Wilcox made No. 12 on this list because "Cal was heading in the right direction" before the pandemic.

While his record won't "wow people," "it feels like there is a shelf life for Cal coaches before they realize just how many additional headaches there are with this job."

So if Wilcox can match his 2019 season, he could be a goner

It’s gonna be a wild year on the coaching carousel with a bunch of hot seat situations out there (Va Tech, USC, Michigan, ASU, WSU). Here’s my list of the coaches—HCs and assistants—to watch who are primed to be in the mix for bigger jobs: https://t.co/rw5lgo3iwr

— Bruce Feldman (@BruceFeldmanCFB) August 25, 2021

Sound logic that one makes, except that he had been at Cal before and knew of the culture before coming back as head coach.

Dumb. There is a lot about Cal that is actually perfect for Wilcox. The brand of football he wants to play and the kind of players he wants to recruit. And he's being given a lot of love and additional resources even as we speak (stay tuned on that). There isn't a school on this list that would "better" for Justin Wilcox.

I mentioned this when Mel Tucker bounced out of Boulder for Michigan State, but if Wilcox ever has a pretty decent season, i.e. 9/10+ wins/North/PAC-12 champ/major bowl, we will have to pony up $5 million+/annual for a new deal or he may be gone.

Sebastabear said:

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Dumb. There is a lot about Cal that is actually perfect for Wilcox. The brand of football he wants to play and the kind of players he wants to recruit. And he's being given a lot of love and additional resources even as we speak (stay tuned on that). There isn't a school on this list that would "better" for Justin Wilcox.

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Always love to hear about additional resources, SB! Thank you!

To your point and the point CA made just prior that he was familiar with Cal before taking on the HC job is that the university and community support has increased tremendously since his first stint. The facilities improvements are one element...quite a few of his commits are quoted as saying the facilities are great (or something thereto).

Feldman's piece is a rehash of what's been said/cited in the past....not to simply that there aren't challenges or that the resources available are on par with a Texas or Alabama or Oregon or USC.

While the results haven't improved as dramatically in the positive direction as JT delivered or that we would like to see and that there aren't still big question marks, there are many hugely positive indicators.

Go Bears!

Lets see a winning conference record before we worry about that.

ZzZZzzzzZzzzZzzzZZZzzzzzzZzzZZZzzzZZzzzzzzzz

CALiforniALUM said:

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Sound logic that one makes, except that he had been at Cal before and knew of the culture before coming back as head coach.

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To that point, in a recent interview, JW stated he believes that he was serious candidate for the HC job at Cal because of his prior stint here. I got the impression that he otherwise feels he'd be elsewhere now... Interesting.

If Cal can somehow reward the previous HC as it did, I have to think it will take care of JW and staff.

Chapman_is_Gone said:

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ZzZZzzzzZzzzZzzzZZZzzzzzzZzzZZZzzzZZzzzzzzzz

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Chapman are you sleeping on the pros or the cons of this thread?

This is stupid. But in an alternate universe where ASU fires Herm, goes after Wilcox and he accepts, then I say we should hire Herm for $1 and let ASU pay everyone's buyouts and salaries.

Sebastabear said:

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Dumb. There is a lot about Cal that is actually perfect for Wilcox. The brand of football he wants to play and the kind of players he wants to recruit. And he's being given a lot of love and additional resources even as we speak (stay tuned on that). There isn't a school on this list that would "better" for Justin Wilcox.

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I want to believe you but this has been said about every Cal coach ever ( except Sonny Dykes).

hanky1 said:

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Sebastabear said:

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Dumb. There is a lot about Cal that is actually perfect for Wilcox. The brand of football he wants to play and the kind of players he wants to recruit. And he's being given a lot of love and additional resources even as we speak (stay tuned on that). There isn't a school on this list that would "better" for Justin Wilcox.

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I want to believe you but this has been said about every Cal coach ever ( except Sonny Dykes).

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Well I know the resources are real because I just sent in my check this week and signed an agreement with Cal as to how it would be used. As to losing coaches to "a better gig" let's be honest. Cal hasn't lost a head coach for that reason in 25 years. At some point what happened with Snyder (100% Cal's fault) and Mooch (not really Cal's fault) in the 90s is ancient history. The fact that a lot of us remember it doesn't change the fact that it happened almost a decade before the current class of Cal freshman were even born.

