No need to wait until the end of the season...

[SquidBilly]

If we're going to fire Bielema we should do it now.  We have two coordinators with previous HC experience that can guide the team the rest of the way.  We need to use the rest of this season for evaluation of every aspect of this program.  That cannot truly start until Bielema is removed and any influence he has on the program is gone.  Enos can take over HC duties for the offense, Rhoads can do the same for the defense.  If either can show marked improvement on their sides of the ball then they should be given an opportunity to interview for the HC position at the end of the year.  If everything stays the same then the entire staff will be up for replacement based on what the new HC wants to do.  Bielema will be ok.  He'll continue to be paid but his presence on the sideline is detrimental at this point especially now that it is apparent that it's when not if in regards to his firing.

[DoctorSusscrofa]

No doubt about it, firing Bret just days before playing Bama on the road is a diamond studded gold encrusted idea.  We'll have a smooth transition on Tuesday or Wednesday and then fly to Tuscaloosa regain our dignity.

[rhames]

What will your new hogville name be?

[The_Iceman]

Honestly, this is a horrible idea.

[GuvHog]

Honestly, this is a horrible idea.

I strongly disagree with you.

[Kevin]

does it really matter who coaches them the next two week. the outcomes are going to be bad

[rhames]

I strongly disagree with you.

Then we should definitely keep him till after Missouri.

[Wildhog]

Honestly, this is a horrible idea.

[DoubleReedHawgCaller]

If this happens DE needs to fire Anderson on the spot.

[Dionysos25]

I have an idea, why don't we hire our old special teams coach to guide the team from an administrative perspective, and let the coordinators call the plays and then we just show up to the media availability to deliver the good news..

[rhames]

I have an idea, why don't we hire our old special teams coach to guide the team from an administrative perspective, and let the coordinators call the plays and then we just show up to the media availability to deliver the good news..

SMILE

[DoctorSusscrofa]

I have an idea, why don't we hire our old special teams coach to guide the team from an administrative perspective, and let the coordinators call the plays and then we just show up to the media availability to deliver the good news..

Old Special Teams Coach?  JLS?

[PEtrader]

What if no one coached the team?  Could it really get anyworse?

[Vantage 8 dude]

And of course firing him now absolutely and positively assures that we have first dibs on all those top flight coaches just waiting to jump ship to us. Nice.......

[The Hawg Marshal]

And of course firing him now absolutely and positively assures that we have first dibs on all those top flight coaches just waiting to jump ship to us. Nice.......

Yep not to mention if we fire him now we are on the hook for the whole 15.4 mil. As painful as it is we need to wait until the end of the season , unless he were to resign early. Then we just have to hope and pray that Long doesn't hire Miles, setting us back 5 more years.

[MultipleScoreGasms]

How would firing him now make the outcome better?  Neither his OC or DC are a solution.  Their HC records aren't stellar either.  They are part of the problem.  We don't need to approach this from the standpoint of trying to maintain part of a failed staff.  We did that once.  It work out terrible.  We need to make a clean break at the end of the season, and let the new guy bring his own staff.  Otherwise we could just go "JohnLSmith" ourselves.

[Wildhog]

Yep not to mention if we fire him now we are on the hook for the whole 15.4 mil. As painful as it is we need to wait until the end of the season , unless he were to resign early. Then we just have to hope and pray that Long doesn't hire Miles, setting us back 5 more years.

We'd have to wait until Jan 1 to pay less than 15M.  And the new December signing period could complicate matters.

[sickboy]

If you fire your coach after the second SEC game of the season, good luck getting a good coach to come fill that spot. It sends a message to every potential hire that we have, not only unrealistic expectations, which we probably do, but that we are a coach killer.

The way everyone handles these situations, unless a coach or powers that be force an unusual circumstance, is that you let the coach finish the season and do what you can to help him find employment elsewhere. During the season, you have exploratory conversations behind closed doors to gauge the market and then after the season you start the interviewing process. You don't drop your current head coach on his butt in the middle of the season so that he can sit at home in shame, especially when the season is lost and there is no upside to doing so. That's a good way to ruin the reputation of your program.

This isn't rocket science.

[Wildhog]

How would firing him now make the outcome better?  Neither his OC or DC are a solution.  Their HC records aren't stellar either.  They are part of the problem.  We don't need to approach this from the standpoint of trying to maintain part of a failed staff.  We did that once.  It work out terrible.  We need to make a clean break at the end of the season, and let the new guy bring his own staff.  I guess we could just go "JohnLSmith" ourselves.

