As I am sitting here, sad because there is not a UCLA game on football today, I started thinking about how most people on this site feel about how an AD should go about selecting a head coach.
I am not calling for a new coach, just wondering how the thought process should go when looking for a new coach in any sport.
Should they be looking for a coach for the long term?
If it’s a coach for the long term, should it be an older, established coach with a lot of experience or a younger one who has proven himself at lesser known programs.
Do you sign your coach to a long-term contract or do you keep it short in case it doesn’t work out.
What is an acceptable length for the first contract?
What is an acceptable length for a renewal?
I ask a question like this because you also have to consider what a coach is looking for. The good ones want and demand security. I don’t think anybody would want to consider a coach who looks at UCLA as a stepping stone.
We had a pretty good basketball coach in Ben Howland and everybody thought he would be here until he quit, but circumstances changed and a lot of people wanted him gone even though he had proven he could coach.
Same thing with Jim Mora but with different circumstances.
Coaching is a tough profession and all of them go in knowing they are more likely to be fired than leaving on their own.
It is tough to build consistency when you change coaches every four or five years in any sport. I’m not smart enough to have the answers, just curious about what some people on this site think.
I am not calling for a new coach, just wondering how the thought process should go when looking for a new coach in any sport.
Should they be looking for a coach for the long term?
If it’s a coach for the long term, should it be an older, established coach with a lot of experience or a younger one who has proven himself at lesser known programs.
Do you sign your coach to a long-term contract or do you keep it short in case it doesn’t work out.
What is an acceptable length for the first contract?
What is an acceptable length for a renewal?
I ask a question like this because you also have to consider what a coach is looking for. The good ones want and demand security. I don’t think anybody would want to consider a coach who looks at UCLA as a stepping stone.
We had a pretty good basketball coach in Ben Howland and everybody thought he would be here until he quit, but circumstances changed and a lot of people wanted him gone even though he had proven he could coach.
Same thing with Jim Mora but with different circumstances.
Coaching is a tough profession and all of them go in knowing they are more likely to be fired than leaving on their own.
It is tough to build consistency when you change coaches every four or five years in any sport. I’m not smart enough to have the answers, just curious about what some people on this site think.
