Robert Saleh Turns Down MSU’s Interview Request
Saleh, though, informed school officials Friday that he plans to stay in San Francisco for another season, per Pelissero, as Saleh “feels he has unfinished business.” Saleh, 41, is a Michigan native who began his coaching career at Michigan State as a defensive assistant in 2002.
February 8th, 2020 at 8:26 AM ^
Heck 'em
February 8th, 2020 at 8:36 AM ^
Obvious move. He’s going to be an NFL head coach next year.
February 8th, 2020 at 10:53 AM ^
Next coach of the Lions.
February 8th, 2020 at 11:53 AM ^
Yup! That is exactly what is happening.
If the Lions get off to a bad start, Patricia will be fired and the Lose for Lawrence mantra begins.
February 8th, 2020 at 2:23 PM ^
If the lions don't ruin it and hire another terrible coach instead.
February 8th, 2020 at 8:44 AM ^
Note even a courtesy interview?
February 8th, 2020 at 10:13 AM ^
They may have noted one, but it did not occur.
February 8th, 2020 at 10:15 AM ^
Spartans Will....get snubbed!!!
February 8th, 2020 at 11:00 AM ^
Or SWILL ... Seems more appropriate
February 8th, 2020 at 8:46 AM ^
Looks like Fickell and Colorado’s Mel Tucker will interview.
February 8th, 2020 at 9:03 AM ^
Where you hearing that? Latest on Fickell appears to be a no...
https://dailycaller.com/2020/02/07/report-coach-luke-fickell-michigan-state-not-leaving-cincinnati/
February 8th, 2020 at 9:15 AM ^
Well, if Tucker Carlson’s site says it, it must be so
February 8th, 2020 at 10:00 AM ^
Sorry I’ll make sure I get Rachel Maddow’s take next time, just for you. ok buddy?
February 8th, 2020 at 10:16 AM ^
Please don't. There's enough of that here already. ..
February 8th, 2020 at 11:02 AM ^
It's at least some of both sides of the story.
February 8th, 2020 at 9:31 AM ^
Freep last night. MSU interviewing Fickell and Tucker this weekend.
February 8th, 2020 at 10:29 AM ^
The headline is so cunningly vague I find it hard to believe.
February 8th, 2020 at 8:50 AM ^
I mean he spent one season 18 years ago as a low level assistant there. He's now one of the most sought after Defensive Coordinators in the NFL. What exactly did they think would happen?
The real issue comes down to the fact that this should have never gone public. When people start lining up to say not only do they not want the job, but they don't want to interview for the job... that's when you get into goofy Greg Schiano is and isn't the head coach at Tennessee, etc..
February 8th, 2020 at 10:15 AM ^
I hear Saban is next on their short list!
February 8th, 2020 at 12:12 PM ^
I heard Bear Bryant.
February 8th, 2020 at 11:11 AM ^
They probably expected him to say no. But they took their shot. Can't fault them for that. I recall in a few recent coaching searches on our end where this board has clamored for the AD or search committee to at least make a call to the idealistic options, even though they were always long shots.
February 8th, 2020 at 1:14 PM ^
The point is, in at least the Hackett search, they did do that. They worked back channels. They didn't (wink wink) make any offers. A lot is made of "controlling the narrative" in today's lexicon, but this is an actual situation where it's important.
Take your "shoot your shot" example and let's apply it to hitting on ladies at the bar. If you appear to be "shooting your shot" everywhere, people notice and it's a perpetual ball rolling down a hill. But you can converse with many without making it look like you're desperate for any.
February 8th, 2020 at 8:51 AM ^
In a surprise to precisely no one. How delusional do you have to be to think the guy who's a highly regarded coordinator for an NFC Champion is going to take on the mess the current regime left behind at MSU?!
February 8th, 2020 at 10:13 AM ^
In a surprise to precisely no one outside of the delusional staee fanbase.
