I’m so happy I found you, Doc. I’ve really missed your writing! Just curious if there has been any rumbling of discontentment between Fickell and Cunningham? I recall Fickell being pretty hissed about how Brannen was handled when he was fired. Fickell and Cunningham never seemed to gel, at least publicly, and apparently Luke wanted out last year but felt the timing wasn’t right with the playoffs. I’m grateful he stayed, but I have to wonder if there is more under the surface. Fickell seems like a guy that would never want to hurt the university so we may never know the full truth, but his comments about being philosophically aligned with the AD at Wisconsin are what made me wonder if maybe he was not aligned here. It seems Wisconsin is a good fit for his personality, we will miss him, but We wish him the best!
I'd like to offer some better fuel for the fire, but I am in 100% agreement with Doc on this one. Fickel; taking the Wisconsin job is not likely the place he'll make it to "The Last Man Standing" on the college gridiron. So, nuff said on that. I will add this re: whoever may follow Coach Fickell into the position of HC for the Bearcats, PLEASE do not let it be Urban Meyer. He has proven himself unworthy to be in any position of influence over young men in the age range of 18-23, or so. In fact, Meyer is a disgrace to the males species of the human race. Sure he coached college football teams that won a lot more than they lost. Yippee! If the world of sports villifies Peter Edward, and UC sent Bob Huggins packing, the powers that be simply cannot justify in any way consideration of hiring Urban. I have to believe "we" all know of other much better choices to take the Bearcats program into the Big 12 and beyond.
Fick stayed for 6 years. All I wanted was 5. For that, he has my eternal gratitude.
He accomplished the impossible. Maybe he felt he had reached his peak. Maybe he loves cheese. Maybe he just wanted a change. Most any reason makes sense. Madison is a mellow, laid back small- town- USA place, a northern Austin. Cincinnati is a hard edged, big, intense city. The area around Clifton campus has a lot of crime. Not mellow at all. Madison should serve as a great decompression experience by contrast. The job has enough pressures, without location adding to them.
I'd love to see Urban Meyer get the job. He needs redemption, and I think he was kinda railroaded out of Jacksonville. Turn out Trevor Lawrence was a great draft pick after all. X threw its arms wide open to its prodigal son, Sean Miller, and things immediately started looking up for them again. Urban knows how to win and win big. He knows the campus and city, and is a great recruiter. Some people here might want to tar and feather him. Not me. I hope he gets hired. It would be a great, very high profile choice. Might help keep most of Fick's recruits for next year, too. Double bonus.
After taking 24 hours to process this information, I am still disappointed but I am starting to understand his decision. As much as we tried to adopt Luke and his family, they are not "Cincinnati People" and probably never thought of this place as home. I agree with Doc that I would have expected him to take a more high profile job than Wisconsin but when you objectively compare the two opportunities, Wisconsin is a slightly better gig and it might even be easier than his situation in Cincinnati.
1. NIL - we can all argue what NIL has done for the college game but it is the reality of our situation. I heard that the Cincinnati program was able to scramble together $2-$3MM of NIL dollars, which is formidable. However, getting an NIL fund of $10MM+ should be a walk in the park at a place like Wisconsin.
2. Assistant Pool: Over the past couple of years, Fickell has lost countless coordinators to greener pastures - Mike Mickens (ND), Denbrock (LSU), Freeman (ND), Brian Mason (ND). Some of this was probably due to the allure of coaching at a blueblood program but a lot of it has to do with money. I am hearing that Fickell's assistant pool will now be up to $10MM vs the $5.2MM he had with UC.
3. Big 12: Although it is certainly an upgrade from the AAC, the Big 12 is watered down and is starting to look like a conference of misfit toys. The College Football Playoff Committee seems to share this sentiment with their treatment of TCU over the past couple of weeks. The Big 12 will be a nice league but it will always be on the outside of the Big 10/SEC superpower affiliation.
4. Big 10 West: You can make a sound argument that winning the Big 10 West (Purdue won this year) with more financial resources is way easier to win the AAC/Big 12 with UC's financial situation and lack of stable coordinators.
College Football is changing for the worse. It stinks because the game has so much to love on a micro level - great atmosphere (more wholesome), unique rivalries, regional culture etc. But the macro level issues continue to overshadow the simple beauties of the game.
