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Aggy 2024: Still waiting on the Looch 44


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8 minutes ago, Vermin said:

They’re paying every penny of the $76 million. Saying Jimbo was a moron changes nothing and makes them look worse.

They’re trying to separate A&M from Jimbo by creating the perception that there is nothing wrong with A&M and that anything negative about the program has been eradicated now that Jimbo is gone. 

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Looch’s spin on The Athletic article will be fascinating. Bjork for sure ordered it, and Looch can’t afford to disagree with Bjork publicly right now. 
 

I think he piles on in the lone wolf blame game. Which is terribly ironic because he’s still taking pot shots at Texas for how disrespected Mack. 

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10 minutes ago, billfromlaketravis said:

Looch’s spin on The Athletic article will be fascinating. Bjork for sure ordered it, and Looch can’t afford to disagree with Bjork publicly right now. 
 

I think he piles on in the lone wolf blame game. Which is terribly ironic because he’s still taking pot shots at Texas for how disrespected Mack. 

Liucci was claiming Fisher almost had them turned around in that glorious 9-1 Covid asterisk season.  Where their best win was a 3 point victory over a Florida team that lost 4 games and was beaten 55-20 by OU.  

3 minutes ago, Dondrysdale1 said:

Elko I’d imagine?

That’s my guess

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4 minutes ago, Elmer_Fudd said:

Looch said today Elko and Fisch are both very much in it.  Said timelime with Deboer/UW probably takes him out.

Looch literally said Fisch wasn’t a candidate a couple of days ago. 
 

And I guess maybe they wait for Elko to end his losing streak this weekend before naming him on Tues. kind of tough to sell hiring a 7-5 coach, no?

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4 minutes ago, Elmer_Fudd said:

Looch said today Elko and Fisch are both very much in it.  Said timelime with Deboer/UW probably takes him out.

This is spin. Deboer was not an option and it's a way for him to say they could have had a playoff coach. Washington can still miss the playoff and it's not like Fisch/Elko wouldn't put off a decision a few days for the chance to have a massive contract with Aggy. Deboer is playing them to help leverage his new contract.

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Just now, Hiphopopotamos said:

Looch literally said Fisch wasn’t a candidate a couple of days ago. 
 

And I guess maybe they wait for Elko to end his losing streak this weekend before naming him on Tues. kind of tough to sell hiring a 7-5 coach, no?

Technically that satisfies not being an 8-4 job.

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Jimbo received the 2 most lopsided, absurd and undeserved contracts in college football history. Particularly when you consider his incredible combination of lack of coaching acumen, short-man syndrome, and frail ego. Arguably contract #2 was even worse than contract #1 and the nonce AD who secured contract #2 is in charge of this coaching search. Listening to Bjork speak it's evident he's way out of his league. Of course he's going to fuck this up to the fullest possible extent.

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4 minutes ago, Teryor said:

This is spin. Deboer was not an option and it's a way for him to say they could have had a playoff coach. Washington can still miss the playoff and it's not like Fisch/Elko wouldn't put off a decision a few days for the chance to have a massive contract with Aggy. Deboer is playing them to help leverage his new contract.

Listen, pal, you have to strike while the iron is hot to get elite coaches like Jedd Fisch and Mike Elko. You don't leave those two titans waiting. Stupid sip

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1 minute ago, Elmer_Fudd said:

Who is aggy going to trot out at WR next year?  Smith is out eligibility and Stewart is/will be gone.  Is Moose Muhammed coming back?  They got some guy named Noah Thomas that's 6'5.

Smith still has a year of eligibility. He RS’d last year by only playing in 4 games before being lost for the season. 

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1 hour ago, Elmer_Fudd said:

Who is aggy going to trot out at WR next year?  Smith is out eligibility and Stewart is/will be gone.  Is Moose Muhammed coming back?  They got some guy named Noah Thomas that's 6'5.

Thomas is really good, as is Muhammed. Wr is the least of their worries even without Stewart.

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Sexton’s PR repair on Jimbo will be fascinating to watch. I think Jimbo is too damn stubborn to just go live on an island. WVU is the only job that makes sense/might become available. The hillbillies are broke, but with no offsets that might be able to afford him. 

Jimbo might be interested in a Mack like rehab in his home state.

