"Think I'll stick with Tress and Thad.."Ever since Kevin White left his post as the AD at Notre Dame for greener pastures in Durham last week, talk of OSU's Gene Smith possibly leaving Columbus to take over at his alma mater had been on an uptick.
All that can be put to bed as Smith announced earlier today he has no plans to leave Ohio State.
Last night, I got the impression both Herbie and Spielman thought it was a foregone conclusion as they discussed Smith's resume and strong ties to Notre Dame.
No doubt, Smith has the ND pedigree considering he won a national championship in South Bend both as a player ('73) and a coach ('77) in addition to being the only candidate with AD experience at four different schools (EMich, ISU, ASU).
Of course, the list of candidates includes a slew of others with strong ties to the school, most notably the man who brought Thad Matta to Xavier and current X AD Mike Bobinski and current interim AD, Missy Conboy but none are on Smith's level from a resume standpoint.
Just for discussion's sake, would you have been upset if Smith left? More importantly, do you feel it would have been a blow to the athletic department?
While I think Smith has done a fine job, I also think he's really just had to do the gardening around the House that Andy Geiger Built. I know there are some Geiger haters out there especially as it pertains to the handling of #13 but when you consider the coaching hires and the facility upgrades he presided over, I must give the man his due.
Can I say the same for Smith? I give him credit for being a strong fund-raiser and he has an awesome presence representing the university in a way Archie can appreciate, and I'm glad he's staying, but I'm not convinced it would've been a knee-buckling loss.
Would you leave in the same situation? When I look at how White was pissed on when the new regime at ND fired Willingham without White's backing I'm not sure that's the best spot for me if I'm Smith. Additionally, while ND has the history, their recent history smells like Alex Boone's taint after a humid August two-a-day (or so I assume).
As the WWL notes, the Irish have employed four head football coaches since '97 and and four AD's since '87 though they needed just six AD's to get through the previous 73 years.
On the field, Calorie Weis and company have continued to disappoint though they somehow manage to bring in a top five recruiting class every year. Stepping in to that situation as a new AD doesn't sound like fun if Weis' excuses continue to 'outweigh' his results.
Maybe they'll bring back George O'Leary. I hear his resume lists 40 years of Athletic Director experience.
Comments
I wouldn't have been upset if Gene bolted for ND, but I also would not have understood the move. While much credit goes to Andy for the facilities and coaching hires he did, OSU athletics has been very successful over the last couple of years. Why would you go anywhere else?
Archie!! Archie!! Archie!!!
I agree with Corey. OSU is the place to be if you're an AD.
I am very satisfied with job Smith has done as AD. Following Geiger could have been a very tall order and he was certainly under the microscope for a while.
Smith doesn't make the splash Andy did, but he has made the job his own. It is easy to say this wouldn't be a big loss, but we don't have nearly as much to judge and AD as we do a coach. It might have been a bigger loss than we think.
If you were Gene Smith, would you rather run an athletic department with Jim Tressel as the feature coach, or Charlie Weis? I think the job security is in Columbus.
Nobody can screw things up quicker than poor senior management. If his "care-taking" is getting the job done, then let it ride! What you don't do can be more important than what you do do (I hate saying do do). It shows good judgement, but is rarely appreciated.
Good points, Ron and BB...I would definitely agree he's made the job his own versus living in Geiger's shadow. As stated in the post, I really love his presence. When you see him in person, he has that same impact on people that Gee does...I'm still not convinced it would be a huge loss if he left but that's not a commentary on the job he has done...I just think OSU would be able to find a top notch AD to replace anyone simply because of the current state of the athletic department as a whole. It's certainly a very attractive job/situation.
Where do you go after tOSU? Isn't that pretty much the pinnacle of college sports, at least near the top of the pinnacle. Texas, Stanford, USC, UCLA maybe....but tOSU has got to be, at the very least, a top 5 AD position. While I would understand him going back to his alma mater, it would have been a step back, career-wise.
I don't think he gets enough credit for what he's trying to do. I've heard him speak, and all he talks about is how he simply can't understand why OSU doesn't win championships in every sport. A case in point: upon his arrival, he was disgusted by the fact that Hofstra had been recently ranked higher in wrestling than the Bucks. What did he do? He went out and bought Hofstra's coach, Tom Ryan (the following season, four Buckeye wrestlers were named All-Americans).
Another example of marked improvement would be Buckeye Mens Lacrosse. For a team from the midwest (other than Notre Dame) to actually win a game in the NCAA Tournament is quite an accomplishment. With the already rich depth of talent in Central Ohio coming from schools like Upper Arlington, Worthington, and Dublin, coupled with the recent success of the program, it is only a matter of time until the program begins attracting top-tier players from the more traditional lacrosse hotbeds of Baltimore, Philadelphia, and Long Island.
I think if he sticks around long enough, and people buy in (which I think they are), he will lead OSU athletics beyond just being a "football school." Although football will always be the meal ticket (with good reason, this is Ohio after all), when you have the funds that we do, there is no reason not to be elite in every sport. I think most fans understand that, and I KNOW Gene Smith does.
That said, I think losing Smith to Notre Dame (or anywhere else) would be a huge loss. He simply has "it," and "it" is immediately obvious once you listen to him talk for five minutes.
Does anyone else think that this is not the end of this story? The article in the Dispatch today said that Smith hadn't even been contacted by Notre Dame yet. I think once that contact is made, he may change his tune. I understand Notre Dame isn't exactly the it program right now, but it is still Notre Dame and Smith is an alumi. What could be greater than returning your school to its former glory? I just don't think this story is over yet.
Katie, I'm betting your guess is correct.
Why would he go out of his way to say he's not a candidate if he plans on becoming one? He's not a pro athlete where that's more expected. I'd be shocked if he takes the job after today's quotes in the Dispatch considering they weren't even necessary at this point in time.
Stating you're not interested in a job before taking it is not the exclusive domain of pro athletes ( see Saban, Nick and Petrino, Bobby).
Don't forget Matta, Thad. (love him though. Are Xavier fans still bitter about that?)
I hear you Phil...good point...for whatever reason I still think an AD saying no means no but only time will tell...
If he goes to Notre Dame, what does he get? Yeah, it's his alma mater, but the only sport they've ever really been consistently good at is football. That's not the only measure of an athletic director. Ohio State gives the guy so much more.