MONTGOMERY, Ala. — One new SEC football coach has won barely one-fifth of his games as a head man. Another managed a 25 percent clip.
Still, a third has never been a head coach, and two others are closer to age 30 than 40.
The powerhouse football league didn’t go for splashy names like other recent hires Bobby Petrino, Nick Saban and Urban Meyer in its latest sideline shopping spree.
This time it’s Gene Chizik, Lane Kiffin and Dan Mullen — all with terrific track records and reputations as assistant coaches. But when it comes to head coaching, the experience they have is either nonexistent or negative.
It’s hard to imagine any of them drawing 92,000 fans to a spring game like Alabama’s Saban did in his first year.
They are surely intriguing nonetheless for a variety of reasons. Take Chizik at Auburn. He had a 5-19 record in two seasons at Iowa State, but was also defensive coordinator for back-to-back unbeaten teams at Auburn and Texas.
His hiring drew the most criticism of the three new guys, but he did get the endorsement of popular former Auburn coach Pat Dye, who got to know the Tigers’ new head man during Chizik’s stay as defensive coordinator from 2002-04.
“We knew more about him than anybody did,” Dye said. “I was a little bit shocked that our athletic director had guts enough to hire him. When I got the call that Gene was the No. 1 choice, I was shocked right along with everyone else. The more I thought about it, the more sense it made and the more I liked it.
“We’re all excited now.”
Chizik replaced Tommy Tuberville, who resigned after 10 seasons. Kiffin replaced a coach with even longer tenure, Phillip Fulmer at Tennessee, who lasted 17 years. All part of the SEC’s youth movement.
At 33, Kiffin is the youngest Football Bowl Subdivision head coach. Then again, he was also the youngest NFL head coach in modern history with the Oakland Raiders. Kiffin went 5-15 and was fired for what franchise owner Al Davis called insubordination.
Tennessee athletic director Mike Hamilton saw someone who demonstrated he could recruit nationally as an assistant at Southern California and had a plan to do the same for the Volunteers. His age also helps him relate to prospects, Hamilton said.
“Even though he hasn’t been a college head coach, he had a focused plan of how to go about that,” he said, calling his new coach “incredibly football-focused.”
The 36-year-old Mullen has helped take Florida to the BCS national championship game as the Gators’ offensive coordinator. He is a first-time head coach with plans to switch rough-and-tumble Mississippi State to a spread offense.
Mullen, a veteran assistant under Florida’s Urban Meyer, replaces the league’s first black head football coach Sylvester Croom.
Plus, he’s the fourth-youngest coach in major college football.
“One thing you always have to know is that you are always learning,” Mullen said. “You are either getting better or worse. So, every single day I have to wake up and find out a way to make myself a better coach. I have a lot of years to make myself a better coach if I can make myself better every day.”
Mullen also intends to shuck the Bulldogs’ more smashmouth offense in favor of the spread style he helped run at Florida and Utah under Meyer. Mississippi State averaged an SEC-low 15 points a game last season, while the Gators led the league.
“We are going to adapt ours to the players we have here right now,” Mullen said. “We are going to utilize our players.”
Chizik’s hire has drawn fire for everything from his record to his race. Charles Barkley, one of Auburn’s most well-known former athletes, charged that race was a big factor in choosing him over Buffalo’s Turner Gill, who is black.
Chizik also lost his last 10 games at Iowa State, but believes he left the program in better shape than he found it. And the experience leading a team helps.
“Those two years that I gained as a head coach, invaluable,” he said. “I wouldn’t change it, I wouldn’t do it over again any different. Exactly the way things were done, those were the same steps that I’d take again today.”
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Comments » 29
rabidvol1998 writes:
Chizik and Kiffen will constantly be compared. Both young, both take over at the same times. Both situations similar. The probability of success at each school is about equal.
Go Vols.
HtownVol writes:
Who cares
DennisVols writes:
I believe Kiffin's is better, even if it is slightly.
The big advantage Kiffin has is he won't have to deal with the meddling boosters and AD that Auburn is famous for.
Another advantage will be in the coaching staff Kiffin has coming to UT.
I do agree both will be compared to each other but right now Kiffin has the higher level of support both in the university and the fan base.
rabidvol1998 writes:
True on all accounts. Let's hope CLh is here 17 years and Auburn has 6 coaches during that time frame.
pms151 writes:
Auburn is taking a step into the past. Tennessee is taking a giant leap into the future.
rabidvol1998 writes:
I'm willing to hope, cheer, and support. No way I would bet. I only need one hand to count the number of coaches that I would bet on the over.
rabidvol1998 writes:
You guys just ended your 15 years. I hate losing to Bama, but the SEC just isn't the same unless you guys are in the mix.
I doubt Kiffen, or anyone else, will have as good of a record over Bama as coach Fulmer did.
