The Hire vs. The Hiring Process

[BocaBob]

Labeling this coaching selection an unmitigated failure and making prophesies that Penn State football is doomed for the next decade is premature and hysterical. We haven’t hired a coach.

As the wise Ms. Rachel once sang to my son, “Stop, breathe slowly, in and out; stop, breathe slowly, there's no need to shout; You can make a smart choice, feelings come and go.”

The athletic department’s initial plan for this process did not succeed - so it goes, that’s life. We can live in the false reality that every school hires their first choice coach and always had just one target the entire time - but the reality is that, like all job openings, sometimes you miss on your top option (I thought Sumrall handled this subject in a pretty funny way during his opening presser for Florida).

There is no mass conspiracy by Jimmy Sexton to screw Penn State. An agent presents the offers to his client but it’s ultimately the client’s decision where to sign. The agent can advise otherwise or push a client towards a direction if they see potential risks, but it is ultimately the client who decides whether to take a job or not.

We screwed up the initial process but we don’t know if we screwed up the actual hire (and won’t know for some time on that issue, let the results dictate whether the coach is a success).

Stop. Breathe slowly. Penn State football is going to be okay and we don't need to rush a hire just to stop a day of bad headlines.

 

[PSU4U]

Labeling this coaching selection an unmitigated failure and making prophesies that Penn State football is doomed for the next decade is premature and hysterical. We haven’t hired a coach.

As the wise Ms. Rachel once sang to my son, “Stop, breathe slowly, in and out; stop, breathe slowly, there's no need to shout; You can make a smart choice, feelings come and go.”

The athletic department’s initial plan for this process did not succeed - so it goes, that’s life. We can live in the false reality that every school hires their first choice coach and always had just one target the entire time - but the reality is that, like all job openings, sometimes you miss on your top option (I thought Sumrall handled this subject in a pretty funny way during his opening presser for Florida).

There is no mass conspiracy by Jimmy Sexton to screw Penn State. An agent presents the offers to his client but it’s ultimately the client’s decision where to sign. The agent can advise otherwise or push a client towards a direction if they see potential risks, but it is ultimately the client who decides whether to take a job or not.

We screwed up the initial process but we don’t know if we screwed up the actual hire (and won’t know for some time on that issue, let the results dictate whether the coach is a success).

Stop. Breathe slowly. Penn State football is going to be okay and we don't need to rush a hire just to stop a day of bad headlines.

Do we actually know there was a process. I would suggest no there wasn't and still might not be one.

The X Giant guy wants the job and it's being said that Kraft wants him but there is big pushback against that so maybe not happening if Kraft can't get him approved.

The latest is it's still an on going Clusterupchuck. Also people close to the situtaion are hearing rumblings that the Brass is not at all happy with Kraft and what has happened to the Universities image. Kraft has made everyone look incompetent.

 

[OUIrPSU]

Do we actually know there was a process. I would suggest no there wasn't and still might not be one.

The X Giant guy wants the job and it's being said that Kraft wants him but there is big pushback against that so maybe not happening if Kraft can't get him approved.

The latest is it's still an on going Clusterupchuck. Also people close to the situtaion are hearing rumblings that the Brass is not at all happy with Kraft and what has happened to the Universities image. Kraft has made everyone look incompetent.

Of course there was a process. We just don’t know what that process was (or is), and without any tangible evidence, we will fill in the blanks the best we can. Your post is a good example of that with "it’s being said" and "people close to the situation are hearing..."

It’s all speculation and nobody other than a very, very small number of people has any idea what’s actually true (in terms of the search, not the current status of things).

 

[BobPSU92]

We’re screwed.

 

[PSU4U]

Of course there was a process. We just don’t know what that process was (or is), and without any tangible evidence, we will fill in the blanks the best we can. Your post is a good example of that with "it’s being said" and "people close to the situation are hearing..."

It’s all speculation and nobody other than a very, very small number of people has any idea what’s actually true (in terms of the search, not the current status of things).

OK I'll give it to you initially there was no search, one insider said the plan was to hire Matt Rhule then the fanbase erupted over that and the BOT said no. Then there was no pivot by Kraft because he hadn't planned on pivoting. Then the plan changed to We Are PS and I'll just throw money at who I want. Turns out the non process process blew up in Kraft's lap and the Universities face. That's my piecemeal take on this whole sh8t bomb.

