Carroll McCray, Austin Peay HC, named new OL coach at Furman

[Sir William]

www.furmanpaladins.com

[OL FU]

www.furmanpaladins.com

Sounds like a good pick up, will be interesting to hear others opinions. Hendrix is a hard one to replace.

Sir William is now poll eligible:hurray:

[dbackjon]

Sir William is now poll eligible:hurray:

:rolleyes: Another homer Furman voter - just what the world needs..... :rolleyes:

[OL FU]

:rolleyes: Another homer Furman voter - just what the world needs..... :rolleyes:

Hey I voted for NAU, for Congeniality:D

[downbythebeach]

Hey youwouldno,

Why would your team want a club football coach?xlolx

[Libertine]

Soooo, as a person who NEVER believes it when I hear the whole "closer to my family" schpiel, what's going on at AP that McCray wanted out now?

Commence rumors now.

[DUPFLFan]

Hey youwouldno, I guess even Furman admits that the PFL may be a demanding schedule.

Quote from press release: "McCray compiled an 11-33 record against a demanding schedule."

[Sir William]

:rolleyes: Another homer Furman voter - just what the world needs..... :rolleyes:

:doh:

[Sir William]

Hendrix is a hard one to replace.

Big, big, big shoes to fill. Time will tell (as in next season).

[OL FU]

Alright now - - - We had to start a seperate UND and NDSU thread.
Should we start a youwouldno versus the mid majors thread.:eyebrow:

Oh wait we already have that:smiley_wi

[youwouldno]

I'm assuming Furman wanted McCray for his numerous years of coaching the OL, as opposed to his 11-33 performance as HC at Austin Peay. Truth be told, his schedule was pretty demanding for the level of talent he had, hence the won-loss records. That said, he obviously prefers to be a position coach at a competitive FCS program, rather than lead a team from the PFL to a scholarship league.

[OL FU]

I'm assuming Furman wanted McCray for his numerous years of coaching the OL, as opposed to his 11-33 performance as HC at Austin Peay. Truth be told, his schedule was pretty demanding for the level of talent he had, hence the won-loss records. That said, he obviously prefers to be a position coach at a competitive FCS program, rather than lead a team from the PFL to a scholarship league.

That's one for youwouldno:nod:

[DUPFLFan]

I'm assuming Furman wanted McCray for his numerous years of coaching the OL, as opposed to his 11-33 performance as HC at Austin Peay. Truth be told, his schedule was pretty demanding for the level of talent he had, hence the won-loss records. That said, he obviously prefers to be a position coach at a competitive FCS program, rather than lead a team from the PFL to a scholarship league.

Hmm... Let's see. So you are saying that he would rather quit then build a program. Plus he resigns 10 days after signing day leaving those kids who signed up with AP without knowing who their coach was. :eek:

Nice guy - good lesson....

[youwouldno]

According to Samford fans, where he spent 7 years, he's a great person in addition to being a talented coach. I don't know him personally. I assume he decided AP was a dead-end job and he wanted to go back to coaching OL. It's actually better for a coach to leave after signing day than before, so there is no blameworthiness in his timing. Personally attacking McCray is a little strange, by the way, insofar as coaches change jobs all the time... it goes with the territory. PFL fans... strong at playing indignant, not so strong at being classy.

[Sir William]

Hmm... Let's see. So you are saying that he would rather quit then build a program. Plus he resigns 10 days after signing day leaving those kids who signed up with AP without knowing who their coach was.

Maybe he felt he got a better opportunity and took it.

Let's face it...APSU is one of the Dukes (as in Blue Devils) of FCS, and moving up to the OVC ain't gonna help matters. Highly unlikely AP would be loyal to McCray after suffering defeat upon defeat over the next three seasons in the OVC. He doesn't owe them loyalty anymore than they owe him.

This is not worth a character debate, b/c in this case, it's not really the issue. More than likely, it's primarily a personal business and family decision. He probably did what he felt would be in his and his family's best interests. Can't blame him for that.

The recruits will be fine. Most probably signed upwith AP b/c of the opportunity to at least play FCS football, not b/c they were enamored with the coach.

From FU's perspective, I'm not sure he was the best choice; but that's a topic for another thread (actually, this would be the right thread for that discussion!). Nonetheless, I hope he does well.

[BigApp]

wow. A little late in the game for APSU to be finding a new Head coach. This stinks.

[dbackjon]

McCray will be at the same college where his son, Trey, has decided to attend and play football.

