I Guess I Have To Post On This: Schiano Rumor

Yes, this.

The great thing about the internet is that, with a properly timed post, a person can say something outlandish with not much to go on and get like 8 gazillion people to read it. It also helps if you do it during the offseason when bloggers are hungry for post material. This is not a sarcastic comment, it's part of what gets me through the work day.

A source told The Phanatic Magazine

Here we go again...

that a succession plan to replace Penn State head football coach Joe Paterno is being ironed out.

Ironed out. I see, so it's pretty much done?

The source also stated that the university, by NCAA by-laws, can not have any official contact with Schiano, who is under contract at Rutgers, but has put out feelers to gauge Schiano's interest.

I'm no lawyer, but it does seem like it would be difficult to create a contractual succession plan with a coach who is under contract and is not allowed to even speak to PSU as a potential employer.

That interest, according to a source, appears to be substantial and mutual.

This is not news. Schiano is a blue blood and besides has (what is reported as) a very good relationship with Paterno, he turned down "duh" opportunities at Michigan and Miami. I hate to bust anyone ego here, but it's fact that the reason for this was not entirely his love for New Jersey. I mean have you driven on the Turnpike? Bad jokes aside, it's pretty clear that he said "no thanks" in order to be considered for the Post Paterno Position.

Barring a last-minute power struggle or change of heart, the source indicated that this will be Paterno's last season in Happy Valley, and that Penn State would move quickly after Schiano at season's end.

So which is it? A power struggle or change of heart? Becuase the former indicates that Paterno is being forced out, while the latter makes me think Paterno is stepping down on his own. This sentence means you don't know which one it is.

Besides that, I don't see how the first sentence (about ironing it out) can coexist with this statement. You can plan on going after Schiano after the season, but that's hardly a succession plan. It would be the school saying that they want Schiano, but why would they announce this publicly before the 2008 season? For starters, it's clear Paterno doesn't want a farewell tour. Besides that, what if Schiano says no? He's going to have to take a pay cut of hundreds of thousands of dollars, and if the situation is public Rugters is sure to counter with an offer that would double or triple that gap. It doesn't make any sense.

[Solid recruiting has] led many surrounding the program to assume either Bradley or Johnson, Sr. would take over once Paterno retired, while the other (particularly in Johnson, Sr.'s case) became the right-hand man, defensive coaching staff leader and head of recruiting.

That is not the case, according to the source, who maintains the board of trustees would rather go outside the program while attempting to maintain some Penn State ties.

I'm not sure what to make of this. If PSU lifers Bradley and LJSR want to stick around in their rolls, why would the BOT not want this? Besides, when you hire a brand new head coach, I'm pretty sure they get to create their own staff.

I'm not here to say that Schiano won't be PSU's next coach, it could very well happen. Be we already knew this.

Bottom line (this is where I state my opinion and pertend it's fact): this is either not real or, if it is real, irrelevant because this 'source' is just outlining the different scenarios we've already heard of.

It's Never Too Early To Complain

The Man Who Must Make The Most Important Decision In Penn State History, Shown Here Playing The Weara-Saxa-Tambor-Shake-a-Cow-Bell-Horn.
While we were all getting ourselves worked up over the non-news of second hand inside sources telling us all that Joe is old, it appears someone was actually listening.

Scout.com has released the "Big Complaints" for 2008. Joe made the list:

The Penn State head coaching situation
Joe Paterno can't be kicked out the door fast enough by the Penn State higher-ups who realize the transition of power just isn't going to be smooth. Succession plans are all the rage nowadays, like at Florida State where Bobby Bowden is turning the reins over to Jimbo Fisher while still serving as the head of state, but Penn State is in an uncomfortable situation of trying to figure out its future while still respecting the past, and even the present.

Paterno has been resistant, to put it mildly, to giving up the program he made into one of the models of college athletics, and now there's a problem. How much say does Paterno get in finding his successor when his bosses would love nothing more than to start clean, sort of like Michigan did with the Rich Rodriguez hire? Penn State will be decent again this season, but a recent slip in recruiting doesn't paint a rosy picture for the immediate future.

This begs for a rehash of all the things that Penn State Blog Army has been posting but I just can't do it. Emphasis mine on the last sentence of the first paragraph; while a large part of their blurb reads like a third grade No Child Left Behind essay, they get an A on their thesis.

One thing I want to point out that doesn't seem very consistent with all the implied news: if Old Main is clear that a high priced replacement isn't in the cards, why are they so against an internal hand-off to a long time assistant? A guy like Bradly would be cheap and safe, two things the Administration loves (not just in football, by the way). The flip side is expensive, even when poaching someone with ties like Schiano.

The only alternative I see that seems to satisfy both of these needs is Al Golden, but is he really better than Bradley? And would he be cheaper? I would say "I'm not sure" and "probably not".