That was quite the disappointing year eh? As a matter of fact it was so bad a very good man, but probably so-so football coach David Bailiff got shown the door. He'd been your coach for 11 seasons, many of them pretty good and, to your credit, you didn't do the same thing that you did with good man, and also so-so football coach Ken Hatfield the time before.
You didn't hang onto him for too long. Good on you.
Now comes the real problem, who are you going to hire next?
Houston wants you to be good. Because Houston sports are much better when you are, and when you're going to bowl games and distracting the lot of us from sub-par Texans football in December. Houston can't take up all the slack alone (I've got some things to say to them later) so you need to step in and fill the gap sometimes.
I get it, Houston is a terrible college sports town. You feel like you toil and try and, especially in 2013, do some great things and nobody notices. That's true, but you still need to keep trying for the same reasons you keep getting your brains bashed in by UT-Austin. Here are some things though that you need to consider.
First, I'll tell you the same thing that I told the Longhorns. I'm not a fan. Neither am I someone who roots against you. I live in Houston and write a sports blog, that's my only connection to you. Like the Longhorns when it comes to your athletics I am ambivalent.
1. This next hire is pretty important.
I've a feeling that whoever runs the program next could be the key to determining where you end up once the next round of realignment shakes out. And, make no mistake, it's coming sooner rather than later. The age of the P5 is destined to fail under the new "CFP" system as is the myth that the so-called "Group of 5" teams have any chance of getting into the playoff. Don't believe me? Look at UCF. Once that happens there's going to be a sea-change in college football and where Rice stands in it.
2. Your resources, it's all about your resources.
Let's admit it, you don't prioritize college football nor should you. Rice is an academic institution first and foremost, one that just happens to participate in collegiate sports. Even when your team was good and winning championships you had problems drawing fans to the games. Some would say your ceiling should be that of Stanford, but that ignores the fact that the Cardinal place way more emphasis on sports as a front door to the university than do you.
3. Hire someone young.
I would suggest either a young, up and coming coordinator or a young head coach at the FCS level. I know you might be thinking of K.C. Keeler at Sam Houston, but at 58 he's not what I think you need. I'd take a look into Louisiana at McNeese State, Lance Guidry is a fine coach who had a down year but who might be able to bring some energy and excitement into your program. He's only making around $180,000 at McNeese so you should be able to offer him a half-a-Million.
4. If this doesn't work, you're going to have to consider FCS.
I realize that this is going to make you fairly angry but, if things don't turn around soon you might need to consider dropping to FCS for football and trying to get a decent conference affiliation for basketball only. Rice in the Southland conference would be ideal, would lessen your travel budget, as well as your athletic-scholarship obligations. Just something to think about, in case this C-USA, no-rival FBS thing starts to wear thin.
Whatever you do don't be tempted to stop the Bayou Bucket rivalry any time soon, as long as you're in the FBS. Playing Houston, and admitting they are your rival, is going to be a key step in generating interest in your program. Why does Rice play Texas? Because every once in a while they pull a massive upset. Why does Rice play Houston? Because they are rivals.
Here's hoping you get this hire right, to the 100 or so hard-core Rice football fans still out there.
Good luck in your coaching search.
Sincerely,
Cory
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