it was Red Dawn.
On this day in 1956, Heartbreak Hotel was released.
Rushmore of 'hotel' and be creative.