Should Frank Beamer Bring Ralph Friedgen to Virginia Tech?
by furrer4heisman on Dec 20, 2010 1:11 AM EST
in Virginia Tech Football
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Print"This shouldn't be about who the next guy is. This should be about what they're doing to Ralph," (Frank) Beamer said in a phone interview Sunday. "When you've got a guy who's a loyal alum, who's a tremendous football coach and who is responsible for bringing Maryland football back to where it is, something like this should not happen."
Whether by retirement, buyout or firing, it appears the Maryland Terrapins are going to move on from the Ralph Friedgen era. So much so that rumors are already circulating that Mike Leach is going to coach them next season (which is something we'll get into if/when it happens).
This would mean a really good offensive mind, as well as one of Frank Beamer's best friends in the coaching business, will be looking for work. While it would makes sense for Beamer to want to bring his friend and former colleague onto his staff, would Friedgen be a good fit in Blacksburg?
Friedgen and Beamer were on the same coaching staffs in the 70s at Maryland and The Citadel. When Beamer got his first head coaching job at Murray State in 1981, he hired Friedgen to be his offensive coordinator. Their friendship has been well documented since the Hokies and Terps started squaring off frequently when Tech joined the ACC in 2004.
The main reason Friedgen would be a good addition to the Tech staff is that he's an excellent offensive coach. Everywhere he's gone he's had offensive success and his offenses are usually balanced and resemble what Tech already runs.
The problem is what position Friedgen would take. While a lot of fans will instantly say, "Fire Stinespring," which is the Pavlovian response that Hokie fans tend to blurt out in these situations, that's not going to happen. If Stinespring was going to get a pink slip from Beamer, it would have happened long ago. He's going to be around. Live with it. Plus, Stinespring had a good year as OC in 2010 and doesn't deserve the same treatment Friedgen got from Maryland.
If Friedgen and Stinespring were on the same offense staff, I wonder if it would create a situation where there are too many cooks in the kitchen. It could lead to more trouble than it would be worth. I also wonder what Friedgen would bring in the recruiting game. Maryland's recruiting was solid when Mike Locksley or James Franklin were in Maryland, but it suffered when neither was in College Park.
So what do you think? Is Fridge a good fit for the Hokies? Should Beamer he bring him to Blacksburg if he doesn't get a better job offer after getting forced out by Maryland?
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Don't forget that...
Friedgen was the OC at Ga Tech when Joe (seriously) Hamilton was a Heisman Trophy finalist.
From my early days listening to Bill Roth depict a dazzling Michael Vick dance around the field to glory until now, it has been more than a pleasure to be a Hokie fan. Since 1998, there has only been one game played in Lane Stadium I did not attend (stupid chicken pox), and I dread the day where I am not fortunate enough to be in the stands week after week.
It's a great day to be a Hokie!
Idea:
Promote Stinespring to some sort of ceremonial position where all he is in charge of is recruiting and let him keep his TE coaching position. That would solve a lot of issues and would put an actual experienced play caller in the OC position.
Please bring the Fridge to Tech!
While that sounds great in theory
There’s no way that an ACC-champion, Orange-Bowl bound Coach Stinespring gets any sort of demotion. Stripping him of play-calling abilities would send a bad message to the rest of the staff and negatively impact recruiting (though who would notice this year). Tech has finally seen its offensive spurt this year and Frank will ride that just like the “10 wins” mantra when things go bad.
What no one has mentioned yet is next year is, in my opinion, Coach O’Cain’s last chance. Show us what you can do with a QB who has two full years to develop and understudies behind perhaps the greatest QB and leader in VT history, not to mention having 80% of your offensive line back, depth there for days, and big play makers at running back and receiver.
If LT doesn’t pan out next year, with a garbage schedule to boot, there is no way Coach O’Cain stays on.
It's not a demotion
It’s already been rumored that Hite is thinking about retirement because of health problems. If that happens, then you PROMOTE Stinespring to Associate Head Coach and pull in Fridge to be OC.
While I think it would all work out great, I think Sam’s right. I don’t think Friedgen would want to take an assistant job after being fairly successful at Maryland. It’s not like Groh where he totally failed at the program. It would take a lot of lucky bounces for this to happen.
Why not?
I agree with VTinACC. We see this all the time in business where someone gets “promoted” into the meaningless managment position but yet retains a title of sorts. Why not do it this way with Stinespring? We have seen over the years where someone has been a head coach and then come on board with the Hokies (O’ Cain). O’Cain is a close personal friend, coached with Beamer and was a former head coach with NC State who got fired. Sound somewhat familier to what we are hearing about Friedgen? We have seen a precedent with Beamer. The only item is to give Stinespring an exit that is with dignity as he did do somewhat decent this year. But we do have to remember here that Stinespring ONLY did this with an exceptional list of weapons at his disposal and in the years when his aresenal was somewhat limited he stank it up.
I think we should wait and see
what kind of Offense shows up against the Cardinal. If Coach Stinespring can put together a gameplan that actually works against a top 5 team – and if VT pulls out a W – then why should we rock the boat?
