Well, shit. This one sucks. He's good. But, it's his alma mater and he's been passed up for DC like 43 times, so maybe a lateral move back to UM is the right move for him. I honestly can't wish him ill. He's a good guy and a great coach and has done a ton for Notre Dame football.
Elston is great. Sucks he’s gone but it makes sense, the Fiesta was a sort of an interview for DC and it didn’t go well. congrats and fuck you Michigan.
hell of a hire for michigan and hell of a loss for us. i didn't realize he had gone to Michigan or else I would have been a lot more nervous about losing him sooner
His name has come up every time UM has had an opening on defense for more than a decade. Every time before this it was basically 'lol, not happening". Curious what changed here. Just Kelly leaving? The rumors have been for a lot more $$ for assistants in Jim's next deal, so maybe a very big offer there made it happen. The on3 Michigan guys just throw shit at the wall non stop, but they wrote yesterday that people were coming for MacDonald and UM was looking at a DL coach who was hoping to become a DC soon. Elston is a really good hire, but if this is happening because MacDonald is getting more money elsewhere I'm going to be very annoyed. I hope that's just Chris Balas being a jackass like normal.
if he's coming with the chance of becoming the DC, it makes even more sense for him. not sure (based on what we've seen) him at DC makes sense for michigan
The Feldman tweet says he's coming as DL coach and I trust that. Steve Clinkscale is contractually obligated to get a co-DC title next year based on defense's performance this year, so as long as MacDonald is there Elston is just the DL coach and maybe a "run game coordinator" or whatever title. Harbaugh tends to have a lot of staff changes from year to year, though, and sometimes guys just randomly leave. Courtney Morgan was seemingly a really good recruiting hire last year, and he just left for a lateral move to Washington.
I'm assuming he was forced out? Not sure why anyone would leave an SEC job for that dumpster fire in Tempe.
Seriously, we still have 3 assistants on paid leave and Zak Hill couldn’t get hired at Auburn because their compliance department killed any association with that mess. No recruiting and just hemorrhaging depth, weird choice for anyone with any other prospects
Of all the coaches on RichRod's staff, it's kind of crazy to me that he turned out to be the most successful. His resume when he was at WVU and UM was basically "friend of RichRod," and his position group was probably the worst on the worst UM defenses in program history.
I don't know if he's a good DC or not. I'm pretty sure Gibson does some unconventional stuff schematically. But he's a Bruce Feldman guy, so if you hire him you'd have that going for you.
I like him enough. Runs a 3-3-5 stack. Often prefers to play without a pure pass-rusher and instead schemes up pressure with LB/S/Nickel blitzes. Blitz packages can be a little vanilla at times. Thought he did a great job this year, we had a ton of injuries and he was able to effectively hide younger replacements in many cases. Well-liked by players, they play hard for him. He's been more hands-on in recruiting than previous DCs we've had, has brought in some nice young talent at LB for a school at our level (here he tends to focus his efforts on LBs considering the importance of that position in his D). I do question whether he'd be able to compete with the sharks in the SEC on that front, he's never really swam in those waters. I also think he lacks polish in some respects, he's a country boy and might not be that comfortable politicking with boosters. He's the kind of guy that looks like he has a dip in at all times. Any other questions, just ask.
I will ask an honest question. We seem to get along on here. You know this is the last thing I want so what’s the point of “gloating”. Obviously, I’m going to know this happened. I don’t understand that point of kicking someone you get along with when he is down. But, hey if it makes you feel better I guess knock yourself out. All I can do is hope the new DC whoever it is will be an upgrade.
i understand your pain and would offer my services in alleviating whatever it is you’re going through
I know it’s a joke and I guess I’m just upset that this shit happened. I know it’s just a game but it’s still frustrating.