Lovie Smith out at Illinois

#126      

TooHot4Tots

T
TooHot4Tots
VAIllini35 said:
I was so done with Lovie when he hired Miles. Proved he had no serious intention of making this team good again (great was way too much to ask).

This just makes it so much more sickening. This is why you don't give the car, the keys, the title et. al to any coach. Just sickening what he did in hiring his idiot son and his own smug self as DC. Hey, if it works - good for you. If it crashes and burns - you really should pay the university back or get sued for incompetence. Glad he and his idiot son are gone - they put themselves ahead of the team.
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I'll be honest, when Herman Edwards and Leslie Frazier's names came up in regards to becoming our HC, I was all for Herm. Then news of Lovie Smith broke and I was scratching my head. After thinking about it, I was not thrilled with the hire from a coaching perspective, but thought he could steer this program in the right direction and be extremely successful if he was all in and hired a solid staff around him.

Then Hardy Nickerson is tabbed as DC and i knew he was going to struggle. Then McGee announced as OC and I was beyond frustrated with the direction of the staff. Lovie was an arrogant prick to Illinois HS coaches, and several others that just never helped in recruiting. I will give him credit for helping with kids developing off the field and with the new facilities. Just never understood why he felt his name still carried the weight it did during his early Bears run. If only he would have changed his ways. The Miles hire was a slap in the face to all Illini and JW should have stepped in to nix it. Bring on the new regime!
 
#127      

bluemountain

B
bluemountain
3xIllini said:
So you come to the same conclusion as Robert. This is exactly why he wrote this article. Your perspective of a (rightfully) upset fan is different than his—and his is likely the more informed (that’s not a knock on you, I just assume he just has more access to the program than you).

in the past, a lot of people praised Lovie for being the anti-Fleck. His stoicism and decision not to pressure recruits were seen as virtues. Now that it didn’t work out, it’s easy to look back, pile on, and cast a negative light on everything he did. What you perceive as lack of “effort” Robert saw as “he was who he was.”

The only fair criticism, which I believe was consistent throughout his tenure, was that he wasn’t adjusting to the college game. He gambled by doing things differently and came up (wayyyyy) short. But the idea that he didn’t care, he was a jerk, he was just bilking the university to pad his retirement, etc. is an unfair and biased assessment (from us angry fans). And that’s coming from someone who had a closer seat to the action than most of us.
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Not exactly. Robert sees Lovie as being confident. I see Lovie as being arrogant. There is a difference. Robert was belittling Fitz saying he needs people to like him. Well guess what - part of a HC's job at a P5 school is to recruit, and a lot of the time it means pandering to HS coaches and their players. That's part of the job and Lovie decided he didn't need to do that. A big part of a HC's job is to build a good staff. Based on his hires, including his completely unqualified son, Lovie decided he didn't need to do that. A HC has to adapt to the times and manage the little things as well as the big things. The cover 2 worked for the Bears in 2005, so even when it didn't work here he decided he didn't need to adapt. A couple unsportsmanlike penalties a game - no big deal. Terrible clock management - too small a detail to worry about. Lovie isn't stupid and it's not that he didn't care. He just thought he was above the game and didn't need to do the same things lesser coaches needed to do in order to win.
 
#128      

ChiefGritty

ChiefGritty
Chicago, IL
ChiefGritty
I don't think we really need to choose between the narrative of Lovie the genuine guy who was honest and forthright with players and their families and who conducted himself and his program with a great deal of personal integrity, and Lovie the arrogant coach who thought he was better than college football, that he could surround himself with personal cronies, and that he didn't have to go the extra mile to maximize every last little thing because he's Lovie Smith.

It seems clear to me that both of those narratives are largely true.

And I think you see it in the reaction from people in and close to the program. Not a single bad word to say about Lovie with lots of praise and thanks for him, and yet not a single word of protest that moving on isn't in the best interest of the program's success going forward.
 
#129      

CogDog

CogDog
CogDog
ChiefGritty said:
I don't think we really need to choose between the narrative of Lovie the genuine guy who was honest and forthright with players and their families and who conducted himself and his program with a great deal of personal integrity, and Lovie the arrogant coach who thought he was better than college football, that he could surround himself with personal cronies, and that he didn't have to go the extra mile to maximize every last little thing because he's Lovie Smith.

