I'm writing this while ESPN2 plays in the background, showing a bracket reveal sort of show for the college football playoff.
No, you didn't miss anything, the real CFP will release its first poll next week. This is a mock reveal ESPN is doing, based on the AP poll. It's hilariously pointless.
But anyway, yeah, they're firing too many damn coaches out there. Midseason firings (barring some sort of off-the-field impropriety) should be reserved for seasons that are unmitigated disasters, not just kind of disappointing.
While a few terminations happened before this, I think the canning that set off the current onslaught was that of James Franklin at Penn State. That was not a firing I would have made, but I wouldn't call it egregious. Getting hammered by UCLA followed by a home loss to Northwestern does represent a free-fall by Penn State standards, especially given Franklin's struggles in the biggest games.
But three in particular that followed were patently ridiculous, with No. 1 being the worst.
3. Brian Kelly at LSU
I will hasten to point out that I shed no tears for Brian Kelly getting fired personally; by all accounts he's a real piece of crap as a person. But they've only lost to very, very good teams (Ole Miss, Vandy, and Texas A&M). A&M might be national champs when it's all said and done. I know LSU wants more than 9-4 seasons, but they simply were not bad enough to pull the emergency brake, which is what a midseason firing is.
2. Billy Napier at Florida
I'm particularly annoyed that Napier got the axe after Florida won, over Mississippi State. I know the Florida is allegedly supposed to blow-out Mississippi State, but that assumes a typical Mississippi State team. This Mississippi State team is actually feisty and underrated, who has just had problems finishing. They took Tennessee and Texas to OT, two teams in the current top 20. Speaking of Texas, Florida beat them.
3. Jay Norvell at Colorado State
This one's just infuriating. Last year, Norvell accomplished just what Colorado State hired him for in December 2021: success. Their 8 wins were their most since 2014, and their 6-1 conference record was their best in over 20 years. That one loss, to Fresno State, was an unlucky one.
This year? Out after 7 games. You would think that a G5 school, where patience is more abundant, would only make such a move if the team was in absolute freefall. But no, it was just kind of disappointing: 1-2 in the Mountain West, 2-5 overall.
What was the 2024 season end-of-year interview like for Norvell with the Colorado State brass? "Good job, Jay. Now DO AT LEAST THAT EVERY YEAR OR YOU'RE FIRED THE MINUTE IT'S NO LONGER POSSIBLE," the CSU chancellor said, his eyes bulging out of his ead as he dismissed Norvell with a wave of his hand.
I'm not the only one to take notice of this trend, and a lot of people are blaming NIL. The thinking goes, since the booster's investment into the programs are now more direct, they in turn have more say about the direction of their investment.
To me though, this is just another way to say, "these student athletes and young adults should not have so many rights." There's this vague resentment that persists towards, especially, football and basketball players.
At any rate, NIL is over four years old now, and I'm talking about this year's trend. I repeat, I think James Franklin's sacking has all these college presidents and boards saying, "wait, we can DO that? SHOULD we do that?" And they do. No one has an original thought in their pea-brained heads.
It's easier than ever for kids to transfer (which I think is a good thing, as you might have inferred), so coaching staffs are the program's stabilizing force. Firing a coach midseason is just as disruptive and handicapping to a program as it has ever been.
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