Sebastabear said:

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hanky1 said:

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Sebastabear said:

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Dumb. There is a lot about Cal that is actually perfect for Wilcox. The brand of football he wants to play and the kind of players he wants to recruit. And he's being given a lot of love and additional resources even as we speak (stay tuned on that). There isn't a school on this list that would "better" for Justin Wilcox.

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I want to believe you but this has been said about every Cal coach ever ( except Sonny Dykes).

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Well I know the resources are real because I just sent in my check this week and signed an agreement with Cal as to how it would be used. As to losing coaches to "a better gig" let's be honest. Cal hasn't lost a head coach for that reason in 25 years. At some point what happened with Snyder (100% Cal's fault) and Mooch (not really Cal's fault) in the 90s is ancient history. The fact that a lot of us remember it doesn't change the fact that it happened almost a decade before the current class of Cal freshman were even born.

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Perception trumps reality. The shelf life quote is a reflection of the perception. Heck, Cal has long been known as a graveyard for coaches. Snyder and Mooch are the only ones who haven't been fired since Pappy "retired". The only way to turn the negative commentary around is winning. All the resources in the world won't help if Cal continues along the path of mediocrity that they have trod since 2007. Those dollars will simply be another road marker on the path..

That's the least of my worries, because the chance of that happening is near zero.

71Bear said:

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Sebastabear said:

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hanky1 said:

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Sebastabear said:

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Dumb. There is a lot about Cal that is actually perfect for Wilcox. The brand of football he wants to play and the kind of players he wants to recruit. And he's being given a lot of love and additional resources even as we speak (stay tuned on that). There isn't a school on this list that would "better" for Justin Wilcox.

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I want to believe you but this has been said about every Cal coach ever ( except Sonny Dykes).

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Well I know the resources are real because I just sent in my check this week and signed an agreement with Cal as to how it would be used. As to losing coaches to "a better gig" let's be honest. Cal hasn't lost a head coach for that reason in 25 years. At some point what happened with Snyder (100% Cal's fault) and Mooch (not really Cal's fault) in the 90s is ancient history. The fact that a lot of us remember it doesn't change the fact that it happened almost a decade before the current class of Cal freshman were even born.

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Perception trumps reality. The shelf life quote is a reflection of the perception. Heck, Cal has long been known as a graveyard for coaches. Snyder and Mooch are the only ones who haven't been fired since Pappy "retired". The only way to turn the negative commentary around is winning. All the resources in the world won't help if Cal continues along the path of mediocrity that they have trod since 2007. Those dollars will simply be another road marker on the path..

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Now I know it's football season because I can start arguing with '71 again. Love this time of year.

Sebastabear said:

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71Bear said:

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Sebastabear said:

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hanky1 said:

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Sebastabear said:

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Dumb. There is a lot about Cal that is actually perfect for Wilcox. The brand of football he wants to play and the kind of players he wants to recruit. And he's being given a lot of love and additional resources even as we speak (stay tuned on that). There isn't a school on this list that would "better" for Justin Wilcox.

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I want to believe you but this has been said about every Cal coach ever ( except Sonny Dykes).

---

Well I know the resources are real because I just sent in my check this week and signed an agreement with Cal as to how it would be used. As to losing coaches to "a better gig" let's be honest. Cal hasn't lost a head coach for that reason in 25 years. At some point what happened with Snyder (100% Cal's fault) and Mooch (not really Cal's fault) in the 90s is ancient history. The fact that a lot of us remember it doesn't change the fact that it happened almost a decade before the current class of Cal freshman were even born.

---

Perception trumps reality. The shelf life quote is a reflection of the perception. Heck, Cal has long been known as a graveyard for coaches. Snyder and Mooch are the only ones who haven't been fired since Pappy "retired". The only way to turn the negative commentary around is winning. All the resources in the world won't help if Cal continues along the path of mediocrity that they have trod since 2007. Those dollars will simply be another road marker on the path..

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Now I know it's football season because I can start arguing with '71 again. Love this time of year.

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I had to give this one a star!

I'm not gonna worry about this. Remember, the job of sports writers is to write stories about sports, so they are always looking for new angles on old situations. Could JW be a candidate elsewhere? Sure, but that could probably be said about half of ALL coaches.

