How about football coach turnover. Note here, there have been 25 coaching changes in the MAC over the past 10 years. 8 of the 13 coaches in the MAC next year will be in their first or second year at the school. No other conference is FBS can point to a record of this kind.
Trivia question....who is the "dean" of MAC Coaches? (answer later)
The article posits the theory that the MAC is the minor leagues of coaching, and when people do well, they get called up. That's obviously true, but it is more complicated than that. For example, BG and Miami both lost coaches last year who did not move up...but they were replacing coaches who did move up. By creating a vacancy, Urban and Hoeppner created opportunities for untested new head coaches, both of whom did not work out. As the first proving ground for new coaches, you would expect a higher failure rate than bigger schools with more money, who have proven people competing for the work.
A similar thing may be occurring in Muncie, though time will tell.
I don't believe it is the lot of the MAC to have coaches spend long careers at our schools. Either everyone wants them and they leave or no one wants them (including us). Given that, my opinion is that teams should adjust by doing the following:
- Avoid "system" guys who create odd-ball systems that restrict options for the next coach.
- Avoid the temptation to automatically recruit from within when a vacancy occurs. That OC may or may not be head coaching material.
- Keep your eyes wide open at all times. You never know when you will have to find a guy.
The most normal coach replacement mode in the MAC is the Beckman route....get an assistant at a major college who can move into the role. Our AD has done it differently with men's basketball and football by going out and getting coaches who have won as head coaches elsewhere. While the initial signs are encouraging, time will tell how that approach has worked.
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