I agree.  No need to make this any more dramatic than it has to be.  Plus it's not a good look to prospective coaches.

[The Hawg Marshal]

We'd have to wait until Jan 1 to pay less than 15M.  And the new December signing period could complicate matters.

Not if there is a negotiated buyout and I think that's what will happen. If you fire him now there will be no negotiation. jmo

[Wildhog]

Not if there is a negotiated buyout and I think that's what will happen. If you fire him now there will be no negotiation. jmo

Oh, I agree that we shouldn't fire him now, and that negotiating that buyout is a possibility. 

[PorkRinds]

Best thing that can happen is an amicable split after January and a negotiated buyout. Reactionary garbage is a program killer.

[The Hawg Marshal]

Oh, I agree that we shouldn't fire him now, and that negotiating that buyout is a possibility. 

Yeah ya have to think that this isn't fun for Bret and his wife anymore. I'm sure going out in public is something Jen dreads now days. If he can get out of here with a few million and make momma happy,I could certainly see it happening.

[The Hawg Marshal]

Best thing that can happen is an amicable split after January and a negotiated buyout. Reactionary garbage is a program killer.

Yep, people screaming" fire him now" are just not thinking this through.

[Wildhog]

Best thing that can happen is an amicable split after January and a negotiated buyout. Reactionary garbage is a program killer.

I think the *best* scenario is negotiating the buyout and splitting before the December signing period.  I really don't think it's right to sign a class full of kids and then fire the coach they committed to a couple of weeks later.

[Vantage 8 dude]

Yep, people screaming" fire him now" are just not thinking this through.

Always easier to scream such and THEN try to figure out "what's next? See one Ed O down at LSU.

[The_Iceman]

I strongly disagree with you.

I want Bielema gone too. But firing him now would be a big mistake. I know it makes the enraged haters feel good to think about, but it is not logical and hurts the next coach.

If Bielema is fired now, recruits abandon ship, player quit, there is no development or discipline for the next coach. Fire Bielema in December, and hire the next coach soon after, and he has a better chance to retain recruits and keep the current players on board.

[hoghearted]

does it really matter who coaches them the next two week. the outcomes are going to be bad

[The_Iceman]

Yep, people screaming" fire him now" are just not thinking this through.

It's emotion, not logic. So not much thinking going on.

[12247]

SOLUTION:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
1.  Carefully read and understand BB's Contract and if allowed
2.  Move BB to Associate AD
3.  Move Enos to HC and OC and give him a realistic raise for both jobs.
4.  Start all out hunt for up and comer to become Hog HC and hire him ASAP
5.  Put Up and Comer in recruiting mode immediately to do anything legal in recruiting he can.
6.  Insert new hire to full HC responsibilities when the final whistle blows on this lost season.
7.  Dump BB as soon as the buyout drops to just 20 times his value and not the 30 times it is at now.
8.  Keep Long away from the entire process.  If he doesn't like that, he can leave as I would hope he does.

[12247]

The ideal situation is to let it be known who the next coach is ASAP for the best recruiting situation. 

[Ex-Trumpet]

Pretty sure we could find an interim in less than an hour...kinda like passing the baton. 

[The_Iceman]

The ideal situation is to let it be known who the next coach is ASAP for the best recruiting situation.

Can't do that until after the year, therefore, no reason to fire Bielema until then.

[HF#1]

Andersen and Oregon State have agreed to mutually part ways. When Alabama and Auburn stomp our ass, perhaps Bielema will do the same.

[GuvHog]

Yep, people screaming" fire him now" are just not thinking this through.

I'm thinking it through very clearly. Terminate Bret, Make Rhoads the interim HC, then quickly offer the head coaching job to Brent Venables, get him to come to campus immediately to start looking at prospects for his own coaching staff and start solidifying recruits for the December signing period while letting Rhoads coach the team the rest of the season. It would also give him a big head start on next year's signing day.

[moses_007]

I'm thinking it through very clearly. Terminate Bret, Make Rhoads the interim HC, then quickly offer the head coaching job to Brent Venables, get him to come to campus immediately to start looking at prospects for his own coaching staff and start solidifying recruits for the December signing period while letting Rhoads coach the team the rest of the season. It would also give him a big head start on next year's signing day.

