Matt Campbell
Quick Bio: Talk about a meteoric rise. Matt Campbell has exploded onto the scene this year with Iowa State. After leading Toledo to impressive heights, he took over an Iowa State team that was a laughingstock in the Big 12 and made them respectable and even took them to a top 20 ranking this season.
Pros: Iowa State has never won more than nine games in a season, and the Cyclones had won a combined eight games in the three years before Campbell took over. He already had Iowa State bowl eligible and could win eight games this season, something the Cyclones haven’t done since 2000. He also won nine games three of his four full seasons at Toledo.
Cons/Questions: What Campbell has done at both Toledo and Iowa State has been impressive. But does he have what it takes to flourish at a top university? He’s done well this season in the Big 12, but Iowa State isn’t Tennessee. They aren’t even a Vanderbilt, Kentucky, or Ole Miss in football.
Mike Bobo
Quick Bio: Vol fans probably remember Mike Bobo from his time at Georgia. Bobo was the Bulldogs’ offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach from 2007-14 and was the QB coach from 2001-06 before his promotion. He spent nearly a decade and a half at Georgia before accepting the head coaching position at Colorado State in 2015.
Pros: If you want SEC experience, Bobo has that in spades. Not as a head coach, but he has it. And he’s helped Colorado State find success after Jim McElwain left them for Florida.
Cons/Questions: Bobo took over a less talented Colorado State team after McElwain took them to a 10-3 season in 2014, but he hasn’t really been able to make significant strides. This season has been his best so far, but it’s concerning that he’s yet to truly break through.
3 Responses
My opinion is: Be careful who you wish for, you might get them! We all know Jon Gruden knows a lot about football but how much does he know about being a College Football Coach? We need a person who is a dynamic coach that will take these recruits to the next level. We already have the talent in place, we just need to have a coach that knows how to develop them. So, Mr. Currie, please be careful and choose the right coach this time! I love Tennessee Vols football and just want it back to the glory days. Go Big Orange!
I don’t get the reluctance to welcome Jon Gruden back to The Hill. Any leader making anything much more complicated than meat loaf has to delegate much of what gets done to assistants. Does Jon Gruden know how to win football games? I think he does. Will elite players flock to K-town to play for him? I think they will. Can Coach Gruden attract good assistants? He must have to win a Super Bowl.
He is the guy if the university will finally show it cares about winning.
Bobby Petrine, T. Martin, new ideas, more disciplined better connected to the players. Able to instill Tennessee volunteers traditional into the game .and bring us back where we belong. I think recruting will still be good with either one of these as coaches?