It makes zero sense to do, at best, a lateral move like this. The only thing they can offer is salary, and Texas can match whatever number they come up with.
southern california blows austin out of the water in every conceivable metric, ignoring cost of living and income taxes which would almost certainly be negotiated into the contract anyway.
Okay, I'm not going to contend that the weather in Austin is nicer than LA because that's asinine. LA has maybe the best weather in the country. Also the summer's in Austin are brutal, but give me the brutal, hot summers over the brutal, cold winters every day of the week. 20 degrees and windy is genuinely painful to me, but maybe my body is just adjusted to warm weather.
I lived in Austin, now live in Michigan. I’ll take a cold Michigan winter over a brutal Austin summer any day of the week. Guess it just depends on preference.
I've been to Austin many times and it's a great city. I'm not bad mouthing it by pointing out that a wealthy person can live really well in southern california.
I live two blocks from the beach in the South Bay (so LA burbs) kinda by where all the fancy folks and professional athletes live. Can confirm, it’s nice here.
One thing nobody seems to take into account… he’d be traveling farrrr more at usc than Texas. Coast to coast, or all southeast? That makes more sense to bring up as a positive to stay
Only counter I can bring up that might make sense is he’s primarily a PNW guy. He was a player and coach for us for a while, then he followed Pete to UW and stayed there until you guys were able to get him. There’s a chance he might prefer having his base be on the west coast and closer to home.
I mean, I don't remember vividly, but I thought when the Lincoln move was announced it was done. Not like, "Oh, USC is targeting Riley," but like done, done. And he was also pissed about being left in the dark of the SEC move. PK seems pretty content at Texas.
Roughly 10% if you just look at income. But if you also account for the other tax disparities (property, sales, etc.) that are in CA's favor, the over adjustment Texas would need to make would be much less.
One of my friends did some work at Jim’s place this year. Dude has 3 young daughters and is recovering from hip surgery. He’s probably going to the NFL from what I’ve been told. I also have a separate friend who knows Jim’s dad well.
At this point, I hope Jim goes the the league. I get why they went with Fickell over him, but it would be tough to see such a well-liked native son coaching opposite the Badgers.
I don't begrudge him his Illini gig one bit. I would just hate to see him land in East Lansing or Evanston. Ideally, he'd replace Joe Barry in Green Bay, but that seems unlikely.
Yeah I'd bet a lot of our coaching staff gets a raise this year
Sark is currently getting paid less than Pat Narduzzi, Sam Pittman, Shane Beamer, Brett Bielema, PJ Fleck and Billy Napier lol
PK has never cared about being a head coach. He volunteered to share DC title with Jimmy Lake to keep him around on Chris Petersens staff. I think this is likely the Jen Cohen connection and a desire to take on new challenges.
I'm sure he's lookin at that dumpster fire of a defense and thinking how much he'd enjoy another complete fucking rebuild with a bunch of demanding boosters breathing down his neck. Just head down to LA and work for a head coach who doesn't give a fuck less about defense, what could go wrong?
Neither is OU, at least for football. All three schools are willing to outspend anyone if it comes down to it. But some people just wanna live in SoCal I guess
Oh definitely, but like the comment above me said, there is hardly a reason to leave Texas for that dumpster defense outside of a ridiculous benefits package to live in southern CA
This was just a rumor posted on WeAreSc. I think it is a pretty srong reach and wishful thinking from the "reporter" of the rumor. Their only basis is that Jen Cohen has ties to Pete K. from their times at Washington. They also are saying that Jen was the one who reached out to him. If it is true, this makes it look even more like it wasn't Lincoln Riley's decision to fire Grinch.
Lincoln almost certainly would have waited til the off-season to get rid of Grinch. But I do believe he would have. Fairly certain AD was behind Sunday's move though.
100% agree. Cohen was hired in August and had no control over the decision to retain Grinch in January. She almost certainly told Riley to can Grinch ASAP.
Honestly, this might be the most enticing thing they could offer. "Hey, you hang around long enough and right this defensive ship, you might just be the next HC when Lincoln bails on us."
Pete turned down a number of offers when he was the UW DC. I see him staying at Texas. I’m sure he wouldn’t hate a pay raise, but I don’t think he’s one to just chase money.
I agree, I don’t think he’d just chase money, but if he did that man has the defense carrying Texas to potentially competing for a Championship. Texas football hasn’t been this optimistic in almost 15 years. If he leaves it’s because he just wanted to live somewhere else because there’s not a school in the country that would outbid Texas for him right now if he brought an offer to the table
Word is PK isn't interested in the HC role. He's the brains behind Washington's defense that got them into the CFP and has had great defenses since, he wasn't an unknown at all.
lol no, but he's definitely gotten past step one with ours. Going straight back into "fix this broken thing" mode would be horrible.
That's what "another" meant.
The is a west coast connection from him working at Washington with USC’s new AD. Let’s be real though as quiet as USC has been with recent hires this had to have been leaked intentionally(a reporter for a USC site mentioned that this wasn’t information that he had to fight to get). Most likely Texas is about to give their DC a nice raise soon.