Assistant head coach and offensive line coach Steve Haywood has been named the interim head coach.
http://www.tennessean.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070220/SPORTS06/702200361/1345/SPORTS

[youwouldno]

Maybe he felt he got a better opportunity and took it.

Let's face it...APSU is one of the Dukes (as in Blue Devils) of FCS, and moving up to the OVC ain't gonna help matters. Highly unlikely AP would be loyal to McCray after suffering defeat upon defeat over the next three seasons in the OVC. He doesn't owe them loyalty anymore than they owe him.

This is not worth a character debate, b/c in this case, it's not really the issue. More than likely, it's primarily a personal business and family decision. He probably did what he felt would be in his and his family's best interests. Can't blame him for that.

The recruits will be fine. Most probably signed upwith AP b/c of the opportunity to at least play FCS football, not b/c they were enamored with the coach.

From FU's perspective, I'm not sure he was the best choice; but that's a topic for another thread (actually, this would be the right thread for that discussion!). Nonetheless, I hope he does well.

Out of curiosity, what other candidates were there (to your knowledge)?

[Sir William]

Out of curiosity, what other candidates were there (to your knowledge)?

Ben Hall was one, from what I understand. Played under Coach Hendrix, knows the system. Little coaching experience, but mentored by Hendrix, and part of FU family. (this is not a comparison to McCray...just the scoop.)

[youwouldno]

Ben Hall was one, from what I understand. Played under Coach Hendrix, knows the system. Little coaching experience, but mentored by Hendrix, and part of FU family. (this is not a comparison to McCray...just the scoop.)

Fair enough. Of course McCray probably won't be around as long as Hendrix was, so a young coach with FU ties might get another shot at the job down the road a bit. I have to say that I've been impressed with Lamb's hires, in that he's struck a nice balance between sort of competing interests. He's brought on (or brought back) some coaches with FU ties, I guess the most recent being Kitchings, he's added some promising young coaches, Evangelista being the latest, and then with McCray he added a guy with a lot of experience.

It's too bad we'll probably never have Napier on the staff, unless possibly Lamb was to get a FBS HC gig...

[Sir William]

Fair enough. Of course McCray probably won't be around as long as Hendrix was, so a young coach with FU ties might get another shot at the job down the road a bit. I have to say that I've been impressed with Lamb's hires, in that he's struck a nice balance between sort of competing interests. He's brought on (or brought back) some coaches with FU ties, I guess the most recent being Kitchings, he's added some promising young coaches, Evangelista being the latest, and then with McCray he added a guy with a lot of experience.

It's too bad we'll probably never have Napier on the staff, unless possibly Lamb was to get a FBS HC gig...

Agree. Well put.

[PaladinFan]

Sounds good. Tough to fill the shoes of arguably one of the better o-line coaches in the country, though. Good news is he takes over an experienced line. His only job is to not miss a beat.

[OL FU]

Fair enough. Of course McCray probably won't be around as long as Hendrix was, so a young coach with FU ties might get another shot at the job down the road a bit. I have to say that I've been impressed with Lamb's hires, in that he's struck a nice balance between sort of competing interests. He's brought on (or brought back) some coaches with FU ties, I guess the most recent being Kitchings, he's added some promising young coaches, Evangelista being the latest, and then with McCray he added a guy with a lot of experience.

It's too bad we'll probably never have Napier on the staff, unless possibly Lamb was to get a FBS HC gig...

I realize it is very early in Napier's career but he looks like he may be headed for the FBS gig at some point:nod:

[Mr. C]

Why have there been so many coaching changes at Furman in the past two years? Is this just a cycle the Paladins are going through, or are there other reasons for the changes?

[OL FU]

Why have there been so many coaching changes at Furman in the past two years? Is this just a cycle the Paladins are going through, or are there other reasons for the changes?

Good question.

I am having a senior moment and can't remember the name of the D coach that left after 2005, but my guess is he left due to a less than stellar D performance that year. In fact he contract was not renewed so it sounds like a good guess.

Once again a guess but I imagine Hendrix kids grew up so ties to Greenville diminished and he realized that a O-line coach is what he is going to be at Furman and probably every else, so he should make a little more money doing what he does. SO his leaving for Air Force is not a shock

Dixon going to PC:eyebrow: I haven't a clue.

[Mr. C]

A senior moment? That's scary, considering you are about a year older than me (I've got the clock ticking towards another birthday next week). The Paladins did indeed jettison their defensive line coach after the 2005 season (I don't remeber the name off the top of my head either).

