The House of Blue

Four good choices there. I like Hudspeth about as well as anyone. He doesn't have the pure name recognition yet, but has been successful every he goes. The more I learn about Leavitt, he is a program builder and was one of the hottest commodities around a few years back. Somebody said he got a settlement from USF so the locker room incident may not have been embellished. Butch seems to have a serious passion for the game and should be able to recruit southern ohio. Sonny would be fourth on that list for me.

Gruden would certainly bring excitement, but he might have gotten an NFL HC spot last year if he hadn't turned down interviews saying he wasn't ready and needed to stay with Bengals a while longer. When he is ready, I'd say there will be an NFL job waiting.

I think he would have a hard time doing it and following the rules. The rules for NCAA recruiting are over the top in some areas. Coaches spend years coming up as assistants and these are the types of things they learn while growing as a coach. Gruden has never experienced that, and I could see some major recruiting violations happening, without intention.

Let's be honest, he has shown no interest in coaching again, so the thought he would come to UK, is less likely than Saban, because at least Saban wants to coach.

How do you know Petrino isn't coming or is that just an opinion?

I hope Petrino gets the opportunity. I know he isn't the classiest guy on the list but he is one of a few that can win at Kentucky given the time. He will win anywhere he goes and it just as well be at Kentucky. I spend 8 hours a game driving to and from Lexington and I want a coach that wins games. I don't care what type of person he is off the field, I just want a winning coach. IMO Petrino could most likely be that person.

I'd love to see Petrino here. If this can be turned around without violations he would be one of about 10-15 coaches that could do it. The problem as I see it is that it's only him, Butch Davis, and Tressel the vest that are unemployed. We aren't Arkansas. We aren't likely to turn around as quickly as they did under him. He works as harder than about any coach but it would take him longer to turn us than other schools with more focus on football. We are assuming he would only want to coach in the SEC. There will be a number of schools looking by the end of the year from all over the country. He could build a program in a conference he doesn't play a national championship caliber opponent 3 or 4 times in the regular season.

Jon Gruden and Jay Gruden are different people. Jay is the offensive coordinator for the Bengals.

Randy Sanders...(I jest)...but in all honesty, it would not surprise me if Mitch went CHEAP & DULL..And pulled some no name from no where & tried to sell him as a savior. (only to do the same in 3-4yrs)

He seems perfectly content to let UK FB mire at the btm of the SEC / NCAA D1, as long as they turn a sizable profit to fuel the non-revenue sports & feed the pet-projects of the UK ADMIN.

Might as well just plan on the next 60 yrs of UK FB, being exactly like the last 60!!! 1 giant suckfest yr after another!

He's imploding at the other school to screw over Bear Bryant

I don't see anything wrong with being cheap. UK Athletics is a business. That's not to say I think Mitch wouldn't go after a really strong hire with the money he needed. The money can be found. The lack of availability of that type of candidate is where the problem is.

Some people were upset when Mitch got outbid by Baylor on a mediocre coach. I think we lost Guy Morriss at a bad time (and I liked him), but there was no way UK should have paid up for his services.

I believe that a wide range of options were explored before Coach Brooks was hired, and his hiring was a solid choice. More expensive choices were considered, but it would not have been a better choice if Mitch had paid above market value. Likewise, Joker was a solid choice for a variety of reasons one of which may have been his cost not only in his salary but in what would have been his loyalty to UK had he been successful.

Can't be cheap with this hire. Not only do we need to pay whatever a guy like Petrino desires we also need to make a financial commitment to putting this program on equal footing with other SEC programs. In no way will being cheap get that done.

My point is that cheap may be the right decision.

Candidates at the top of the list are not going to make a decision based on money. Gruden isn't going to decide to come back into coaching for a paycheck--it's a life decision. Likewise, Saban won't leave Bama if you double his salary--because they're Bama. It just doesn't work like that. So, very likely, there are no candidates at the top of the list that are going to even talk to us.

Then you have a group about whom money is not the issue. If Petrino is not hired (and he won't be), it's not because we can't afford him but because he's deeply flawed. The same can be said for Tressel or Davis. The decision is not about the money.

This is a hard hire. It will probably not work--that's not pessimism but reality. Alabama is 2 for eight in coaching hires since the Bear left. Florida is 1-1 and1 undecided since Spurrier. Leaving the jury out on Kelly, Notre Dame has made 8 bad hires to one good one since Parseaghian. These are all great programs, on par (or nearly so) with Kentucky basketball.

Of the coaches left, I just don't see why the money makes a big difference. You're just as likely to do well or to strike out with a decent middle of a pack coach from another big conference (for whom you'd have to open the bank account) as you are an up and comer from a minor conference who'll sacrifice salary for his shot at the big leagues.

I would disagree--you may hire a good coach for 1.5 million--you won't be able to keep him for that, but there's probably two or three guys out there making much less who will some day be hall of fame coaches. The trick is figuring out who they are.

On the other hand, it may take $2 million or more to hire a mediocre coach. If Mack Brown calls up Mitch and says match my $5 million and I'll come to UK--would we do that--I mean, he must be good since he makes all that money.