71Bear said:

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Sebastabear said:

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hanky1 said:

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Sebastabear said:

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Dumb. There is a lot about Cal that is actually perfect for Wilcox. The brand of football he wants to play and the kind of players he wants to recruit. And he's being given a lot of love and additional resources even as we speak (stay tuned on that). There isn't a school on this list that would "better" for Justin Wilcox.

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I want to believe you but this has been said about every Cal coach ever ( except Sonny Dykes).

---

Well I know the resources are real because I just sent in my check this week and signed an agreement with Cal as to how it would be used. As to losing coaches to "a better gig" let's be honest. Cal hasn't lost a head coach for that reason in 25 years. At some point what happened with Snyder (100% Cal's fault) and Mooch (not really Cal's fault) in the 90s is ancient history. The fact that a lot of us remember it doesn't change the fact that it happened almost a decade before the current class of Cal freshman were even born.

---

Perception trumps reality. The shelf life quote is a reflection of the perception. Heck, Cal has long been known as a graveyard for coaches. Snyder and Mooch are the only ones who haven't been fired since Pappy "retired". The only way to turn the negative commentary around is winning. All the resources in the world won't help if Cal continues along the path of mediocrity that they have trod since 2007. Those dollars will simply be another road marker on the path..

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There was no way that Mooch was going to stay at Cal and pass up an opportunity to take over the 49ers.
The Snyder situation was a totally botched job on the part of the AD.
In Snyder's final season if he had been made the offer by Cal before the season started that was made after the season ended, he would have stayed at Cal for a long time (along with the star QB who had orally committed to Cal.
However the AD decided to play hardball negotiations and overplayed his hand. The result was that Snyder flatly turned down Cal's post -season offer and jumped to ASU.
Bye bye Rose Bowl.

GivemTheAxe said:

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71Bear said:

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Sebastabear said:

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hanky1 said:

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Sebastabear said:

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Dumb. There is a lot about Cal that is actually perfect for Wilcox. The brand of football he wants to play and the kind of players he wants to recruit. And he's being given a lot of love and additional resources even as we speak (stay tuned on that). There isn't a school on this list that would "better" for Justin Wilcox.

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I want to believe you but this has been said about every Cal coach ever ( except Sonny Dykes).

---

Well I know the resources are real because I just sent in my check this week and signed an agreement with Cal as to how it would be used. As to losing coaches to "a better gig" let's be honest. Cal hasn't lost a head coach for that reason in 25 years. At some point what happened with Snyder (100% Cal's fault) and Mooch (not really Cal's fault) in the 90s is ancient history. The fact that a lot of us remember it doesn't change the fact that it happened almost a decade before the current class of Cal freshman were even born.

---

Perception trumps reality. The shelf life quote is a reflection of the perception. Heck, Cal has long been known as a graveyard for coaches. Snyder and Mooch are the only ones who haven't been fired since Pappy "retired". The only way to turn the negative commentary around is winning. All the resources in the world won't help if Cal continues along the path of mediocrity that they have trod since 2007. Those dollars will simply be another road marker on the path..

---

There was no way that Mooch was going to stay at Cal and pass up an opportunity to take over the 49ers.
The Snyder situation was a totally botched job on the part of the AD.
In Snyder's final season if he had been made the offer by Cal before the season started that was made after the season ended, he would have stayed at Cal for a long time (along with the star QB who had orally committed to Cal.
However the AD decided to play hardball negotiations and overplayed his hand. The result was that Snyder flatly turned down Cal's post -season offer and jumped to ASU.
Bye bye Rose Bowl.

---

Yep. Until Cal is a destination coaching job (very unlikely that will ever happen, there aren't many of those in the country), the churn will continue for various reasons much as it does in most places.

Quote:

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Quote:

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However the AD decided to play hardball negotiations and overplayed his hand. The result was that Snyder flatly turned down Cal's post -season offer and jumped to ASU.
Bye bye Rose Bowl.

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Yep. Until Cal is a destination coaching job (very unlikely that will ever happen, there aren't many of those in the country), the churn will continue for various reasons much as it does in most places.

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Interesting interview with Bruce Snyder from 2004:
https://www.sfgate.com/sports/article/Snyder-s-only-regret-about-Cal-He-s-still-2831580.php

Quote:

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The Arizona State offer was higher than Cal was willing to go, and the Sun Devils had better athletic facilities, but there were other factors, Snyder said, including a comment from a Cal official on the flight home from the Citrus Bowl that had him wondering, "I don't think I can stay here."

