Beckman: 'A dream come true'
(UPDATED: 3:45 p.m.) CHAMPAIGN — Dick Strahm knew the call was coming. Someday. And he was thrilled to hear "Illinois" at the other end.
From the time Tim Beckman served as a student assistant at the University of Findlay (Ohio), the College Football Hall of Fame coach figured he would end up a success.
Today, his prize student becomes a Big Ten head coach.
"Tim was an overachiever," said Strahm, who won 183 games at Findlay. "He would outwork you. And that's what his ballplayers do at Toledo."
Beckman was officially named Illinois' 23rd football coach today. The 46-year-old has a five-year contract for $9 million, UI athletic director Mike Thomas said during today's news conference (listen here) at Memorial Stadium.
"It was a fast-moving process," Thomas said. "At the end of the day you need someone who is really a CEO of your program. It's not just about the Xs and Os."
Thomas would not divulge other candidates. He jokingly blamed The News-Gazette's Bob Asmussen for delaying the process, which was orginally scheduled to end at 5 p.m. Tuesday.
Beckman said "this is a dream come true for the Beckman family," during today's news conference.
Pronouncing "Illinois" correctly, Beckman explained how much his family is involved in football.
"It's not just about Tim Beckman. It's about the family that is going to embrace the Illini nation," he said.
Beckman, speaking in loud tones, said he talked to the players before meeting media.
"We're going to be intense," he said. "You will see that on every football player's face."
Beckman said he intends to meet with the current Illinois coaches in the next two days. He will attend the Kraft Fight Hunger bowl game on Dec. 31 "as a spectator." He said "decisions will be made" regarding defensive coordinator Vic Koenning in the future. The two will meet in the next two days.
Asked about recruiting the Chicago area, he said it "will be recruited very heavily by this coaching staff." He said he'll contact the 14 high school players who have committed to Illinois on Friday night.
Beckman brings a spread offense to Illinois.
"I know we have some great offensive talent," he said, mentioning he has watched Illinois on film.
Illinois never has won back-to-back bowl games. "This is a gold mine," Beckman said. "You can win at the University of Illinois."
Appearing relaxed and displaying humor, Beckman said he talked with Thomas last Friday about the opening.
"I think this community is absolutely going to love" the Beckman family, Thomas said.
During the news conference, Thomas said "this is a great day for Illinois football. It was my goal to hire who I felt was the best coach possible and I do believe we found that person."
Thomas said "we need someone who gets out in the community" and said Beckman will do that. Thomas said Illini players told him "it's all about family" in the week leading up to the hire "and there's no doubt that's part of Tim's DNA. He's a mentor."
During talks with former Ohio State coach Jim Tressel, Thomas said the conversation swayed to Beckman's energy level. "He makes caffeine nervous."
Thomas also talked with Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany, who told the UI athletic director that it's about "It's fit, fit, fit. Tim Beckman fits Illinois in so many ways," Thomas said.
Toledo's Beckman was named the Illini's 23rd football coach at a news conference at Memorial Stadium's 77 Club.
At 2 p.m., Illinois released a statement naming Beckman as coach.
Beckman was at Bielfeldt Building on campus this morning. He took a 30-minute flight from Toledo to Savoy this morning.
Beckman plans to stay in C-U until early Sunday before returning to Toledo for a team banquet in the afternoon. He will return to C-U on Sunday night for the men's basketball game against Coppin State at the Assembly Hall.
On Monday, he plans to start recruiting for Illinois. (Today's recruiting chat)
He was scheduled to meet with Illinois players before today's news conference. What his role in the upcoming Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl remains unclear — as is the status of defensive coordinator Vic Koenning, who is leading the team as it prepares for the Dec. 31 game in San Francisco (we do know what the band's plans are, however).
Candidates for the job were notified of Beckman's hiring late this morning.
Ohio State coach Urban Meyer, who worked with Beckman at Bowling Green, said: "I've known Tim a long time. He was my defensive coordinator at Bowling Green, and he is one of the top coaches I've ever worked with. You won't find many coaches as quality as Tim Beckman is; he is a great hire for the University of Illinois and the Big Ten Conference."
According to the Toledo Blade, the Rockets were told about Beckman's departure during a morning meeting. Toledo scheduled an afternoon press conference and named offensive coordinator Matt Campbell as its bowl coach. Toledo will then conduct a national search for a head coach.