WVU hasn’t been since their Big East days when they had a Florida pipeline. Jimbo could probably get that flowing again. 

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38 minutes ago, Handcruser said:

I heard Ryan Day from someone that would likely know. He’s friends with a big booster - someone in on those convos when large dollar amounts come in to play.

Could be subterfuge - who knows.

I would like to add that would be dumb for all parties involved.

I think your guy is getting ballsacked. 

No chance he takes it and let's it leak one day before the biggest reg season game he's coached ever?

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41 minutes ago, Handcruser said:

I heard Ryan Day from someone that would likely know. He’s friends with a big booster - someone in on those convos when large dollar amounts come in to play.

Could be subterfuge - who knows.

I would like to add that would be dumb for all parties involved.

Ari Wasserman says he could see it IF tOSU loses to Michigan tomorrow. Day leaves town before he gets John Cooper’d. 
 

What an insane fanbase. Imagine firing  Mack for losing to OU at the beginning. 

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Spoiler

We're closing in on a hire, folks.

From day one, the goal of Ross Bjork and those involved in finding the next Texas A&M football coach felt like it was to have a hire made shortly (if not as early as the day after) the Ags concluded the regular season at LSU. In other words, if things are still on track (and that's a big if when it comes to coaching searches), we could hear something as early as 48 hours or so from now. Even if that's not the case, it's probably safe to say we'll enter “any day now” mode by the last day of Thanksgiving week.

• Let's start with the two biggest names everyone seems to be now talking about: Ohio State's Ryan Day and Kalen DeBoer of Washington.

I was actually in Kansas City last week and visiting with several longtime Ohio State fans and got the same vibe from that particular group that I've gathered from Buckeye fans on social media. If Day loses to Michigan again on Saturday, the majority of that fanbase probably wouldn't shed a tear if the Day-to-A&M rumors were true. That would be an emotional mistake, of course. Day walked into a great situation in Columbus, but he's also 56-6 with three playoff appearances (and possibly a fourth) in nearly five full years at the helm.

0177055-rkeq-240x135.jpg
Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports
Day and the Buckeyes face Michigan on Saturday at 11 a.m. CT. Ohio State has last two straight to its archrival.

However, the real question is whether or not the rumors of mutual interest between the two sides are even true.

I've talked to enough folks to state I am very skeptical this was ever a two-way street. Day leaving a $10 million/year job at Ohio State is far-fetched. The only way I think he'd even have a CHANCE to come into play would be if the Buckeyes fall to Jim Harbaugh and Michigan tomorrow. At that point, will the Ohio State brass be willing to waive some of that buyout in order to push a coach who will have dropped all of seven games in five years out the door? Tough to imagine, right? Now combine that with the fact that my sources have told me that neither Day nor his representation have expressed any legitimate interest in terms of leaving Columbus. I think this is an example of a rumor taking on a life of its own via various social media avenues.

As for DeBoer, I feel very confident in saying that he was a prime-time candidate for Bjork and the Aggies.

The issue here is that DeBoer’s Huskies are in the playoff and national title hunt, and I continue to hear that the head man isn't open to any real discussion until after Washington's season.

Considering that could very well be in early January (or at least after the Pac-12 title game), and there's no guarantee of how interested DeBoer really is, it's tough to see the Ags waiting this one out, barring anything short of Bjork holding a signed MOU or feeling incredibly confident he'd accept the job. That's obviously not the case.

Two names that I'm keeping a closer eye on than most of you would expect as we are likely to be nearing a conclusion to what has truly been a national search? For me, it's Kentucky's Mark Stoops and Utah's Kyle Whittingham.

Stoops has done all he can do at Kentucky. He has won 10-plus games in Lexington twice (the two previous ten-win seasons came in 1977 and 1950), and the Wildcats — who play second fiddle to hoops in Bluegrass Country — simply aren't going to overtake Georgia in the SEC East and will always fight an uphill battle for talent against no fewer than eight or nine of the sixteen teams in the new-look conference.

0168505-yyhx-240x135.jpg
Joseph Cress/Iowa City Press-Citizen
Entering Saturday’s Governor’s Cup game with No. 10 Louisville, Stoops is 72-64 in 11 years at Kentucky.