Snyder would not reveal what was said or who said it, but it's obvious, 12 years after the fact, that the damage was substantial.

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Anyone know what might've been said to Coach Snyder, or by whom? Might be a good one for the "Do Not Repeat" column. Especially on the flight home after a Jan. 1 Bowl WIN!

Snyder told Bockrath whatASU had offered. Bockrath told him to take it.

cbbass1 said:

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Quote:

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Quote:

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However the AD decided to play hardball negotiations and overplayed his hand. The result was that Snyder flatly turned down Cal's post -season offer and jumped to ASU.
Bye bye Rose Bowl.

---

Yep. Until Cal is a destination coaching job (very unlikely that will ever happen, there aren't many of those in the country), the churn will continue for various reasons much as it does in most places.

---

Interesting interview with Bruce Snyder from 2004:
https://www.sfgate.com/sports/article/Snyder-s-only-regret-about-Cal-He-s-still-2831580.php

Quote:

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The Arizona State offer was higher than Cal was willing to go, and the Sun Devils had better athletic facilities, but there were other factors, Snyder said, including a comment from a Cal official on the flight home from the Citrus Bowl that had him wondering, "I don't think I can stay here."

Snyder would not reveal what was said or who said it, but it's obvious, 12 years after the fact, that the damage was substantial.

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Anyone know what might've been said to Coach Snyder, or by whom? Might be a good one for the "Do Not Repeat" column. Especially on the flight home after a Jan. 1 Bowl WIN!

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From the article:

"I think Cal could be one of the very best jobs in America," Snyder said. "I still do. I get emotional about it."

cbbass1 said:

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Quote:

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Quote:

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However the AD decided to play hardball negotiations and overplayed his hand. The result was that Snyder flatly turned down Cal's post -season offer and jumped to ASU.
Bye bye Rose Bowl.

---

Yep. Until Cal is a destination coaching job (very unlikely that will ever happen, there aren't many of those in the country), the churn will continue for various reasons much as it does in most places.

---

Interesting interview with Bruce Snyder from 2004:
https://www.sfgate.com/sports/article/Snyder-s-only-regret-about-Cal-He-s-still-2831580.php

Quote:

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The Arizona State offer was higher than Cal was willing to go, and the Sun Devils had better athletic facilities, but there were other factors, Snyder said, including a comment from a Cal official on the flight home from the Citrus Bowl that had him wondering, "I don't think I can stay here."

Snyder would not reveal what was said or who said it, but it's obvious, 12 years after the fact, that the damage was substantial.

---

Anyone know what might've been said to Coach Snyder, or by whom? Might be a good one for the "Do Not Repeat" column. Especially on the flight home after a Jan. 1 Bowl WIN!

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Something about losing the Big Game no doubt.

Civil Bear said:

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cbbass1 said:

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Quote:

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Quote:

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However the AD decided to play hardball negotiations and overplayed his hand. The result was that Snyder flatly turned down Cal's post -season offer and jumped to ASU.
Bye bye Rose Bowl.

---

Yep. Until Cal is a destination coaching job (very unlikely that will ever happen, there aren't many of those in the country), the churn will continue for various reasons much as it does in most places.

---

Interesting interview with Bruce Snyder from 2004:
https://www.sfgate.com/sports/article/Snyder-s-only-regret-about-Cal-He-s-still-2831580.php

Quote:

---

The Arizona State offer was higher than Cal was willing to go, and the Sun Devils had better athletic facilities, but there were other factors, Snyder said, including a comment from a Cal official on the flight home from the Citrus Bowl that had him wondering, "I don't think I can stay here."

Snyder would not reveal what was said or who said it, but it's obvious, 12 years after the fact, that the damage was substantial.

---

Anyone know what might've been said to Coach Snyder, or by whom? Might be a good one for the "Do Not Repeat" column. Especially on the flight home after a Jan. 1 Bowl WIN!

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Something about losing the Big Game no doubt.

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Its worth guessing. Probably since it was a Cal official it had to do with support for the program. Or raising the bar or complaining how costly success would be. That Cal isnt supposed to be recognized as a football powerhouse. Gotta be in this category, no?? I doubt it was a "personal" insult as Snyder tougher and more objective than that.