If Day keeps losing to Michigan, it won't be long before that OSU job comes open. FIckell could have bid his time and waited for that one. I was really surprised that he went to Wisconsin. There are better jobs out there. Have fun finishing 3rd or 4th or 5th every year in the B1G Ten.
Hard to understand why Wisconsin is a better draw than UC especially since the Big 12 is looming. It will be interesting what names surface for the job.
I get the move if it was for money. MSU paid Mel Tucker $95 million for ten years, Ole Miss just extended Lane Kiffin at $9 million/year, UK extended Mike Stoops at $9 million per and Texas A&M is on the hook for$80+ million guaranteed to Jimbo Fisher, If Fickell is in that ball park, good for him. If he is in the $6 million per year range, he is being disingenuous with his rationale for the move although Wisconsin has been the 2nd most successful program in the B10 the past 20 years.
Will all the BK haters now spend the next 12 years crapping on Luke and his accomplishments because he left UC before the bowl game?
IB, I don’t think anyone will show any I’ll will toward Fickell. By any account I can think of, he was a good man who did a great job advancing UC’s program. If we are to believe Cunningham’s press conference this evening, UC will have no problem finding a high quality coach to keep the program moving forward.
I doubt the current staff will be considered. I’m thinking former TCU coach Gary Patterson. Maybe Tom Hermann. The dark horse would be Toledo’s head coach Jason Candle. The guy can coach but he kinda gives me that slick Gavin Newsom vibe. Instead of a bullet train to nowhere, I’d be worried that Candle would lobby for the street car to expand up the hill to Clifton. :)
But explain to me the diff between no ill will for Luke and the continued irrational hatred for BK. Except BK left for a prestige job and Luke left for perhaps negligibly more money. I sense Gumby like moves for the BK haters and Luke lovers.
Fingers crossed for a good hire. Don’t want the “Travis Steele hire.”
You already know the stories about why Kelly is a pariah in most of the places he has coached. It appears he may be softening his image at LSU but that’s what the security of a guaranteed 10m a year will do for someone.
I like Tom Herman but a few minutes ago I read someone from the Enquirer saying the same thing.
It’s a shame UCLA is on the rise. My back pocket hidden gem for UC has been Chip Kelly for a few years now.
The hire needs to be a current head coach. Too much at stake to have someone learning on the job next year.
I’m calling you Gumby for not realizing there is NO difference between the departures of BK and Fickell.
Not sure who I like yet. Heard Herman is bad with alumni and boosters. Chip Kelly has been mediocre until this year, but it’s irrelevant because he is not coming. We can do better than Gary Patterson - he would be Tuberville 2.0. I know I don’t want Willie Taggart. 😂
If I had a Gumbette daughter, there is no question I would rather see her marry a man with high morals and good character over a snake oil selling carnival barker with anger issues.
LOL. Nicely done with the Gumby references. But, my point remains that BK was castigated for leaving before the meaningless bowl game which is what Fickell is doing. That's all. I am not judging character or anything else. I am just commenting on how irrational the BK disdain was for the past 13 years.
I don’t get Fick’s move to Wisconsin. Sure, the Vag-ers play in the anemic Big 10 West where they lumber, slumber, and let no incredibly poor teams put them asunder…for now. But now will soon be later. With playoff expansion on the horizon, Ohio State and Lincoln Riley’s USC will dominate the Big10. In 5 years they will be the Big2 plus the Washington Generals teams. And, after several years, OSU will petition to move out of their once comfy conference because that USC Trojan will ride roughshod across the Midwest.
Midwest talent? Pfffft. All USC needed was someone to rally all the west coast talent on one team and point them in the right direction. They now have that person. I predict that Lincoln Riley will one day be known as the Ohio horologist after he cleans everyone’s clock in Columbus.
I agree with you, Paul! Luke Fickell was good for UC and if he thinks this is a good move more power to him. However, this move came as a big surprise to me. When I first heard I thought Wisconsin was paying Fickell way more than he was making at UC. However, from what I am reading he is going from $5M a year to $6M a year. How much money is enough?!? For that he is uprooting his family and moving them to Madison. I wonder how much of this move is about money and how much is about his ego. He must see Wisconsin as a challenge and that he is the coach to make them king of the Big 10. Otherwise, why would he take the job at a school that is at best third in the Big 10 and likely to remain so. As you said, Ohio State would have been a no brainer given his history at OSU and the fact his parents and brother live in Columbus but Wisconsin, I just don't get it. I wish him well. I do appreciate the fact he spoke to his team and told then he was leaving before the story broke.
