UW Dawg Pound: FanPosts

let's fix husky stadium too

2009-01-05T08:01:41Z

Right now while where fixing washington's football team,let's get rid of the track move people closer to the action,and make a few upgrades to the stadium.It's great for the economy to build infostructure during the bad economy,because it create's allot of jobs locally,i think morale in the state has suffered with our football team being so bad,it's great, for our great state to have our don james husky style football back,a lifelong 27 year old husky diehard fan,go dawgs.

Rating the Pac-10 coaches

2009-01-05T02:02:29Z

With the 2008 season in the books, I thought it would be a fun debate to rate the coaches in the Pac-10.

My criteria is as follows: I'm looking at the coach's entire career, weighted most towards recent years, and accounting for the degree of difficulty at each location (i.e. it's harder to win at WSU than it is USC).

With that in place, here's how I'd rate them (in alphabetical order of school):

Mike Stoops (Arizona): D+

Stoops has done only slightly above the bare minimum to keep his job at Arizona. Yes, he inherited a messy situation from Mackovic, and Tuscon isn't quite as attractive to recruit to as Tempe, but good coaches can do well there (Larry Smith, Dick Tomey). Adding Sonny Dykes was a smart move by Stoops, but I think he's not really out of the woods yet - losing Tuitama, Thomas and 3 OL will be tough, and the Wildcats could struggle next year.

Dennis Erickson (Arizona State): B+

This was a tough one to rate; love him or hate him, Erickson is one of the best college coaches of his generation when you look at his entire career, with the National Championships at Miami and the major revival he did at Oregon State (building off what Riley started). But the disappointing season the Sun Devils just concluded clouds things a bit. Still, I'd bet on it being a temporary lull, with improvement next season and the Sun Devils being legit conference contenders in 2-3 years. It's possible though that Erickson is slipping some from his glory days.

Jeff Tedford (Cal): B

A few years ago Tedford would've rated an "A", but he seems to have plateaued. And while nobody should undersell the remarkable turnaround he's engineered at Cal, inheriting an awful program and immediately turning them into an annual bowl team, it appears he missed his window of opportunity to snatch a conference title away from USC. Cal fans are starting to get jaded, which is too bad given the history of the program prior to Tedford, but it's also true that Cal seems less certain every year to be a serious challenger to USC's supremacy. Maybe this has just been a short lull and Tedford can get Cal to elite status; certainly, it will help his efforts when Cal's athletic facilities finally get a long-overdue upgrade.

Mike Bellotti (Oregon): B

I'm sure some would argue this is too low, but given all the advantages that Phil Knight's money has bought, I think Bellotti has done a good, but not outstanding job. His conference record (77-47) is less impressive than his overall record, reflective of some of the patsies the Ducks have scheduled over the years. I'll give him credit for hiring innovative offensive minds; if he'd shown the same flair for defensive coaches, he'd rank higher, and he might have more Pac-10 titles. Was this year his swan-song? Can Chip Kelly maintain the success Bellotti has had?

Mike Riley (Oregon State): A-

I struggled with this grade as well, i.e. how much extra credit to give Riley for winning in Corvallis. Quite a bit I decided - this is probably the 2nd toughest place to recruit to in the Pac-10 behind Pullman. What Riley has built there is remarkable, with 3 consecutive 9+ win seasons. The Beavers are consistently one of the toughest, hardest-hitting teams in the conference, and in a lot of ways they resemble what the Huskies used to be under Don James. While the choke job against the Ducks this year will haunt them, they have proven to be a major thorn in the side of the Trojans and I wouldn't rule out a Rose Bowl for the Beavers under Riley.

Jim Harbaugh (Stanford): B-

Harbaugh inherited a bad program and has quickly given them respectability, famously upsetting USC last year and turning the Cardinal into a tough, physical team. Still, we're only 2 years into Harbaugh, and it's a bit early to get a really good feel for how he's building the program. Next year will tell us a lot - can he get the Cardinal beyond just respectability and actually get a bowl berth and start challenging for the upper half of the conference? Despite what some might have you think, recruiting to Stanford isn't an overly difficult task; while at a disadvantage due to academic requirements, they also fare far better in landing the guys on their list precisely because of their academics.

