IAA Fan - feel free to move off the YSU board if you wish - but I thought this was big FCS news that I had missed over the weekend. And its clear some people are not happy about.
http://www.citizen-times.com/article/20121204/COLUMNISTS12/312040013/Jarrett-When-Moore-not-enough?odyssey=mod%7Cnewswell%7Ctext%7CFrontpage%7Cp&nclick_check=1Graceful coaching exits appear to have gone the way of the phone booth and correct spelling.
In the “wht hve u dun 4 me ltely” world in Boone, Jerry Moore’s departure as a football legend was as clumsy as it was predictable.
After a 215-87 record, 10 Southern Conference titles and three straight national championships among 18 seasons in the playoffs on a 24-year resume that Mountaineers’ fans will likely never come close to seeing again, Moore made two mistakes — he got old and couldn’t maintain impossible expectations he created with his previous successes.
The announcement came via e-mail and teleconference on Sunday in the politically correct language of the times, where “will not return” and “we came to the decision” supposedly creates a softer landing than “fired.”
Sorry, but when you show up for work wanting and expecting to stay employed and are told by your bosses that you are no longer welcome, that’s fired.
Moore wanted one more year, and he should have gotten it.
The firing came one day after a one-point loss in overtime in the second round of the FCS playoffs, the defeat clinched by a blocked extra-point attempt.
Funny how life works. One day you are making about $200,000 a year, then a freshman from Ashe County or Etowah misses a block and it’s time to make a coaching change.
At age 73, Moore’s last team was 8-4, won the SoCon for the seventh time in eight years and made the playoffs for the eighth straight season.
What a bum — sure sounds like “it’s just time, and we’ll move forward,” as ASU athletic director Charlie Cobb said.
Enough of that winning and competing for championships, let’s replace a legend with a guy who has never been a head coach, and see where Scott Satterfield can take us.
No doubt the ASU dynasty is waning — from the heyday of 39-5 and three straight national titles from 2005-07, which started a run of six straight seasons of 10 or more wins, this was the second straight 8-4, lose in their opening playoff game season.
Most programs would kill for that kind of decline, but in Boone it meant let’s make a move.
There were some off-field incidents with players and a huge turnover in assistant coaches after last season, but 2012 sure appeared to be a strong rebound and answer to those problems.
From the time of his official retirement age of 65 to today, Moore posted an 87-23 record (53-8 and seven championships in the SoCon) and was 15-6 in the playoffs, with three national titles, a last-second loss in a semifinal round and a quarterfinal appearance.
Can’t believe they let grandpa hang around as long as they did.
There are those in the ASU community who are aiming higher in the High Country, where competing for conference crowns and FCS national titles isn’t enough.
Despite all available evidence that there isn’t an attractive Division I conference interested or offering an invitation to join, the school has decided it is ready for the move up.
Hello Sun Belt, good-bye SoCon.
Under Moore, ASU grew from a solid, successful program to the best in the FCS. He beat Michigan at Michigan, created a game-day atmosphere better than some ACC schools, doubled attendance, spearheaded with his on-field success stadium renovations, an indoor practice facility and incredible fund-raising numbers, all of which benefited the entire university.
And he stuck around, choosing loyalty when better financial offers at bigger schools came calling in years past.
Look where that got him.
Moore did it all with class and a humble presence, proud and firm in his strong faith that never got in the way of a fierce competitive nature that allowed him to build a powerhouse he leaves infinitely better than he found.
Which cannot be said for those who chose to let him go.
