In the aftermath of a disastrously disappointing sports weekend, I have one comforting thought. In Josh We Trust.
Many on here (Dtrain?) were big proponents of Josh Whitman, hoping that his relative lack of D1 AD experience would be overcome by the breadth of his resume, his intellect and his Illini connections. Somehow he was supposed to honor the past while rejecting ECI nepotism; push the rule-following envelope and maintain NCAA compliance; spend us into the next stratosphere of lavish facilities while staying on budget; fire the underachieving revenue sports head coaches while showing instant progress; engage a new generation of Illini fans while bringing back the Chief. And do all this against the backdrop of one of the most dysfunctional deficit ridden state governments.
Underwood is trying to introduce a faster more aggressive style of play for a group of players who are accustomed to a coach who took the air out of the ball. Underwood faces a balancing act between playing as fast as he would like and the pace the current players can effectively produce. Think of a Ferrari driver in a 10 year old Ford Pickup. Going around some curves, passing, and deciding whether to stop at a yellow traffic light are going to give heart attacks to some passengers. Buckle your seat belt or get another ride.
Lovie is another outside the box hire. Who really thought he would ever coach college football? Especially in a small town like Champaign. Time will tell if the Josh Whitman-Ron Turner-Lovie Smith connection was a blessing or a curse. But the biggest critics of Lovie seem to point out that he is the same person he was as HC of the Bears. The Bears media described him as stolid, unemotional, loyal, closed to outsiders, and immune to outside criticism. The same is said of him as Illini HC. Why does this surprise anyone.
He was fired as HC of the Bucs in favor of his wunderkind OC. Did anyone really expect Lovie to become Mike Leach in the 6 weeks between his firing by Tampa Bay and hiring by the Illini. We are on year one of a 5 year plan. (I call last year 0 because he had NO players he recruited to the Illini). For many reasons, Illini fans will have to trust that Lovie is as disappointed in this season as he is. However, he may address it differently than we would hope.
Unfortunately, if Josh made a mistake in hiring Lovie there is no money to reverse that decision. This turnaround will be a longer rather than a shorter process. Illini fans will have to Trust In Josh. At least for another year or two.
Many on here (Dtrain?) were big proponents of Josh Whitman, hoping that his relative lack of D1 AD experience would be overcome by the breadth of his resume, his intellect and his Illini connections. Somehow he was supposed to honor the past while rejecting ECI nepotism; push the rule-following envelope and maintain NCAA compliance; spend us into the next stratosphere of lavish facilities while staying on budget; fire the underachieving revenue sports head coaches while showing instant progress; engage a new generation of Illini fans while bringing back the Chief. And do all this against the backdrop of one of the most dysfunctional deficit ridden state governments.
Underwood is trying to introduce a faster more aggressive style of play for a group of players who are accustomed to a coach who took the air out of the ball. Underwood faces a balancing act between playing as fast as he would like and the pace the current players can effectively produce. Think of a Ferrari driver in a 10 year old Ford Pickup. Going around some curves, passing, and deciding whether to stop at a yellow traffic light are going to give heart attacks to some passengers. Buckle your seat belt or get another ride.
Lovie is another outside the box hire. Who really thought he would ever coach college football? Especially in a small town like Champaign. Time will tell if the Josh Whitman-Ron Turner-Lovie Smith connection was a blessing or a curse. But the biggest critics of Lovie seem to point out that he is the same person he was as HC of the Bears. The Bears media described him as stolid, unemotional, loyal, closed to outsiders, and immune to outside criticism. The same is said of him as Illini HC. Why does this surprise anyone.
He was fired as HC of the Bucs in favor of his wunderkind OC. Did anyone really expect Lovie to become Mike Leach in the 6 weeks between his firing by Tampa Bay and hiring by the Illini. We are on year one of a 5 year plan. (I call last year 0 because he had NO players he recruited to the Illini). For many reasons, Illini fans will have to trust that Lovie is as disappointed in this season as he is. However, he may address it differently than we would hope.
Unfortunately, if Josh made a mistake in hiring Lovie there is no money to reverse that decision. This turnaround will be a longer rather than a shorter process. Illini fans will have to Trust In Josh. At least for another year or two.