Rick Neuheisel (UCLA): C+

I'm sure some will say this is sour grapes as a Husky fan. And while I thought he did a great job taking over Lambo's kids and winning the Rose Bowl after the 2000 season, there remain huge question marks over his ability to build a program long-term. I'm actually willing to give him a mulligan for this past season given the horrible injury issues the Bruins suffered, but I'm not convinced yet that Neuheisel knows how to build a upper-echelon program. He got very lucky in inheriting DeWayne Walker and having the opportunity to get Norm Chow; we'll see who he can get to replace Walker, and whether he and Chow can co-exist for long.

Pete Carroll (USC): A

Yes, USC is the easiest place in the conference to recruit to, but you have to go back to 1924 to find a coach at USC that has a higher winning percentage. The run the Trojans have been on since 2002 is the greatest run of domination in the last 50 years of the conference, surpassing anything John McKay or John Robinson did. Carroll is the real deal, a perfect fit for USC. But he'd win at any university with his positive personality and obsession with the spirit of competition. The only thing keeping him from an "A+" grade are his slip-ups the last 3 years that have kept the Trojans out of the BCS Championship game.

Steve Sarkisian (UW): N/A

Can't rate a guy that has never before been a head coach. Let's revisit him in a couple years.

Paul Wulff (WSU): Incomplete

Last season was an absolute disaster for the Cougs, but Wulff inherited a bad team with major academic and behavior issues. I think it's too soon to give him a grade; I want to see what happens next year. He does seem to be doing a pretty good job of recruiting given the circumstances, but I'm also not convinced he and his coaches are up to Pac-10 standards - I doubt Dennis Erickson would've struggled as much with this team as Wulff did.

Thoughts? I'm sure there will be a variety of differing opinions, especially from non Husky fans...

D coordinator hired?

2009-01-03T23:53:06Z

Steve Sarkisian is doing a good job of keeping his search for a defensive coordinator under wraps, but I have it on relatively good information USC defensive coordinator Nick Holt is back in the conversation -- and may actually be negotiating a contract with the University of Washington.

Sarkisian initially asked the former Idaho coach to join him prior to the Rose Bowl and, around Dec. 19, Holt declined the offer. But I'm hearing Holt has apparently changed his mind.

That being said, I have neither talked with Sarkisian, nor received official confirmation.

Here is a link to Holt's bio from USC, where he has spent the last two seasons as the Trojans' defensive coordinator and defensive line coach.

I will continue to track this and relay what I find out.

As per Molly Yanity of the Seattle Post Intelligencer

Misery LOVES company!

2008-12-29T23:49:59Z

Now I know how fans of The Yugo felt.

I've spent the whole season asking why the team is so pathetic, saying that it's time for Crennel and Savage to go and tried to invent new ways to say THEY STINK.

I'm all out of complaints. All out of energy.

Today, the Browns, at home, got beat by THE BENGALS.

The Bengals, who are have Harvard educated Ryan Fitzpatrick and "started the season out of football" Cedric Benson as their QB and RB.

Cedric who?

Cedric Benson. The dude that rolled into Cleveland Browns stadium and ROLLED the Browns for 171 yards on the ground.

Thank God Phil Savage got Corey Williams and Shaun Rogers in the offseason. Could you imagine how bad it could have been if the Browns had lost to the worst team in the division at home behind a 150+ yard performance by a guy that wasn't on a roster to begin the season?

Wait.........

Never mind.

Just when you thought the Browns couldn't sink lower, this day comes along. Remember the Christmas Eve game a few years back when the Steelers came in and manhandled the Browns?

In some ways, this is a worse pre-Christmas present.

You can't even beat the lowly Bengals? A team without it's starting RB and QB and a team that wasn't exactly a powerhouse to begin with?

And NO MORE EXCUSES for this franchise about how they've had a lot of injuries and bad breaks this year.

Joe Flacco from Baltimore was supposed to be the 3rd QB learning behind Smith and Boller entering 2008 and he ends up starting on a Ravens squad that is very likely to hit the postseason.

The Browns plain stink.

Why do they stink?

Because they have a bunch of players that are me-first types collecting paychecks instead of trying to lay it out there and win. They have a confused coaching staff that is generally over their heads most, if not every week. They have a GM who is better at dropping F-Bombs via email than creating a good organization.

Last but not least they have an absentee owner who has let this charade go on way too long because he doesn't seem to care.

Other than that, the team is in great shape.

I get really tired of writing these articles. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy being a part of The OBR and having my articles read by the best fans in the world but I'm running out of ways to say that Lerner, Savage, Crennel and many of the players have fallen and they're not getting up.

