Brady Hoke and Michigan Are a Perfect Pair

When the news broke yesterday that now former San Diego State head coach Brady Hoke would be the new head coach at Michigan, I saw more negative reaction than I expected to see. I then realized that the anger or frustration was not because he couldn't move this program in the right direction, it was because Hoke wasn't the Jim Harbaugh or Les Miles that a lot of them wanted.

Not only did reaction come from all over the country about the hiring but reaction was coming out of San Diego as well because it was the Aztecs Hoke was leaving in a lurch. The one thing I didn't see any of the Aztec fans, at least the ones I saw on my Twitter timeline on Tuesday, was the fact that Hoke had warned that this day was coming. So now that it was here, why were they surprised?

When he was hired back in 2008, Hoke made a reference to the fact that Michigan was his dream job. So here we were two years later and he did exactly what he set out to do. Land his dream job.

On Wednesday afternoon, Hoke and the Michigan Wolverines held a press conference to announce the hiring of their new head coach. For those who were naysayers about the hiring might have changed their minds after they stopped to listen to a very well spoken and very fired up coach.

When it came to Ohio State he did something that other Michigan coaches have not done. He said they were THE most important game on their schedule. Finally, someone willing to speak the truth about that rivalry. Speaking of Ohio State, Hoke never mentioned the Buckeyes by name but called them "that school in Ohio." A few hours on the job and he's already throwing jabs.

The question around the social media scene on Wednesday was, "is Hoke the right guy for the job?" The answer to that question, in my humble opinion, is a resounding YES.

This is not a guy who's unfamiliar with Michigan and the pressures that come with being a coach on the Wolverines' staff. Hoke was a lineman coach under Lloyd Carr from 1995-2001 and was then named Associate Head Coach in 2002. That would be his last year at Michigan before becoming the head coach at Ball State in 2003.

He returns to his old stomping grounds but this time it's as the head man of the program. He did a tremendous job turning around San Diego State and making them a respectable football program for the first time since Marshall Faulk donned the red and black.

He now moves on to Michigan where he'll have a talented quarterback in Denard Robinson along with a host of other talent up and down this roster. There's no question he can turn things around in a single season. This is a man that has that kind of capability.

Say what you want about his 34-38 record at Ball State or his 13-12 record at San Diego State, this is a whole new job description with endless possibilities. This is not some mid-major program playing in a mediocre sports town. This is the University of Michigan, the maize and blue, and this is a team that is ripe to do big things in the Big Ten.

You can be skeptical if you want, you have that right, but at least give Brady Hoke the benefit of the doubt. Wait and see what he does during his first season before you start making up your mind about what he can and can't do with this program.

While you may not think he's earned that right, you should still hang on to that bandwagon pass. Once you jump off it, Wolverine fans don't want to hear how "you knew it all along."

Brady Hoke is going to be just fine. In fact, he'll be better than fine.

If I were a Michigan fan, I would get ready for the 2011 season. This might just be one for the books.

Source: Rocky Long to Replace Brady Hoke at San Diego State

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Update: 8:43pm CST - According to the Associated Press, San Diego State is close to finalizing a deal with Rocky Long for him to replace the recently departed Brady Hoke as the head coach of San Diego State.

With Brady Hoke close to being on his way to Michigan, the San Diego State Aztecs will be looking for their next head coach to replace him.

According to a source I spoke to in San Diego, the Aztecs are already in talks with Rocky Long to be the next head coach.

This shouldn't come as a shock to a lot of San Diego State football fans as it was expected that Long would take the job if in fact Hoke departed for Ann Arbor.

Nothing is offical yet but once it's done we'll let you know.

Reports: Brady Hoke the Next Head Coach at Michigan

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Update: 8:42pm CST - As we all learned earlier this afternoon, a deal was finalized for Brady Hoke to become the next head coach at Michigan. A press conference is scheduled for Wednesday afternoon at 1pm local time.