FIFY
February 8th, 2020 at 8:51 AM ^
Fickell would be no bueno. He can coach defense, he’d probably recruit really well, he’d bring MSU’s offense into the 21st century, and he hates Michigan (and would emphasize the Michigan game) just as much as Dantonio does, if not moreso.
I would not enjoy having to go against Day and Fickell every year for the foreseeable future.
February 8th, 2020 at 9:08 AM ^
msu is going to hire rich rod
February 8th, 2020 at 9:36 AM ^
With global warming and all, is it a positive for your wardrobe to have skirt weather come earlier in the calendar? Or is it just one more worry?
February 8th, 2020 at 10:31 AM ^
Welp, you've convinced me. Time to shut down the program.
February 8th, 2020 at 10:48 AM ^
Did I say we needed to shut down the program? I don’t think I did. I’d just rather Michigan not have one more serious roadblock in the way of having a great season. Which I think Fickell would turn them into. Not right away, but after a few years I think they would be a great team again that could consistently challenge Michigan. I don’t care for MSU to be a great team. Quite frankly Michigan doesn’t need them to be.
I’d much rather they go out and hire a bum like John L Smith who proceeds to turn them back into the underachievers they always were before Dantonio game along. I’d have a hard time envisioning a lot of people on this board having a problem with that.
February 8th, 2020 at 11:20 AM ^
John L Smith had 2 double digits win seasons at Louisville before he worked at MSU. I'm sure others thought the same about JLS as you do about Fickell but were very wrong, too. The B10 is still a big boy conference.
February 8th, 2020 at 2:19 PM ^
They’ve already returned to mediocrity and bad losses. But this fall season in EL could be “magical” - tough schedule, absolute train wreck on the roster, 10 best players gone, no depth, no offensive scheme or explosive talent or competent QB to leverage, a defensive scheme that won’t work with a lack of secondary talent, crapola incoming class, no 2021 commits or any recruiting momentum, an admin in turmoil with a pawn as AD, minimal fan support, a nasty lawsuit with claims of NCAA violations and a university with a reputation in shambles. And your rival just curb stomped you 44-10 and intends to make the game very personal going forward.
Probably a 5-year turnaround to even get close to UM, PSU and OSU.
February 8th, 2020 at 12:01 PM ^
Fickell took an OSU roster, made them 6-6, and was gracious enough to give us our only win over OSU in what feels like the last 1,000 years. I'm not exactly terrified of the idea of him going to an MSU program in a crater
February 9th, 2020 at 12:40 AM ^
Posters always mention this as if he tore down Rome with his whistle.
braxton Miller was a freshman. I’m pretty sure they had some noteworthy suspensions. Deviere (I’m guessing w the spelling) posey was suspended for the season except for our game and the bowl game. Their record wasn’t really on him. They pushed us to the wire, until Courtney Avery’s pick, because they got some major pieces back and Braxton had enough experience under his belt to be decent at that point
February 8th, 2020 at 12:07 PM ^
I have no idea why MSU isn’t going after Josh Heupel and Billy Napier. Those are the two guys I would target if I were them. I would be a little nervous if they got one of them. And they are both realistic options that might accept the job.
February 8th, 2020 at 6:57 PM ^
This post getting negged tells you all you need to know about the board right now.
February 8th, 2020 at 9:12 AM ^
It's not a good job right now. Even a good coach may flame out there given their current state. MSU is looking at middle of the conference for the foreseeable future and will be bottom of the barrel for the next 2 or 3 seasons.
Unless two of PSU, UM, and OSU fall down, it's going to be hard for MSU to get back to the Dantonio glory days.
February 8th, 2020 at 9:13 AM ^
By chance, can anyone confirm the reports that Saleh crawled up to reject the MSU job?
February 8th, 2020 at 9:34 AM ^
looks like they are past Fickell.
February 8th, 2020 at 9:38 AM ^
MSU is interviewing Fickell and Mel Tucker this weekend, per the Freep last night.