[OL FU]

A senior moment? That's scary, considering you are about a year older than me (I've got the clock ticking towards another birthday next week). The Paladins did indeed jettison their defensive line coach after the 2005 season (I don't remeber the name off the top of my head either).


See two senior moments don't make a .......whatever.

I would not have used that term but on my 50th birthday the AARP card shows up in the mail. Now, how do they do thatxlolx

[youwouldno]

The DT coach, Edwards (?) also might have conflicted with Lamb, so I'm not sure whether it was totally performance related. The DE coach, Dixon, I think just wanted to try his hand at being a DC. I don't think the turnover has been unusual. If Hendrix does well at Air Force the increased visibility could get him a big-time FBS gig, he's certainly good enough.

[Mr. C]

See two senior moments don't make a .......whatever.

I would not have used that term but on my 50th birthday the AARP card shows up in the mail. Now, how do they do thatxlolx
I've been getting stuff in the mail since I was in my 20s. Might have been because I was living in a senior-oriented mobile home park at the time.

[Sir William]

Good question.

I am having a senior moment and can't remember the name of the D coach that left after 2005, but my guess is he left due to a less than stellar D performance that year. In fact he contract was not renewed so it sounds like a good guess.

Once again a guess but I imagine Hendrix kids grew up so ties to Greenville diminished and he realized that a O-line coach is what he is going to be at Furman and probably every else, so he should make a little more money doing what he does. SO his leaving for Air Force is not a shock

Dixon going to PC:eyebrow: I haven't a clue.

The D coach was Allen Edwards, a great player during his FU days. However, a large part of his contract not being renewed had to do with coaching incompetency, from what I've heard...not internal conflict.

Interestingly enough, Hendrix's children are not grown up...Hendrix himself has been married less than 15 years. The reason he is at AFA is b/c he is a fantastic OL coach, and b/c it afforded him a great opportunity. The money will follow, but the $$ did not drive the decision. Hendrix is a great coach with a great future ahead of him. This was an exceptional loss for the 'Dins.

Dixon, similarly, had an upward opportunity. Not that PC is an upward move from FU, but defensive coordinator is an upward move from position coach.

Don't look for the Paladins to falter. They'll just re-tool, adjust, and keep winning...just like they did after Sheridan left for NC State, Satterfield retired, and Johnson left for Vandy.

[fuEMO]

I think Bobby has made some smart moves. Whenever you go against family you cause some stares. But I think this was badly needed.

Edwards great player, seemed to be OK coach. But the DL never seemed to improve plus we had huge turnover at that position. Pinella built an impressive DL at The Citadel. And in one season the top player on the entire DL was not Artis, Bray or Ravenell it was redshirt freshman Justin Brown who played the second half of the season with a shoulder seperation.

Dixon. JD was one of favorite players at Furman, and a great coach. But coaching the DEs was a dead end for him. Bentley's offer came along at the right time. Now Pinella can take over the entire D Line. And then comes in Evangelista. A smart guy, never played college ball, but has excelled at coaching and is considered a special teams guru. From what I hear Pew recommened him to Bobby. The lost move in this is Farrington moves over to just coaching the safeties. And I'm guessing here taking over some admin roles plus recruiting. Which he did a super job of at ETSU.

Hendrix missed out on the UGA job a few years back, and with tears in his eyes Clay left Greenville for Air Force. This was nothing but Clay taking the steps in gaining experenice at the next level and hopefully return south with a head coaching job or land an SEC/ACC position. Clay will be missed but Bobby had lots of choices from current OL coaches, exPaladins and some HC. He took the experience, and someone with SoCon knowledge.

Seems like good fits, but time will tell. Spring Practice will have a different twist that's for sure.

[OL FU]

The D coach was Allen Edwards, a great player during his FU days. However, a large part of his contract not being renewed had to do with coaching incompetency, from what I've heard...not internal conflict.

Interestingly enough, Hendrix's children are not grown up...Hendrix himself has been married less than 15 years. The reason he is at AFA is b/c he is a fantastic OL coach, and b/c it afforded him a great opportunity. The money will follow, but the $$ did not drive the decision. Hendrix is a great coach with a great future ahead of him. This was an exceptional loss for the 'Dins.

Dixon, similarly, had an upward opportunity. Not that PC is an upward move from FU, but defensive coordinator is an upward move from position coach.

Don't look for the Paladins to falter. They'll just re-tool, adjust, and keep winning...just like they did after Sheridan left for NC State, Satterfield retired, and Johnson left for Vandy.

Thanks for the info.

I should have known that about Hendrix:rotateh: