With the announcement yesterday that Mickey Andrews would be retiring at the end of the season, Florida State’s now officially in the market for a new defensive coordinator.
What muddles the situation, however, is the status of head coach Bobby Bowden. Very clearly, it’s uncertain whether or not this will be Bowden’s final season in Tallahassee.
The only clear part of the picture is that offensive coordinator Jimbo Fisher is the head coach-in-waiting, and common sense would seem to dictate that he should take the lead on the hiring. Unfortunately, Bowden has decided that’s not going to be the tack he takes.
“I think he definitely has to have a say-so because he’s the future here. You know it?” Bowden said of Fisher. “And it’s one of those things I’ll make the final decision on. But I’ll definitely get his input, and very strongly.”
And this is where my I diverge from the legendary coach. I’ve been a big proponent of Bowden going out on his own terms, but this is the absolute wrong way of going about things.
Regardless of whether this season or next is his last year on the sidelines, the final decision on the new coordinator should rest with Fisher, with input from Bowden. Not the other way around.
Fisher is the one who will have to live with Bowden’s “final decision” long after the coach has left. It’s not fair to the program and not fair to Fisher for Bowden to have the final say on a decision that will extend past his extended tenure.
All this will do is add some healthy ammunition to those looking to rid themselves of Bowden sooner rather than later.
Wow, Bobby. Maybe you should get the call on when and how you leave because of all you’ve done for FSU. Maybe you do deserve to be “coach emeritus” for a few years.
But to think that you should get to choose the assistants that will shape the program for the next decade is either the onset of senility or an enormous display of hubris.
Haven’t you conclusively proven that you can’t be trusted to choose assistants anymore (see Bowden, Jeff for details).
I’ve generally been OK with guys like Bowden and Paterno being allowed to leave on their own terms, but enough is enough.
It’s OK if Bobby makes the choice for as he will forget who he picked anyway, so it’s still Jimbo’s choice really. He just has to say, “Bobby this is who you chose, don’t you remember?”
FSU will remain mediocre for years to come because of Bobby.
Bobby runs the program, Bobby decides. This isn’t a democracy, it is a football team. Once the defense gets turned around, FSU will rock again!! How many games this season were lost by 1 TD? Y’all better be prepared for FSU whompin’