Most of this has been discussed one way or another but I'm trying to make sense of the staff realignment. We get rid of the OC but keep CDA. A guy who's all but admitted (in effect) that he's not a good headcoach. He is moving to take over play calling for the DC, but we really know that means he will in effect be acting as DC, and have an assistant co-DC. He wants an OC with headcoaching experience, which clearly limits our choices of OCs. Given that CDA appears to be on the firing line, what OC would want to come here. So that limits our choices even further.

Clearly this staff alignment makes it very difficult, unless we had a well known individual already lined up. But so far, no announcement, so it seems unlikely that they had someone ready to go.

So If we didn't know who we're hiring, why on earth have we made this staff alignment so difficult to fill by wanting headcoaching experience for the oc?

The last option left is that CDA is hiring his future headcoach. Something mentioned/suspected by many of us.

Help it make sense, did we really do all this and not have someone in mind and contacted? It's just bizarre, so what's the most likely scenario for this staff realignment?

Maybe I am just forgetting but why do people seem to think the new OC will also be the frontrunner for head coach? I can't seem to remember this happening in the past, especially since in our situation I can't imagine a high quality OC would want to jump on this probable one year job.

If they didn't have the OC already effectively hired, this decision alone should be a fireable offense for Rhoades. It's such a weird and unprecedented idea that there's no reasonable approach here unless they already had their guy.

But it's been 2 days and we don't have an OC, so I fear Rhoades believes his own crap and thinks people will want to come work for him despite this stupid idea. I guess it's still possible they have him, but we better get a great name soon.

tpj1991 said:

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Maybe I am just forgetting but why do people seem to think the new OC will also be the frontrunner for head coach? I can't seem to remember this happening in the past, especially since in our situation I can't imagine a high quality OC would want to jump on this probable one year job.

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Mainly because Aranda said he was taking over D play calling and he wants an OC with headcoaching experience. This and the fact that CDA is so far in over his head that no one thinks he's headcoach for long. So we're reading between the lines. But feel free to offer a counter opinion.

TinFoilHatPreacherBear said:

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tpj1991 said:

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Maybe I am just forgetting but why do people seem to think the new OC will also be the frontrunner for head coach? I can't seem to remember this happening in the past, especially since in our situation I can't imagine a high quality OC would want to jump on this probable one year job.

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Mainly because Aranda said he was taking over D play calling and he wants an OC with headcoaching experience. This and the fact that CDA is so far in over his head that no one thinks he's headcoach for long. So we're reading between the lines. But feel free to offer a counter opinion.

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It also lines up with his first OC hire.

For that matter, his first DC hire as well. What the heck are we doing trying this AGAIN?

I think this is just one of the many reasons we are so frustrated and upset by CDA coming back. I hate all the negativity going on with this program but who on earth (besides apparently Coach Teaff) thinks this is the correct decision? I have no idea who will be going to any games next season. Fan support/belief is the lowest it has been since pre Briles.

If you have tickets to give away, let me know since I have 2 grandkids at Baylor and will use any excuse to go see them. Better yet, make them suite tickets to get me the free meal at the Bear Club, even though it may be P&J sandwiches by then.

IMO if we were bringing back Aranda the whole staff should have come back. That was the only chance at a decent season next year. We are now screwed. As many have said we won't be able to hire a good OC for an Aranda lame duck year. And a new system is likely going to take some time to gel. Now many any players who were thinking about transferring on the offensive side are likely going to pull the trigger now. Forget that the play calling was far from the biggest issue we had in my opinion. To me it's obvious that our offensive linemen recruits for Rhule's last class and Arandas first were duds.

It's wild to me that Aranda was so hesitant to call plays last year in the first place. I understand Powledge was at Oregon and was a very good ST coach, but with zero defensive playcalling experience I would think 2023 would've been the perfect time for him to take it over and bridge the gap. As it is, he's now been forced to do it by Mack as a last-ditch effort to save his job.

Just smacks of bad decision-making and a hesitance to be assertive in in the midst of the storm.

Mack likes to keep people in the dark, so the perception that he's a genius persists. We'll get someone nobody is talking about, just because that's the way you make people believe you know something they don't.

It will also take longer than it should.

Frankly, with all the moving parts, fan board speculation, available/interested coaching candidates, portal, Rhoades' decision to move the way he did, and just realistic history to look back on it's like playing the Lottery. The math in relation to success is horrific. As mentioned, first, who would take the job, second, no matter how much NIL $$ thrown at a potential portal kid, would he come knowing in one year all things change and he's possibly screwed. And then $$$$ lost by BU in ticket sales, etc., etc.

