[Lefty Noob]

Mike Shula has been fired as the head coach of the University of Alabama, ESPN has been reporting this morning. No official confirmation yet, but the move would not be a surprise. Shula's a victim of doing what he was supposed to do - turn everyone's attention away from the scandals and back onto wins and losses. He did that, but his 26-23 overall record, combined with three straight losses and his inability to beat Auburn, pretty much sealed his fate. Reactions?

[sydalicious]

I've checked on this and Shula is not fired....yet. Not too long ago his contract was renewed through the 2011 season with a pay raise. However, I wouldn't be surprised if he is let go after the season. That's the bad deal about coaching somewhere like Alabama. Just because you may go 10-1 or whatever every season...if your 1 loss is to Auburn, you're out.

[rmjvol]

Iit really looks like he has been fired. There are MANY media reports about it and it seems to originate from the The Tuscaloosa News:

Mike Shula has been dismissed as the University of Alabama’s head football coach, multiple sources close to the Crimson Tide football program told The Tuscaloosa News on Sunday night.

[sydalicious]

Well I tell ya if he has been, I'd hate to say it's a relief but it really is. 26-23 is a record if you're coaching somewhere like Baylor or Wyoming...not Alabama. I realize that they are coming off probation and recruiting gets difficult but come on...how long did we have to sit there and watch JPW and Shula "hand" the games to the opposing teams. I realize it's not all them...but when you're the qb and the coach it's easy to receive blame. I know it's "tradition" to try and get someone that played or coached under The Bear, but maybe it's time to branch out a little from their "security blanket"

[rmjvol]

The biggest stat that stands out to me is this:

2-14 against Arkansas, LSU, Tennessee and Auburn

If one team/coach has got your number, that's one thing. Kinda like Fulmer had a terrible record against Florida/Spurrier. But if you can't beat ANY of your rivals, well... time to hit the road.

Originally Posted by sydalicious

I know it's "tradition" to try and get someone that played or coached under The Bear, but maybe it's time to branch out a little from their "security blanket"

I think you're right. Give some extra brownie points to potential candidates if they're part of the Bama family but don't make it a requirement.

[mojoala]

Everybody can't see the trees for the forest.

Mike came in an took over with Denebict Franolds recruits which BTW he would have coached his first season next year without any DF recruits.

He had to deal with a severe lack of good players because of a lot of Scholarships being whacked. It takes years to recover from such NCAA sanctions.

I had hoped they would have kept him for another 2 years.

Now Alabama has to fork over 4 million in buyout for Shula and more than likely fork out a similar amount for any real good Coach.

Alabama needs to stop firing coaches every few years. It takes time to build a program (and yes, Alabama is building a program). It takes more than five years to take a program that lacks a lot of talent and depth and build it into one that can compete consistently on a national level.

Bama suffered severe sanctions and you can thank the old guard for that blunder. You don't emerge from that very fast. The ten win season from one year ago was due to a fairly weak schedule and a senior laden team, not the foundation of a program on the up and up.

If Bama fires another coach, they will keep getting what they are getting. They will lose another recruiting class to their competitors, take another black eye in the media, and be faced with another rebuild from the ground up. They will also face a heavy price tag for Shula's buyout and most certainly a buyout and competitive contract for the newest coach. Coaches like Nick Saban and Steve Spurrier are not coming contrary to the latest rumors. These coaches demand full control over their program and they know all too well of the meddling that goes on at Bama.

Bama needs consistency, even if it is not up to the standards of the fans at the moment. The program needs consistency, the old guard needs to call it a day, and the meddling of the Red Elephant Club needs to stop. Bama will never be a premier program again without these things happening.

Rarely does a coach come into a dire situation like Bama and win huge in 3 or 4 years. Programs like Louisville, Miami, USC, Oklahoma, and Georgia are examples of programs that were stacked with talent before their most recent coaching change. Bama is not in that situation.

Consistency is the answer. Check out this win/loss record: (2-9), (3-8 ), (6-4-1), (6-5), (5-6), (2-8-1).

Know who it belongs to? It's the first six years of Frank Beamer's tenure at Virginia Tech. He commands a consistent top 10 program, has 5 conference championships, and 4 BCS bowl apperances. Know why? Because the powers that be let him make his own decisions, didn't dictate hiring/firing of assistants, and didn't try to run him off after every disappointing season.

Is Alabama smart enough to break their cycle? Not as long as Bear's boy is running the show in my opinion.

