FanHouse LarryCoker

Score one for the FanHouse: we saw this coming more than a month ago. ESPN has hired former Miami coach Larry Coker to call games. Unfortunately, they buried him at ESPNU.

Personally, I'd rather have him in the studio given the glowing praise sent his way by the Ft. Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel's Omar Kelly:

Television networks are making a HUGE mistake by not hiring Larry Coker to be a college football analyst. Coker's the funniest person in sports I know, and boy does he have some stories to tell. He's such an honest man I'm sure he'd share all his dirty laundry to the nation. The funniest thing about Coker is the fact that he couldn't tell a lie to save his life, or at least a good one. We in the media often found it comedic the way he'd always confess in the middle of his attempts to deceive. That characteristic is way out of the norm of today's head coaches.

Aaaargh! ESPN got this half right.

A mixed bag from the same AP story:

[Doug] Flutie will join Craig James and Chris Fowler in the booth for ESPN's Thursday night matchups.

Flutie's good in the booth, worse in studio so that's alright. James is better left out of the studio as well, but I'll miss last year's harmonious Thursday night crew of Kirk Herbstreit, Lee Corso, Chris Fowler and Erin Andrews. Things just won't be the same without Kirk Herbstreit around to call Erin Andrews his little poopsie.

How does the saying go? Those who can, do. Those who can't ... become TV analysts? Apparently Larry Coker can't, because a Ft. Lauderdale columnist has drafted his name as a possible talking head.

Television networks are making a HUGE mistake by not hiring Larry Coker to be a college football analyst. Coker's the funniest person in sports I know, and boy does he have some stories to tell. He's such an honest man I'm sure he'd share all his dirty laundry to the nation. The funniest thing about Coker is the fact that he couldn't tell a lie to save his life, or at least a good one. We in the media often found it comedic the way he'd always confess in the middle of his attempts to deceive. That characteristic is way out of the norm of today's head coaches.

I know he's not that attractive to look at but Coker's no worse than that fossil Lou Holtz. Sunshine Network should at least put him on their Saturday telecasts in an attempt to balance out that heavy Seminole and Gator flavor Florida's top sports network has.

Veddy eeenteresting.

Coker certainly has a lot of time on his hands after his departure from the 'Canes. Omar Kelly's assessment is unusual because if true Coker would break the mold as being comedic, refreshingly honest and a compelling storyteller among a cadre of former coaches turned analysts (Lou Holtz, Mike Gottfried, Bob Davie) who are more guarded and less spontaneous than Coker.

Plus, he has that whole action figure thing going for him. I say give him a shot.

There will be 23 new head coaches this year in college football. With 119 teams in DIA, my shaky math tells me that means nearly one in every five schools has a new head coach. I don't have numbers from previous years but that's an incredible turnover rate and will mark 2007 as a year of transition in college football.

So what goes along with the whole "year of transition" tag? Well, sloppy play perhaps. Obviously not every coach will fall on his face in his first year, but many teams are bound to take an early performance hit as they reshuffle their lineups, learn a new system and compete against more cohesive opponents.

It also effectively eliminates these 23 teams from a legitimate chance to win the national championship. I simply don't see a Larry Coker type situation where a coach inherited a team at Miami's mini-dynasty level who could simply pilot the goodship S.S. Championship for a year and then put his stamp on things later.

However, we do have a few championship type coaches now in the ranks. The splashiest and most controversial hire this offseason was Dolphins (and former LSU) coach Nick Saban to Alabama. Butch Davis, who created the Miami monster that Larry Coker so capably led to a championship has found a home at North Carolina. And then there's Dennis Erickson who led Miami to a pair of titles and has traveled to the desert to revive Arizona State.

For more on these 23 coaches, I recommend taking a look at this article by Olin Buchanan at Rivals.com. It lists all 23 coaches with short bios and a blackjack theme on whether to double down, hit, or stay with the various coaches.

After the tragic death of Miami defensive end, Bryan Pata, Miami will opt to play against Maryland. As Coach Larry Coker said, "[The team] felt like Bryan would want to play."

Maryland can no longer expect to meet the crappy Miami that's walked on the field all year. They should expect the Miami that had been ranked for years before. There's no doubt in my mind that Miami will come and play that game for Bryan Pata and play hard -- the hardest they've played all year. They will leave everything on the field, and Maryland needs to be ready for that.