Those are the reasons Stoops might leave. The news here is that contacts close to the situation, in Lexington, in the agent world and a couple of other outposts around the SEC have told me that the longtime Kentucky boss is listening and that he's a legitimate target for Bjork and the Aggies. If you're looking for one of these situations where the desires of both sides seem to align, this one looks like a potential match. In fact, Stoops' name is the one I've been hearing a lot more of in recent days, and there appears to be legitimate momentum.

Whittingham was passed along to me via an outside source with knowledge of the search on Thanksgiving morning, which came as a bit of a surprise.

I'm following up and plan to do some more digging throughout the day, but this one came from a pretty interesting place. That said, I know the longtime Utah boss is very happy in Salt Lake City and has been rumored as getting closer to calling it a career than making a move. However, that was more than a week ago, and things can and oftentimes do change. It's also worth noting that Whittingham was legitimately interested in the job when Jimbo Fisher was hired six years ago.

Apart from the fact that I've had multiple sources reference both as candidates, another reason I'd pay close attention here is that — after hiring four straight head coaches who had strong offensive backgrounds since R.C. Slocum — if I were a betting man, I'd lean towards the Aggies next hire being a defensive guy.

Experienced, defensive foundation, physical football teams, having done more with less, program-builder. Understanding they'll essentially have a blank check to hire an offensive coordinator (and said coach would have to have proven willing to embrace modern offense...that goes without saying, right?), those are the likely characteristics unless one of the big-time but less likely names like DeBoer (yes, he's ascended to that level) or Day end up taking over in College Station.

• Someone else who fits that description — sans the decade-plus experience as a head coach — is Mike Elko.

Contrary to a recent report making the rounds elsewhere, Elko is still very much in play and is considered one of the few candidates I'd describe as “top tier.”

0196604-hdpl-240x135.jpg
Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
After four years as Texas A&M’s defensive coordinator, Elko is 15-9 in a two-year stint at Duke.

He has been squarely on the A&M radar from day one, and nothing has changed.

The second-year Blue Devil boss is being dismissed by various outlets, but that's not all the case. While there's likely a bigger, more proven name on the list, Elko has already shown staying power, and I've been told has been quite impressive when explaining his vision for the Aggie program under his guidance.

• As for Arizona's Jedd Fisch, sources close to the third-year head coach have told me that Fisch is expecting to hear from the A&M brass this weekend, at which time he'll find out if a face-to-face meeting will take place following the Wildcats' season.

Arizona is done on Saturday unless they beat Arizona State and No. 16 Oregon State upsets No. 6 Oregon, in which case the Wildcats would play in the Pac-12 title game a week later.

I was first to mention Fisch as a candidate, and it's something that seemed to take on a life of its own early this week, to the point that folks around the country were calling me and talking to me as if it were a lock. It never was. Not close to that, actually, but the up-and-comer is very well-respected in coaching and media circles. Fisch is still very much in the mix, though what I would call a secondary target at this time.

Pay attention to the phrasing here — “at this time.”

If Bjork does meet face-to-face with Fisch, things could change in a hurry, as folks I've spoken to say that there's quite a bit of intrigue here. If it's not A&M for Fisch, I'd keep an eye on UCLA and especially Florida if the Gators were to surprise and cut Billy Napier loose after two disappointing seasons.

• When Bjork and Justin Moore embarked on their search for Rob Childress' replacement, two or three giant names topped the initial list, including eventual hire Jim Schlossnagle, Texas Tech's Tim Tadlock and Tony Vitello of Tennessee. Along the way, Bjork and the Ags came away very impressed with a bit of an under-the-radar candidate, East Carolina's Cliff Godwin. He didn't get the call but may have been much more of a factor with just a little more experience at a bigger, P5 program.

If there's a similar name that has come up along the way during the A&M football search, it's probably Jon Sumrall of Troy.

“Beyond impressive” is how he was described to me by a source with knowledge. Tough to imagine seeing A&M as Sumrall's first Power 5 opportunity, but it sounds like he's a rising star who we'll see hit the big time in pretty short order. Just one of those interesting coaching search notes you pick up along the way.

• A final note: Stop with the Dan Lanning stuff. If anyone is telling you that's still in play, go ahead and eliminate them permanently from your working list. Oh, and as I'm about to hit send on this story, we get a tip from our Mississippi contacts that Lane Kiffin is going to be the next A&M head coach, per "sources very close to the situation." You can't make this stuff up.