If not, given all of the weapons at the Hokies’ disposal, it’s a clear indication that VT’s current philosophy isn’t good enough to take that real next step from “good” team (no better than the bottom half of the top ten) to one clearly capable of beating anyone they step on the field with.
As we all know, that has not historically been the case for the Hokies.
Being ranked 100+ in offense for two seasons and failing against every major program in past hasn’t been enough? This game is the one we should let determine it? C’mon now.
There’s a tangible difference in Coach Stinespring’s playcalling from those days and right now. Even the difference between earlier this year and now is startling. That’s translating to a more dynamic offense on the field. Whether that means he’s “turned a corner” remains to be seen, but this year is the first under his tenure where the offense scored enough points to carry the program. The guy’s earned a shot.
I’m pretty sure that we have seen this movie before with the offense (think back to last year). Slow offense to start the year, then it gets more potent as the year goes on and all of a sudden it’s “YAY! Stiney finally gets it!”. After the Peach Bowl last year we all thought that we would be amazing on offense with Tyrod being a senior and 3 studs at RB. After 2 games this year, it was “FIRE Stinespring!” again. If the offense was struggling at the beginning of this year with all the returning skill players and a veteran QB, what chance in hell does the offense have at the start of next season with a brand new QB. Now, I am not saying that Stinespring needs to be fired. All I am saying is that just because we are doing well right now on offense and the play calling has been pretty good lately, let’s not get lulled into a sense of false optimism that Stiney finally does “get it”. He still has to prove that he can do it for the ENTIRE year and show that it’s not just the players that are making him look smarter than he really is.
Friedgen as an assistant
would probably be for one year, two years max. We’re a little late in the coaching carousel and there may not be a head job for him. What Fridge has to decide is if he wants to take an assistant job for this season or just take a year off and wait for the firings to commence after the 2011 season. Basically the same thing Randy Shannon is doing right now.
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by furrer4heisman on Dec 20, 2010 12:08 PM EST up reply actions
Randy Shannon
whether he sits out a year or not, I don’t see Randy getting another sweet HC job. It’s either back to DC at a top program or take a mediocre HC job. Probably in his best interests to go back to DC.
Fridge Pride
I think Friedgen’s ego would take a hit. Let’s put it this way. The only way Fridge would take a supporting role position again after 11-some years in a head coaching role is if he would have left in disgrace after consistently sucking for his entire head coaching career. Think Al Groh. Any position offered by Tech would be either an insult to him or the coaches on Beamer’s staff.
That said, if you rewind the time machine back to 1982, when the Fridge was offensive coordinator at Maryland under Bobby Ross, you see that Fridge was responsible for the development of a few quarterbacks: Stan Gelbaugh, Frank Reich, and Boomer Esiason. So I think he’d be a great qb coach, but that’s a steep drop in responsibility, and I think Fridge would get plenty of chances as an HC in other places.
Fridge will land another HC job
I would imagine Fridge will take another HC job somewhere. Even though the Terps struggled for a few seasons prior to this one, he’s still a great coach.
most likely
Strong chance that Fridge gets another HC job somewhere. But if he doesn’t get the offer he’s looking for, and if Hite retires… I don’t think it’s out of the realm of possibility that he joins VT’s staff.
Ralph Friedgen is 63 years old
And has four losing seasons in the past seven years…He’s not getting another head coaching job. Period. If Billy Hite retires, the next assistant coach will either by Ralph Friedgen or Shane Beamer. End of discussion.
From my early days listening to Bill Roth depict a dazzling Michael Vick dance around the field to glory until now, it has been more than a pleasure to be a Hokie fan. Since 1998, there has only been one game played in Lane Stadium I did not attend (stupid chicken pox), and I dread the day where I am not fortunate enough to be in the stands week after week.
It's a great day to be a Hokie!
The only thing I don't agree with
is him not getting another head coaching job. Hell, Frank Solich is the head coach at Ohio. There will always be a school who wants a quality guy like Friedgen. His next head coaching gig may be in the MAC or CUSA, but I’m sure someone will eventually want him.
A bullhorn, a bottle of whiskey and a dream. Gobbler Country | Twitter | Facebook
by furrer4heisman on Dec 20, 2010 12:11 PM EST up reply actions
Interesting what-if..
What if Fridge would have been available when Miami fired Randy Shannon? Having a coach with ACC experience is definitely a boon. Think Fridge did ok with the hand he was dealt (think Maryland has a recruiting gap compared to some of the other big-name ACC schools).
by Sam Easterling on Dec 20, 2010 12:59 PM EST up reply actions
MD recruiting
no doubt they have a recruiting gap. I don’t know how they’ve been able to do as well as they have, honestly.
certainly
MAC or CUSA, if he wants to go there. And he may. Tough to go from lead dog to following orders again. But tough to go back to the MAC or CUSA after coaching in the big 6, too. And I don’t see him getting another HC job in the big 6. If he’s looking at coordinator offers, you’d have to think Tech would be at the top of his list.
Hell yes, he'd be an upgrade from stiney
Born and raised in the 804, VT '10. Hokies, Braves, NY Giants, and NY Rangers are my teams.
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