According to Brent Schrotenboer of the San Diego Union Tribune, Brady Hoke's agent is or has been in negotiations with Michigan for him to become the next head coach of the Wolverines. Sports station 1090 AM out of San Diego is also confirming that Michigan's athletic director, Dave Brandon, will meet with Hoke to discuss the vacant head coaching job.

There have been quite a few reactions throughout the Twitterverse and most aren't of the good variety. From what I've seen from several different Michigan fans, they aren't happy that Les Miles returned to LSU and that Brady Hoke is going to be their next head coach.

Now those are only a few responses as there are plenty of other Michigan fans throughout Twitter that might have a different reaction but I'm only giving you what I've seen so far.

Nothing is official yet so if and when it does, we'll hit you with the particulars.

The next discussion to be had is who takes over at San Diego State? Well, if they want to continue their run  of excellence I would think they would want to bring in a guy that knows how to win and has done so already at another mid-major school.

One name I'll throw out is Fresno State head coach Pat Hill.

Reports: Les Miles Will Remain at LSU, Will Not Take the Michigan Job

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Reports are coming fast and furious out of Baton Rouge, Louisiana that LSU head coach Les Miles will not accept the Michigan job and will return as the head coach of the Tigers.

According to Randy Rosetta, LSU beat writer for the Baton Rouge Advocate, he received a text message from the LSU athletic director confirming that Miles will in fact stay with LSU.

Now the rumors will really start flying.

San Diego State head coach Brady Hoke has been the one name that continues to come up and has come up over the past month or two since word of Rich Rodriguez's fate, or potential fate at that point, was a foregone conclusion.

Another name that was brought up by Lisa Horne of Fox Sports, via Twitter, was University of Huston head coach Kevin Sumlin. He's not exactly as big of a name as Hoke but then again Hoke's name isn't huge either.

It's a wait and see game at this point but what we do know is Les Miles has taken his name out of the running.

For Michigan, it's Down to Les Miles or Brady Hoke

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Just hours prior to the Cotton Bowl at Cowboys Stadium, talk began to spread through the stadium about the possibility of LSU head coach Les Miles getting interest from Michigan about their head coaching vacancy.

Though no one thought Miles would answer any questions about the job before, during, or after the game, it didn't take long to find out that the two sides were going to begin conversations to gauge each other's interest.

We know that this isn't the first time Miles' name has come up. You might remember his name coming up before Rich Rodriguez left West Virginia in the middle of the night to become the new head coach in Ann Arbor.

This time, Rodriguez is out and the Wolverine fans want a big time name to replace him. A guy that's going to bring them wins over Ohio State and another national championship. Though not necessarily in that order.

But Miles isn't the only name that's being talked about when it comes to the biggest vacancy in college football right now. Another name that is on the Ann Arbor radar is current San Diego State head coach, and former Michigan lineman coach under Lloyd Carr, Brady Hoke.

He's not the "sexy name" that most would believe a job like this would require. Sure Hoke has a familiarity with the university as he spent seven years under Carr but that doesn't make him the kind of guy that can come in and immediately turn this team around.

There was a comment made by Yahoo Sports' Columnist Dan Wetzel about how Hoke would be his choice if he were a fan. To me that statement makes absolutely no sense at all.

If you polled, just for argument sake, 100 Michigan fans do you really think the majority would be ok with Brady Hoke? Absolutely not and especially not if Les Miles is being mentioned.

When Miles' name first came up before LSU's win over Texas A&M in the Cotton Bowl, I talked to a few people in the press box who agreed that taking the head coaching job at Michigan would not be a step up for him. It would be a lateral step at best and one could argue it would be a step down seeing as Miles has had more success at LSU.

As far as Hoke is concerned, San Diego State is hoping Les Miles takes the job at Michigan for no other reason than they're enjoying the success they had this past season. Keeping Hoke means continuing that ride. One that doesn't look like it's going to end any time soon.