TommyJack writes:
Don't know about that Rabid. Kiffin is not in the same state as Saban. Would give a big nod to Kiffin.
rabidvol1998 writes:
I'm just saying both have similar histories and success recently (10-15 years). I think we have a bit more history and success, but they have better in-state talent for recruiting. Of course, they have to share it with Bams.
SignalMtnVol writes:
Bama, we know how rough it was for the Tide during their rough patch. Y'all will have a helluva coach as long as Saban is there, for sure. I hope that we don't go through any more rough periods than we already have, but, who knows?
cainclifton23 writes:
Beyond the point, but i think sarkisian will be a great hire for washington, i was wanting him to be a candidate here when we were looking.
Pullingguard writes:
I think you may be right.. It bothers me that his assistants are coming mostly from NFL, loyalty and turnover is concerning. UT has history of long term head coachs, but will be shocked if this continues. In meantime hope he wins every game he coachs at UT.
CoverOrange writes:
If he wins and leaves, he'll leave us in better shape than when he found us. If he loses and leaves, well, we are right back were we started.
CoverOrange writes:
Auburn and Miss St will be way worse next year than this. Chizik may, or may not, have been building something in Iowa but apparently it will take him a few years to build it. As for Miss St, changing from smash mouth offense to flash and fly is not easy (see Auburn this year, see Florida 4 years ago).
I would give Kiffin an even chance to make significant improvement. The building blocks are there. Hopefully he doesn't think it's an erector set.
CoverOrange writes:
He didn't say what kind of games. Does Kiffin play parchisi?
shipperman#280095 writes:
What were the average wins per season in the last 5 or 6 years, Phil?
lildevils7 writes:
you don't know he's going to leave if he wins your another Kiffin hater and Fulmer supporter
wagee12 writes:
Guys you must understand something, some of these Fulmeraholics would have to see him go 0-12 before the light bulb would go off over their heads. Fulmer's record vs. Georgia, Alabama, Florida, LSU and Auburn over the past four years is a putrid 4-12. He has not had a team finished ranked in the national top ten poll since friggin 2001. The players that CLK is recruiting right now were in the second grade when the Tennessee Volunteers, yes the Vols, not just Fulmer, won the national championship. And as we all know very well by now, it was more David Cutcliffe all the time than it was Fulmer. This stuff really get tedious and frankly, it only shows total ignorance on the part of the hard core Fulmeraholics.
txvolsfan writes:
I'm just glad that Pat Dye is happy, I was really concerned that Pat may be sad!!!
knucklehead_vol writes:
didn't you guys go through this 10 times? in the 90's?
stevefrommemphis writes:
You can't spell Kiffin without two I's, two F's, an N, and a K.
serenehunter#668900 writes:
Kiffin has the best personality of the group. He seems more relaxed and personable whereas Urban"Butchwax" Meyer and Nick "Slick" Saban are stiffs. Candice "Legs" Allen tennesseesportsreviewer.com
WeLoveTennesseeVols writes:
To you guys everyone is an adulterer or an adulteress, mercenaries for hire. Unless you've walked in Marlon Brando's footsteps, you know nothing about professionalism. You show your ignorance with your pat statements. Go watch a good movie and let the next 10 years unfold. They'll probably be more interesting than your two lives combined!
richvol writes:
Jerry Jones will come after Saban when Phillips is let go...and he has deep pockets.
AllVol2008#1353998 writes:
I'd say that is a very accurate way to put it. Ckzik may win; Kiffin may lose (God Forbi), but your statement is dead on.
johnlg00#206211 writes:
So CLK will average 10 wins a year for 35 years, huh? And coach until he's 68? Well, I guess it could happen, but my guess is it won't ALL happen at UT if it does. If he wins an average of less than eight games a year in four years, he will be kicked out of here. If he averages 10 or more in that time, he will leave. I agree with a previous poster that we will be better off now in the latter case than we are now. I like most of what I've seen of the guy so far, but this is a HUGE coin-flip. JMHO.
PS: Guess what reference to a dice game I originally used in place of "coin-flip" that this stupid comment program felt compelled to change! ROFLMAO!
volsoutwest writes:
If Kiffin is successful he'll stick around a long time. Why would you not? Saturdays around Neyland with the hordes of orange clad fans , a great band entering the stadium, the Vol-walk, 100,000 vol fans inside(well maybe next year), the parting of the T with the team running in to a deafening roar, You have to love it. Trust me , if(and I believe he will be) he is successful, he will never want to leave. Why would anyone leave the greatest game day experience in all of college football?
pdhuff#552644 writes:
Guess ol' Brooks has the Geezer Coach title down pat.
Richt has seniority and Houston Nutt will probably coach at 4-6 more SEC schools before he's gone.
Good luck, Mr. Green.
Vol_in_Mich writes:
Auburn RB coach Eddie Gran interviewed with Coach Kiffin Sunday. (Vol Nation)
Former Minn. OC Mitch Browning to interview. (Vol Chat)
Anyone else hear anything?
Go VOLS!!!
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