Who Do We Think We Are?

With Coach Bower’s resignation (or forced departure depending on who you ask), many Southern Miss fans are expressing various emotions from anger, to fear, from elation to resentment.  This has, in a sense, further divided the Southern Mis fan base.  Which begs the question:

Would a fan stop being a fan just because the university fired the head coach?

Given the animosity of some posters on the Southern Miss message boards, it would seem so.  But I think this goes deeper than that.

To many fans, Coach Bower represented stability.  Much like a blue chip stock or a bond, with him you had a known quantity, or in other words, low volatility.  Now, depending on who Giannini selects as our new head coach, we face an unknown and the potential of some very volatile years.

In the stock market, volatility often results in significant gains.  But investors must weather the tragic lows in order to see these new highs.  Which is why investors are told to set specific goals and determine their risk tolerance before they choose an investment vehicle.
What seems to divide us relates more to our risk tolerance than our feelings about a coach.  I see the University as a younger investor should look at investing.  Older investors are satisfied with low, consistent returns.  I, on the other hand, want to see the Golden Eagles soar higher.  And I’ll take the risk to get there.

Southern Miss football needs more excitement.  While we clearly have more fans today than in years past, we aren’t growing at a rate that matters on the national stage.  We are losing ground.  To make a significant move up, we have to raise our risk tolerance.

Can you take the heat?  I can and will!

If you’ve read my previous comments on the coaching situation, you’ll know that I’ve expressed my concerns regarding Coach Bower and his contract terms.   In my opinion, these terms and the actions by the athletic administration (Giannini) in the past five years have served as positive affirmation of Coach Bower’s actions.

Now, it appears some big money supporters are stepping up to buy out Bower’s contract.  Both sides of the argument can be found on this board and various articles (see this article by Mike Robins).

The problem is not Coach Bower.  He has met the terms of his contract.  If we wanted more, we should have demanded more.  Good management is more than just monitoring performance.  It requires setting reasonable expectations.  It seems that there were two standards placed on Coach Bower, which isn’t really fair to him.

If the rumors are true, I won’t feel any remorse for Coach Bower.  He’s made good money over the years (more than 99.9% of us will make in our careers).  But, I certainly hope that our athletic administration has learned a lesson.  That lesson?  In the words of Mike Robins, “Be careful what you ask for.”   We asked for just better than average from a mid-major conference and we got just better than average in that conference.

It is time to raise the bar.  Set achievable, meaningful goals.  And then hold the coach to that standard.  I thank the big money supporters for their clear message to the athletic administration.  I hope the AD does more than just move deck chairs.

Bruce Wilbourn, WR from North Panola, MS has verbally committed to Southern Miss. This 6′0″ 185lb receiver gets a lot of praise for being a good hands receiver.

Scout grades him a 74 and the #122 wide receiver.

Rivals rates him a 4.9, which is on the lower end of the ratings.

He made the Clarion Ledger Top 125 seniors list.

In watching his highlights video, he shows a great ability to go up for the ball even in tight coverage. Unfortunately, he was seldom shown creating much distance from the defensive backs. He appears to be strong enough to break some tackles, but lacks breakaway speed (4.58).

Other than that there isn’t much on him.  I’ll keep an eye out as we move toward signing day.

Demetrius Thomas, RB from Theodore AL has verbally committed to Southern Miss. This 5′10″ 175lb back currently leads all Alabama HS running backs in rushing yards.

Scout grades him a 74 and the #105 rated running back.

Rivals rates him a 5.4, which puts him squarely in top mid-major play.

BamaOnline has him listed as the #38 prospect out of Alabama.

He was also listed on Tidefans as a potential Top 30 Alabama player.

In watching his highlights video, he shows good vision and very good lateral movement (making tacklers miss). He has decent speed (4.5), but is a bit undersized. I’m not quite sure what to make of his off the field self, but from his interview by WKRG, it appears he is a leader on the Theodore football team.

I’m sitting here watching the Patriots/Colts game; two teams that will definitely see the playoffs (and we know this halfway through the season). Teams in the NFL have as their season goal to make the playoffs. They have this goal because they are a league. Beyond that, all they get for the “extra” wins is home field advantage.

What should Southern Miss play for?

If you considered C-USA a league, then perhaps the equivalent would be to finish the season bowl eligible. Then you get to represent C-USA in the post season. The better your season, the higher the profile of the bowl game.

But C-USA is not a league. It is a conference within a league. As such, the real equivalent to “making the playoffs” is to win the conference. The quality of our program is measured against other Division 1A teams. Being a better than average C-USA team means about as much as being a 9 and 7 NFL team and not making the playoffs. For most of us, just having a winning season isn’t good enough.

Which leads me to my main topic. In college football, the players are not paid professionals. But the coaches are.

When fans are unhappy with the results on the field or the season as a whole, are we wrong to acknowledge that displeasure? Are we wrong to disagree with the decisions the coaches made?

While I believe the players should never be put down for their efforts on the field, the same is not the case for the coaches. As fans, ticket purchasers, and Eagle Club members, we have the right to express our opinion about the coaches. Coach Bower is not Southern Miss football. He has had the privilege to be a part of the legacy and has been well paid for it.

There are many fans who aren’t happy with just counting winning seasons. We are the same fans that have been thoroughly embarrassed by our showings on the national stage the past few seasons. We know we have some great players, but feel the coaches are holding them back.

Don’t question our fanship just because we are willing to express our displeasure. Bower is a paid professional, and as customers, we are entitled to question the quality of the product. Many of us are unhappy with the quality of the product we received this year.

I understand that Coach Bower has a clause in his contract that extends the contract for another year if he posts a winning record. I’ve struggled to understand why our Athletic Director would tell fans the goal is to win C-USA, yet sets a lower goal through contract terms with the coach. It occurred to me just recently. By posting a winning record, Coach Bower delivers a bowl eligible team. Therefore the team and the conference earn a bowl berth and the revenue from the tie in. It actually makes good business sense but for one logic flaw.

The contract assumes that USM will never be better than C-USA.
Yes, the contract assumes we will and should stay just an above average C-USA team. For many fans, myself included, that is not what we want from USM Football. But, it seems to be the expectation of our Athletic Director and it is now institutionalized in Coach Bower’s contract.Now I hope you understand why we want change. It is not meant to be demeaning to the current players. We love you for being a part of Southern Miss football. But we want you to be a part of a legacy that becomes something great. But, we don’t believe Coach Bower is the one to take us there.