ESPN: NC State’s search focused on Johnson

General NCS Football139

North Carolina State’s search for a new football coach has focused on Navy’s Paul Johnson, sources close to the situation said early Tuesday.

SFN will have a more detailed coaching update later in the afternoon. In the meantime you can click here for our latest.

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General NCS Football

139 Responses to ESPN: NC State’s search focused on Johnson

  1. partialqualifier 12/05/2006 at 2:32 PM #

    skywalker:

    You are really reaching. Jones coached 12 years in the NFL…..he has coached 9 years in college (if you include his stint as QB coach for Hawaii in 1983).

    I am not even saying that I am in support of Jones becoming State’s coach. What I really wanted to do was to throw him out there to see what the Johnson supporters would say. I gave you an existing head coach who has done more than Johnson, and you still wont even consider it. Some of you have just decided you want Johnson, and it makes no difference what name is thrown into the mix. I am afraid Lee Fowler and Mr. Murphy are doing the same thing.

  2. packpigskinfan23 12/05/2006 at 2:33 PM #

    “we need someone who is out to make ncsu win on and off the field and that not just to be a stepping stone to the next thing”

    Bill Cowher already declined.

    I see no evidence that PJ wouldnt use us as a stepping stone.

    or anyone other possible coach for that manner.

    if thats what happens, thats what happens. Lets get the best possible coach we can.

  3. packpigskinfan23 12/05/2006 at 2:35 PM #

    out of all the mentioned possibilitys I feel that Chow would be the most loyal the NCSU.

    sure he didnt stay here long, but he must of liked the place to even concider coming back.

  4. DIXIE Wolf 12/05/2006 at 2:35 PM #

    PQ,

    Being NC born and bred might help, not to mention being educated @ both WCU and ASU. On his current NAVY roster you will see plenty of players from the Southeast. Check it out.

    http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/roster?teamId=2426

    Down in Dixie

  5. partialqualifier 12/05/2006 at 2:36 PM #

    I hope the next coach does use us as a stepping stone….

    cause that would mean that he won a hell of a lot of games at NC State!!!

  6. primacyone 12/05/2006 at 2:36 PM #

    packpigskinfan23^

    I’m sorry, but what the hell are you talking about. Let’s see the best job PJ has every had is a college HC position. The best job Jimbo and Chow have ever had is …. what … you’re kidding me right…just an asstistant coaching positon.

    Oh, I see. Why is PQ right. Why has no one hired Jimbo and Chow as a head coach. Why is an asst. position the best job they have been able to get? Is Jimbo and Chow on the list at Alabama. Maybe for offensive coridnator, but not for head coach.

  7. partialqualifier 12/05/2006 at 2:39 PM #

    Dixie….

    I know he is from NC. That has been established. I was saying that if you are a Johnson supporter the last thing you need to be bringing up is his recruiting!! I think everyone would agree that recruiting is the biggest question mark about Johnson. If he gets the same players to come to NC State that he got at Ga. Southern or Navy….I dont care if he is Vince Lombardi….we will get killed!

  8. RedTerror29 12/05/2006 at 2:40 PM #

    ^^PQ – we finally agree on something!

    I like Johnson plenty, but we’re foolish to think he wouldn’t bolt for Tennessee if they came calling. WNC is Volunteer country.

  9. packpigskinfan23 12/05/2006 at 2:41 PM #

    Primacy I guess you have to measure things off a little bit.

    PJ coached Navy, and GEORGIA SOUTHERN

    Jimbo is OC at LSU

    Chow has been the QB coach of STEVE YOUNG, MATT LEINHART, and PHILLIP RIVERS…. been a great OC at USC and is now working in the NFL!!!

    of course this dosnt mean MUCH, but I do think that those who have completly jumped on the PJ wagon need to take at least a TINY step back a second.

    I like Johnson… really, I do… but I hope we dont put all our eggs in his basket.

  10. tcthdi-tgsf-twhwtnc 12/05/2006 at 2:41 PM #

    “Tom Reed was a proven head coach with a 34-19 record.”