Nope, not Rhoads.  Make Enos the interim head coach. 

[The_Iceman]

I'm thinking it through very clearly. Terminate Bret, Make Rhoads the interim HC, then quickly offer the head coaching job to Brent Venables, get him to come to campus immediately to start looking at prospects for his own coaching staff and start solidifying recruits for the December signing period while letting Rhoads coach the team the rest of the season. It would also give him a big head start on next year's signing day.

Any sitting head coach or coordinator, especially Venables at Clemson, is not going to leave their current job until after the end of the regular season.

The soonest Venables would start doing that you proposed is early December. It's just the way things work.

[GuvHog]

Any sitting head coach or coordinator, especially Venables at Clemson, is not going to leave their current job until after the end of the regular season.

The soonest Venables would start doing that you proposed is early December. It's just the way things work.

I disagree. To move up to a head coaching job at a P5 University, Venables would come when the University wants him to. Now if he was already a head Coach, that would be different and you would be right.

[oldman1015]

I disagree. To move up to a head coaching job at a P5 University, Venables would come when the University wants him to. Now if he was already a head Coach, that would be different and you would be right.

Ya think Clemson would just let him leave in the middle of another potential National Championship year? You never cease to amaze me.

[Trottsky]

How about if they hire an "adviser," not unlike the Danny Ford case, who comes in mid season as de facto leader and is officially named as head coach after the season, at the appropriate time.

Bielema is already one of the Walking Dead, so why not? Does it take a scientific rocket to hatch the plan?

(Assuming there's somebody out there who fits the bill)

[Dwight_K_Shrute]

Pretty sure we could find an interim in less than an hour...kinda like passing the baton. 

The guy on the left in this picture is downright svelte in comparison to the bloated mess we have today.

[MultipleScoreGasms]

How about if they hire an "adviser," not unlike the Danny Ford case, who comes in mid season as de facto leader and is officially named as head coach after the season, at the appropriate time.

Bielema is already one of the Walking Dead, so why not? Does it take a scientific rocket to hatch the plan?

(Assuming there's somebody out there who fits the bill)

The only way that could work out is if we already have a "currently unemployed" coach that we want to hire as our next HC, and that coach is willing.  In that instance you are likely looking at someone like a Les Miles, Phil Fulmer, Tommy Tuberville, Gene Chizik, or someone like that.  If we wait until the end of the season, we still have all those options, in addition to the other coach candidates we couldn't consider at that moment.

[MultipleScoreGasms]

I disagree. To move up to a head coaching job at a P5 University, Venables would come when the University wants him to. Now if he was already a head Coach, that would be different and you would be right.

Think about this from Venables' perspective.  As of this moment, Clemson is likely to be in the playoff.  I would like to have him here, but don't you think he would chose to coach his D in another NC game, if that opportunity exists?  If they won again, how valuable would he be in the market then?

[MultipleScoreGasms]

SOLUTION:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
1.  Carefully read and understand BB's Contract and if allowed
2.  Move BB to Associate AD
3.  Move Enos to HC and OC and give him a realistic raise for both jobs.
4.  Start all out hunt for up and comer to become Hog HC and hire him ASAP
5.  Put Up and Comer in recruiting mode immediately to do anything legal in recruiting he can.
6.  Insert new hire to full HC responsibilities when the final whistle blows on this lost season.
7.  Dump BB as soon as the buyout drops to just 20 times his value and not the 30 times it is at now.
8.  Keep Long away from the entire process.  If he doesn't like that, he can leave as I would hope he does.

Just no.  I assure you, we are already at #1.  #2 and #3 are too "JohnLSmithy."  CBB wouldn't agree to it, and JL would be foolish to go anywhere near that route again.  DE already knows he's looking for another job, and his lack of production is part of our problem.  Same can be said for Rhodes.  #4 is best done within a week after final regular season game.  #5 should be up to new HC.  What coach of merit will come here if he has to take his recruiting direction from someone he doesn't hire?  #6, see #4.  #7 might be negotiable, but if I'm CBB, I am going to make you fire me at $15M.  I hear the sound of "Golden Handcuffs."  I'm for #8.  JL's mismanagement of this situation put us where we are.  The initial hire of CBB made a lot of sense, but who gives a coach an insane buyout based on a lack of production?