It's always been my understanding that Chancellor Tien made it clear internally that the football coach would never be the highest paid employee at Cal, at least during his tenure. Perhaps he delivered that message to Snyder personally on the plane, or maybe it was delivered through Bockrath as dunker says. Either way, it's a damn shame. Things could've been so different.

Cal Strong think that if Coach Wilcox want to leave, we thank him for being decent man and strong role model, and then wish him well.

Then we hire coach who can beat stanfurd every year, have winning conference record 75% of time, get us to the Pac-12 championship game every four years, and get us to Rose Bowl once every eight years.

Cal Strong! said:

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Cal Strong think that if Coach Wilcox want to leave, we thank him for being decent man and strong role model, and then wish him well.

Then we hire coach who can beat stanfurd every year, have winning conference record 75% of time, get us to the Pac-12 championship game every four years, and get us to Rose Bowl once every eight years.

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Let me know when you find that guy. :.)

Cal Strong! said:

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Cal Strong think that if Coach Wilcox want to leave, we thank him for being decent man and strong role model, and then wish him well.

Then we hire coach who can beat stanfurd every year, have winning conference record 75% of time, get us to the Pac-12 championship game every four years, and get us to Rose Bowl once every eight years.

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(sigh) if only the path to that outcome was just hiring the right coach. We might have a shot at accidentally doing that. Unfortunately, a lot more deeply ingrained things at Cal would have to change. Under the current circumstances, I think JW is a great coach for Cal! (Actually, if we ever made those institutional changes, JW would probably still be a great coach for Cal).

Strykur said:

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I mentioned this when Mel Tucker bounced out of Boulder for Michigan State, but if Wilcox ever has a pretty decent season, i.e. 9/10+ wins/North/PAC-12 champ/major bowl, we will have to pony up $5 million+/annual for a new deal or he may be gone.

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If a Cal coach performs at that level, he and his assistants deserve the pay.

• stanfurd a bunch of moral and intellectual degenerates. Beating them is a requirement. Beating stanfurd is the main reason our football program exists. If a coach can't do that, then he can't coach here.

• A winning conference record is just one single win better than average. This not a "big ask" of a coach. Ideally, our coach would be better than average, not worse (like Wilcox).

• There six teams in Pac-12 north. A normal distribution would be for each team to make Pac-12 title game once every six years. But the idea is to hire a better than normal coach. An expectation of once every four years is just slightly higher than a normal distribution.

• Same goes with a Rose Bowl every eight years. Normal distribution would be every 12 years. But the ideal would be to hire a coach who is better than just "normal."

Cal Strong! said:

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• stanfurd a bunch of moral and intellectual degenerates. Beating them is a requirement. Beating stanfurd is the main reason our football program exists. If a coach can't do that, then he can't coach here.

• A winning conference record is just one single win better than average. This not a "big ask" of a coach. Ideally, our coach would be better than average, not worse (like Wilcox).

• There six teams in Pac-12 north. A normal distribution would be for each team to make Pac-12 title game once every six years. But the idea is to hire a better than normal coach. An expectation of once every four years is just slightly higher than a normal distribution.

• Same goes with a Rose Bowl every eight years. Normal distribution would be every 12 years. But the ideal would be to hire a coach who is better than just "normal."

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I will take a Rose Bowl every 20 years.

I will take 'A' Rose Bowl. Just 1, to start.

sonofabear51 said:

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I will take 'A' Rose Bowl. Just 1, to start.

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All of us would. But the way you get there is to set expectations. Not "before I die," but rather -- in 8 years.

And before that, to demonstrate feasibility, we expect the coach to have a winning record in conference nearly every year, and make the championship game once every four years.

calumnus said:

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This is stupid. But in an alternate universe where ASU fires Herm, goes after Wilcox and he accepts, then I say we should hire Herm for $1 and let ASU pay everyone's buyouts and salaries.

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I still stand by this post

There's a story about the band The Doors. They had been asked if they would give permission for "Light My Fire" to be used in a Buick commercial. "C'mon, Buick, light my fire."

Shortly after that, the band played a show in Miami at which Jim Morrison pulled down his pants and waved his schlong at the crowd. As he was being "escorted" off stage after that, he said, "Let's see Buick use Light My Fire now."

Well, after tonight's "exposure", let's see some other team hire Justin Wilcox now.