All Hail Herbie
New member
I have previously outlined my thoughts on the strategic approach taken by our new AD towards this situation so I will not belabor it here. All I can say is that he acted with a close eye on professional self-preservation.This is a really good post.
I've seen the "we're doing the same thing and expecting different results" comments too. I don't buy them based on the secondary facts of the situation e.g. the firing of four assistants and the restructuring of Scott's contract (which not only helps with a potential buyout but also crucially gives them more money to hire assistants). What we're seeing here are two parties amicably giving and taking a little bit in order to try to make something work. And if it doesn't, they're both in a position to walk away with something of value.
Fans get remarkably tied up in the importance of early success for a coach. I get it. You see guys like Gene Chizik, Ed Orgeron and Mel Tucker all knock it out of the park early on. But a lot of those guys are gone 4-5 years down the road when they can't match their early success. Would anybody be surprised if Tucker is out at MSU in the next few years, either because of a new job or a performance decline? Because I wouldn't be.
And yeah... who Frost is certainly played into all of this. Was it a primary determining factor? Eh... perhaps not. There are a lot of other factors playing into it (the defensive success, the team's apparent toughness/athleticism, their unity, etc.) But there's a very common theme we're hearing right now from fans when they see they WANT to see Frost succeed. Would they be saying that about an outsider? I don't personally think so. I think fans would be a lot more willing to cut ties if this were not a former Husker.
As to your second point, I may be unlike the generic fan you are speaking of as I do not put much stock in early success (i.e. wins / losses). My focus early in a coach's tenure is on fundamentals and mechanics. If we are losing games, but are consistently executing our offensive / defensive approach without penalties, turnovers, missed assignments etc. and can do so while remaining competitive, I can see the vision. I can then reasonably presume that with more experienced and ultimately better quality personnel that those close losses will become victories.
However, when you consistently demonstrate the same tactical shortcomings and errors year after year, and those errors contribute directly to losses, it is clear that either the strategy or the instruction is failing. In other words, the light will not simply "come on" in Year 5 or 6.
No hard feelings for me as I wish Coach Frost well in his next endeavor (starting December, 2022).