    Tom Reed had two 8-2-1 records at the University formerly known as Miami of Ohio- I pray to the gods that we never get another damn coach from that sorry place. He also had 6-5, 5-6 and 7-4 records. With no conference championships or bowls and only 5 years as a head.

    I wouldn’t call this a proven head coach but maybe you do so I hope you don’t have any say in the next hire.

  11. packpigskinfan23 12/05/2006 at 2:42 PM #

    just because he knows the NC area and the schools that produce Midshipmen dosnt mean that he can pull in Phillip Rivers/Mario Williams type players.

  12. brown pelican 12/05/2006 at 2:43 PM #

    june jones is a fine football coach—as is paul johnson—in the realm of what if both were available—the answer would have to ride with the long term potential over the quick fix—which coach would be most likely to recruit athletes of character who could fully develop to their potential over time and graduate at an acceptable level—-given these parameters johnson just might outshine jones—lots of speculation here—that’s what makes it fun for us on this board—the pack would be fortunate to have either of these two men

  13. partialqualifier 12/05/2006 at 2:44 PM #

    primacyone…

    I will whole heartedly agree that Chow’s not being a head coach is an issue. But Jimbo Fisher is an entirely different situation. He is 41. He has been at LSU for 6 seasons…and Auburn a few seasons before that. Offensive Coordinator and Recruiting Coordinator at LSU is better than probably 90% of the head coaching jobs out there….especially when you are in your 30’s. So…I would cut him a little slack. Johnson is 49. I would bet you my entire savings that by the time Fisher is 49 he will be at a helluva lot better school than Navy.

  14. RedTerror29 12/05/2006 at 2:45 PM #

    He recruiting a guy (Adrian Peterson) to a 1-AA school that was better than anybody June Jones has ever recruited that didn’t get kicked out of a previous school for forcing themselves on a co-ed.

  15. skywalkerdt 12/05/2006 at 2:45 PM #

    to say western nc is volunteer country is a fallacy, at least the part the johnson comes from. that’s where i grew up. in newland state is the biggest loyalty for a tall reason!

    pq- i’m not committed that we should get johnson, just that june jones should not be on the list.

  16. packpigskinfan23 12/05/2006 at 2:48 PM #

    I have the same reservations with Chow about being a top leader… but I think he knows the game well enough not to screw up too bad. If he wants to move up the ladder any more(and I assume he might want to) then he would do the best job possible.

    I think Fisher could adapt a lot faster and would be able to pull it off very well. But I doubt Fisher sticks around any more than 6 years.

  17. TNCSU 12/05/2006 at 2:50 PM #

    ^^^“Of everyone on the list, he has the most to prove. “

    Dan: Because he has accomplished the least.

    I’m sure that must have been 95% in jest, but that has got to be one of the least informed posts (I’ll try to stay civil) I’ve seen in a while. 2 DIV-1 AA Nat’l Championships, and completely turning around Navy with his teams going 8-0 vs. Army and Air Force the last 4 years – Something NEVER done by ANY Academy is somehow “LESS” than being the OC for one National Championship LSU team or OC for a National Championship USC team?? PLEASE, they are good OC’s, but don’t tell me that’s “MORE” than winning as a HEAD COACH (DIV 1 AA or DIV 1 A).

  18. skywalkerdt 12/05/2006 at 2:50 PM #

    chow has remained a coordinator this long by choice. he enjoys working so hands on with the offense and not having to deal with everything else that comes with being hc. we don’t know who would succeed. remember everyone thought we had uncovered a gem after the win over notre dame with chuck, remember the game between two rising coaching stars- chuck amato vs ty willingham?

  19. primacyone 12/05/2006 at 2:53 PM #

    PG^

    Jimbo may be, but I remember on Asst. Coach/Defensive Coordinator/Recruiting Coordinator from a decade long dominating national championship winning program that moved up to a head coaching position about six years ago. He had everything you could possiblly want. Proven ability as an Asst., some of the strongest recruiting ties in the country, and he was an alumi of the university. His name was Chuck Amato. He had more going for him that Jimbo’s got going form him – and I agree Jimbo has a lot. But he did not work out so well. I want a proven head coach this time around.