I love what Coach Fick did for the UC program, but there were many times I thought he didn’t have that “killer” instinct. Saturday when he didn’t call a TO w/ a minute left in the first half against Tulane aggravated the hell out of me. Reminded me of Marv Lewis taking knees to run out the half. Thanks Coach Fick, and good luck. Imo, a bad decision and I honestly believe he will regret it. Wisconsin? Seriously? Smh.
I really don't understand UC's football aspirations. I'm a Miami grad and remember when the UC-Miami rivalry was truly a "rivalry." Now it's a joke. I don't know why they even play anymore. How is spending big bucks on UC football improving the student body? I guess it's all about appeasing alumni donors, but somehow the school managed just fine for years as a clone of a MAC school.
I understand Fickell's move. Just shows that UC will always be a steppingstone school, much to the dismay of UC alumni. Wisconsin was pretty successful under Alvarez. I guess time will tell.
True, but UC has tried to convince themselves that they can be one of the big boys. Most of the coaches are too impatient to actually build a sustainable big-time program. The fact that UC keeps losing coaches tells me that even the coaches they hire to build a big program don't believe it. They just give good lip service until the "real" big-time schools call.
No, because that's not true. MU has won MAC championships since. Miami doesn't pretend to be something it isn't. I'll stack up the average Miami football player's lifetime earnings against UC any day. Just sayin'. LoL.
What are the rest of them doing? Lots of NFL guys end up broke because they have no self control or brains. But I'm mostly just joking around. But UC will never be Alabama. Never.
Barring friction that we mortal fans could not know, my bet is his decision had to do with future NIL money in the new world of professional college sports. A shame.
I’m so happy I found you, Doc. I’ve really missed your writing! Just curious if there has been any rumbling of discontentment between Fickell and Cunningham? I recall Fickell being pretty hissed about how Brannen was handled when he was fired. Fickell and Cunningham never seemed to gel, at least publicly, and apparently Luke wanted out last year but felt the timing wasn’t right with the playoffs. I’m grateful he stayed, but I have to wonder if there is more under the surface. Fickell seems like a guy that would never want to hurt the university so we may never know the full truth, but his comments about being philosophically aligned with the AD at Wisconsin are what made me wonder if maybe he was not aligned here. It seems Wisconsin is a good fit for his personality, we will miss him, but We wish him the best!
I'd like to offer some better fuel for the fire, but I am in 100% agreement with Doc on this one. Fickel; taking the Wisconsin job is not likely the place he'll make it to "The Last Man Standing" on the college gridiron. So, nuff said on that. I will add this re: whoever may follow Coach Fickell into the position of HC for the Bearcats, PLEASE do not let it be Urban Meyer. He has proven himself unworthy to be in any position of influence over young men in the age range of 18-23, or so. In fact, Meyer is a disgrace to the males species of the human race. Sure he coached college football teams that won a lot more than they lost. Yippee! If the world of sports villifies Peter Edward, and UC sent Bob Huggins packing, the powers that be simply cannot justify in any way consideration of hiring Urban. I have to believe "we" all know of other much better choices to take the Bearcats program into the Big 12 and beyond.
Fick stayed for 6 years. All I wanted was 5. For that, he has my eternal gratitude.
He accomplished the impossible. Maybe he felt he had reached his peak. Maybe he loves cheese. Maybe he just wanted a change. Most any reason makes sense. Madison is a mellow, laid back small- town- USA place, a northern Austin. Cincinnati is a hard edged, big, intense city. The area around Clifton campus has a lot of crime. Not mellow at all. Madison should serve as a great decompression experience by contrast. The job has enough pressures, without location adding to them.
I'd love to see Urban Meyer get the job. He needs redemption, and I think he was kinda railroaded out of Jacksonville. Turn out Trevor Lawrence was a great draft pick after all. X threw its arms wide open to its prodigal son, Sean Miller, and things immediately started looking up for them again. Urban knows how to win and win big. He knows the campus and city, and is a great recruiter. Some people here might want to tar and feather him. Not me. I hope he gets hired. It would be a great, very high profile choice. Might help keep most of Fick's recruits for next year, too. Double bonus.
After taking 24 hours to process this information, I am still disappointed but I am starting to understand his decision. As much as we tried to adopt Luke and his family, they are not "Cincinnati People" and probably never thought of this place as home. I agree with Doc that I would have expected him to take a more high profile job than Wisconsin but when you objectively compare the two opportunities, Wisconsin is a slightly better gig and it might even be easier than his situation in Cincinnati.
