You sell high....

[dolfan]

Right now, Butch Davis appears --- if you believe rumors in newspapers, which we all do, right? --- the leading candidate for the UT job. In my own personal opinion, it'd be a grand slam for both of them. Butch Davis could turn Mark Richt into an afterthought and go toe to toe with Urban Meyer for the SEC East every single year. In other words, he could do what UT is used to doing.

NC has given him a raise, but he could leave and UT could afford to pay the fare.

Now, Mike Leach's name pops up, too. I can't imagine UT not landing one of these coaches IF UT wants one of them. Leach would be a gamble in some ways (no real ties to the southeast, for one). I didn't know the guy was a law school grad (Pepperdine .... impressive). If he is the one, you might be the Tennessee Volunteer Pirates (Leach has a pirate fetish, it is reported).

I know Mr. Danger helps us remember International Talk Like A Pirate Day each year, but you guys should take advantage of that and start yelling like pirates if you get any more TV love this year. Or, at least make some Butch Davis noise.

Things will improve.

[MrDanger]

Sports talk here in Nashville has had several people "in the know" talk about who UT has on their short list. Two of the guys have said that it is Butch Davis' to lose. However, he is saying he likes it at North Carolina.

[dalebert]

i have also heard that Tim Brewster (Minnesota Gophers) coach in being mentioned.

[MrDanger]

Yep, those that Dolfan mentioned, the one you just mentioned and Lane Kiffen are the only ones that are being said to truly under consideration.

[dolfan]

They'll be able to pay Davis more then NC will. Same reasons why Cutcliffe likes Duke --- he can have decent success without BCS hopes and live well and long there. BUT, I don't see Davis as that kind of coach. He's in his late 50's, still has something to prove, and can very well prove it if he's in Knoxville. Plus, UNC is a basketball school, so I can see him leaving for a higher profile opportunity (that said, UT's men's hoops ain't doin' too bad under Bruce Perl).

The surest sign of leaving is talking about loving to stay. (That sounds almost like a country song.)

[MrDanger]

The surest sign of leaving is talking about loving to stay. (That sounds almost like a country song.)

I could almost here Bill "Bubba" Bussey saying, "Country song or it ain't..."

[fezzik]

Butch could really get paid well if he goes to UT. I say it's 50/50 right now though. He's pretty much being worshipped in Chapel Hill right now. He's turned things around quickly and his recruiting in NC is going very well. He should be able to build a steady program there. UT would be a risk, but he would get paid.

Tough decision.

Where are the NC State fans....I need to talk some trash before Butch leaves UNC high and dry. Is NCS going to quit football to save money for women's basketball?

[MrDanger]

Tony Barnhardt (sp?), who appears on CBS College Football, just said on 104.5 The Zone that Butch told him this week that he and his family love living in NC and don't plan on leaving. Tony said he really doubts money will sway him differently, but wouldn't rule it out if UT shelled out something in the $4 million range.

Is he really worth that much? He's good, but is he going to be able to produce these kind of results in SEC (more specifically against Florida, Georgia, and Bama - must wins for a UT coach)?

[dolfan]

$4 mil is the new $2 mil in college football coaching salaries. Can any SEC coach now expect to beat his main rivals consistently? No, I don't think so. The west is just catching up to the east in the SEC in terms of coaching quality. I think a .450 to .600 winning percentage over any 5 year period is about all you can expect.

[MrDanger]

That's about what they were saying on Fox Sports radio about a week ago. They said the number one thing a coach asks when interviewed is "who do you expect me to beat?" So they were answering that question as if they were the AD of UT.

We expect you to beat our main competition and rivals:
Florida
Georgia
Alabama

We expect you to beat the lower teams (who aren't that low any more):
Vanderbilt
Kentucky

We expect you to beat South Carolina because of the rivalry with Steve Spurrier.

That's about it. If you can guarantee wins over these teams, you have the job.

[fezzik]

Is he really worth that much? He's good, but is he going to be able to produce these kind of results in SEC (more specifically against Florida, Georgia, and Bama - must wins for a UT coach)?

He's only worth as much as a school is willing to pay him. Would I pay him that much? No way - it's all a big gamble anyway. He has a decent track record, but can't know how he'll do in Kville. His competition in the SEC would certainly be consistently better than the ACC right now and he would be under greater scrutiny since fooseball > peach baskets in Kville.

[dolfan]

Well, in my own opinion, if you can go .500 against your main rivals, the powerhouses in your conference, and maybe even .600 against your division rivals, you've succeeded. Has Butch Davis done that?

He won 39 games in a row at Miami U. He won his conference (Big East, then) in 2000, 2001 and 2002. (Miami hasn't won the ACC since joining.) They won the NC the season after he left to coach the Cleveland Browns, although under Larry Coker, but with Davis' players. At UNC, yeah, he's 11-10, but look what he inherited. This year, he's ranked #16 in the BCS, leads the ACC Coastal Division with 3 conference games left (it's a tight race). He's played 3 ranked teams this season and won all 3, but he's got a game against #17 Maryland this weekend. If he wins the Coastal Division, he'll play either FSU or Wake for the championship.

So, he's doing what he should do, and in year 2 at that program, I think it is colossal. This guy is a winner, no 2 ways about it. If UT hires him, and I'm completely unconvinced by his deflections (Jimmy Sexton is his agent, who also represents Saban, Spurrier & Tuberville, two of whom are notorious for leaving), then they will be dominant in the SEC East along with Florida. Georgia will be relegated to third wheel status inside 3-4 years. Just a fact.

As a Bama fan, I don't like the prospect. I WISH Tennessee would hire Will Muschamp or Lane Kiffin or, Lord let it be, the Minnesota coach. I don't know that Mike Leach would be too much of a worry for the rest of the SEC as I'm not convinced he could do here in the southeast what he's done out there in Lubbock. I could be wrong, but who knows? Butch Davis scares me the most. That's the truth.

[pastorables]

I don't know that Mike Leach would be too much of a worry for the rest of the SEC as I'm not convinced he could do here in the southeast what he's done out there in Lubbock. I

It looks as if Mike Leach has been thinking too much of TN?!

[pastorsa1]

Butch could really get paid well if he goes to UT. I say it's 50/50 right now though. He's pretty much being worshipped in Chapel Hill right now. He's turned things around quickly and his recruiting in NC is going very well. He should be able to build a steady program there. UT would be a risk, but he would get paid.

Tough decision.

Where are the NC State fans....I need to talk some trash before Butch leaves UNC high and dry. Is NCS going to quit football to save money for women's basketball?

What?!! You are looking for NCSU fans. Check out my post about N C State killing UNC yesterday in football 41-10 at UNC



Unc worships a coach with a 7-4 record? LOL!! Talk about low stardards!! That is funny!

UNC football coaches have to leave UNC before they win the big games. Example Mack Brown leaving for Texas.

[Full Quiver]

I'll dare say coaching and recruiting in NC is tough. I lived close to UNC at one time. In the very near vicinity was NC State, Wake Forest, East Carolina, and then Clemson wasn't far off. Oh and don't forget Duke right down the street. That's 5 ACC schools within say 3 hours of one another most within 2 hours of one another.