Well, this season is the straw that broke my back.

I'd have to say, as illogical as this is going to sound, that I was more excited the year before they returned than I am for the 2009 season coming up.

At that point back in 1998 I didn't even have a football team to watch and hadn't had one for 2 years. I knew that 1999 would be bad because the Browns were coming in as an expansion team but I still felt like a kid at Christmas.

Well, flash forward to actualy Christmas 2008 and I'm looking at a team that has treated me (and you) to a decade of futility, bad management and SPIN, SPIN, SPIN.

I don't think I'd believe Lerner and Savage at this point if they told me that rain was wet.

2009.

Another year where the Browns are going to compete for the Toilet Bowl.

Again.

Jake Locker

2008-12-28T05:17:47Z

I got into a discussion with my wife this evening. I don't know if she had one too many drinks or what, but she started talking about Jake Locker. My wife is a Rams fan and really only knows something about college football because of me and my love for Husky Football. So here's the crux of what she said to me. Jake Locker will never be a good quarterback. He can't throw the ball accurately and therefore will never be a good quarterback. She went on to say that he will never be a starting quarterback in the NFL. She thought that he should immediately switch positions and become, in her mind, a tightend. She doesn't think a quarterback should run the ball at all. She thinks a quarterback should throw the football out of the pocket and the only running he should do is to move around in the pocket to avoid a sack and to buy himself more time to throw the football. She also believes that Jake Locker doesn't really want to be a quarterback or that somehow in his own mind he knows his future is at a different position, like tight end.

I gave my wife my take on Jake Locker. I explained that he is a great athlete. He possesses the size, speed and arm strength that is a God given gift and can't be taught or fabricated. I also informed her that Jake Locker has a greater learning curve for playing the quarterback position because of the fact that the offense he ran in high school was run oriented and was designed to utilize Jake's fabulous running ability. I explained further by comparing Jake Locker to Kellen Moore of Boise State. Kellen Moore, I said, grew up in a football family. His father is the coach of Prosser High School and Prosser runs a sophisticated passing offense which has been tutored to Prosser area kids from Junior High on up through High School. So I explained, Jake Locker is behind the learning curve when it comes to playing the quarterback position. Kellen Moore on the other hand was better prepared and plays the position better, at this point in his career. He also plays in a more refined offensive system and has better talent around him compared to what's available in his league (the WAC). So the jist of my argument was that Jake Locker can play in the NFL as a starting quarterback. I think he will be helped by Coach Sark and better coaching. He can be made into a better passer and his ability to run the football is a valuable commodity in the NFL. He has those physical gifts that Kellen Moore doesn't have and will never have. He's big, strong, fast and has NFL quarterback arm strength. Those are things that can't be taught or trained. I'm not saying for certain that he will play in the NFL. My wife thought he would be, at best, a backup NFL quarterback. She also believes, as I said previously, that he'd have a better chance to be an NFL starter, at a different position. I think it all boils down to Jake and how hard he works to learn the position and to develop his passing skills as well as (and just as importantly) his decision making skills. If he does that he CAN be a starting quarterback in the NFL.

Mark Stoops next DC at the UW ???

2008-12-21T16:31:02Z

I think this would be a pretty good hire by Sark. I like him the best out of all the rest that have been mentioned. His defense his agressive and likes to blitz. Hire him and it would give Sark a solid staff that can recruit West Coast, MidWest and Southwest.

Bob Condotta reported:

Arizona Daily Star columnist Greg Hansen wonders if Arizona's success might mean other teams will come after some of UA's assistants --- and writes specifically that Steve Sarkisian might target Arizona defensive coordinator Mark Stoops.

As Hansen writes, Arizona's defense has played well against USC the last three years and that Mark Stoops might be compelled to leave if the money is right --- Hansen throws out the figure $300,000 but worth nothing new OC Jim Michalczik is getting $350,000.

http://blog.seattletimes.nwsource.com/huskyfootball/

Economics of Head Coaching

2008-12-18T20:28:55Z

I find it pretty amazing that each of the open BCS jobs this year have been filled by people with career combined coaching record of 7-15 and that none of them were filled with "record-busting" contracts. When you think about UW, Auburn, Syracuse and Miss St, in particular, those jobs seemed "primed" for a big name big dollar hire to happen. Its not as if there were not candidates out there just begging to get in on a big payday in a premier conference. Leach was clearly looking to parlay his dream season into a new gig. Patterson and Kelly were also available. Guys like Whittingham and Petersen were willing to listen. But no one came calling in a serious way.

