Category Archives: RC Submarines

Recent case studies clearly show that replacing popular longtime successful coaches often backfire on the team.
Cases in point

1. Texas Tech: Firing offensive genius (but socially awkward and verbally abusive) Mike Leach with former Auburn head coach Tommy Tuberville. Leach led to Red Raiders to a 11-1 regular season record. Only reason they missed out on a BCS bowl was due to a tiebreaker. They’re 5-7 this year and got blown out 5 games in a row after upsetting Oklahoma.
2. Penn State: Scapegoating the legendary Joe Paterno for the Jerry Sandusky scandal. Got humiliated by Wisconsin earlier today
3. Kansas: Similar to Leach, Mark Mangino was fired for abusing students despite leading perennial loser Kansas to a BCS bowl. They’re 2-10 this year.
4. South Florida: Jim Leavitt built this program up from scratch but was fired after he struck a player in the locker room at halftime. They’re 5-6 this year.
5. Maryland: Ralph Friedgen, an alumni of the school, was fired shortly after being named ACC coach of the year. A year later, they’re 2-10 under new head coach Randy Edsall.
6. Florida State: Legendary head coach Bobby Bowden was forced out and replaced by assistant Jimbo Fisher. Yet this school continues to underachieve not to mention the school administration alienated the fanbase by firing a legend. They’re 8-4 (unranked) this year after high expectation coming into the season (preseason AP rank #6).
7. Miami: After championship coach Larry Coker was fired in 2006, the Hurricanes got even worse under Randy Shannon and Al Golden.
8. Clemson: Tommy Bowden’s Tigers were the epitome of mediocrity. To his credit, his team was above .500 every year he was there (1999-2008). Dabo Swinney hardly fared any better and after a hot start this year, Clemson is fading just like it did under the younger Bowden.
9. Ohio State: After Jim Tressell was forced out for covering up his players’ memorabilia for tattoo scheme, the Buckeyes are 6-6 this year.
10. Texas A&M: After firing longtime head coach RC Slocum, who never had a sub .500 record in his 14 seasons, in 2002, the Aggies already have 4 sub .500 seasons since (2 under Dennis Franchione and 2 under Mike Sherman). Last year’s 9-4 record was its best in years. After high expectation this season (preseason rank #7), the Aggies are 6-6, the norm in the post-Slocum era.
11. Washington State: Wazzu was competitive and relevant in the Mike Price era from 1989-2002 including 10 win seasons in his last year there as well as 2 Rose Bowl berth in ’97 and 2002. After getting fired by Alabama due to disgraceful off the field conduct before ever coaching a game, there were public calls to bring Price, who attended Wazzu briefly in his playing career, back after his successor Bill Doba was fired. They hired Paul Wulff instead. Wulff is 9-40 as Wazzu’s head coach with this year’s 4-8 season his best.
12. Colorado: The Buffaloes were a force to be reckon with in the Big 12 with Gary Barnett as its head coach. Since his firing in 2005 due to numerous improprieties, they haven’t had an above .500 season.
13. Tennessee: Longtime coach Phil Fulmer, an alumni of the university, was fired in 2008 after a down season despite being ranked #12 the year before. Since then, the Vols went through the one year Lane Kiffin fiasco and is currently a non-factor in the SEC under Derek Dooley (5-7 this year 1-7 in SEC conference play).