 

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36 minutes ago, Lobwedgephil said:
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We're closing in on a hire, folks.

From day one, the goal of Ross Bjork and those involved in finding the next Texas A&M football coach felt like it was to have a hire made shortly (if not as early as the day after) the Ags concluded the regular season at LSU. In other words, if things are still on track (and that's a big if when it comes to coaching searches), we could hear something as early as 48 hours or so from now. Even if that's not the case, it's probably safe to say we'll enter “any day now” mode by the last day of Thanksgiving week.

• Let's start with the two biggest names everyone seems to be now talking about: Ohio State's Ryan Day and Kalen DeBoer of Washington.

I was actually in Kansas City last week and visiting with several longtime Ohio State fans and got the same vibe from that particular group that I've gathered from Buckeye fans on social media. If Day loses to Michigan again on Saturday, the majority of that fanbase probably wouldn't shed a tear if the Day-to-A&M rumors were true. That would be an emotional mistake, of course. Day walked into a great situation in Columbus, but he's also 56-6 with three playoff appearances (and possibly a fourth) in nearly five full years at the helm.

0177055-rkeq-240x135.jpg
Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports
Day and the Buckeyes face Michigan on Saturday at 11 a.m. CT. Ohio State has last two straight to its archrival.

However, the real question is whether or not the rumors of mutual interest between the two sides are even true.

I've talked to enough folks to state I am very skeptical this was ever a two-way street. Day leaving a $10 million/year job at Ohio State is far-fetched. The only way I think he'd even have a CHANCE to come into play would be if the Buckeyes fall to Jim Harbaugh and Michigan tomorrow. At that point, will the Ohio State brass be willing to waive some of that buyout in order to push a coach who will have dropped all of seven games in five years out the door? Tough to imagine, right? Now combine that with the fact that my sources have told me that neither Day nor his representation have expressed any legitimate interest in terms of leaving Columbus. I think this is an example of a rumor taking on a life of its own via various social media avenues.

As for DeBoer, I feel very confident in saying that he was a prime-time candidate for Bjork and the Aggies.

The issue here is that DeBoer’s Huskies are in the playoff and national title hunt, and I continue to hear that the head man isn't open to any real discussion until after Washington's season.

Considering that could very well be in early January (or at least after the Pac-12 title game), and there's no guarantee of how interested DeBoer really is, it's tough to see the Ags waiting this one out, barring anything short of Bjork holding a signed MOU or feeling incredibly confident he'd accept the job. That's obviously not the case.

Two names that I'm keeping a closer eye on than most of you would expect as we are likely to be nearing a conclusion to what has truly been a national search? For me, it's Kentucky's Mark Stoops and Utah's Kyle Whittingham.

Stoops has done all he can do at Kentucky. He has won 10-plus games in Lexington twice (the two previous ten-win seasons came in 1977 and 1950), and the Wildcats — who play second fiddle to hoops in Bluegrass Country — simply aren't going to overtake Georgia in the SEC East and will always fight an uphill battle for talent against no fewer than eight or nine of the sixteen teams in the new-look conference.

0168505-yyhx-240x135.jpg
Joseph Cress/Iowa City Press-Citizen
Entering Saturday’s Governor’s Cup game with No. 10 Louisville, Stoops is 72-64 in 11 years at Kentucky.

Those are the reasons Stoops might leave. The news here is that contacts close to the situation, in Lexington, in the agent world and a couple of other outposts around the SEC have told me that the longtime Kentucky boss is listening and that he's a legitimate target for Bjork and the Aggies. If you're looking for one of these situations where the desires of both sides seem to align, this one looks like a potential match. In fact, Stoops' name is the one I've been hearing a lot more of in recent days, and there appears to be legitimate momentum.

Whittingham was passed along to me via an outside source with knowledge of the search on Thanksgiving morning, which came as a bit of a surprise.

I'm following up and plan to do some more digging throughout the day, but this one came from a pretty interesting place. That said, I know the longtime Utah boss is very happy in Salt Lake City and has been rumored as getting closer to calling it a career than making a move. However, that was more than a week ago, and things can and oftentimes do change. It's also worth noting that Whittingham was legitimately interested in the job when Jimbo Fisher was hired six years ago.

