|
 The SEC East endured a down year this football season. Most of the entire Eastern Division was log jammed at 7-5. Even front runner Florida proved to be no match for the Alabama Crimson Tide in the SEC Championship Game.
After enduring a down year, many fans had high hopes for the SEC East for the 2010 football season ... think again.
There have been several SEC East assistant coaches that will turn out to be 'league changing events' by the time the 2010 SEC football season arrives. What are the teams that are most affected by these moves and what is the measure of the void that has been left in their wakes?
Georgia Bulldogs
Defensive Coordinator Willie Martinez (DC 2005-2009), Defensive Ends Coach Jon Fabris, and Linebackers Coach John Jancek were all let go by head coach Mark Richt. Following consecutive seasons marked by defensive let downs, this was not a surprise. Everyone saw this pre-emptive strike by Richt coming as the season wore on.
It was either their jobs or Richt's. While many questioned if Richt, widely regarded as a loyalty coach, could actually pull the trigger on the bulk of his defensive staff: it all came down to a matter of personal job security. In the end, Richt's job won out over his personal friendship with Martinez.
Assistant Head Coach/Defensive Line Coach/Recruiting Coordinator Rodney Garner's tenure within the team is also in question.
It is obvious that Garner wants the now open Defensive Coordinator position ... the question is will UGA pony up and promote from within for the position? If Rodney Garner does not receive this promotion, does Garner move onto greener pastures? Garner's loyalty can never be questioned. Having spent the past 12 seasons with the Bulldogs, Garner must be in a position in which he feels as if he is owed for tenure.
David Hale of Bulldogs Blog interviewed Damon Evans on the subject of Garner. Evans' points were telling:
(on Rodney Garner not signing his contract; "Me" is David Hale)
Me: Why is it that Coach Garner doesn't have a contract?
Damon: "He just hasn't signed one."
Me: So did he have a problem with the contract that was offered?
Damon: "No, he just hasn't signed his contract."
Me: So is that something you would have liked to have seen happen?
Damon: "I'll just leave it like this: He hasn't signed a contract."
If Garner does indeed leave, no remaining Georgia assistant will have more than four years of experience with the team except for one ... who is the one person that has more than four years of experience?
Mike Bobo ... and Bobo is not exactly a current fan favorite in Athens.
SECRivals was lambasted by Georgia homers and fans alike for an article that was written in the summer regarding the possibility of Richt bailing on his team. The seventy-one comments did not transfer with the site when we moved onto the Bloguin Network, but rest assured they were pointed.
While most of the article was done with tongue planted firmly in cheek ... Georgia fans screamed that this would never happen ... check back after next season because firing of assistant staffs on one side of the ball is typically an indication the end is near.
Florida Gators
Charlie Strong has been widely rumored to be the Univeristy of Louisville's number one candidate for their head football coaching vacancy. Strong is a logical choice for this position. If Strong were to accept the position (rather than using the possibility as a bargaining chip for a higher salary at UF), not only his loss would affect the Gators.
Speculation currently has Strong accepting the UofL position and at least offering Wide Receivers Coach Billy Gonzales a position. Gonzales has been on many radars (most notably Lane Kiffin's last year) and is obviously a talented recruiter.
Again, everyone is still looking for final word on Strong leaving the Florida Gators, but a simple look to Urban Meyer's pre-SEC Championship Game Teleconference reveals a lot:
...we've had a couple of guys on our staff -- last year I want to say at this time last year we had three coaches interviewed for head positions, one in the being interviewed. And obviously we don't do it until after the SEC Championship game.
---Urban Meyer 11/29/09
Is Strong headed to Louisville? Your guess is as good as ours on that one, but one thing is for sure: Charlie Strong wants to be a head coach.
Tennessee Volunteers
Coach Lane Kiffin came into this football season with one of the highest paid, high profile staff of assistants that money could buy. As the season winds to a close, the Vols have lost Wide Receiver's coach Frank Wilson and Running back/Special Teams coach Eddie Gran within the past week. Rumors are circulating if these will be the last two coaches to leave the UT program this year.