It seems clear to me that both of those narratives are largely true.

And I think you see it in the reaction from people in and close to the program. Not a single bad word to say about Lovie with lots of praise and thanks for him, and yet not a single word of protest that moving on isn't in the best interest of the program's success going forward.
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Nailed it!
 
#130      

jrmarcus

J
jrmarcus
BashCt said:
They had probably the easiest non-conference schedule in recent memory: Illinois St, UConn and Bowling Green (3-9 in 2019, 0-5 this year). You could make a very convincing argument that ISU is the best team out of those 3.

I know it doesn't shake out like that every year, but it was absolutely +3 in the win column, and why I'm convinced this would've been a bowl team in a normal -- non-covid sitting half our starters for a few games-- year.
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Totally agree. A non-conference schedule could have saved Lovie's job. But, if they can schedule three wins to start the season, asking a coach to win three times in conference isn't usually too much to ask.
 
#131      

jrmarcus

J
jrmarcus
TooHot4Tots said:
I'll be honest, when Herman Edwards and Leslie Frazier's names came up in regards to becoming our HC, I was all for Herm. Then news of Lovie Smith broke and I was scratching my head. After thinking about it, I was not thrilled with the hire from a coaching perspective, but thought he could steer this program in the right direction and be extremely successful if he was all in and hired a solid staff around him.

Then Hardy Nickerson is tabbed as DC and i knew he was going to struggle. Then McGee announced as OC and I was beyond frustrated with the direction of the staff. Lovie was an arrogant prick to Illinois HS coaches, and several others that just never helped in recruiting. I will give him credit for helping with kids developing off the field and with the new facilities. Just never understood why he felt his name still carried the weight it did during his early Bears run. If only he would have changed his ways. The Miles hire was a slap in the face to all Illini and JW should have stepped in to nix it. Bring on the new regime!
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Wow, I had the exact opposite initial reaction. An all-time great NFL player, NFL head coach, and an OC that had a bunch of successful NFL players under him. I thought Illinois struck gold.
 
#132      

pvaughn8

P
pvaughn8
ILL_INI said:
While his stubbornness is a fair criticism, I would hardly call it the only one. The hiring of his unqualified son to be one of the highest paid state employees is certainly another very fair criticism. With that hire, the message was clear: The Smith family finances were more important than the University of Illinois football program, all the while being paid north of $4 million per year to make that decision. Let that sink in for a while and digest it. It was a jerk move. He was bilking the state by making the hire. He may have cared about Illinois football, but he wasn't "all in." How many people did he interview for the position? (And how many people did he interview to be DC?) Is it really fair to dismiss this lack of effort as "he was who he was?"

Robert may have a closer seat to the action, but that doesn't mean he can see any better. In fact, being closer might have made him more biased.
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I still have a hard time believing he could have convinced anyone half way reputable to fill the DC role (for obvious reasons) and that is why he took on the DC title
 
#135      

Illwinsagain

Illwinsagain
Cary, IL
Illwinsagain
#138      

bluemountain

B
bluemountain
wma500 said:
football.dailyherald.com

Illinois struggles to recruit in-state kids. Could Jeff Monken's triple option fix that?

On the first day of the football signing period Wednesday, the Daily Herald has a chart of suburban players headed to schools like Arizona, Penn State, Wisconsin, Northwestern and Minnesota. One scho...
football.dailyherald.com football.dailyherald.com

These comments from Ted Monken, wow.
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Pretty much the definition of talking your own (or your brother's) book. Not sure what he is talking about re: road graders and the triple option - you need smaller, quicker players, not big Wisky type O-linemen.
 
#139      

wma500

wma500
wma500
bluemountain said:
Pretty much the definition of talking your own (or your brother's) book. Not sure what he is talking about re: road graders and the triple option - you need smaller, quicker players, not big Wisky type O-linemen.
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I should have clarified which parts of his quotes that I was highlighting...it was about the absence of Lovie and staff in Illinois high school recruiting.
 
#140      

DocMorgan

DocMorgan
DocMorgan
wma500 said:
football.dailyherald.com

Illinois struggles to recruit in-state kids. Could Jeff Monken's triple option fix that?

