What’s behind the Pac-12’s coaching high turnover rate?
By John Buhler
Mel Tucker is the latest former Pac-12 head coach to leave the conference. What is going on and why is the coaching turnover rate so incredibly high?
The Pac-12 is in the midst of a head-coaching turnover crisis.
With former Colorado Buffaloes head coach Mel Tucker leaving Boulder after only one season for the Michigan State Spartans’ job in the Big Ten, this now gives us three new head coaches in the Power 5 conference for 2020.
Former Washington Huskies head coach Chris Petersen resigned after six years on the job in Seattle. He was replaced by his long-time defensive coordinator Jimmy Lake. While Lake’s promotion from within was viewed positively, let’s hope for Washington’s sake he does a better job of replacing a legend than Jim Lambright did in taking over for the legendary Don James.
Once Joe Moorhead was fired by the Mississippi State Bulldogs after a bowl-game fiasco, Mississippi State called on The Pirate Mike Leach to bring his Air Raid offense from the Palouse to the SEC West. His replacement is former Hawaii Rainbow Warriors head coach Nick Rolovich. Though a solid head coach, his Washington State hiring didn’t move the needle nationally.
Colorado wide receivers coach Darrin Chiaverini was named the Buffaloes’ interim head coach after Tucker’s exodus to East Lansing. He may end up having the interim tag removed some point down the line. However, doing so would feel like Ole Miss removing the interim tag on Matt Luke, promoting a coach leading his alma mater because it’s a short-sided, feel-good story.
Tucker probably didn’t want to leave Boulder. However, getting double the salary he was getting from Colorado and returning to a program he got his start as a grad assistant under Nick Saban is alluring.
In short, the Pac-12 is in about as bad of a shape it can be in as a football conference. It is undoubtedly the weakest of the Power 5 conferences and it’s struggling to keep up with the big-spending conferences like the Big Ten and SEC. What is going on?
The Paul Finebaum Show dropped a frightening graphic about the state of Pac-12 football during Wednesday afternoon’s show.
Those facts are terrifying and you have to wonder who’s getting poached next. The favorite has to be Mario Cristobal at Oregon. While he can stay at Oregon and be the premier team, maybe his alma mater, Miami, will come calling if Manny Diaz flops? Jonathan Smith at Oregon State is another name to watch down the line.
The Athletic’s Bruce Feldman highlighted the revenue disparity between the Pac-12 and other Power 5 conferences in late January. Even irrelevant college football teams like the Vanderbilt Commodores were paid more than $44 million for being part of the SEC, thanks to the triumphant success that is the SEC Network.
It’s been established that the Pac-12 Network can’t hold its own against its SEC and Big Ten counterparts. Despite having one of the best states for high school football talent in America in its region in California, the Pac-12 simply does not prioritize spending money in recruiting like the better programs from other Power 5 conferences do now.
Of the 10 biggest spenders in college football recruiting, there is at least one team in the top 10 from every other Power 5 conference, except the Pac-12.
Leading the way for each is Georgia (SEC) at No. 1 with $2.6 million, Texas (Big 12) at No. 4 with $1.8 million, Clemson (ACC) at No. 5 with $1.79 million and Michigan (Big Ten) at No. 8 with $1.39 million. The Pac-12 is nowhere to be found.
This is a space USC used to excel at but has fallen off significantly under Helton. The lack of success on the recruiting trail has led to a poor product at USC which could lead to Helton not making it to the 2021 season. Turnover will always exist in major college football. The Pac-12 is not immune to it
Ultimately, the Pac-12 can’t compete with the rest of the Power 5 in terms of television distribution, keeping its best coaches around and spending the necessary money to prioritize recruiting.
It’s a multi-faceted problem that has led the Pac-12 to fall off the map in the College Football Playoff era. Losing quality coaches like Tucker is only symptomatic of a larger problem.
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