Why? It has to be economics. For the time being, we must be seeing the "ceiling" for football coaching salaries where administrators continue to desire to see the scale set by the current highest paid coaches (Saban, Carroll, etc) and not by guys new to the list.

When you consider the fact that Charlie Weis still has a job despite a performance that has rivaled that of his predecessor, its hard to not see any other valid reason other than economics as a motivating factor.

What do you guys think? Have we seen the leveling off of what was previously a bull market (at least for 2009)?

New Dawg logo...

2008-12-18T17:01:36Z

...can we please change the DAWG! We should at least three designs. Choice is good! Hmmm let's see I have to make this 75 words. OK, Do you guys think we should keep the stripes on the helmet? Maybe we should take a look at it without and possibly with just a single purple stripe? I don't think it's a big deal either way, too me the biggest issue is getting away from the beige pants and going to shiny real gold pants that match the helmet gold. The dog logo has to go but maybe the designers need more time to work up some designs. Thoughts? Comments?

Uniforms...If you guys want your input you need to start emailing now!

2008-12-18T01:42:40Z

--- On the uniforms: The official word is that there are some internal discussions about potentially changing the uniforms and new coach Steve Sarkisian is "heavily involved.'' No decisions have been made but it is under serious consideration and there is still time to get some revisions ordered through Nike but it would have to be done soon to to have them prior to next season. Exactly what might be done is still under discussion but one thing has been decided --- they will keep the names on the jerseys. There is no set timetable on when something would be done but with Sarkisian now gone until Jan. 2, likely not until after the New Year.

Recruiting

2008-12-17T05:25:20Z

It was great to hear Coach Sark has a football operations guy who oversees recruiting and a lot of the day to day organization. Hopefully that will avoid future boondoggles that bit the Willingham era is the ass! Such as having nothing but freshman and RS freshman in the mix at widereceiver as well as the crucial running back position. Further playing true freshman on the defensive line is ridiculous. If you break it down, you have an average of 17 scholarships in each class, granted there are going to things that make this a variable but each class should be balanced to take care of needs, now and in the future.

OT:Seahawks

2008-12-16T11:19:40Z

I realize not everyone here is a Seahawks' fan so please indulge me if you can. Jim Moore, by the way John, when will you get around to the 20 questions with him, actually wrote what I think is a fine story today. I'd certainly like to be at Qwest to add my lungs and throat to the noise that would come if Holmgren does what he suggests. I'd like to thank him for giving me some of the best vacation weekends and supplying my family and friends with games that have meant something for a change.

Thanks Mike Holmgren, and probably moreso, Paul Allen. I really hope Mora succeeds as well, but he has a daunting task ahead of him.

California line coach to be Huskies' offensive coordinator/offensive line.

2008-12-15T14:11:45Z

This is a great hire...has great track record inPAC 10. I like what I am seeing from the Sark... a new direction.

Jim Michalczik is not only joining the Huskies as offensive line coach but also as offensive coordinator. He wanted to play at Washington but the Huskies didn't offer him...he went to Wazzu. He married a former Husky volleyball player, Jennifer Streatfield, who played at Washington from 1990-93. She is still among UW's career leaders in aces.

Get to know your fellow bloggers

2008-12-15T03:20:08Z

Lately it came to me that I really know very little about my fellow Husky bloggers. I think it would help our discussion quite a bit if we knew more about each other. For instance, age, location, how long you've been a Husky fan, and if you are willing your profession. So far, the only other blogger I have any clue about is Gekko, the numbers guy.

I'm 31 years old and have been a Husky fan my whole life, literally. I remember watching the Huskies play as far back as I can remember, my grandfather was a Husky fan, my dad was a Husky fan, and my little girl is a Husky fan, even if she doesn't know it yet. I'm an Air-ambulance pilot flying, yes you guessed it, Lear jets out of Seattle.

I hope others are interested in posting, that includes you John B., otherwise it's going to look like I want to talk about myself.

Matthew Knight Arena

2008-12-14T03:07:48Z

By Scott Wolf USC blog on December 13, 2008 5:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | ShareThis

Oregon's $200 million basketball arena will be named for Phil and Penny Knight's late son. The Matthew Knight Arena is scheduled to open for the 2010-11 basketball season. I was just wondering if any of this is paid for by tax payers?