Current rumors have Southern Cal head coach Pete Carroll wooing Ed Orgeron from Rocky Top back to his old stomping grounds. The UT program can ill afford to lose Orgeron on top of the other two key losses. The likelihood that Orgeron leaves this year is low because he is accompanying Lane Kiffin on recruiting trips at this moment. The backside of losses such as these could be crippling for the young head coach.
Frank Wilson left the Vols for the LSU Tigers late last week. Wilson will reportedly double his salary and is a native of Louisiana. The UT receivers did show improvement this season, but not to the magnitude that many Vol fans would have liked.
Eddie Gran's loss, on the other hand, is an entirely different animal. Coach Gran has moved on to Florida State. Gran has the experience of tutoring NFL caliber running backs (seven to his credit). Coach Gran has been widely credited with producing the emergence of Montario Hardesty as a premiere running back.
Among all of his talents on the field, Eddie Gran was most known for his ability to recruit. Gran was able to walk into South Florida and lock down talent such as Nu'Keese Richardson ... granted, in hind sight, this was not the best recruit in the world to snag, but Richardson was stolen from under the Florida Gators' watchful eyes. Tennessee had been virtually shut out for years in South Florida and due to Gran's ability, the Vols were living there.
Not so coincidentally, Gran was instrumental in the recruitment of All American kicker Michael Palardy ... Florida State made an offer to Palardy last week. Latest word is that Kiffin had an in-home visit today and Palardy re-confirmed his commitment to the Vols.
According to reports by the crack staff at Gate21.net, current South Carolina Running Backs Coach/Special Teams Coordinator (and former Vol) Jay Graham is being considered for UTs open Running Backs Coach position.
With two lost coaches under their belt, Coach Kiffin must re-load the weapon to keep the UT team moving in the direction he has them pointed. The Vols have two other assistant coaches that they can not afford to lose:
Offensive Line Coach James Cregg and Linebackers Coach Lance Thompson
Cregg is unlikely to be moving anywhere anytime soon as he was Lane Kiffin's O-Line Coach with the Raiders and will likely remain loyal to the man who hired him.
Lance Thompson could be a wild card. Thompson has held at least four separate jobs since 2000:
DL Coach at Alabama 1999-2000
TE Coach/Recruiting Coordinator at LSU 2002-2003
DC at University of Central Florida 2004-2006
Linebackers Coach at Tennessee 2009-?
While we are not saying they are being interviewed or even interested in leaving the UT program, never say never in the SEC (reference: Nick Saban's move to Alabama).
Three SEC East teams are in transition. Georgia, Tennessee and possibly Florida will have either lost or could potentially lose several top assistants.
These positions will greatly affect the entire hierarchy SEC East next season.
The hires that are made will be key to whether or not these programs are able to rise to the top of the East next season or float slowly to the bottom.
 |
Bloguin is the revolutionary blog network specifically focused on helping bloggers get the most out of their websites. We're currently working on building a large network of online communities and hope to expand our blogging coverage to include a wide range of topics. 
The Bloguin Network allows advertisers to promote their products and services to our ever-growing number of visitors. We offer both site-specific ad placements as well as the ability to run a network-wide campaign. If you're interested in working with Bloguin to meet your advertising needs, please contact us.
The Bloguin Network is always looking to expand. We're specifically looking for blogs in the sports, entertainment, and video games field, but are open to adding any type of quality site. If you're a blogger and interested in joining our network, please fill out our application form.
The Bloguin Login gives you full access to everything our network has to offer. Your name and password will work for each and every one of our sites. Signing up is simple, and will allow you to post in all our forums, create member blogs, and access other cool features! What are you waiting for? Create an Account! 
Just an excellent recap. I too wonder how the coaching changes at Tennessee not only effect bowl preparation, but recruiting as well. By kickoff of the Chick-Fil-A Bowl, it might be down to Lane coaching the entire offense, Monte coaching the entire defense and Coach O working the recruiting phones by himself!
Like Lane said though, that's what happens when you have talented people. Same goes with Charlie Strong at Florida/Louisville