There's been no indication of when a decision is going to be made as to who the next head coach of the Wolverines will be. We do know it's down to two names but only one of those is the right guy for the job.

Whoever is chosen will leave another empty seat that will need to be filled. Will it be LSU or San Diego State?

Michigan: Rich Rodriguez Out, Brady Hoke In?

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According to reports that are slowly coming out, the University of Michigan has fired head football coach Rich Rodriguez. Fox 2 News in Detroit, via Twitter, confirms that report.

This is a move that a lot of us knew was coming and after reports surfaced that Rodriguez would be meeting with the athletic director this afternoon, it was just a matter of time before we learned what his fate would be. Turns out it was exactly what we all knew it would be.

What happens next is anyone's guess. Most of the talk late yesterday centered around Stanford head coach Jim Harbaugh becoming the next head coach in Ann Arbor but as of this morning that possibility seemed all but gone.

I'll give you a few names that will begin to come up now that the news is official.

1) Les Miles - Head coach at LSU

2) Brady Hoke - Head coach at San Diego State


Yes those are only two names that could be considered but they are two guys that have been thrown around before. Miles is a Michigan guy and after talking to a source with ties to LSU, they told me that there was no question in his mind Les would take the job if it was offered. However, the source did say that they didn't think Michigan would offer him the job.

I also talked to a source out of San Diego who has it on good authority from a San Diego State insider that if Jim Harbaugh were to turn this deal down, it's Brady Hoke's job to lose.

Take that for what you will, but that is something I had heard a few weeks ago when the San Diego Union Tribune talked about the very same thing.

There's no question in anyone's mind that Hoke would love to be the next head coach at Michigan but I don't think even he believed Harbaugh wouldn't be the guy.

This could get very interesting very quick. I'll give you updates as they come.

Michigan Can't Have Jim Harbaugh, So Who Will They Get?

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Jim Harbaugh isn't going to Michigan, that much we're sure of after reports surfaced this morning that a deal between the Stanford head coach and the Wolverines fell apart over the weekend.

If the deal fell apart over the weekend there had to be a reason for that and I don't believe it has anything to do with money. He has a solid job at Stanford and no matter how much he wants the job with the Wolverines, with his wife just giving birth, you better believe she has a say in this as well.

Don't get me wrong this isn't a job that a coach like Jim Harbaugh shakes his head at. This isn't a job that he doesn't take seriously or want in the worst way. But when family gets involved and you're in a situation where you can make your family comfortable, things are always as clear as they once seemed.

According to one source I spoke to who has ties to the university, he still believes Harbaugh is going to be the guy. He also told me if Harbaugh isn't hired by the Wolverines, Rich Rodriguez will stay put. Seems far fetched to me but this guy hasn't led me astray yet so I'll buy in to what he's selling. At least for now.

So let's assume for a minute that the Stanford coach isn't the guy and let's forget for a minute that I think this deal is dead for good. Who is next in line and is there really a "short list" of candidates that Michigan is going to look at?

For those of you that have been on the blog before you know I've talked about Boise State head coach Chris Petersen in terms of deserving a bigger coaching job. But every time I bring his name up, he always seems to surprise me by staying with the Broncos but I know it's for reasons that have nothing more than family to do with it. I admire that.

It's that reason alone that I'm actually not going to talk about Coach Petersen when it comes to Michigan. In fact, I'll take him completely out of the running. Boise State fans can thank me later or they can sent me a box of girl scout cookies, I'm completely fine with both as long as the cookies don't have peanut butter in them.

Now that we have Petersen's name out of the way, it's time to talk about who the job could very well go to because his name is going to get a lot of run around San Diego as well as Michigan. It's a name that I've already talked about at length when it comes to the job in Ann Arbor which is about to come open at any time now. Especially after they got embarrassed by Mississippi State.

The name that I will talk about is a guy that San Diego State fans know all too well only because he's the Aztecs' head football coach, Brady Hoke.