 

[OUIrPSU]

OK I'll give it to you initially there was no search one insider said the plan was to hire Matt Rhule then the fanbase erupted over that and the BOT said no. The there was no pivot by Kraft because he hadn't planned on pivoting. Then the plan changed to We Are PS and I'll throw money at who I want. Turns out the non process process blew up in Kraft's and the Universities face. That's my piecemeal take on this whole sh8t bomb.

You might be 100% correct, or completely wrong. Or somewhere in the middle. Depends a lot on who your "one insider" is.

 

[doctornick]

I do think people are overboard with doom and gloom. The Portal and having a decent amount of NIL money should help keep PSU from being absolutely barren - players will go to where they can get money, play regularly and make the NFL. There's also some unsigned kids and a later signing period so you can still hodgepodge a recruiting class that is better than currently (not good necessarily, but not completely worthless either).

My issue is more that there is no reason it should have come to this point if Kraft just was organized and did normal AD stuff. There shouldn't be any panic at this point, there should have been a coach in place no matter how imperfect and moving on to the next stages.

 

[Bvillebaron]

Labeling this coaching selection an unmitigated failure and making prophesies that Penn State football is doomed for the next decade is premature and hysterical. We haven’t hired a coach.

As the wise Ms. Rachel once sang to my son, “Stop, breathe slowly, in and out; stop, breathe slowly, there's no need to shout; You can make a smart choice, feelings come and go.”

The athletic department’s initial plan for this process did not succeed - so it goes, that’s life. We can live in the false reality that every school hires their first choice coach and always had just one target the entire time - but the reality is that, like all job openings, sometimes you miss on your top option (I thought Sumrall handled this subject in a pretty funny way during his opening presser for Florida).

There is no mass conspiracy by Jimmy Sexton to screw Penn State. An agent presents the offers to his client but it’s ultimately the client’s decision where to sign. The agent can advise otherwise or push a client towards a direction if they see potential risks, but it is ultimately the client who decides whether to take a job or not.

We screwed up the initial process but we don’t know if we screwed up the actual hire (and won’t know for some time on that issue, let the results dictate whether the coach is a success).

Stop. Breathe slowly. Penn State football is going to be okay and we don't need to rush a hire just to stop a day of bad headlines.

Sorry but when you fire a coach on October 12th and say publicly he was fired for not meeting Penn State’s “standard” of winning Big and National Championships and hold a press conference the next day and say the fans deserve a National Championship, you damn well better have a plan which at a minimum involves hiring a coach before letter of intent signing day. I could be wrong and Kraft could pull a rabbit out of his hat and make me eat crow but when I think of Kraft’s coaching search I keep hearing the words of one of my law partners who said when describing his incompetent opponent after a trial as an “amateur, bleeping amateur”.

 

[Bvillebaron]

I do think people are overboard with doom and gloom. The Portal and having a decent amount of NIL money should help keep PSU from being absolutely barren - players will go to where they can get money, play regularly and make the NFL. There's also some unsigned kids and a later signing period so you can still hodgepodge a recruiting class that is better than currently (not good necessarily, but not completely worthless either).

My issue is more that there is no reason it should have come to this point if Kraft just was organized and did normal AD stuff. There shouldn't be any panic at this point, there should have been a coach in place no matter how imperfect and moving on to the next stages.

Keeping Penn State from being “absolutely barren” is a far cry from those Big and National Championships Kraft said publicly was why Franklin was fired don’t you think?

 

[Woodpecker]

Labeling this coaching selection an unmitigated failure and making prophesies that Penn State football is doomed for the next decade is premature and hysterical. We haven’t hired a coach.

As the wise Ms. Rachel once sang to my son, “Stop, breathe slowly, in and out; stop, breathe slowly, there's no need to shout; You can make a smart choice, feelings come and go.”

The athletic department’s initial plan for this process did not succeed - so it goes, that’s life. We can live in the false reality that every school hires their first choice coach and always had just one target the entire time - but the reality is that, like all job openings, sometimes you miss on your top option (I thought Sumrall handled this subject in a pretty funny way during his opening presser for Florida).

There is no mass conspiracy by Jimmy Sexton to screw Penn State. An agent presents the offers to his client but it’s ultimately the client’s decision where to sign. The agent can advise otherwise or push a client towards a direction if they see potential risks, but it is ultimately the client who decides whether to take a job or not.

We screwed up the initial process but we don’t know if we screwed up the actual hire (and won’t know for some time on that issue, let the results dictate whether the coach is a success).

Stop. Breathe slowly. Penn State football is going to be okay and we don't need to rush a hire just to stop a day of bad headlines.