To me, it's a nightmare with nearly zero chance of any positive coming out of it. We're clinging on a string of hope that an OC savior will pull us out of a moribund situation. I just don't see it.

Is there acknowledgment here that Rhoades is heavily involved in all of this or if it is a bad call will Rhoades be defended?

In otherwords if it is bad will there be acknowledgement that all up the chain of command on this (note the word "all" which includes Aranda) need to be held accountable?

parch said:

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It's wild to me that Aranda was so hesitant to call plays last year in the first place. I understand Powledge was at Oregon and was a very good ST coach, but with zero defensive playcalling experience I would think 2023 would've been the perfect time for him to take it over and bridge the gap. As it is, he's now been forced to do it by Mack as a last-ditch effort to save his job.

Just smacks of bad decision-making and a hesitance to be assertive in in the midst of the storm.

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Hiring a guy with no play calling experience surely is going to be unsuccessful. I don't understand why a HC would set himself up to fail like that. But he did the same thing with his QB coach

Firing Robert's in the first place didn't make sense. Still a head scratcher.

tstuck said:

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Firing Robert's in the first place didn't make sense. Still a head scratcher.

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He yelled at some players. The HORROR!

PartyBear said:

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Is there acknowledgment here that Rhoades is heavily involved in all of this or if it is a bad call will Rhoades be defended?

In otherwords if it is bad will there be acknowledgement that all up the chain of command on this (note the word "all" which includes Aranda) need to be held accountable?

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Mack tied his job to Aranda's 2024 success the second it was announced that Aranda would be retained. I don't know of anyone here who would argue otherwise.

PartyBear said:

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Is there acknowledgment here that Rhoades is heavily involved in all of this or if it is a bad call will Rhoades be defended?

In otherwords if it is bad will there be acknowledgement that all up the chain of command on this (note the word "all" which includes Aranda) need to be held accountable?

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Speculation: I think that this next year is essentially a last ditched Hail Mary by Mack and Aranda that everyone and their dog knows is going to fail. My hunch (that others have posted too) is that there wasn't a consensus agreement amongst the big money folks in whether Mack should also get fired as well as Dave. Most want it to be all or nothing. He has cast his lot with Dave. Next year, there will be a unanimous effort to get rid of both him and Dave. I think Mack knows this, and I wouldn't be surprised to see him jump ship to a different job within the next year. Just my .02

It is pointless to fire them at the same time. Rhoades should be dismissed this school year so a new AD will be in place next school year.

The challenge is that it's not Mack's decision whether or not to retain Aranda, and it's important that any discussions around his job security (or lack thereof) at least acknowledge that that is the case. Let's not forget - Mack, like all AD's, are primarily mouthpieces for the athletics department, and he reports to the same leadership as the rest of the senior administrators at the university.

PartyBear said:

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It is pointless to fire them at the same time. Rhoades should be dismissed this school year so a new AD will be in place next school year.

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At this point, this is true. Mack should go as soon as possible. Then bring in an AD to clean up the program.

Aberzombie1892 said:

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The challenge is that it's not Mack's decision whether or not to retain Aranda, and it's important that any discussions around his job security (or lack thereof) at least acknowledge that that is the case. Let's not forget - Mack, like all AD's, are primarily mouthpieces for the athletics department, and he reports to the same leadership as the rest of the senior administrators at the university.

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The problem here is that while yes, Mack has oversight, it does not change the fact that CDA is Macks responsibility. Mack picked CDA. Mack shaped the contract. Mack resigned him for a crazy number of years, and shaped that contract, including its buyout.

We don't even know if the school is preventing this or not, but if Mack wants CDA out, the school still may not want to pay some crazy early buyout fee. Those are the breaks, and Mack still owns it. He shaped a bad deal for the university, and he's got to live with the consequences. Having said that, I'm not so sure Mack wants CDA to go. Mack may actually think he can save him, especially if all he has to do is get to 6 wins. Let's just hope that's not the bar, but it wouldn't surprise me if it were that low.

So…does Spivatal relieve your concerns of experience in play calling, offensive coordinator, and head coaching experience?

jumpinjoe said:

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So…does Spivatal relieve your concerns of experience in play calling, offensive coordinator, and head coaching experience?

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No, because I wasn't concerned about those things, because I know that those things are not the issue. When one area of your team sucks, you may need to fire a coordinator and some position coaches. When everything sucks, the head coach is the issue. And it's funny, because the worst coordinator on the team is not the one that got fired, even though both were bad