The Tennessean is reporting that Vanderbilt has talked to six people about its vacant head coaching job. We already know a little bit about Greg Roman, the assistant head coach at Stanford, and also Todd Graham, the Tulsa head coach. But the other four guys? They've only recently jumped onto the radar:
DON TREADWELL, OC, MICH STATE
(Pictured above)
When HC Mark Dantonio suffered a heart attack after beating Notre Dame, Treadwell stepped in and led the Spartans to two victories in two tries, including a win over No. 4 Wisconsin. A former high school quarterback and four-year starting wide receiver at Miami-Ohio, he’s spent most of his 15 years as a college coach developing quarterbacks, wide receivers and running backs. As an OC, he’s known for running a balanced offense. He’s around 50 years old.
SHAWN WATSON, OC, NEBRASKA
A college offensive coach for the past 28 years, he’s coached nearly every offensive position, but especially quarterbacks. He was the HC at Southern Illinois for three years, inheriting a bad team and posting a 10-12 record after starting his first season 1-10. He’s 51 years old. Worked for Gary Barnett at Northwestern and Colorado, then became recruiting coordinator at Nebraska, where he was one of only two coaches retained by Bo Pelini after the firing of Bill Callahan.
JAMES FRANKLIN, OC, MARYLAND
A rising star at 38 years old, he’s been an assistant coach in Division II, the Danish Football Federation, the FCS, the FBS and the NFL. His FBS teams include Washington State, Kansas State and two stints with Maryland, where he’s currently the offensive coordinator. Has coached receivers for much of his career. Got his current job when Maryland HC Ralph Friedgen gave up playcalling duties. He installed a West Coast offense and is now the head coach-in-waiting at Maryland. Considered one of the best recruiters in college football.
DAVE DOEREN, DC, WISCONSIN
Has coached at Drake, USC, Montana and Kansas before joining the Badgers. Has been the defensive coordinator at Wisconsin for about three years and also coaches linebackers. Replaced a veteran defensive coordinator when the Badger defense faltered in 2007, dramatically improving a unit that now consistently holds opposing teams to under 100 yards rushing. Known for being detailed-oriented and business-like. He’s about 38 years old.
And by the way, we're still waiting to hear from Air Force HC Troy Calhoun, Temple HC Al Golden and Auburn OC Gus Malzahn. Tommy Bowden appears to have dropped off the radar.
4 comments:
Yikes. I’m a HUGE fan of the idea of Tulsa head Todd Graham (let’e reunite him with Herb Hand!) and that’s about it. I was hoping to get a successful head coach at a smaller FBS school (why not go after Miami OH's head coach) or Malzahn. Greg Roman hasn’t proven anything other than he loves to move his family all around the country and I guess the best hire out of this new bunch would be the OC from Mich. St. If this is the best batch we could come up with... we're in trouble.
Yes, I like the guy from Mia-O, too. He sure outcoached Coach Kill, who just took the Minnesota job. The problem with getting an assistant who's not coaching Cam Newton is that we're not going to know he'll be a success until... he's a success. And at Vanderbilt we like a little false hope every now and then — and a big name would at least bring us some false hope.
Let's get Dave Wannstedt!
I guess my biggest concern about the guys from MSU, Nebraska, and Wisconsin is that...well, they're from those 3 schools. Don't get me wrong, they're all wonderful, historically successful programs. But that's exactly my concern.
It's one thing to come into a successful program and maintain that success. It's another to come into an underdog program and build it up. I guess that's why I'd feel better about hiring someone like Todd Graham or June Jones, even if there are flashier names out there.
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