February 8th, 2020 at 9:39 AM ^
it wouldn't surprise me if a long list of 'not interested' candidates starts to generate as time goes on.
each day a new one: cincy blue turns down interview at sparty; thekoolaidguy turns down interview; gentleman squirrels, and on and on. would be entertaining to see.
February 8th, 2020 at 10:41 AM ^
I gotta admit, I would take that job. B1G coaching money is hard to turn down. However, I would be satisfied knowing that, with me at the helm, they would be worse than Rutger under Chris Ash. I would probably have them running some old wishbone triple option or something and I would only recruit kids who actually want to "play school" (finding such kids who would want to go to MSU would be the real challenge).
They would probably fire me after one season, but I would have a lot of fun and money to show for it.
February 8th, 2020 at 11:55 AM ^
Then you could take the Charlie Weiss route, fall upwards, and have MULTIPLE teams paying you to stay the hell away.
There really is no losing!
February 8th, 2020 at 1:09 PM ^
you're hired. also, you need to commit, while filming, numerous NCAA violations and turn sparty in on your way out the door and posting the film on the interweb.
February 8th, 2020 at 10:03 AM ^
“Unfinished business.” The business being not coaching a rolling car fire.
February 8th, 2020 at 10:15 AM ^
Commence Sparty Take:
Never wanted him. Used him to leverage Fuckell to take their contract offer.
February 8th, 2020 at 10:53 AM ^
They will have to offer a contract along the same line that Baylor gave to Ruhl when they hired him away from Temple. 7 years guaranteed $. Ruhl wasn't a hot ticket coach at the time and that was the best they could do.
Sparty will need to be combing lower levels if they don't make Tressel (NTT) the new HC.
February 8th, 2020 at 11:03 AM ^
Hey Robert Saleh, you just lost the SuperBowl... whaddaya gonna do next....
I'm NOT going to Disneyworld OR MSU!
Ha! FYS!
Go Blue!
February 8th, 2020 at 11:47 AM ^
Hopefully Fickell ends up turning the job down.
February 8th, 2020 at 11:52 AM ^
Michigan State with the conditions available when Mark Daytona coached might be a desirable situation. Compliant university staff in Athletic Director in Mark Hollis, President Lou Anna Simon and a protective group of scyophants at the Board of Trustees. An (apparently) active Pharmacy program supported the football program (see Bullough, Max, Bachie, Joe etc.). A hope filled fanbase downtrodden by years as the "Little Brother" and silenced by an alleged "Blue Wall" in the media was more than willing to look past all transgressions. A local police and justice system aligned with the university "values" meted out punishment for such transgressions as littering and soliciting unmarried women where far more serious charges were warranted. This allowed for a few minutes of success but at a cost of nerd rages, assaults, sexual assaults, recruitment of sexual assaulters, springing guys from jail and playing them days later. "It will never be over" was cover for "by any means necessary".
Contrast those conditions with today's Michigan State staring down multiple investigations and/or lawsuits targeting the university, their medical school/administration, athletic department staff, the former President and the former Athletic Director. The courts, at this moment, are providing a window into the program Daytona ran.With their scapegoating of Blackwell, MSU football has effectively closed off significant access to recruits in Michigan.
Could Fickell make it work? Possibly. He's staring down a B1G East with real problems staring him in the face in Michigan, tOSU and Penn State. Tom Allen might even be of concern. The days of recruiting "on the edge", of an active pharmacy program, of springing guys from jail and covering up real transgressions with parking tickets are probably over. Fickell would need to do it cleanly. It's unclear if a generation of Sparty fans, for whom football began in 2008, would accept the results that would come with such an approach.
February 8th, 2020 at 11:58 AM ^
I glanced at RCMB a couple of days ago to see what goes on over there. At the time I checked they seemed to think Fickell was close to a done deal for them, with several posters going so far as to say that contract negotiations were underway.
The most striking thing about that website, however, is the number of hate posts about the University of Michigan.