Uncle Phil has deep pockets but I heard that a large portion of the funding is being paid for by the state? I did talk to a gal from oregon and she kind of gave me a bunch of double talk so I never really did find out either way. One of the things that she did make sure and tell me is that it was from the same funding that was improving expanding Reser Stadium.

New Gonzaga Blog on SB Nation

2008-12-13T04:18:34Z

Since we are in the same state and all I just thought I would say hi and let you guys know about the new Gonzaga blog a few buddies and I just started on SB Nation. We're pretty excited to be here and it looks like we have all the major sports teams from Washington covered here.

The Blog is The Slipper Still Fits. Hope you guys stop by and check it out. Thanks

Uniform wish list

2008-12-12T02:32:03Z

After reading through some comments it seems I'm not the only who wants to see some changes to the uniforms. Seen as how changes tend to happen with new coaches, I thought I'd create a place for us to create a wish list. I might even be open to sending a letter/email to Scott Woodward if any one thinks it could do some good.

What I'd like to see: Same Gold helmets, with gold pants that actually match the helmet. Enough of this tan/beige crap, I really liked how the pants looked during the Marques Tuiasopo years. The tops should be dark purple with the tradional block numbers, see Nebraska and Notre Dame. And lets stick with plain purple tops, no stripes like the late Neuheisel years. I'd also like the away pants to be the same dark purple as the home jerseys. For some reason the pants seem to be fading every year, don't we get new pants every year?

I'm looking forward to seeing what everybody else would like to see.

Coaching news rumors from Condotta

2008-12-10T18:23:21Z

And Scott Wolf of the LA Daily News today has some of the more interesting conjecture in this story.

Wolf quotes Rocky Seto as saying he is not coming to UW and is happy at USC, consistent with what we also reported here last night that he had apparently said he had not talked with Sarkisian yet. Worth noting, however, that with USC having one game left to play, hires off that staff likely wouldn't happen yet.

Wolf, meanwhile, says Sarkisian's top target to be the defensive coordinator may be Louisville's Ron English, who interviewed for the job last year with Tyrone Willingham before it instead went to Ed Donatell.

Here is English's bio. Louisville had a tough season this year going 5-7 and allowing 63 points to Rutgers in its final game.

The Daily News also says that Demetrice Martin, a former USC assistant now at Mt. San Antonio College, is a candidate to be the new secondary coach. Here is Martin's bio.

There is also a rumor making the rounds that a member of the USC strength staff, Ivan Lewis, could be coming to UW as a strength coach.

This is something that excites me about Sarkisian

2008-12-10T15:35:50Z

Sarkisian Recruiting

Sarkisian had told reporters at Monday's news conference that one of his first tasks would be to begin recruiting. He did just that, visiting coaches at both Skyline and Bellevue High just two hours later.

Bellevue coach Butch Goncharoff said it was nice to see that kind of interest in the state high schools from UW, saying, "That hasn't maybe been that way in a while."

Said Taylor of his meeting with Sarkisian: "He was just really, really excited and talked about putting a fence around the state and wanting to make sure I knew how important it was to recruit in the state of Washington."

Said Sarkisian of the trips: "It's getting in front of them and getting a good handle to where they understand what we are trying to get done, where we are headed, and how important they are to it. We will develop a great relationship with them. They will have great access to our football offices, our practices, our game-day experience."

If this isn't the anti-Ty I don't know what is?

USC Assistants?...Ucla's D coordinator

2008-12-09T16:53:16Z

Who do you think the likely candidates are that Sark will bring from USC? I read somewhere that he has already contacted Ucla's defensive coordinator.

I imagine they would be guys that would make a jump up if they leave. Like going from a Line backer coach to a defensive coordinator. I think Ken Norton is one name that's been mentioned. Who do you guys think are most likely to be retained by Coach Sark? The coach from Skyline maybe? Chris Tormey?

Sarkisian looking to drop a list of players...

2008-12-09T08:18:54Z

Apparently the new coach is looking to make some adjustments, and big changes to he program at that. Although his is expected apparently he is looking to drop a number of players from the roster. Now Im not completely opposed to the idea but I'm sure it was cause some sort of hard feelings and instigate a rough start to the relationship he will have with the team. Willingham's gone so I'd say even though that can be considered our only with for the season its still the perfect one at that. My question to you all is; who do you think he will drop and why?

P.S. Apparently Johnson has had a change of heart and was "impressed" by Coach Sarkisian and would like to stay.

What a joke.