As a kid growing up in Northern Westchester with late-Boomer hyper liberal parents, Indian Point was THE topic and all I heard was how bad it was. My dad had a bumper sticker that said “aren’t you glad this isn’t a nuclear meltdown evacuation”. It’s a great example of how wrongheaded our side can be
Well, my actual ideal Penn State is pre-Heupel Tennessee or current Florida, who just keep cycling through losers every few years, but I think that’s too much to ask.
Probably true. My ideal (realistic) Penn State is one that’s good but still loses dumb most years. I know Rhule and Campbell will provide that. Assuming Cig isn’t taking that job, I’m more scared of someone with a higher ceiling. But I doubt that take a chance on someone like that (Fran Brown, etc).
I want them to hire Rhule or Campbell. I am not dumb enough to think they won’t hire a really good coach, which they both are, but I don’t think either of them is going to lead them to a title.
On the flip side: would be pretty funny if getting Franklin out of Penn State leads to Locks getting a few more local recruits and saving his career at Maryland.
Right. Which is why he’s the most likely. But there’s totally a world where they only win the Rutgers game the rest of the season, and I think Smith thinks long and hard about it.
If you were to ask me rank who I think is the most likely HC at Maryland next season: 1. Locks (if they win 7 games and it looks like everyone is coming back + Elee I think they can convince themselves to go one more year) 2. Pat Fitzgerald 3. Charles Huff 4. Bob Chesney 5. James Franklin
In an ideal world, Locks decides his skills are best utilized as the GM and Franklin becomes the HC. But Locks is a proud man and I can’t see that happening.
Maybe! But literally no one who passed over him all those years ago is is at the school, and if his options are MD or Arkansas, there’s no question MD is the better fit. If it’s MD or Florida, sure. Or maybe he wants to take a year off. Or maybe he wants a chance to rub it in PSU’s face.
In an ideal world, Locks decides his skills are best utilized as the GM and Franklin becomes the HC. But Locks is a proud man and I can’t see that happening.
Pat Fitzgerald, who Jim Smith will have a lot of connections with, does something similar. What he doesn’t get you is as good a chance as possible of keeping Malik/Stewart/Mathis/Elee.
It’s very different for obvious reasons, but last time around Locks was the only guy they could hire after the McNair tragedy. This time around, I think Franklin might be The Only Guy. You need someone who immediately brings credibility and heft. And the pressure will be so much less than PSU.
I think this is it for Locks. They pretty much need to win every game besides Michigan and IU the rest of the way to salvage this and that seems extremely unlikely. You need to do everything possible to keep Malik and the only guy that does that is Big Game James.
And throws like the one on 3rd down to Knotts are why, even with all the negatives, maybe you just do whatever you need to make sure Malik stays in CP.
This first quarter performance, at home, with half the stadium full of the opposing team’s fans, coming off such a gut punch loss, is the kind of thing that makes you fine with blowing it all up and starting from scratch.
