Should Arnette hire a DC?

Dawgzilla2

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It's up to him, of course. Since he has never been a head coach before, I hope he is able to delegate a lot of the game day responsibilities for running the defense even if he does not hire a DC. He probably won't want to turn his back on the field while the offense is out there.
 

The Peeper

Heisman
Feb 26, 2008
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Since Arnett is putting a Top 5 defense on the field, I'd say if he can get the #1 guy as a DC, maybe. Otherwise, no.

Can you clarify "Top 5"? I just looked and I didn't see any we were even Top 20 in any NCAA categories. If you mean SEC then some categories like Int and TD's yes, but, in the SEC Georgia's highest defensive categories listed of all of them was an 8th so you can't put a whole lot into it when the nations #1 teams highest defenesive ranking in SEC was 8th
 

TXDawg.sixpack

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Apr 10, 2009
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Right now, there’s only one open spot on the staff. I’d much rather see him fill that spot with an OC than a DC.

Add responsibilities to the rest of the defensive staff if you need to, but we absolutely need an OC to run that side of the ball.
 
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The Cooterpoot

Heisman
Sep 29, 2022
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Right now, there’s only one open spot on the staff. I’d much rather see him fill that spot with an OC than a DC.

Add responsibilities to the rest of the defensive staff if you need to, but we absolutely need an OC to run that side of the ball.
Going to do both.
 

dog12

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Sep 15, 2016
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It's up to him, of course. Since he has never been a head coach before, I hope he is able to delegate a lot of the game day responsibilities for running the defense even if he does not hire a DC. He probably won't want to turn his back on the field while the offense is out there.
Agree.

Every coach is different, and Coach Arnett should do whatever works for him.

That said, I hope he will hire a DC. Splitting his attention between the numerous duties of being a nead coach and the numerous duties of being a DC would put too much on his plate.

As the leader of a big organization like a college football team, you have to delegate.
 
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horshack.sixpack

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Can you clarify "Top 5"? I just looked and I didn't see any we were even Top 20 in any NCAA categories. If you mean SEC then some categories like Int and TD's yes, but, in the SEC Georgia's highest defensive categories listed of all of them was an 8th so you can't put a whole lot into it when the nations #1 teams highest defenesive ranking in SEC was 8th
Top 5 SEC. It was not intended to be heavily scrutinized. My sentiment is he's good at DC and we don't need one of those right now. If he grows into the HC position and at some point in the futures sees merit in having another defensive mind it better be a good one.
 

Drebin

Heisman
Aug 22, 2012
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Agree.

Every coach is different, and Coach Arnett should do whatever works for him.

That said, I hope he will hire a DC. Splitting his attention between the numerous duties of being a nead coach and the numerous duties of being a DC would put too much on his plate.

As the leader of a big organization like a college football team, you have to delegate.
I don't think there's any question that he needs to hire a DC. He's still very young and hasn't really even been a coordinator that long. He's going to be biting off more than he can chew if he wants to run the defense AND manage all other aspects of the program. His staff is going to be critically important to his success.

Many argue, "well Mullen ran his offense, Leach ran his, etc." It can be argued that it wasn't a good idea for those guys to do it either.
 

Uncle Ruckus

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Apr 1, 2011
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Saban coaches the defensive backs and is heavily involved in the Bama defense
Not true. He has a safeties and a corners coach. I was at a few of Alabama's practices this spring and he doesn't just coach the db's. Does he coach them more than any other position group? Yes. But he's all over the practice fields during ball.
 

ckDOG

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I think it's a red flag if he doesn't hire coordinators with the budget he should have available to him. A somewhat green DC would be fine if he feels they are up to task. He could provide game planning input as appropriate.

He absolutely needs a seasoned OC/play caller on offense. Someone like Chris Hatcher sounds ideal if he's a personality match with the rest of the staff. HC/OC experience. Air raid concepts. Would be a great resource for Arnett to bounce ideas off of as he's getting his feet wet as HC. I doubt he's the only one that fits the bill - just an example.
 

Perd Hapley

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Sep 30, 2022
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He will of course hire a DC. How much autonomy that DC has is the only question. But there is no question that there will be a coach with a DC title, and that coach will not be Arnett.

I think he promotes from within for DC, and then gets a proven OC so that he can delegate that whole side of the ball.
 
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