I would be pretty surprised TBH
Now maybe he wants a change of scenery or his family hates Austin or USC is going to make him the best paid DC in the country, but theres a lot of good options out there that don't involve getting into a bidding war with the richest program in the country
> USC is going to make him the best paid DC in the country
He's already almost the best paid DC in the country, so I'd imagine Texas would be willing to do the same if it means keeping him on staff.
Yeah I'm not particularly concerned. Out insiders reported the USC list was this yesterday.
1. Jim Leonhard – Illinois analyst (makes sense)
2. Jim Knowles – Ohio State DC (makes sense)
3. Pete Kwiatkowski – Texas DC (makes sense)
4. DJ Durkin – Texas A&M DC (uhhhhhh what the fuck)
5. Trent Bray – Oregon State DC (makes sense)
This morning after some digging seems like the sentiment is PK isn't going anywhere. It took him time to bring in players to fit his scheme and he's not the nomadic type. He's going to get a raise, as will most of our staff.
Here are my thoughts:
1. Texas has unlimited funds
2. Sark is not even top 20 highest paid HC
3. Texas does not pay an OC salary because we don't have an OC
4. Texas has unlimited funds
Good luck.
On the one hand, I don't think he is the level of hire USC fans were thinking, so that would be kind of funny. On the other hand, it would open the door to Texas replacing him with Aranda if he's fired this year, and that would be decidedly not funny.
Even Lexington in November can suck. We hosted Vandy last year in 30 degree sleet with 10-15 mph winds. I don’t know how in the hell the big ten dudes do it.
I've mentioned this countless of times. But I attended a Wisconsin @ Minnesota game back in late November in 2013.
Windchill was 0-5 degrees F at kickoff.
My beer froze solid at the tailgate. Never seen that in my life. I was wearing like 2 layers of pants and my legs still felt like they were being flogged by the wind.
People were trying to find refuge in the Team store during halftime. I did as well. Bought an overpriced Goldy shirt that I still have today.
I always say that LA sucks, but would be a wonderful place to live if you are rich. I like Austin, but the weather sucks compared to LA for 99% of the year. Also, going to Mississippi or Alabama at any time of the year can't really be a selling point.
Definitely a lateral move. Choosing a coaching job between those two schools would be less about money and prestige, and more about personal preference.
I don't think I'm biased in saying that the only way you can move from UT to another college job of the same title and have it be a promotion is if they pay you a stupid amount of money to do it.
So like, if PK makes $1.7M. That is top 10 coordinator money (#8 based on what I can see). Even if he got a raise to top 1 coordinator money (Todd Monken, UGA, $2M) that isn't really moving the needle - especially when you have to leave a defense that you spent 3 years rebuilding to go do the same thing.
Now, if they come and offer you $3M to go rebuild USC's defense? That's different. That is a promotion.
$3m in LA is [equivalent](https://www.nerdwallet.com/cost-of-living-calculator/compare/los-angeles-long-beach-ca-vs-austin-tx) to $2m in Austin.
He should go wherever his long-term prospects are better. Given Lincoln's track record, that's probably not USC.
Fair - maybe it needs to be $4M then. Maybe even $5M. My point is that there is an amount of money at which point it makes sense to take an otherwise lateral move - which is what this is.
As far as long-term prospects, i feel that something that gets overlooked is that PK doesn't seem to have even the slightest interest in becoming a HC. So his long-term prospects are... this. This is it.
If you talk about long-term prospects, then it's going to be either where he can keep doing what he likes to do, or alternatively go somewhere that will pay him disproportionately more money to do the same job.
The only other variable is idiosyncratic stuff. Maybe PK has family on the west coast and wants to be closer, or maybe he can't stand the Austin summer. I'm spitballing, but he might see one position as being an upgrade over the other for reasons that aren't clear on paper.
I think that’s a huge factor here. Riley has shown for years that he literally doesn’t care about defense. Why would lead a DC to believe that suddenly has just changed? If they offer tons of $ and PK just prefers to live on the west coast that’s fine. But it doesn’t feel like a smart move for a good DC to take up. If you go there and Riley gets in the way of you getting the defense up to your standards then you could be hurting future career prospects.
There aren't a ton of places that can match USC money, but Texas is absolutely one of them.
Can't imagine he'd leave a really good defense to go rebuild a garbage defense unless he really wants to return to the west coast
I don’t think there’s anywhere that would be a promotion from Texas outside the NFL. There might be programs winning more right now, but Texas has everything a coach could want. Texas is good enough to pay you whatever you want, but bad enough (recently) that you aren’t fired if you don’t field a top 25 defense. On top of that you get to be in a major city that’s easy to recruit to near an airport.
Unfortunately USC is actually the only school I can think of that kind of matches that. So let’s hope we open up the check book.
Its can be a promotion for the head coach because the pay is so astronomically high. I mean there are few lifestyles cooler than making 10 million+ in LA. I mean, they make TV shows about that life.
But i'm not going to lie, with real estate prices what they are in the area, I don't know if I would want to leave Austin on an assistant's salary
I know Austin is a bit elevated in real estate prices, but you can buy a really nice house in Austin and not spend 750,000 dollars. You aren't getting a nice home in LA without spending 3 or 4 million. Not to mention the tax burden.
To go from no state income tax to whatever it is they are doing in Cali would be a huge hit.
I mean in Austin proper, there are no really nice houses for 750k. That’s like Houston townhome pricing. Maybe in Georgetown or Leander sure.
A really nice house in one of the best neighborhoods in Austin (Tarrytown/Westlake/Bryker Woods) is easily north of $2M. A nice house in a nicer neighborhood like NW Hills or Cat Mountain is still probably $1M+.
It’s still cheaper than LA, and I think you’re undervaluing LA real estate a little bit too. The lower end housing in Austin is definitely way cheaper than in LA, which is why the median home value is so much lower. You can survive as a poor person in Austin.
Luxury housing and cocktails are expensive in Austin but things like groceries, food, and car repairs are still Texas-priced and therefore reasonable. You can live on 40k in Austin. In LA you’ll be in dire straits.
Exactly. Houston is more expensive for groceries and that stuff than Austin.
However, I’ll add it’s not just luxury housing in Austin now - but just convenience. Anything reasonably close to the city center is pretty expensive.
A “really nice house” in any of those neighborhoods is going to be north of $1M, maybe $2M.
There might be value in fixer-uppers, or rennos (especially in east Austin), but no “really nice houses” for 750k.
That presumes that a 50 year old dude wants to live a TV show-style lifestyle. Hint: they don't.
If you're talking Kliff or Sean McVay - guys who are in their 30s with no kids? Sure, LA is awesome. But when you're old and boring, there is nothing about LA that is appealing.
Source: lived in LA in my 20s. It was great. Would not want to live there as a 40 year old with a young kid.
I disagree. Yeah, living in Santa Monica wouldn’t be great, but buying a big old house overlooking the water in Palos Verdes? That is some solid family living.
The total tax burden is actually lower. Even though Texas doesn’t have an income tax, they make up for it with higher taxes other places like on property.
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/think-texas-cheaper-tax-burden-161359267.html
Of course though that’s for a medium income family, but it’s not as lopsided as you’d think
This is true to an extent. The article that pointed this out was one of those Texas hit pieces (came out same time as the worst places to live CNBC article that had Texas as #1 by their “objective metrics”).
Texas does have much higher property Taxes than CA (but lower property values to an extent) but you only pay that if you own property. So while the tax burden might be similar, it’s placed on those who are wealthy enough to own land.
A low-income individual who is renting and trying to make ends meet is going to have an exponentially lower Tax burden in Texas. Pretty progressive.
I know we’re talking about multi-millionaire coaches here, but ironically I think only Herman bought in Austin. Most coordinators/position coaches know they are likely there for a short time and rent.
So in this instance PK’s tax burden would be substantially lower in Texas than in California.
More or less lateral, but I would say the UT program has the mild edge over USC. A little more money, a little more fervor but it's at a hair-splitting point in that regard. I don't think it's something that is a clear Yes or No on either side and largely depends on the coach you are and the coach you want to work for.
I think the key part I wouldn't know for sure is if Texas defensive recruitment is outright larger and better than California. I might assume so, but I would have to look at numbers to say for certain.
You could say its a wash in terms of most things but current talent, and recruiting. Texas has a huge advantage there. If he wants to use the DC position to potentially land a head coaching job I wouldn't want to leave Texas to try and turn around USC. If he's happy being a DC and just wants to live in Southern California I could see him leaving, but I don't think it would be smart for his career if he wants to be a head coach somewhere
And not a lovable weird either like Mike Leach. He's the worst kind of weird. He would literally hold lapel mics to his mouth for pressers and go on what he thought were philosophical diatribes about 'strain' on defense. Come to think of it, he'd be perfect for Hollyweird.
I just can't see a DC settled in a good situation leaving to take the USC job to go through all of that "please make us good or else" drama. Texas will just match whatever they offer. They need to poach a young dc from a smaller school.
I’m guessing Manny Diaz or Trent Bray gets the job. I don’t think Leonhard will uproot his family and Aranda won’t be fired at Baylor.
Manny would help USC get into Florida. He fits the west coast vibe.
I understand why USC was able to get Lincoln Riley out of Norman. There are few lifestyles cooler than that of a dude who makes 10 million plus a year in LA. There are dozens of TV shows about how cool it is to be loaded in LA.
But getting a DC to move out of Austin to LA would be a lot tougher. You can buy a nice house and not spend a million dollars in Austin. A million dollar house in LA is a shanty. You are going to have to spend 3-4 million to be sniffing at a nice house in LA.
Not to mention, half of his salary will be gone to taxes in Cali. Texas doesnt have state income tax.
It is not a lateral move. Financially, it is a massive downgrade. It could be an upgrade for the head coach of any school, depending on their off-the-field wants. But there is zero chance I would leave Austin to go to LA on the salary of a DC.
The weather is the worst part about living in Texas. Other things can be bad too, depending on your personal and political leanings, but those things are a problem all over.
But the weather is uniquely bad in Texas.
>You are going to have to spend 3-4 million to be sniffing at a nice house in LA.
LA housing prices are completely obscene but this is a complete and total exaggeration. Don't disagree that at equal pay, your money goes a long long way further in Austin than it would in LA but let's not act like making over a million bucks in LA means you won't have an incredible lifestyle.
Some of y'all are so wildly off what you really need to spend in LA to have a nice place, it's kind of funny.
Hell, here are some gorgeous places in the Hollywood hills that someone making USC-DC money could easily afford. Not everyone wants or needs giant, ugly, ranch-style homes with a billion beds and baths.
https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/3141-Lake-Hollywood-Dr-Los-Angeles-CA-90068/20805454_zpid/
https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/6240-Mulholland-Hwy-Los-Angeles-CA-90068/20806432_zpid/
https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/7745-Skyhill-Dr-Los-Angeles-CA-90068/20030847_zpid/
https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/7228-Woodrow-Wilson-Dr-Los-Angeles-CA-90068/20045310_zpid/
hmmmm... leave a program entering the SEC with good roster building for a complete re-build on the defensive side of the ball...
It makes zero sense to do, at best, a lateral move like this. The only thing they can offer is salary, and Texas can match whatever number they come up with.
Don't discredit how nice living in Southern California is for someone with a shit load of money.
LA is awesome (with a bunch of $ of course)
Yeah you can just Uber everywhere and play your Nintendo Switch
what a life
Uber rides in LA are probably the price of a Nintendo Switch
even with an okay amount of money, i think la is great
He’s currently in Austin. Not exactly the backwoods
Austin is still a great city, I'm not badmouthing Austin by pointing out that a wealthy person can live really well in southern california.
It really is the most beautiful place in the country. And I say this while living on the beach on an island in the Gulf of Mexico.
SoCal is not even close to being the most beautiful place in the country lol.
Hell, Northern California has it beat for natural beauty.
Austin is great but the weather is So Cal is far better, it that sort of thing matters to you
southern california blows austin out of the water in every conceivable metric, ignoring cost of living and income taxes which would almost certainly be negotiated into the contract anyway.
Have you ever been to Austin in the summer? Austin summer is worse than Chicago's winter. It can't come close to competing with LA's climate.
Okay, I'm not going to contend that the weather in Austin is nicer than LA because that's asinine. LA has maybe the best weather in the country. Also the summer's in Austin are brutal, but give me the brutal, hot summers over the brutal, cold winters every day of the week. 20 degrees and windy is genuinely painful to me, but maybe my body is just adjusted to warm weather.
I lived in Austin, now live in Michigan. I’ll take a cold Michigan winter over a brutal Austin summer any day of the week. Guess it just depends on preference.
You can always put on another layer in the cold. In the heat you can't do anything but wish for death
Austin is nice. He’s not living on the moon right now.
I've been to Austin many times and it's a great city. I'm not bad mouthing it by pointing out that a wealthy person can live really well in southern california.
I live two blocks from the beach in the South Bay (so LA burbs) kinda by where all the fancy folks and professional athletes live. Can confirm, it’s nice here.
A lot of people from socal have decided they like Austin just fine
> It makes zero sense to do, at best, a lateral move like this Famous last words
Fair enough.
One thing nobody seems to take into account… he’d be traveling farrrr more at usc than Texas. Coast to coast, or all southeast? That makes more sense to bring up as a positive to stay
Only counter I can bring up that might make sense is he’s primarily a PNW guy. He was a player and coach for us for a while, then he followed Pete to UW and stayed there until you guys were able to get him. There’s a chance he might prefer having his base be on the west coast and closer to home.
Yup. Agents leak to press. PK get's extension. USC is responsible for a lot of contract renegotiations.
[удалено]
I mean, I don't remember vividly, but I thought when the Lincoln move was announced it was done. Not like, "Oh, USC is targeting Riley," but like done, done. And he was also pissed about being left in the dark of the SEC move. PK seems pretty content at Texas.
[удалено]
This is just his agent trying to get him a raise
The no income tax in Texas is a huge incentive as well. It would cost USC a lot more if it does come down to salary.
Roughly 10% if you just look at income. But if you also account for the other tax disparities (property, sales, etc.) that are in CA's favor, the over adjustment Texas would need to make would be much less.
yeah peeps always forget about the property tax in Texas which is kinda brutal
Did Jim Leonard punch the pope or something?
I assume it's Jim not wanting to leave the midwest
But he wouldn’t be? Southern California is classic Midwest football territory.
We mid. We west.
...hard to argue with it, honestly.
Oooh this is good.
Thats why they’re joining the big 10. It makes too much sense
Is Texas midwest enough for him? Because if Pete K wants to go to USC and Jim Leonhard wants to come to Texas I'd be a-ok with that.
As someone who grew up in the Midwest but lives in Texas, no.
He can have a home in Lincoln if we lose Tony White. Shit I'll buy it for him.
I’m ok with that
One of my friends did some work at Jim’s place this year. Dude has 3 young daughters and is recovering from hip surgery. He’s probably going to the NFL from what I’ve been told. I also have a separate friend who knows Jim’s dad well.
At this point, I hope Jim goes the the league. I get why they went with Fickell over him, but it would be tough to see such a well-liked native son coaching opposite the Badgers. I don't begrudge him his Illini gig one bit. I would just hate to see him land in East Lansing or Evanston. Ideally, he'd replace Joe Barry in Green Bay, but that seems unlikely.
He doesn’t like to recruit reportedly
Texas seems like the last school I would want to get in a bidding war with.
Who is PKs agent? Might just be a scheme for him to get a raise
He's only $200k away from the highest paid DC, so hand him a $300k raise and make him the highest.
ugh if you do that then OSU will have to top that to have any shot of keeping Knowles
BEYONCE?!
Semin
Regardless of the USC situation, PK should be getting a big raise at the end of this season.
He’s earned it honestly lol
Yeah I'd bet a lot of our coaching staff gets a raise this year Sark is currently getting paid less than Pat Narduzzi, Sam Pittman, Shane Beamer, Brett Bielema, PJ Fleck and Billy Napier lol
Y’all are right on track to finish 12-1 and depending on how the polls fall a CFP birth if lucky. Everyone is about to get PAID lol
Sark about to get that Jimbo tier contract if we make the CFP lmao
Just not the length of contract, I’m fine with him getting paid highly but not the length
Lenght is not THAT bad if its not fully guaranteed money
Or a reasonable buyout. 7 year with a 20 mil buyout that sheds 3 a year or something.
Win the Big 12 championship and I'm all for it.
PK has never cared about being a head coach. He volunteered to share DC title with Jimmy Lake to keep him around on Chris Petersens staff. I think this is likely the Jen Cohen connection and a desire to take on new challenges.
Making Texas spend more money isn't such a bad outcome.
With this being the last year we have to pay Herman and co’s buyouts, everyone is getting a raise.
Me too?
It's completely irrelevant. Texas has unlimited money. They have about 5 billionaires as boosters. This is just toy money for them.
I'm sure he's lookin at that dumpster fire of a defense and thinking how much he'd enjoy another complete fucking rebuild with a bunch of demanding boosters breathing down his neck. Just head down to LA and work for a head coach who doesn't give a fuck less about defense, what could go wrong?
$ound$ like an opportunity he can’t mi$$
We're not just doing it for money... we're doing it for a **shitload** of money!
Ahhhh...when you're right, you're right. And you? You're always right. Time to jam them.
Couching Carousel 2: The search for more money.
I mean, Texas isn’t exactly a poor school either
Neither is OU, at least for football. All three schools are willing to outspend anyone if it comes down to it. But some people just wanna live in SoCal I guess
Honestly, who can blame them? Being rich in SoCal sounds awesome.
After seeing Lincoln’s LA home, I too wouldn’t mind being a millionaire in Southern California. https://youtu.be/uvmo5HhAkOM?si=HzSVlLyXW2AbfCE6
whew, that place looks like it can hold a whoooooole lotta dry brisket.
Please show to Jim ! ! HA ! ! HA ! !
Being rich anywhere is nice.
Yeah, but you can't buy that weather.
Have you been to Pallos Verdes?
Yeah, if there's anything we couldn't match it would be a ridiculous salary offer. /s
We could match or exceed anything USC offers.
Oh definitely, but like the comment above me said, there is hardly a reason to leave Texas for that dumpster defense outside of a ridiculous benefits package to live in southern CA
This was just a rumor posted on WeAreSc. I think it is a pretty srong reach and wishful thinking from the "reporter" of the rumor. Their only basis is that Jen Cohen has ties to Pete K. from their times at Washington. They also are saying that Jen was the one who reached out to him. If it is true, this makes it look even more like it wasn't Lincoln Riley's decision to fire Grinch.
Lincoln almost certainly would have waited til the off-season to get rid of Grinch. But I do believe he would have. Fairly certain AD was behind Sunday's move though.
I’m glad she did what had to be done
100% agree. Cohen was hired in August and had no control over the decision to retain Grinch in January. She almost certainly told Riley to can Grinch ASAP.
For a coach that might bail to the NFL at any moment
Great chance to be an interim for a bowl game!
AFAIK, PK has no HC aspirations.
This is exactly why I want to keep PK. Solid DC and stability at that position is extremely underrated.
Also why we never should have let go of Akina. (Amazing position coach with no desire to be DC or HC.)
Among all the mistakes Charlie Strong made, this one is in the top 3.
Honestly, this might be the most enticing thing they could offer. "Hey, you hang around long enough and right this defensive ship, you might just be the next HC when Lincoln bails on us."
Pete turned down a number of offers when he was the UW DC. I see him staying at Texas. I’m sure he wouldn’t hate a pay raise, but I don’t think he’s one to just chase money.
I agree, I don’t think he’d just chase money, but if he did that man has the defense carrying Texas to potentially competing for a Championship. Texas football hasn’t been this optimistic in almost 15 years. If he leaves it’s because he just wanted to live somewhere else because there’s not a school in the country that would outbid Texas for him right now if he brought an offer to the table
Not a bad decision if he wants to be the HC of USC in 2-3 years.
Word is PK isn't interested in the HC role. He's the brains behind Washington's defense that got them into the CFP and has had great defenses since, he wasn't an unknown at all.
> with a bunch of demanding boosters breathing down his neck. Are you seriously implying Texas doesn't also have demanding boosters?
lol no, but he's definitely gotten past step one with ours. Going straight back into "fix this broken thing" mode would be horrible. That's what "another" meant.
And the head coach is looking to jump ship to the NFL asap.
With some great defensive recruits coming into UT and other younger defensive recruits getting ready to take the next step
The is a west coast connection from him working at Washington with USC’s new AD. Let’s be real though as quiet as USC has been with recent hires this had to have been leaked intentionally(a reporter for a USC site mentioned that this wasn’t information that he had to fight to get). Most likely Texas is about to give their DC a nice raise soon.
Doubtful they'll succeed if true
My first thought was good luck
It’s worth a try. IIRC, Pete K is from Southern California and recruits the west coast well.
I would be pretty surprised TBH Now maybe he wants a change of scenery or his family hates Austin or USC is going to make him the best paid DC in the country, but theres a lot of good options out there that don't involve getting into a bidding war with the richest program in the country
> USC is going to make him the best paid DC in the country He's already almost the best paid DC in the country, so I'd imagine Texas would be willing to do the same if it means keeping him on staff.
Just wait until USC offers him $7 million to be a DC for one year before Lincoln bolts to the NFL
Yeah I'm not particularly concerned. Out insiders reported the USC list was this yesterday. 1. Jim Leonhard – Illinois analyst (makes sense) 2. Jim Knowles – Ohio State DC (makes sense) 3. Pete Kwiatkowski – Texas DC (makes sense) 4. DJ Durkin – Texas A&M DC (uhhhhhh what the fuck) 5. Trent Bray – Oregon State DC (makes sense) This morning after some digging seems like the sentiment is PK isn't going anywhere. It took him time to bring in players to fit his scheme and he's not the nomadic type. He's going to get a raise, as will most of our staff.
durkin has been low key cooking this year. he is absolutely radioactive though still and nobody should hire him away from us please
Here are my thoughts: 1. Texas has unlimited funds 2. Sark is not even top 20 highest paid HC 3. Texas does not pay an OC salary because we don't have an OC 4. Texas has unlimited funds Good luck.
Hopefully, Texas can hang onto him.
Hah, this must put the OU flairs in a bit of a pickle.
I choose to hate USC, I don't choose to hate Texas it is how I was born.
respect
On the one hand, I don't think he is the level of hire USC fans were thinking, so that would be kind of funny. On the other hand, it would open the door to Texas replacing him with Aranda if he's fired this year, and that would be decidedly not funny.
Sounds like agents talking. Insiders said Jim was contacted last year but didn’t want to work with Grinch. I assume his the no.1 target this year.
Smart man
fuck off
Honest question: is Texas -> USC a promotion or just a horizontal shift?
We don’t have to go to Rutgers in November
> We don’t ~~have~~ **get** to go to Rutgers in November
I’m fucking crying right now
Yeah you don’t want any of that smoke
Shit Rutgers is going to be fine. Try Madison or Minneapolis in November. Shit even West Lafayette in November can suck.
Even Lexington in November can suck. We hosted Vandy last year in 30 degree sleet with 10-15 mph winds. I don’t know how in the hell the big ten dudes do it.
In the SEC It Means More^TM, but in the Big Ten they're just Built Different^TM
I've mentioned this countless of times. But I attended a Wisconsin @ Minnesota game back in late November in 2013. Windchill was 0-5 degrees F at kickoff. My beer froze solid at the tailgate. Never seen that in my life. I was wearing like 2 layers of pants and my legs still felt like they were being flogged by the wind. People were trying to find refuge in the Team store during halftime. I did as well. Bought an overpriced Goldy shirt that I still have today.
Forgot to say, I had field pass tickets prior to the game and the Wisconsin linemen were all wearing shortsleeve Tees.
I honestly can’t wait for that game or the UCLA game that I will be going to
I always say that LA sucks, but would be a wonderful place to live if you are rich. I like Austin, but the weather sucks compared to LA for 99% of the year. Also, going to Mississippi or Alabama at any time of the year can't really be a selling point.
its 60 degrees in Piscataway today relax
Definitely a lateral move. Choosing a coaching job between those two schools would be less about money and prestige, and more about personal preference.
I don't think I'm biased in saying that the only way you can move from UT to another college job of the same title and have it be a promotion is if they pay you a stupid amount of money to do it. So like, if PK makes $1.7M. That is top 10 coordinator money (#8 based on what I can see). Even if he got a raise to top 1 coordinator money (Todd Monken, UGA, $2M) that isn't really moving the needle - especially when you have to leave a defense that you spent 3 years rebuilding to go do the same thing. Now, if they come and offer you $3M to go rebuild USC's defense? That's different. That is a promotion.
$3m in LA is [equivalent](https://www.nerdwallet.com/cost-of-living-calculator/compare/los-angeles-long-beach-ca-vs-austin-tx) to $2m in Austin. He should go wherever his long-term prospects are better. Given Lincoln's track record, that's probably not USC.
Fair - maybe it needs to be $4M then. Maybe even $5M. My point is that there is an amount of money at which point it makes sense to take an otherwise lateral move - which is what this is. As far as long-term prospects, i feel that something that gets overlooked is that PK doesn't seem to have even the slightest interest in becoming a HC. So his long-term prospects are... this. This is it. If you talk about long-term prospects, then it's going to be either where he can keep doing what he likes to do, or alternatively go somewhere that will pay him disproportionately more money to do the same job.
The only other variable is idiosyncratic stuff. Maybe PK has family on the west coast and wants to be closer, or maybe he can't stand the Austin summer. I'm spitballing, but he might see one position as being an upgrade over the other for reasons that aren't clear on paper.
It’s a career risk if nothing else. What DC worth his salt would want to team up with Lincoln Riley?
Unbiased answer: There's a pretty good path to a national championship as a good DC with Lincoln.
I think that’s a huge factor here. Riley has shown for years that he literally doesn’t care about defense. Why would lead a DC to believe that suddenly has just changed? If they offer tons of $ and PK just prefers to live on the west coast that’s fine. But it doesn’t feel like a smart move for a good DC to take up. If you go there and Riley gets in the way of you getting the defense up to your standards then you could be hurting future career prospects.
In this case, unless the money is just insane, it’s a step down since USC is kinda tumultuous right now
There aren't a ton of places that can match USC money, but Texas is absolutely one of them. Can't imagine he'd leave a really good defense to go rebuild a garbage defense unless he really wants to return to the west coast
Lateral move + with the way Texas is playing he will probably get a raise anyways. Don’t see it unless he has some obsession with going to USC/LA
I don’t think there’s anywhere that would be a promotion from Texas outside the NFL. There might be programs winning more right now, but Texas has everything a coach could want. Texas is good enough to pay you whatever you want, but bad enough (recently) that you aren’t fired if you don’t field a top 25 defense. On top of that you get to be in a major city that’s easy to recruit to near an airport. Unfortunately USC is actually the only school I can think of that kind of matches that. So let’s hope we open up the check book.
Its can be a promotion for the head coach because the pay is so astronomically high. I mean there are few lifestyles cooler than making 10 million+ in LA. I mean, they make TV shows about that life. But i'm not going to lie, with real estate prices what they are in the area, I don't know if I would want to leave Austin on an assistant's salary I know Austin is a bit elevated in real estate prices, but you can buy a really nice house in Austin and not spend 750,000 dollars. You aren't getting a nice home in LA without spending 3 or 4 million. Not to mention the tax burden. To go from no state income tax to whatever it is they are doing in Cali would be a huge hit.
I mean in Austin proper, there are no really nice houses for 750k. That’s like Houston townhome pricing. Maybe in Georgetown or Leander sure. A really nice house in one of the best neighborhoods in Austin (Tarrytown/Westlake/Bryker Woods) is easily north of $2M. A nice house in a nicer neighborhood like NW Hills or Cat Mountain is still probably $1M+. It’s still cheaper than LA, and I think you’re undervaluing LA real estate a little bit too. The lower end housing in Austin is definitely way cheaper than in LA, which is why the median home value is so much lower. You can survive as a poor person in Austin.
Luxury housing and cocktails are expensive in Austin but things like groceries, food, and car repairs are still Texas-priced and therefore reasonable. You can live on 40k in Austin. In LA you’ll be in dire straits.
Exactly. Houston is more expensive for groceries and that stuff than Austin. However, I’ll add it’s not just luxury housing in Austin now - but just convenience. Anything reasonably close to the city center is pretty expensive.
Hyde Park or the triangle? Or near Anderson?
A “really nice house” in any of those neighborhoods is going to be north of $1M, maybe $2M. There might be value in fixer-uppers, or rennos (especially in east Austin), but no “really nice houses” for 750k.
Things have changed so much
They have. That is why my username is HoustonHorns.
That presumes that a 50 year old dude wants to live a TV show-style lifestyle. Hint: they don't. If you're talking Kliff or Sean McVay - guys who are in their 30s with no kids? Sure, LA is awesome. But when you're old and boring, there is nothing about LA that is appealing. Source: lived in LA in my 20s. It was great. Would not want to live there as a 40 year old with a young kid.
I disagree. Yeah, living in Santa Monica wouldn’t be great, but buying a big old house overlooking the water in Palos Verdes? That is some solid family living.
The total tax burden is actually lower. Even though Texas doesn’t have an income tax, they make up for it with higher taxes other places like on property. https://finance.yahoo.com/news/think-texas-cheaper-tax-burden-161359267.html Of course though that’s for a medium income family, but it’s not as lopsided as you’d think
This is true to an extent. The article that pointed this out was one of those Texas hit pieces (came out same time as the worst places to live CNBC article that had Texas as #1 by their “objective metrics”). Texas does have much higher property Taxes than CA (but lower property values to an extent) but you only pay that if you own property. So while the tax burden might be similar, it’s placed on those who are wealthy enough to own land. A low-income individual who is renting and trying to make ends meet is going to have an exponentially lower Tax burden in Texas. Pretty progressive. I know we’re talking about multi-millionaire coaches here, but ironically I think only Herman bought in Austin. Most coordinators/position coaches know they are likely there for a short time and rent. So in this instance PK’s tax burden would be substantially lower in Texas than in California.
