Fansided

25 worst college football coaching hires in history

By Nicholas Ian Allen

PASADENA, CA - JANUARY 1: Head coach Mike Price of the Washington State University Cougars manages the game from the sidelines during the 89th Rose Bowl game against University of Oklahoma Sooners at the Rose Bowl on January 1, 2003 in Pasadena, California. Oklahoma defeated Washington St. 34-14. (Photo by Stephen Dunn/Getty Images)
PASADENA, CA - JANUARY 1: Head coach Mike Price of the Washington State University Cougars manages the game from the sidelines during the 89th Rose Bowl game against University of Oklahoma Sooners at the Rose Bowl on January 1, 2003 in Pasadena, California. Oklahoma defeated Washington St. 34-14. (Photo by Stephen Dunn/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
21 of 25
Next
2 Dec 1990: Ron Meyer, head coach of the Indianapolis Colts, watches from the sidelines during a game against the Arizona Cardinals at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Arizona. The Cardinals won the game, 20-17. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Dunn /Allsport
2 Dec 1990: Ron Meyer, head coach of the Indianapolis Colts, watches from the sidelines during a game against the Arizona Cardinals at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Arizona. The Cardinals won the game, 20-17. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Dunn /Allsport /

5. Ron Meyer, SMU

  • Hired: 1976
  • Left: 1981
  • Record at SMU: 34-32-1 (.507)
  • Career head coaching record: 61-40-1 (.598)

Ron Meyer built UNLV into a Division II power in three short years, and jumped at the opportunity to become the head coach at SMU prior to the 1976 season. Though the Mustangs had achieved great periods of success during the first half of the 20th Century, the program had stumbled into mediocrity by the mid-1970s.

Meyer replaced Dave Smith, who led the Mustangs to a 4-7 record in 1975. With a reputation as a great recruiter, Meyer slowly began to increase the talent level in the program, but won just 16 games from 1976-79, when he landed the most prized recruit in the country: Eric Dickerson.

One of the greatest running backs in football history, Dickerson helped turn the Mustangs around on the field. SMU went 8-4 in 1980 and 10-1 in 1981, finishing No. 5 in the nation. Meyer left for the New England Patriots, and SMU hired Bobby Collins. SMU was great on the field under Collins, and won 31 games from 1982-84, but program boosters spiraled out of control off the field.

Details of recruiting violations, and a slush fund for payments to players, came to light and dated back to Meyer’s tenure in Dallas. Even when the school’s administration learned of the complex payment system in 1981, decision makers chose to cover it up. In 1985, SMU received a two-year bowl ban and lost 45 scholarships – at the time the biggest sanctions ever levied by the NCAA. Yet the improper payments continued.

In 1986, the NCAA issued the “Death Penalty” to the SMU football program, which suspended the team’s 1987 season and banned the Mustangs from playing home games in 1988. However, SMU canceled the ’88 campaign as well. The two-year layoff torpedoed the program, which didn’t post a winning season until 1997 and didn’t play in a bowl game until 2009.

Home/College Football