Apart from the fact that I've had multiple sources reference both as candidates, another reason I'd pay close attention here is that — after hiring four straight head coaches who had strong offensive backgrounds since R.C. Slocum — if I were a betting man, I'd lean towards the Aggies next hire being a defensive guy.

Experienced, defensive foundation, physical football teams, having done more with less, program-builder. Understanding they'll essentially have a blank check to hire an offensive coordinator (and said coach would have to have proven willing to embrace modern offense...that goes without saying, right?), those are the likely characteristics unless one of the big-time but less likely names like DeBoer (yes, he's ascended to that level) or Day end up taking over in College Station.

• Someone else who fits that description — sans the decade-plus experience as a head coach — is Mike Elko.

Contrary to a recent report making the rounds elsewhere, Elko is still very much in play and is considered one of the few candidates I'd describe as “top tier.”

0196604-hdpl-240x135.jpg
Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
After four years as Texas A&M’s defensive coordinator, Elko is 15-9 in a two-year stint at Duke.

He has been squarely on the A&M radar from day one, and nothing has changed.

The second-year Blue Devil boss is being dismissed by various outlets, but that's not all the case. While there's likely a bigger, more proven name on the list, Elko has already shown staying power, and I've been told has been quite impressive when explaining his vision for the Aggie program under his guidance.

• As for Arizona's Jedd Fisch, sources close to the third-year head coach have told me that Fisch is expecting to hear from the A&M brass this weekend, at which time he'll find out if a face-to-face meeting will take place following the Wildcats' season.

Arizona is done on Saturday unless they beat Arizona State and No. 16 Oregon State upsets No. 6 Oregon, in which case the Wildcats would play in the Pac-12 title game a week later.

I was first to mention Fisch as a candidate, and it's something that seemed to take on a life of its own early this week, to the point that folks around the country were calling me and talking to me as if it were a lock. It never was. Not close to that, actually, but the up-and-comer is very well-respected in coaching and media circles. Fisch is still very much in the mix, though what I would call a secondary target at this time.

Pay attention to the phrasing here — “at this time.”

If Bjork does meet face-to-face with Fisch, things could change in a hurry, as folks I've spoken to say that there's quite a bit of intrigue here. If it's not A&M for Fisch, I'd keep an eye on UCLA and especially Florida if the Gators were to surprise and cut Billy Napier loose after two disappointing seasons.

• When Bjork and Justin Moore embarked on their search for Rob Childress' replacement, two or three giant names topped the initial list, including eventual hire Jim Schlossnagle, Texas Tech's Tim Tadlock and Tony Vitello of Tennessee. Along the way, Bjork and the Ags came away very impressed with a bit of an under-the-radar candidate, East Carolina's Cliff Godwin. He didn't get the call but may have been much more of a factor with just a little more experience at a bigger, P5 program.

If there's a similar name that has come up along the way during the A&M football search, it's probably Jon Sumrall of Troy.

“Beyond impressive” is how he was described to me by a source with knowledge. Tough to imagine seeing A&M as Sumrall's first Power 5 opportunity, but it sounds like he's a rising star who we'll see hit the big time in pretty short order. Just one of those interesting coaching search notes you pick up along the way.

• A final note: Stop with the Dan Lanning stuff. If anyone is telling you that's still in play, go ahead and eliminate them permanently from your working list. Oh, and as I'm about to hit send on this story, we get a tip from our Mississippi contacts that Lane Kiffin is going to be the next A&M head coach, per "sources very close to the situation." You can't make this stuff up.

 

That's a lot of words for "We rehired Elko"

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1 hour ago, Lobwedgephil said:

"the Wildcats — who play second fiddle to hoops in Bluegrass Country — simply aren't going to overtake Georgia in the SEC East"

who wrote that pile of shit, Loochie?

Note that's a bogus excuse for failing to hire Stoops - there is no fucking SEC east beginning next year. Dipshit looch couldn't even get that right.

Which means it's Elko.

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7 hours ago, Hiphopopotamos said:

Looch literally said Fisch wasn’t a candidate a couple of days ago. 
 

And I guess maybe they wait for Elko to end his losing streak this weekend before naming him on Tues. kind of tough to sell hiring a 7-5 coach, no?

Apparently, Liucci is saying it will be a "Defensive coach" and he keeps hyping up Elko. SEC Rant board seems convinced it's Elko based on his updates today. 

 

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