Just realized Tyler Bowen is also our QB coach,thought he was the TE coach
Where and when has he developed any QBs? He didn't even play the position. What was Pry thinking when assembling this staff?
20 Replies
2y
What could go wrong?
(In response to this post by HokieBrazil)
He didn't and hasn't, Pry felt it was best to make him OC & QB coach
which is common along various coaching staffs in college football. I think Mullen was OC and Tebow's QB coach while at UF, iirc. For example.
Would Bowen look great as an OC with UGA's, Oregons or tOSU's talent? Maybe. But I've alway thought a good OC makes average talent perform great. Just my thoughts.
(In response to this post by HokieBrazil)
2y
Bowen could be a great QB coach, and the talent is just so bad and/or injured, we'll never know it. Same goes for Marve.
Problem is when your coaches are unknown quantities, with no track record of success to point to, and then they fail, people will ask that very question...."what were you thinking?" To both Whit Babcock, and Brent Pry
Nobody can say any of those things about the Fuente hire. He and his staff had a track record of success.
(In response to this post by HokieBrazil)
2y
he had 3 outstanding assistants, 2 of which became Head coaches (Norvell and Barry Odom) and arguably the next best assistant Holman Wiggins was plucked away by Alabama and look at the guys that he has put in the NFL in the last 5 years!
J Ham and Fuente's other hires and retentions (other than Bud/Wiles) were not anywhere on the level of the 3 aformentioned
(In response to this post by Techsupport)
2y
No he didn't bring everybody, but he certainly brought most of the big pieces, and all of them had great reps.
(In response to this post by kt22hokie)
2y
I thought he special teams coach was decent too. But then there was Cornelson, however we can't say Fu didn't want to make the change.
(In response to this post by Techsupport)
2y
he was the one that stayed behind.
Fuente retained Zohn Burden( which turned out to be a terrible decision) and hired Jafar Williams from Rutgers to replace Wiggins after he left which was a definte downgrade.
I think he also let Brian Mitchell go who I always thought did a fairly solid job.
The Galen Scott fiasco was the real killer, as he was reported to be the "bad cop" on the staff when the team needed a kick in the pants
(In response to this post by TekkNerd)
2y
And I suspect the Co-OC that stayed behind was the brains behind the QB whispering and O operations.
It's my understanding he stayed behind in order to allow his daughter to graduate from HS.
(In response to this post by TekkNerd)
2y
3 of those 4 good ones were ranked in the 30s, without a good back until 2020, and a different QB every year...lol.
Beamer had that many in what, 25 years?
The warped perception that guy left behind is mind boggling. Statistically, he was actually one of the best OCs we've ever had, which granted, isn't saying much.
But again the Wiggins thing is irrelevant. The point was that the staff Whit hired was super rock solid at the time.
(In response to this post by TekkNerd)
V
VTCALS72
2y
One of the big discussions on here was whether a coordinator from a blueblood was better than a winning coach at a lower level. That question really cannot be answered and no one can blame Whit for not going back to a G5 or lower coach. Whit hired the anti Beamer in Fuente and the anti Fuente in Pry.
(In response to this post by Techsupport)
2y
There was nothing about that hire that was remotely a head scratcher. It was a no-brainer. He brought an experienced staff, and did pretty well the first several years....good enough that even a school like Baylor was flirting with him. There's no reason to look back at the hire, and question anybody's judgement.
By contrast,
If Pry ultimately fails, and I hope he gets this turned around quick, people are going to ask questions like....why is a first year OC, with no history around the QB position coaching QBs? Why is a first year head coach bringing in green coordinators.
Dabo Swinney came out of literally nowhere, but the first thing he did is surround himself with the best guys money could buy.
(In response to this post by VTCALS72)
V
VTCALS72
2y
head coach. I fully agree that Whit did an A+ job hiring Fu based on the info he had at the time of the hire. But this really is about the better option of a G5 head man or a (now) P2 coordinator.
Which is better for VT?
(In response to this post by Techsupport)
2y
regardless of P5 or G5 etc.
I'm always going to give a Governor a longer look for President than a Senator. Its an executive job.
Obviously, there's no magic formula though. Look at Nick Saban's coaching tree...some of his coordinators have succeeded, and others have failed pretty bad.
I'm not a fan of learning on the job at a program like VT however.
(In response to this post by VTCALS72)
2y
It was the second thing. His original coordinators were DC Kevin Steele and OC Billy Napier -- yes, *that* Billy Napier. Napier got fired after 2010 (replaced by Chad Morris), and Steele got fired after 2011 (replaced by Brent Venables).
Dabo had a vision for the program and was able to sell those guys on coming to Clemson and elevating them. Dabo's first full season was 2009:
2009: 9-5
2010: 6-7 (fired Napier, hired Morris)
2011: 10-4, ACC Champs (fired Steele, hired Venables)
So Dabo had a LOT to sell to Morris and Venables. Clemson was making progress. VT, on the other hand, has gone 3-8 and is looking at a rough season this year.
(In response to this post by Techsupport)
2y
(In response to this post by Will Stewart)
2y
known then that it would be extremely difficult to find qualified replacements after both of them fell flat on their faces in less than two years. After all, look how little he now has to sell.
(In response to this post by Will Stewart)