Posts tagged BradyHoke at FanHouse

The MAC continues to bleed coaches -- Bowling Green, Eastern Michigan, Miami and Toledo have already hired, or will soon hire, new coaches for the 2009 season. Next up, it looks like Ball State will have to replace Brady Hoke. An ESPN report on Sunday claimed that Hoke will leave the Cardinals for the Pacific coast, where he will take over the San Diego State head coaching job.

Hoke was believed to be in the running for the top spot at Auburn -- which was filled by Iowa State's Gene Chizik last week -- and then a possible candidate to fill Chizik's shoes in the Big 12. He was also a rumored contender for the Michigan job last year, a fair assumption since he had served as associate head coach there.

Hoke was still a sleeper candidate at that point. Prior to the 2007 season, when Ball State went 7-6 and played in the International Bowl, the Cardinals had managed no more than five wins in any year under Hoke. The 2007 bump set the stage for 2008, though, as Ball State stormed the national scene.

The Cardinals nearly played BCS buster, running off a 12-0 start to the year before a stunning loss to Buffalo in the MAC Championship Game. Ball State plays in the GMAC Bowl on Jan. 6, 2009 versus Tulsa.

Jason Whitlock and ESPN are probably not friends (not that you can really be "friends" with a mouse-operated, soulless corporate entity anyway, but that's beside the point). Whitlock did, after all, take some shots at the conglomerate on his way out, and they did, after all, fire him.

So I suppose it's not a huge surprise if he throws an occasional dart at them from his column at FOX Sports. Except in his most recent column, the occasional dart suddenly df with regard to the WWL's treatment of Ball State and quarterback Nate Davis' chances to win the Heisman trophy.

Ball State's football season perfectly illustrated my problem with ESPN and why I believe the World Wide Leader is the most evil and destructive force in the sports world. It has driven and hastened the destruction of authentic, independent, democratic, courageous sports journalism.

ESPN is the enemy of the truth, and all who believe a pursuit of the truth is the lifeblood of a genuinely free society must stand against the Wal-Mart-ization of sports journalism.

I reached this conclusion when trying to figure out why Ball State quarterback Nate Davis isn't one of the top-five Heisman Trophy candidates and Ball State coach Brady Hoke isn't the front-runner for national coach of the year.

The fact of the matter is that Whitlock, while misfiring at times in this column (Ball State at 12-0 is harder to do than Oklahoma at 11-1? Really?), is dead on with this abundance of conspiracy-laden talk re: ESPN.

Clown of Infinite Sadness time.

Earlier today we mentioned that one Les Miles, esquire, head coach of LSU, had been on the phone with Mary Sue Coleman and Bill Martin, the president and athletic director of Michigan, respectively. What was this conversation about?

Miles, via the LSU official website:

"I had a conversation with Michigan last week that covered a wide range of topics. I was doing nothing more than helping them with their search for a football coach, just as any loyal alumnus might do. It was nothing more than that.

"I'm not a candidate for that job and I will not be a candidate for the job. I was only assisting them in their search for a coach. I have a great job at a wonderful place, a place that my family calls home. It's time that Michigan goes on with their search for a football coach. I'll say it again, I'm going to be the coach at LSU next season."

This is, of course, Colombian-grade BS, but another nail in the "Miles to Michigan" coffin -- which, at this point, is made entirely of nails.

There is no way Michigan called up Miles and said "hey, we're looking for a successful head coach with Michigan ties ... do you know anyone that fits that description?" And there's no way Miles responded "I can't really think of one, sorry." Because, hey, Brady Hoke's out there, man.

Brady Hoke.

I have to tell you, I'm offended. It seems as though the University of Michigan is interested in everybody (Brady Hoke? Really?) as Lloyd Carr's replacement, and I want to know why nobody's called me. You should see me on my Playstation. I've won back to back national titles with Baylor, people. Baylor.

Still, apparently that's not good enough for the head honchos up in Ann Arbor, because my phone sits here silent. Instead they're trying to figure out a way to get Missouri's Gary Pinkel.

MU coach Gary Pinkel now could be coveted by many other schools seeking coaches, including Michigan, the winningest program in college football history.

So now we can add Pinkel's name to the list of candidates that once included Les Miles, and has had Greg Schiano's name floating around lately as well. Though just because Michigan's interested in Pinkel, it doesn't mean Pinkel is interested in Michigan, yet anyway. When asked about the job, Gary made that much clear.

"I'm not commenting on fiction," Pinkel told the Post-Dispatch, adding, "Nobody's contacted me."

Notice he never said that if Michigan did contact him, that he wouldn't listen. He'd be stupid not to, and Michigan would be stupid not to call Pinkel.

Over the last few years Pinkel has built a top program at Missouri, and has the team going to it's first New Year's Day bowl since 1970. Still, Pinkel is a loyal guy, so who knows if he'd really leave Missouri. Of course, loyalty is nice, but if Michigan drives a truck load of money up to his front door, Gary could survive without it.