Woah. Randy Bates to Pitt as D Coordinator.
- Thread starter BleedPurple2009
- Start date
You beat me to it. This is a shocker. He’s been at NU since 2006 and NU hasn’t had an assistant leave for another job since 2011.
So who do you think replaces him? Does Fitz hire a new LB coach, or move McGarigle to coach LBs and look for a new secondary coach?
Wow. Very surprised. I wonder if this hurts our recruiting in Texas?
I think you nailed it...McG to LBs and a new coach to the secondary would be my guess.
Maybe he got tired of waiting for his shot at NU. Dunno. Seems to be out of nowhere.
I think this move may be happening because he realized that wasn't going to happen. With McGarigle coming in, he may have seen the writing on the wall or been told by Fitz that McGarigle is being groomed as Hank's successor. Bates has done a fantastic job with development/recruiting and I wish him all the best but I think we'll be fine. McGarigle is an outstanding position coach and Ayeni has had tremendous success recruiting the same Texas territory that Bates covered. Some fresh blood and new ideas on the staff are a good thing every once in a while.
Maybe Cushing can move to DBs. He probably has as much knowledge and experience to serve that position.
Hate to see this, but remember as well that Fitz recruited the Houston area before becoming head coach so no doubt still has connections here.
Huge loss, but the timing could not be better. His obvious replacement is in house, and all his recruits were signed a month ago.
It's notable that Narduzzi - who watched Bates' LBs for several years and who lost to Bates' unit in a bowl game - is the guy who brings Bates in: "How can we be more like *that program*?"
It's notable that Narduzzi - who watched Bates' LBs for several years and who lost to Bates' unit in a bowl game - is the guy who brings Bates in: "How can we be more like *that program*?"
Agree. B1G loss. But this is a hallmark of many good programs: good coaches move on.
Bates has shown he is a great coach and recruiter. We will miss him, but good for him. It shows the success of our defense over time.
Glad we are attracting new talent to fill the holes. Our success over time will attract others to come recruit our staff, and will provide opportunities for guys that prove themselves to move up as others leave. We need to keep recruiting staff as well as players
Glad we are attracting new talent to fill the holes. Our success over time will attract others to come recruit our staff, and will provide opportunities for guys that prove themselves to move up as others leave. We need to keep recruiting staff as well as players
Ayeni has very strong ties to the Houston area.
Bates is from SE Ohio, not far from Pittsburgh, and I believe his daughters are now out of the house, in college or beyond. The timing and location of the move thus aren't entirely surprising.
Would kind of prefer the “new blood” be on offense though.
Maybe he will STILL be the replacement for Doc ..... a few years experience as a DC isn't a bad thing, right?
Oh ... and CONGRATS to Coach Bates. It IS a promotion for him and well deserved.
Agree. For example, I wonder whether it would be feasible to have MacPherson coach the entire secondary while taking the special teams coordinator duties off his plate, then shift Cushing to superbacks (a position he previously coached), Heffner to special teams, and hire a new OL coach. Just uninformed spit-balling.
Either way, Coach Bates will be missed. He did a terrific job at NU. All the best to him.
One of my favorite people named Bates associated with Wildcat football
McPherson could focus on DBs and bring in Genyk to coach Special Teams. That’s a possibility.
Good move for Bates. It's a good sign for a program when its assistant coaches are being recruited by other teams. Always tough to lose a good one, though.
Yep, that is another possible scenario. Somewhat related question for those with more knowledge: Is it typical or desirable to split CB and safety coaching responsibilities? As someone who never played at any serious level, it seems to me that the entire secondary has to operate as a single unit, communicating and transitioning responsibilities--often within a play. To my simple mind, that would seem to make having a single coach more desirable. But I may be totally off-base.
It’s not like the safeties coach would be forbidden from speaking with the corners or vice versa. Probably better to think of split corners/safeties coaches as co-DBs coaches. Wouldn’t be surprised if the plan was/is to have all DBs meet together at least most of the time anyway.
LB's were always a plus at NU and Bates was a big reason for that. Still he will mostly be missed as a great recruiter, especially in Texas.
This scenario seems plausible. If McGarigle is being groomed as the future DC, then it's a good time for Bates to move on. He will be missed.
Congrats to Randy! That's awesome for him. Great guy, great coach, did awesome for us. Glad he got the promotion and hope he succeeds at Pitt. Great news all around, and glad we have Timmy to fill his shoes. Maybe he comes back as DC for us one day!
Really is a great sign for the program that an assistant got hired away by another comparable school for a promotion, and it's fantastic that we have a perfect replacement for him ready to take over.
Go Cats!
Congratulations to Randy! Well earned.
Hell of a compliment to be recruited by Narduzzi, a brilliant DC himself.
Big loss for NU in both coaching and recruiting.
Good luck to Fitz filling behind him. Wonder whether he already has a list of coaches he wants?
Hell of a compliment to be recruited by Narduzzi, a brilliant DC himself.
Big loss for NU in both coaching and recruiting.
Good luck to Fitz filling behind him. Wonder whether he already has a list of coaches he wants?
I would imagine that a call has already been made.