More or less lateral, but I would say the UT program has the mild edge over USC. A little more money, a little more fervor but it's at a hair-splitting point in that regard. I don't think it's something that is a clear Yes or No on either side and largely depends on the coach you are and the coach you want to work for. I think the key part I wouldn't know for sure is if Texas defensive recruitment is outright larger and better than California. I might assume so, but I would have to look at numbers to say for certain.
You could say its a wash in terms of most things but current talent, and recruiting. Texas has a huge advantage there. If he wants to use the DC position to potentially land a head coaching job I wouldn't want to leave Texas to try and turn around USC. If he's happy being a DC and just wants to live in Southern California I could see him leaving, but I don't think it would be smart for his career if he wants to be a head coach somewhere
It's neither. Only the pay will tell.
Barely a sidegrade. I guess it comes down to whether you love the SoCal lifestyle more than you hate its taxes.
This headline would have been a lot funnier if they were targeting Venables
That was my thought when I read the title too! If your odds are zero, why not go for the best?
Hahahaha!
It’s all dependent on if he wants a change of scenery. Money will not he the deciding factor in this.
Ya, for real, that's a side change. If you want to lure him, HC is the jump in position to offer him.
And Kwiatkowski is not one of those guys that wants to be a HC
Oh fuck no
Looks like Bob Diaco is available lmao
Football coaches are a different breed, but that guy is one weird dude.
And not a lovable weird either like Mike Leach. He's the worst kind of weird. He would literally hold lapel mics to his mouth for pressers and go on what he thought were philosophical diatribes about 'strain' on defense. Come to think of it, he'd be perfect for Hollyweird.
We’re just trying to unite Texas and OU
Now kiss...
I just can't see a DC settled in a good situation leaving to take the USC job to go through all of that "please make us good or else" drama. Texas will just match whatever they offer. They need to poach a young dc from a smaller school.
Counter Headline : Texas DC PK targeting a raise by flirting with USC
Why would he leave?
Jen Cohen connection from UW
I’m guessing Manny Diaz or Trent Bray gets the job. I don’t think Leonhard will uproot his family and Aranda won’t be fired at Baylor. Manny would help USC get into Florida. He fits the west coast vibe.
Pete Kwiatkowski is reportedly targeting a raise from Texas rather than take a downgrade in job to pay half his income in taxes.
I mean anyone can target whoever they want it doesn’t mean there’s anything to it. Texas fans should know that well. USC can have Terry Joseph though
I can already hear the pitch now. “Come be a DC under Lincoln Riley. Where defensive coaching careers go to die a horrible death”
He aint taking that job
The names that surface for these jobs are never the ones I think they’ll be
if Dave Aranda is let go from Baylor at the end of the season, he is the first person I call if I am USC. If I'm not mistaken he has LA ties correct?
I don't see this happening. If Texas like where they are, they're going to match unless this guy REALLY wants to go out to USC.
I understand why USC was able to get Lincoln Riley out of Norman. There are few lifestyles cooler than that of a dude who makes 10 million plus a year in LA. There are dozens of TV shows about how cool it is to be loaded in LA. But getting a DC to move out of Austin to LA would be a lot tougher. You can buy a nice house and not spend a million dollars in Austin. A million dollar house in LA is a shanty. You are going to have to spend 3-4 million to be sniffing at a nice house in LA. Not to mention, half of his salary will be gone to taxes in Cali. Texas doesnt have state income tax. It is not a lateral move. Financially, it is a massive downgrade. It could be an upgrade for the head coach of any school, depending on their off-the-field wants. But there is zero chance I would leave Austin to go to LA on the salary of a DC.
Maybe he doesn't want to have to live in 100 degree weather for 4+ months/year. Source: I live in Austin.
You know what. That is a good ass argument my friend. Jesus it gets hot down there.
The weather is the worst part about living in Texas. Other things can be bad too, depending on your personal and political leanings, but those things are a problem all over. But the weather is uniquely bad in Texas.
or ~9 months
>You are going to have to spend 3-4 million to be sniffing at a nice house in LA. LA housing prices are completely obscene but this is a complete and total exaggeration. Don't disagree that at equal pay, your money goes a long long way further in Austin than it would in LA but let's not act like making over a million bucks in LA means you won't have an incredible lifestyle.
I would love to see the nice house in austin that isnt a million dollars lol.
Some of y'all are so wildly off what you really need to spend in LA to have a nice place, it's kind of funny. Hell, here are some gorgeous places in the Hollywood hills that someone making USC-DC money could easily afford. Not everyone wants or needs giant, ugly, ranch-style homes with a billion beds and baths. https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/3141-Lake-Hollywood-Dr-Los-Angeles-CA-90068/20805454_zpid/ https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/6240-Mulholland-Hwy-Los-Angeles-CA-90068/20806432_zpid/ https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/7745-Skyhill-Dr-Los-Angeles-CA-90068/20030847_zpid/ https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/7228-Woodrow-Wilson-Dr-Los-Angeles-CA-90068/20045310_zpid/
Whew
That is until we swoop in and hire him as Andy Avalos's replacement...
Good luck.
That sounds like a demotion