 

[Connorpozlee]

Of course there was a process. We just don’t know what that process was (or is), and without any tangible evidence, we will fill in the blanks the best we can. Your post is a good example of that with "it’s being said" and "people close to the situation are hearing..."

It’s all speculation and nobody other than a very, very small number of people has any idea what’s actually true (in terms of the search, not the current status of things).

Surely there is/was a process. Also surely, a process that ends up with you not having a new head coach on national signing day (50+ days since the last coach was fired) is/was a bad process. Which is not to say the coach that ends up with the job is a bad choice, but to deny the horrible nature of the process is ridiculous in my opinion.

 

[PSU4U]

I do think people are overboard with doom and gloom. The Portal and having a decent amount of NIL money should help keep PSU from being absolutely barren - players will go to where they can get money, play regularly and make the NFL. There's also some unsigned kids and a later signing period so you can still hodgepodge a recruiting class that is better than currently (not good necessarily, but not completely worthless either).

My issue is more that there is no reason it should have come to this point if Kraft just was organized and did normal AD stuff. There shouldn't be any panic at this point, there should have been a coach in place no matter how imperfect and moving on to the next stages.

I agree with you. Hopefully whoever the next HC is it will be someone who can recruit handle the portal with NIL.

My fear is now the pickings are very slim. No matter who it ends up being this program is in dire need of a true GM. But I don't see Kraft giving up that kind of power. Kraft is way to visible at practices and on the sidelines on game days. IMO he's a control freak and a manipulator, also imo neither are good qualities for a person in his position. The fanbase should rarely know he exists. When you as a fan hear from a Kraft things probably are not well in Camelot.

 

[Psumatt85]

Do we actually know there was a process. I would suggest no there wasn't and still might not be one.

The X Giant guy wants the job and it's being said that Kraft wants him but there is big pushback against that so maybe not happening if Kraft can't get him approved.

The latest is it's still an on going Clusterupchuck. Also people close to the situtaion are hearing rumblings that the Brass is not at all happy with Kraft and what has happened to the Universities image. Kraft has made everyone look incompetent

Oh, so he wasn’t supposed to show it?

 

[Psumatt85]

I do think people are overboard with doom and gloom. The Portal and having a decent amount of NIL money should help keep PSU from being absolutely barren - players will go to where they can get money, play regularly and make the NFL. There's also some unsigned kids and a later signing period so you can still hodgepodge a recruiting class that is better than currently (not good necessarily, but not completely worthless either).

My issue is more that there is no reason it should have come to this point if Kraft just was organized and did normal AD stuff. There shouldn't be any panic at this point, there should have been a coach in place no matter how imperfect and moving on to the next stages.

So NIL and the portal allow you to be incompetent in the hiring process? So why does PSU become competent after that to leverage the new system?

 

[doctornick]

Keeping Penn State from being “absolutely barren” is a far cry from those Big and National Championships Kraft said publicly was why Franklin was fired don’t you think?

I'm saying that people are acting like we are going to go 1-11 next year. I am addressing that level of gloom and doom that is out of proportion with reality.

To the point of aspiring for a national championship team, I think it was reasonable because Franklin wasn't doing it and he failed to even achieve his "typical" ~10 win type of year this year by beating all the teams he should. It was reasonable to fire him and do so when it happened. and it was reasonable to try to get a "big name" HC but when that wasn't happened, you go for the best option and get all the ducks in a row. I don't care what Kraft said or aspired to - I care about what he did with the options in front of him and he fumbled badly by not having someone in place by this week.

 

[doctornick]

So NIL and the portal allow you to be incompetent in the hiring process? So why does PSU become competent after that to leverage the new system?

When have I said that Kraft has not been totally incompetent? That can be true while also being true that the people are exaggerating how dire the situation will be going forward.

 

[Blair10]

Labeling this coaching selection an unmitigated failure and making prophesies that Penn State football is doomed for the next decade is premature and hysterical. We haven’t hired a coach.

As the wise Ms. Rachel once sang to my son, “Stop, breathe slowly, in and out; stop, breathe slowly, there's no need to shout; You can make a smart choice, feelings come and go.”

The athletic department’s initial plan for this process did not succeed - so it goes, that’s life. We can live in the false reality that every school hires their first choice coach and always had just one target the entire time - but the reality is that, like all job openings, sometimes you miss on your top option (I thought Sumrall handled this subject in a pretty funny way during his opening presser for Florida).