I think Maryland is a tough position this week. The entire story is Miami and Maryland is the bad guy team they have to overcome to honor their lost friend. Besides Maryland fans, I think every will be behind Miami in this game. The Maryland players will have to realize that this is still an important game for them. It wouldn't benefit them at all if they came out not playing 100% because of the situation. I doubt Miami would want Maryland at anything besides 100%. Maryland's season is highly dependent on this game, and if they don't play their hardest, they'll regret it years down the line. If they lose to Miami while playing 100%, that's something that you can get over.

As for the news on the Hurricanes, you should probably be reading the Miami FanHouse.

No matter who wins or loses this game, it can be assured that this game will have a different feel. I bet you that even the Terps fans will sound a bit different. This is a tragedy, but the game will go on. Let's hope for both sides' sake, it's a good one.

Which fan base wants a coaching change worse? North Carolina's or Miami's?

That sad debate is currently taking place on a University of Miami message board as supposed "fans" of both schools beg the other team to beat them and bring about a coaching change in a bizarre exchange of reverse smack talk.

Many Tar Heel fans are tired of John Bunting's poor showings on Saturdays, and Miami fans are calling for Larry Coker's ouster as well. Both fan bases are united, however, in imploring the other team to deliver the "death blow" to their respective head coach's job security.

As a true North Carolina fan, I look at this exchange in two ways. On one hand, it's quite pathetic. By definition, one ceased to be a "fan" the moment they pull for their team to lose despite whatever twisted reasons they may have. If the tone of the thread weren't done in such a tongue-in-cheek manner, I'd probably take serious issue with it and the Carolina "fan" who started it.

However, I have to give them points for creativity. Some of the smack talk has been pretty funny:

UNC Fan: I am not "rooting against my team". Rather, I implore you, I beg you, please put aside your differences on Coker long enough to support your team's thorough preparation for the UNC game, so that the "better team will win". It would be a tragedy for both sides if somehow UNC pulled an upset (or even a close game) and gave our AD grounds for "hope for the future" and a further contract extension because Miami did not prepare properly.

Miami Fan: It would be the loss that breaks Coker's back. A loss to UNC would most definitely leave no doubt that he will be fired and in the process keep your coach. We owe you that much for beating us 2 years ago.

In all seriousness, though, I wish John Bunting all the success in the world against Miami and every opponent his teams face. I'm not 100% convinced that he's the right man to lead the North Carolina program, but he's our coach and I'll support him until he's no longer our coach. Heck, I'll even support him after that. He's a great person, a loyal member of the Tar Heel family, and he represents our University with class and integrity.

Still, that message board thread is seriously funny.

The hot talk in college football this week has been about the future of Miami coach Larry Coker. After losing two of his first three games, it looks like it's going to take a miracle for him to return next season. Losing to your in-state rival and then being humiliated by a basketball school (Louisville) is a sure way to get shown the door.

If Coker does hit the road Jack, who will replace him? That's been the water cooler talk in Dade County the last few weeks.. At the top of the list is none other than Auburn's Tommy Tuberville. Are you surprised?

After all, Tuberville is one of the hottest coaches in the country. He served as defensive coordinator under Dennis Erickson and was on Jimmy Johnson's staff before that. He'd be a natural fit for the job. Right? Well yes. But there's no way that's going to happen.

First there's the money. Tuberville would have to pay Auburn nearly $7 million at this point to get out of his contract. Outside of the oil rich schools in Texas, I'm not sure anyone has that kind of money.

Second, why would you leave Auburn for Miami? It's an inferior program in most every way. Their facilities are second rate. The Orange Bowl is a dump. And they rarely sell it out. It's a commuter school. Their alumni base is weak at best. And tradition? Forget it. Unless you include the countless thugs that have come through the doors.

More importantly, why would Tuberville want to start over? He's got the Auburn program right where he wants it. They compete for the SEC Championship every year and are now starting to compete for the national title almost yearly. He's managed to run off the school president and athletic director that tried to oust him.

He's relegated the former coach (and school legend) to his farm and has silenced booster Bobby Lowder. Life is pretty good for Thomas Hawley Tuberville. And most important of all, the fans and alumni love him.

Tuberville is a few short years from getting his name added to the stadium. Auburn's a great place to raise a family. Recruiting has never been better. You can bet the stadium will be getting larger in the coming years and with that so will Tuberville's check.

Tommy Tuberville may leave Auburn before his coaching days are over, but my guess is it will be to the NFL. His management style is a natural for the league. The question is , does he want to go that direction. No one can be sure. But it's a safe bet that Tuberville will not be moving to Miami.

Link: Football Saturday In The South