He's already gone on the record when it comes to the job in Ann Arbor and it didn't hurt his cause when he made it known that it was his dream job. Problem is, I'm not sure Hoke knew that he would become a top candidate when he made those remarks. I'm almost positive he figured Harbaugh was going to get the gig so there was no reason to say anything less than what he meant.

Now that he seems to be out of the picture, at least for now, Hoke has to know that his name is going to get written in a papers from San Diego to Ann Arbor and everywhere in between.

For those of you who think he's not the right guy for the job, I would think again. You might be in love with Stanford's head coach but you might be equally as impressed with what San Diego State's football program has been able to accomplish under their head coach.

He knows Michigan and he's coached there before. He knows a little bit about the pressure of being on the coaching staff.

Before I crown Brady Hoke the next head coach of the Michigan Wolverines, I'm going to let this process play out. There are those that aren't ready to write off Jim Harbaugh just yet. Just because there's a report that a deal fell apart over the weekend it doesn't mean that either side is done talking or negotiating.

He wants the job, that much is clear. Otherwise he wouldn't be talking to Michigan at all. But don't think for a second that the Wolverines are the only team that wants Harbaugh's services.

The San Francisco 49ers are apparently high on the Stanford head coach and it stands to reason that they would offer him a chance to stay in the bay area and not have to change his commute much. Not only that, but the pay day for becoming an NFL head coach, like his brother in Baltimore, would make his family quite comfortable in Northern California.

According to Mike Rosenberg of the Detroit Free Press, via Twitter, he says there's no truth to the reports that we've heard this morning and apparently Peter King has the race for Harbaugh down to Michigan and the 49ers. It matches all the reports that have been floating around this morning.

However, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com seems to think that the 49ers could be the lead dog if they can put a compelling enough deal on the table. Could that be the reason the apparent "deal" with Michigan fell apart or was there any deal at all?

This is a wait and see game for right now. The two names you need to familiarize yourself with are Jim Harbaugh and Brady Hoke.

Those are the two names that are going to become very interesting in this race over the next few weeks.

If Michigan Comes Calling, Brady Hoke Needs To Answer

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San Diego State's football program has seen a drastic turnaround and in record time.

After a 4-8 season in 2009 the Aztecs finished the 2010 season with an 8-4 regular season record and an invitation to the Poinsettia Bowl at their home stadium in San Diego.

The man that led them there? Head coach Brady Hoke. The 35-17 win over Navy in the Poinsettia Bowl on Thursday night was their first bowl win since 1969 and they did it in impressive fashion.

Quarterback Ryan Lindley threw for 276 and two scores while running back and game MVP Ronnie Hillman rushed for 226 yards and four total touchdowns for the Aztecs.

Make no mistake about it this Navy team, led by quarterback Ricky Dobbs, the Aztecs made easy work of was not a bad football team at all. In fact, very much the opposite. But it made no difference, the Aztecs were in their own backyard and in their own stadium.
Navy never had a chance.

Heading in to college football's off season rumors surrounding San Diego State head coach Brady Hoke will undoubtedly start to surface sooner rather than later. Though his name has already been mentioned among a few job openings there's one in particular that might be too enticing to pass up.

Michigan.

If Rich Rodriguez is fired, as some believe he will be, you can expect Hoke's name to be among the leading candidates. We don't know for certain that Rodriguez is in fact on his way out but it seems more certain now than in previous years. 

But why Hoke? Isn't he just some college football coach in a mid-major conference out west? Yes he is, but so was Urban Meyer for two seasons at Utah before becoming a two-time national champion at Florida. How many coaches have actually had the kind of success Hoke has had at San Diego State? Can you count them on one hand or do you only need a few fingers?

He already has ties to the school after having been an associate head coach and defensive line coach under Jim Tressell from 1995-2002. After his stint there, Hoke became the head coach at his alma mater Ball State leading them to a 34-38 record in six seasons including a 12-1 record in his final season with the school (2008).