1. NIL - we can all argue what NIL has done for the college game but it is the reality of our situation. I heard that the Cincinnati program was able to scramble together $2-$3MM of NIL dollars, which is formidable. However, getting an NIL fund of $10MM+ should be a walk in the park at a place like Wisconsin.
2. Assistant Pool: Over the past couple of years, Fickell has lost countless coordinators to greener pastures - Mike Mickens (ND), Denbrock (LSU), Freeman (ND), Brian Mason (ND). Some of this was probably due to the allure of coaching at a blueblood program but a lot of it has to do with money. I am hearing that Fickell's assistant pool will now be up to $10MM vs the $5.2MM he had with UC.
3. Big 12: Although it is certainly an upgrade from the AAC, the Big 12 is watered down and is starting to look like a conference of misfit toys. The College Football Playoff Committee seems to share this sentiment with their treatment of TCU over the past couple of weeks. The Big 12 will be a nice league but it will always be on the outside of the Big 10/SEC superpower affiliation.
4. Big 10 West: You can make a sound argument that winning the Big 10 West (Purdue won this year) with more financial resources is way easier to win the AAC/Big 12 with UC's financial situation and lack of stable coordinators.
College Football is changing for the worse. It stinks because the game has so much to love on a micro level - great atmosphere (more wholesome), unique rivalries, regional culture etc. But the macro level issues continue to overshadow the simple beauties of the game.
If Day keeps losing to Michigan, it won't be long before that OSU job comes open. FIckell could have bid his time and waited for that one. I was really surprised that he went to Wisconsin. There are better jobs out there. Have fun finishing 3rd or 4th or 5th every year in the B1G Ten.
Hard to understand why Wisconsin is a better draw than UC especially since the Big 12 is looming. It will be interesting what names surface for the job.
I am guessing he has been looking for the best chance to stick it to Ohio State every year and this is what he thought was his best choice.
Does anyone remember losing that one great girl in your life and the only way you got over her was by convincing yourself she was a horrible cook?
I wish Luke Fickell all the best but UC would have had a Peach Bowl Georgia scalp hanging in their trophy case if Fick knew how to tell time.
There…I feel better already. :)
I get the move if it was for money. MSU paid Mel Tucker $95 million for ten years, Ole Miss just extended Lane Kiffin at $9 million/year, UK extended Mike Stoops at $9 million per and Texas A&M is on the hook for$80+ million guaranteed to Jimbo Fisher, If Fickell is in that ball park, good for him. If he is in the $6 million per year range, he is being disingenuous with his rationale for the move although Wisconsin has been the 2nd most successful program in the B10 the past 20 years.
Will all the BK haters now spend the next 12 years crapping on Luke and his accomplishments because he left UC before the bowl game?
IB, I don’t think anyone will show any I’ll will toward Fickell. By any account I can think of, he was a good man who did a great job advancing UC’s program. If we are to believe Cunningham’s press conference this evening, UC will have no problem finding a high quality coach to keep the program moving forward.
I doubt the current staff will be considered. I’m thinking former TCU coach Gary Patterson. Maybe Tom Hermann. The dark horse would be Toledo’s head coach Jason Candle. The guy can coach but he kinda gives me that slick Gavin Newsom vibe. Instead of a bullet train to nowhere, I’d be worried that Candle would lobby for the street car to expand up the hill to Clifton. :)
But explain to me the diff between no ill will for Luke and the continued irrational hatred for BK. Except BK left for a prestige job and Luke left for perhaps negligibly more money. I sense Gumby like moves for the BK haters and Luke lovers.
Fingers crossed for a good hire. Don’t want the “Travis Steele hire.”
You already know the stories about why Kelly is a pariah in most of the places he has coached. It appears he may be softening his image at LSU but that’s what the security of a guaranteed 10m a year will do for someone.
I like Tom Herman but a few minutes ago I read someone from the Enquirer saying the same thing.
It’s a shame UCLA is on the rise. My back pocket hidden gem for UC has been Chip Kelly for a few years now.
The hire needs to be a current head coach. Too much at stake to have someone learning on the job next year.
I’m calling you Gumby for not realizing there is NO difference between the departures of BK and Fickell.
