Sorry to be so late in posting after the coaching changes. They were almost as sweeping as what I had called for. I am surprised that Jamrog survived considering the play of his unit. The changes took a while to complete — it could be that frank was careful, or indecisive, or the recruiting just took time. The bottom line is that we have made a big upgrade. A younger, more energetic staff has got to help. And now that we learn that two assistants didn't recruit, it is no wonder that the talent has dropped. Frank should have never tolerated that. Recruiting is a lot of work, and I believe that the old guys were worn out by the grind. This staff will definitely improve recruiting, but it probably won't show up until next year. The most important hire, that of Pederson, will have an impact here. He understands the importance and knows what it takes to be successful.

Pelini I think is a great hire. He brings the pro thought process to us. His experience should provide complex schemes and the ability to adjust on the fly, which is essential in the pro game. I have heard that Sanders is a fine recruiter, and was sought by the Rams. The secondary was badly in need of a coaching change. Sanders is a upgrade. Our DBs need to change their pass defense techniques, so this move is overdue.

On offense, I know Albin is a bright, energetic guy with head-coaching experience. I was hoping that he would get the OC job. But I am glad that we retained him. It will be interesting to see his influence on play-calling. Downing is a tremendous hire, and I am surprised we got him. To me he is the most exciting hire on the offensive side. Coming from Purdue, he will give our offense the pro passing approach that our entire throwing game has needed. I just don't know what to think about Cotton — he says the right things and has had success at the D-1 level, so we will see. I thought that his hire as the OC was little strange. It seemed as though Frank wanted the guy from K-State and then settled for Cotton. He says he will throw on first down and I am all for that if Dukes is healthy. Making Gill the assistant head coach means that he is going to look for a job and leave. Downing left the same title at Purdue to come here. Since Gill is not OC, I believe he will probably move on.

This staff is a big step forward, but their value may not show up completely until '04. I believe that Frank needs to win nine games to save his job. He must prove he can motivate and organize. He did a good job of selecting his coaches, and that will make this spring practice real interesting. Curt, heal as fast as you can — we need you.

Keep the faith. GBR.
 
-- The Colonel