The other name that will come up next to Hoke's is Stanford head coach, and Michigan alum, Jim Harbaugh. He's the man a lot of college football fans believe will be the number one man on Michigan's list. However, there's no indication that he will leave Stanford to take that job no matter how much they're hoping he will.

If Harbaugh remains at Stanford, like some are already speculating, it's Hoke's name that will come up next. If he gets the call and the university's number comes up on his speed dial, he would be a fool not to answer the phone and at least find out what they're offering.

In fact, I'll go a step further. Brady Hoke would be a fool not to take the job if it's offered to him.

Sure I know it's just an assumption at this point because the job isn't open yet but there's a growing consensus that it will be after the season officially comes to a close after the first few weeks of January or maybe after the Super Bowl concludes at the end of the month.

However, if Michigan wants to get a big jump on recruiting and doesn't want to lose any ground it would behoove them to replace Rodriguez as soon as possible.

There are those that are going to mention Hoke's contract extension at San Diego State but, as we all know, not all contract extensions keep head coaches from accepting their dream job at their alma mater. It shouldn't stop the Aztecs' head coach from doing the same.

You can talk about loyalty and you can talk about wanting to be at San Diego State and wanting to achieve greatness there, but greatness at Michigan far outweighs any amount of success in the Mountain West Conference.

If you don't believe me, ask TCU why they're leaving the conference.

If it weren't for a college football coach in a sleepy Southern California town, they wouldn't have much to celebrate sports wise. The San Diego Padres missed the playoffs and the Chargers are in danger of doing the exact same thing. The Aztecs have given the sports fans in that town something to cheer about.

Brady Hoke has done something that a lot of other coaches at San Diego State haven't been able to do and he's done it in a shorter time period than a lot of people thought he would. He's done a job that should absolutely be commended and he's brought the right players in to get the job done.

In the back of his mind he has to know that there is a possibility his dream job will come open and he has to know that there's only one guy ahead of him on their wish list.

If that one guy turns the job down it's up to Hoke to decide whether loyalty will win the day or if his dream job will steal his heart away and lead him back to Ann Arbor.

He'd be a fool not to take it. It's the only shot he's going to get.

Will Brady Hoke Be the Next Head Coach at Michigan?

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Rich Rodriguez has been rumored to be on the hot seat for at least the last few years. It was never a matter of when he was fired, but if.

Well, apparently that time has come if you believe the word coming from Gregg Henson of 105.3 FM in Dallas, TX.

Henson, via his blog says, "[San Diego State head coach] Brady Hoke is a dark horse candidate to replace Rich Rodriguez at Michigan if there is a change and [Stanford head coach] Jim Harbaugh doesn't want the job.  Hoke has even gone as far as to tell San Diego State that he would leave for the Michigan job."

The only reason I find that a tad bit curious, not to say that I don't believe Henson's sources because he's never been led astray before, but Hoke just signed a contract extension with the Aztecs a few weeks ago. If he was that interested in the Michigan job, why sign the extension especially since his first contract ran through the 2013 season?

Well, this article from Brent Schrotenboer of the San Diego Union Tribune may lend some credence to Henson's sources especially since Hoke just about admits that Michigan is his dream job.

When asked if Michigan had a opening at the head coaching position Hoke said, "we wouldn't have signed an extension."

Michigan would love to have Harbaugh, but if he turns the job down it might be Hoke's job to lose.

Brady Hoke: San Diego State Signs Their Head Coach To a Five-Year Extension

 

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The San Diego State Aztecs are enjoying success and they in large part have their head coach, Brady Hoke, to thank.

Because of the success they've had this season, Hoke is getting noticed around the college football landscape. So much so that he was being looked at as a candidate for the head coaching position at the University of Minnesota as well as Indiana. Hoke, took his name out of the running and told San Diego State he was going to be loyal to their program.

This also may have been a preemptive strike as Hoke might have been interested in the Michigan job if in fact it does come open. Which it's been rumored to be after the school makes a decision about Rich Rodriguez's future.

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