Not sure who I like yet. Heard Herman is bad with alumni and boosters. Chip Kelly has been mediocre until this year, but it’s irrelevant because he is not coming. We can do better than Gary Patterson - he would be Tuberville 2.0. I know I don’t want Willie Taggart. 😂
I’m a legion of Gumbies riding a herd of Pokies.
If I had a Gumbette daughter, there is no question I would rather see her marry a man with high morals and good character over a snake oil selling carnival barker with anger issues.
Is that comparison accurate?
LOL. Nicely done with the Gumby references. But, my point remains that BK was castigated for leaving before the meaningless bowl game which is what Fickell is doing. That's all. I am not judging character or anything else. I am just commenting on how irrational the BK disdain was for the past 13 years.
See you on today's TML.
Great work, Doc. Beautifully done.
I don’t get Fick’s move to Wisconsin. Sure, the Vag-ers play in the anemic Big 10 West where they lumber, slumber, and let no incredibly poor teams put them asunder…for now. But now will soon be later. With playoff expansion on the horizon, Ohio State and Lincoln Riley’s USC will dominate the Big10. In 5 years they will be the Big2 plus the Washington Generals teams. And, after several years, OSU will petition to move out of their once comfy conference because that USC Trojan will ride roughshod across the Midwest.
Midwest talent? Pfffft. All USC needed was someone to rally all the west coast talent on one team and point them in the right direction. They now have that person. I predict that Lincoln Riley will one day be known as the Ohio horologist after he cleans everyone’s clock in Columbus.
The Trojans are coming.
The Trojans are coming.
I agree with you, Paul! Luke Fickell was good for UC and if he thinks this is a good move more power to him. However, this move came as a big surprise to me. When I first heard I thought Wisconsin was paying Fickell way more than he was making at UC. However, from what I am reading he is going from $5M a year to $6M a year. How much money is enough?!? For that he is uprooting his family and moving them to Madison. I wonder how much of this move is about money and how much is about his ego. He must see Wisconsin as a challenge and that he is the coach to make them king of the Big 10. Otherwise, why would he take the job at a school that is at best third in the Big 10 and likely to remain so. As you said, Ohio State would have been a no brainer given his history at OSU and the fact his parents and brother live in Columbus but Wisconsin, I just don't get it. I wish him well. I do appreciate the fact he spoke to his team and told then he was leaving before the story broke.
I love what Coach Fick did for the UC program, but there were many times I thought he didn’t have that “killer” instinct. Saturday when he didn’t call a TO w/ a minute left in the first half against Tulane aggravated the hell out of me. Reminded me of Marv Lewis taking knees to run out the half. Thanks Coach Fick, and good luck. Imo, a bad decision and I honestly believe he will regret it. Wisconsin? Seriously? Smh.
Wish him well, he was great for UC and Cincinnati. Big question , who is the next coach up?
I really don't understand UC's football aspirations. I'm a Miami grad and remember when the UC-Miami rivalry was truly a "rivalry." Now it's a joke. I don't know why they even play anymore. How is spending big bucks on UC football improving the student body? I guess it's all about appeasing alumni donors, but somehow the school managed just fine for years as a clone of a MAC school.
I understand Fickell's move. Just shows that UC will always be a steppingstone school, much to the dismay of UC alumni. Wisconsin was pretty successful under Alvarez. I guess time will tell.
Almost all schools are steppingstone schools
True, but UC has tried to convince themselves that they can be one of the big boys. Most of the coaches are too impatient to actually build a sustainable big-time program. The fact that UC keeps losing coaches tells me that even the coaches they hire to build a big program don't believe it. They just give good lip service until the "real" big-time schools call.
What you say is true, but sounds like a bitter MU alum that hasn’t had any success at all since Big Ben left for the NFL. Just saying.
No, because that's not true. MU has won MAC championships since. Miami doesn't pretend to be something it isn't. I'll stack up the average Miami football player's lifetime earnings against UC any day. Just sayin'. LoL.
Does that include the 9 UC players drafted in the NFL last year? Haha.
What are the rest of them doing? Lots of NFL guys end up broke because they have no self control or brains. But I'm mostly just joking around. But UC will never be Alabama. Never.
Barring friction that we mortal fans could not know, my bet is his decision had to do with future NIL money in the new world of professional college sports. A shame.
With the expanded playoffs, maybe OSU and Michigan can play THREE times in a year :-)
Apologies, this was intended as a reply to Kirk below.