    I would probably be satsified and even excited with Jimbo, but I really prefer an established coach. I don’t think Alabama will settle for anything less, and with $100 million of new facilities, I don’t think we should either.

  20. partialqualifier 12/05/2006 at 2:53 PM #

    By the way….

    June Jones has done all this winning at Hawaii while putting 23 players on the WAC All- Academic team.

    By the way…June Jones at Hawaii is going to his 5th bowl game in his 8th year at Hawaii. If you thought NC State’s program was bad….Hawaii played football for 91 years prior to Jones coming in 1999. No Hawaii coach had played in more than 2 bowl games….and none had ever won more than 1!! He has won 3!

  21. choppack1 12/05/2006 at 2:54 PM #

    “I read your analysis, but to me it is irrelevant for one very important reason:
    ALL of those current head coaches on your list were assistants at some point. They were assistants who were given a chance at another school…..succeded…then were given a chance at an ACC school. What does that prove? Are you suggesting that we should let the WAC, MAC, C-USA, and those types of schools hire the assistants…and State just focus on the guys from those conferences who have cut their teeth? Otherwise I dont see the relevance.”

    No, what I’m suggesting is that when you hire assistants, they are learning on the job. They may have extensive experience as a coordinator, but that is entirely different than being a HC.

    You’re exactly right – these guys start off as assistants. However, it’s one of those things – do you want to pay for this guy’s HC training or do you want a MAC team to pay for it?

    I do think Jimbo is a good candidate, but I think it’s foolish to act like PJ isn’t a solid candidate and act like Jimbo hung the moon. For the record, I don’t have a problem w/ June Jones as a candidate, but I’ve heard he’s played these games before, just to get raises.

  22. Dan 12/05/2006 at 2:57 PM #

    “I’m sure that must have been 95% in jest”

    It was in part. But when someone has “the most to prove” that usually means HE HAS YET TO PROVE THE MOST. You prove things by doing things. SO i would say he has proven the least to this point. PJ has yet to compete in the BCS leagues. He has yet to recruit. I would agree that he has the most yet to prove.

    Its only my opinion, which isnt worth the time its takes to read it, but I think Jimbo’s accomplishments have greater merit as it pertains to coaching in a BCS league. Just as I would say that Gary Kubiak, as of last year, had proved more than Joe Paterno when it comes to coaching in the NFL.

    I know that there are the Jimmy Johnson’s and the Jim Tressel’s. I am aware. I just dont think its all that easy to jump up a level. Its a different ball game. Ask Spurrier. Sometimes the tricks that win at one level dont work on the next.

  23. 98st8 12/05/2006 at 2:58 PM #

    Hearing a lot about Larry Coker today from some very influential people.

  24. packpigskinfan23 12/05/2006 at 2:58 PM #

    Primacy… I would also be excited if Johnson became the coach. I just want to see this thing play out before jumping on any bandwagon at all.
    I would disagree on the Jimbo/Amato comparision. although they like to tell you that defense wins games, we all know that POINTS on the board is what really wins you games. and if Fisher can snatch a great DC along with him I think our program takes a good sized leap. 41 years old, and itching to prove he can be a HC…. I wonder how many penaltys is O Line got this year????

  25. TNCSU 12/05/2006 at 2:58 PM #

    “If he gets the same players to come to NC State that he got at Ga. Southern or Navy….I dont care if he is Vince Lombardi….we will get killed!”

    humm….Let’s see Navy Beat Duke and ECU — We lost to ECU and Duke scored 44 points against Carolina – who we LOST to! Hell, Navy would have probably beat US with those non 4A “recruits”. You guys are WAY TOO hung up on recruiting!! Ask Jim Grobe how many games RECRUITING wins!! You play on the field, not on Rivals.com!!

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