On the first day of the football signing period Wednesday, the Daily Herald has a chart of suburban players headed to schools like Arizona, Penn State, Wisconsin, Northwestern and Minnesota. One scho...
football.dailyherald.com football.dailyherald.com

These comments from Ted Monken, wow.
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How did JW allow this apathy from Smith with regards to recruiting? I understand that Smith’s philosophy was to recruit Florida, Texas and the STL, but not walking into Illinois prep schools, especially the larger schools, is criminal in my opinion when you are the highest paid state employee in Illinois. Once again, how or why did JW allow this to happen?
 
#141      

bluemountain

B
bluemountain
wma500 said:
I should have clarified which parts of his quotes that I was highlighting...it was about the absence of Lovie and staff in Illinois high school recruiting.
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Good point - I was taking it as a given that Lovie was pretty much non-existent when it came to in-state recruiting and PR
 
#142      

othawhitemeat

O
othawhitemeat
BashCt said:
They had probably the easiest non-conference schedule in recent memory: Illinois St, UConn and Bowling Green (3-9 in 2019, 0-5 this year). You could make a very convincing argument that ISU is the best team out of those 3.

I know it doesn't shake out like that every year, but it was absolutely +3 in the win column, and why I'm convinced this would've been a bowl team in a normal -- non-covid sitting half our starters for a few games-- year.
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To be honest, I'm glad we did not go bowling. It would just delay the inevitable of easy wins and can't compete in the Big10.
 
#143      

FinalFour88

FinalFour88
Charlotte, NC
FinalFour88
Has Lovie spoken publicly yet since getting fired? If not, why not? It's been nearly a week now.
 
#145      

FinalFour88

FinalFour88
Charlotte, NC
FinalFour88
ChiefGritty said:
Lovie's favorite part of getting fired was that he doesn't have to talk to the press anymore.
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Figured that. But man, the Illini Football press is a pretty easy bunch to work with, right? Pretty reasonable guys and gals and not overly critical.
 
#146      

CurbeloYourEnthusiasm

CurbeloYourEnthusiasm
CurbeloYourEnthusiasm
illini80 said:
I would have been way more upset with the Miles Smith hiring had I known that. I think J would make a great coach.
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J would be an awesome coach and awesome recruiter. He has charisma that you can’t teach. Listened to him on Mike Dudek’s podcast and he had me fired up.

I hope the new staff hires him. He’s knowledgeable about the position, and can recruit. He’s a natural salesman
 
#147      

pvaughn8

P
pvaughn8
Now that Lovie is gone, can we hear some of those great stories about the !!!! show behind the scenes that were recently alluded to by certain posters?
 
#148      

Deleted member 747784

D
Guest
Deleted member 747784
pvaughn8 said:
Now that Lovie is gone, can we hear some of those great stories about the !!!! show behind the scenes that were recently alluded to by certain posters?
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do you really want to see how the sausage is made , or get up & close with the autopsy ?

unfortunately for us all and the program , Lovie obviously didn’t take the job as seriously as he needed to , or there wouldn’t have been the complete lack of progress on the field or recruiting trail thr past 4.5 years .

Lovie = nice guy . that’s really all the positive stuff we can say about him now , as far as I’m concerned
 
#149      

pvaughn8

P
pvaughn8
SouthFarms said:
do you really want to see how the sausage is made , or get up & close with the autopsy ?

unfortunately for us all and the program , Lovie obviously didn’t take the job as seriously as he needed to , or there wouldn’t have been the complete lack of progress on the field or recruiting trail thr past 4.5 years .

Lovie = nice guy . that’s really all the positive stuff we can say about him now , as far as I’m concerned
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It will just help validate my feelings that it was time for him to go and he wasn't ever going to turn the program around.
 
#150      

Ryllini

Ryllini
Lombard
Ryllini
SouthFarms said:
do you really want to see how the sausage is made , or get up & close with the autopsy ?

unfortunately for us all and the program , Lovie obviously didn’t take the job as seriously as he needed to , or there wouldn’t have been the complete lack of progress on the field or recruiting trail thr past 4.5 years .

Lovie = nice guy . that’s really all the positive stuff we can say about him now , as far as I’m concerned
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In this case yes, and think we deserve to know.