[mojoala]

The buy out for Shula is 3M plus 200K for every year left on his contract. He has 5 years left, so it is 4M this year. Next year it would be down to 3.8M. It is around 1M total for the rest of the coaching staff. Then, you have to consider around 3M buy out for the next coach and his current employer and around 1M for his staff. It's going to be around 8M minimum just to get the next coach inked. That's hefty and it's what happens when you try to fire a coach less than one year after signing him to a contract extension and raise.

[mojoala]

Spurrier's not coming, plain and simple. He would not come to bama under any circumstance. He dislikes Alabama as much as he dislikes UT. Spurrier was the first coach to turn Alabama into the NCAA for recruting infractions back in 99. The SEC office turned a blind eye and Spurrier contacted DuBose directly and got ignored again.

Contrary to popular belief and conspiracy theorists, Spurrier blew the whistle, not Fulmer. Fulmer only backed up the claims when approached by investigators because the whole mess happened in Fulmer's back yard.

Bama has no one to blame for their NCAA problems but their own people. Not Fulmer, Spurrier, Tuberville, Lynn Lang, Rich Johaningmeier or anyone else.

The NCAA hit bama hard....but bama can blame the folks in the mirror.

Coaches like Spurrier want to recruit (and any coach who does it the honest way) wants to recruit on his own and with his staff. Fat boys with more money than should be allowed need to steer clear of a major college program. Perception is reality and if you get caught in the hot tub with someone like Logan Young, someone will eventually tattle tale.

[mojoala]

Hey Guys! If we're going to clean house lets start with the AD, Mr. Moore. Lets question his record over recent years! To think that we're going to remove another one of his selectees and then allow him to
select another is ludicrous!!

As for Coach Shula.. He came to Bama when no one else would. We're just beginning to get our head above water where scholarships are concerned. We are now in a position to have a great season in 07 and
we owe Shula that opportunity. If he can't get it done next year, then
we can assess his future at that time. Now is not the time! I do agree, just to keep the critics happy, a staff change would be appropriate.

As far as a replacement, anyone should make a good showing in 07 with the players Coach Shula has returning. Lets get behind Mike and call Mal Moore to the carpet

[sydalicious]

I agree....Consistency is the answer. Check out this win/loss record: (2-9), (3-8 ), (6-4-1), (6-5), (5-6), (2-8-1).

Know who it belongs to? It's the first six years of Frank Beamer's tenure at Virginia Tech. He commands a consistent top 10 program, has 5 conference championships, and 4 BCS bowl apperances. Know why? Because the powers that be let him make his own decisions, didn't dictate hiring/firing of assistants, and didn't try to run him off after every disappointing season.
The problem here lies with that's how VT runs their operation. They let the coach have control. That's not how Alabama runs. I'm not saying it's right or wrong. Shula knew that coming in. And you can't say that he came here when nobody else would. Sylvester Croom was ready and waiting in line. There are a million coaches that would love the chance at a D-1 school no matter which it may be. But i do agree with getting Mal Moore out. Get rid of him or he needs to let the coaches do their thing. That and stay away from the norm. I believe if it ain't broke...don't fix it. But guess what...it's been broken since Gene Stallings left. Time to find somebody that can put Mal Moore aside, can recruit and coach big games and return the Tide to their place among football elite

[mojoala]

Speaking of since Gene Stallings, I played under Mike Dubose when he coached at Prattville High School. He was a mediocre there. So when he was hired at Alabama, I just dropped my head in depression....

[sydalicious]

I agree. DuBose started the problem. The problem is is that everybody there is afraid to hire somebody that has no ties to Bear Bryant. They are afraid the town and state for that matter will not accept him. I say as long as he wins...you have no choice but to accept that person. 0-5 against Auburn!!! Not that that is the #1 priority to fix (i think recruiting outside of alabama is), but that definately should be in the top 3

[mojoala]

I agree.

Thats all for a while, I gotta get back to work....

[TxAg94]

Someone who might be interested in the Alabama job could be Norm Chow. Just a thought. No ties to Alabama, but had alot of success at the College level with USC as a coordinator. He's sitting in Tenn. with the Titans and they aren't very good. I would at least give him a call to judge his interest.

[sydalicious]

While Norm is a great choice...me being a USC fan and all also...I don't think his style fits Alabama. He would have to do some major recruiting to get players on offense that fit his style. Bama only has Prothro next year that can probably come close to comparing with what Chou had at USC