There is no mass conspiracy by Jimmy Sexton to screw Penn State. An agent presents the offers to his client but it’s ultimately the client’s decision where to sign. The agent can advise otherwise or push a client towards a direction if they see potential risks, but it is ultimately the client who decides whether to take a job or not.

We screwed up the initial process but we don’t know if we screwed up the actual hire (and won’t know for some time on that issue, let the results dictate whether the coach is a success).

Stop. Breathe slowly. Penn State football is going to be okay and we don't need to rush a hire just to stop a day of bad headlines.

Thank you for helping to debunk that baseless and bonehead Sexton conspiracy theory.

Some uneducated and naive people live to spread ridiculous conspiracies for pure enjoyment.

 

[BocaBob]

Sorry but when you fire a coach on October 12th and say publicly he was fired for not meeting Penn State’s “standard” of winning Big and National Championships and hold a press conference the next day and say the fans deserve a National Championship, you damn well better have a plan which at a minimum involves hiring a coach before letter of intent signing day. I could be wrong and Kraft could pull a rabbit out of his hat and make me eat crow but when I think of Kraft’s coaching search I keep hearing the words of one of my law partners who said when describing his incompetent opponent after a trial as an “amateur, bleeping amateur”.

I completely agree Kraft's plans were incompetent and idiotic - he 100% wears this - that's why I'm saying we need to separate the search from the result.

Whoever we hire it will either be: (1) considered a success; (2) considered a failure; or (3) mixed emotions. Everything should be done to provide the new hire the ability to be successful - but Kraft shouldn't be campaigning to re-new his contract in the event his mistake results in a miracle hire that we all consider a home run.

I don't know how the hire turns out, but I know the hiring process up until this point was not handled in the most competent or pragmatic manner.

 

[EricLAllen]

I'm saying that people are acting like we are going to go 1-11 next year.

Buffalo is the 1? Damn, losing to Marshall and at Temple, along with of course all conference games. The odds of this are probably better than the names listed on the betting odds for this job right now.

 

[barry j fenchak]

This is what happens when you buy into your own hype and grossly over-value the program. Blue Blood? GMAFB

Blue Blood programs tend to have many viable candidates for open HC jobs. Candidates that want the job.

Why would anyone consider living somewhere other than the paradise that is Happy Valley? To get the opportunity to live, eat and breathe a steady diet of Paterno from the loving fans.

I'm willing to bet that the creamery has yet to be mentioned in any interviews. Otherwise we would already have our coach, no human can resist the attraction.

I said this from the day of the firing - the job is not the gem most of you consider it to be.

We do things the right way.

 

[SleepyLion]

We’re screwed.

We are not that lucky.

 

[Ludd]

Labeling this coaching selection an unmitigated failure and making prophesies that Penn State football is doomed for the next decade is premature and hysterical. We haven’t hired a coach.

As the wise Ms. Rachel once sang to my son, “Stop, breathe slowly, in and out; stop, breathe slowly, there's no need to shout; You can make a smart choice, feelings come and go.”

The athletic department’s initial plan for this process did not succeed - so it goes, that’s life. We can live in the false reality that every school hires their first choice coach and always had just one target the entire time - but the reality is that, like all job openings, sometimes you miss on your top option (I thought Sumrall handled this subject in a pretty funny way during his opening presser for Florida).

There is no mass conspiracy by Jimmy Sexton to screw Penn State. An agent presents the offers to his client but it’s ultimately the client’s decision where to sign. The agent can advise otherwise or push a client towards a direction if they see potential risks, but it is ultimately the client who decides whether to take a job or not.

We screwed up the initial process but we don’t know if we screwed up the actual hire (and won’t know for some time on that issue, let the results dictate whether the coach is a success).

Stop. Breathe slowly. Penn State football is going to be okay and we don't need to rush a hire just to stop a day of bad headlines.

There is also a very real chance that we can’t get anyone that’s nearly qualified for the job…in fact, that’s looking more and more possible every day.

 

[laKavosiey-st lion]

I'm saying that people are acting like we are going to go 1-11 next year. I am addressing that level of gloom and doom that is out of proportion with reality.

we will always and forever be go STATE beat blue hens. We’ll be no worse than 6-6

 

[Ludd]

I'm saying that people are acting like we are going to go 1-11 next year. I am addressing that level of gloom and doom that is out of proportion with reality.

we will always and forever be go STATE beat blue hens. We’ll be no worse than 6-6

Based on what coach and what roster?

 

[Fac]

It's Manny.

 

[Chumboshifko1]

The BoT is in this up to their conniving necks.