I agree, he wouldn't be awful for you. But I think he would be for us.
I think he would recruit better at Arky than at State. Only SEC team in the state, connections he already has, a traditional Texas pipeline, alumni money, etc. I think Gus could walk in and be a good fit for you. Recruiting can hide on-field and player development coaching weaknesses.
On the other hand, no matter how great we all think State is, or how much I personally love Starkville, we all have to admit we live in a uniquely difficult place in the college football universe. We are Bill Dundee locked in a steel cage match every Saturday with Andre the Giant, Undertaker, Lesnar, or the Rock. Lowest athletic budget in the SEC, in a state with the smallest population in the SEC and one of - if not the - smallest populations in football country, with TWO SEC teams in it. Bama is 90 miles from Starkville. Auburn is up our asses constantly on top MS recruits no matter who the coach is, and LSU is always in deep in the south part of the state. Not to mention USM, who gets their share in the south as well. Oh, and Ole Miss will spend ridiculous amounts of money just to keep kids from visiting when necessary. So recruiting rankings are never where we will shine.
So this isn't the place for a guy who can recruit decent players but is not great at the other facets (witness Croom/Moorhead), and this is where I would put Gus. We need a guy who can develop players over years, teach toughness, run a simple offense and produce a consistently solid D.
I think he would recruit better at Arky than at State. Only SEC team in the state, connections he already has, a traditional Texas pipeline, alumni money, etc. I think Gus could walk in and be a good fit for you. Recruiting can hide on-field and player development coaching weaknesses.
On the other hand, no matter how great we all think State is, or how much I personally love Starkville, we all have to admit we live in a uniquely difficult place in the college football universe. We are Bill Dundee locked in a steel cage match every Saturday with Andre the Giant, Undertaker, Lesnar, or the Rock. Lowest athletic budget in the SEC, in a state with the smallest population in the SEC and one of - if not the - smallest populations in football country, with TWO SEC teams in it. Bama is 90 miles from Starkville. Auburn is up our asses constantly on top MS recruits no matter who the coach is, and LSU is always in deep in the south part of the state. Not to mention USM, who gets their share in the south as well. Oh, and Ole Miss will spend ridiculous amounts of money just to keep kids from visiting when necessary. So recruiting rankings are never where we will shine.
So this isn't the place for a guy who can recruit decent players but is not great at the other facets (witness Croom/Moorhead), and this is where I would put Gus. We need a guy who can develop players over years, teach toughness, run a simple offense and produce a consistently solid D.