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Reached this morning, Mid-American Conference commissioner Jon Steinbrecher said Beckman has the potential to succeed at a higher level, like so many other MAC alums.
"He's going to get them in the Rose Bowl," Steinbrecher said.
Illinois Hall of Famer David Williams, reached today in Los Angeles, said he doesn't know much about Beckman, adding: "Hopefully he's not using Illinois as a steppingstone job, that he wants to be here."
Former Illini Eric Rouse, a receiver in the 1970s, was unhappy with the pick. “My first question is, if you’re going to fire Ron Zook, why did you hire him (Beckman)? They could have kept Zook. It smells like Gary Moeller all over again. You’re going to be looking for a coach in three years. He has no interest in Illinois, in the state of Illinois, until he can prove otherwise.”
Callers to Friday's "Penny For Your Thoughts" were 80-20 negative, host Jim Turpin said.
"I think that job is the right job," Strahm said. "He will recruit at Illinois. There is no question about it. I don't know how many of his staff he's bringing along with him, but I know they were outrecruiting everybody in the Mid-American."
The hiring caps a 12-day search that included interviews or interest in Houston's Kevin Sumlin, Southern Mississippi's Larry Fedora, Cincinnati's Butch Jones and Steelers assistant Kirby Wilson. Wisconsin offensive coordinator Paul Chryst and Michigan State defensive coordinator Pat Narduzzi were also reportedly in the mix.
Beckman is the first active college head coach hired at Illinois in 40 years. Bob Blackman, lured away from Dartmouth to coach Illinois in 1971, went 104-37-3 with the Big Green.
“We wish Coach Beckman and his family the very best in their new life at the University of Illinois,” Toledo athletic director Mike O’Brien said today. “Tim did an outstanding job in his three years with the Rockets. He built a solid foundation based on discipline and personal accountability, and he leaves our football program in very good shape for our next head coach.
No information about the candidates came from first-year athletic director Thomas, who conducted the search without any updates for the media. That helped lead to constantly changing stories about the favorites.
Thomas was back in Champaign-Urbana on Thursday afternoon. He took time at midday for a workout, which he hasn't been able to do much since the end of the Zook era.
In Toledo on Thursday, Beckman canceled a previously scheduled late-afternoon news conference. He was with the team at practice and didn't mention Illinois to the players afterward. Beckman was scheduled to attend a memorial service Thursday evening for late Ohio State assistant Joe Daniels, who died after a long battle with cancer.
Asked about the Illinois job by Zach Silka of the Toledo Blade, Beckman twice said, "Nothing right now."
Beckman originally played football at Kentucky but wasn't happy in Lexington. So, his dad, longtime coach Dave Beckman, called Strahm to see if Findlay was interested.
As a sophomore and junior, Beckman was a starting defensive back. But he couldn't play as a senior because of a neck injury.
"I said, 'Tim, you're going to be a teacher and a coach. Why don't you work with me?' " Strahm said.
And work he did.
"He was in watching film more than my defensive backfield coach," Strahm said. "He was really understanding the game."
After Findlay, Beckman served as a graduate assistant at Auburn. The Tigers went 10-2 both seasons.
His first full-time job was a six-year stint as secondary coach and recruiting coordinator for Western Carolina. He spent seven seasons as defensive coordinator at Bowling Green, working two years with Urban Meyer. Beckman coached cornerbacks at Ohio State for two seasons, working for Jim Tressel.
Before taking over at Toledo in 2009, Beckman was Mike Gundy's defensive coordinator at Oklahoma State for two seasons.
In three seasons at Toledo, Beckman is 21-16 overall. His last two teams went a combined 14-2 in the MAC. Thomas said success in the conference is an important goal for the next Illinois coach.
That Beckman is climbing to the Big Ten is no surprise to Strahm.
"That was going to be his next move," Strahm said. "I was concerned about where he would jump to into the Big Ten. Illinois, that's a program that can be turned around. It's a program he can compete with. Knowing Tim, he will compete with the big dogs in a few years."
Beckman has had other Big Ten inquiries in the past but didn't pursue them.
On and off the field, Beckman is known as a disciplinarian.
"He's going to give everybody one chance," Strahm said. "But don't ask for two or three because it isn't going to happen. No matter who it is."
Beckman laid out his expectations for the Toledo players with the "Rocket Code of Conduct." The seven-sentence list includes "I can always be heard saying please when asking for something," and "Phrases such as: good morning, be safe, how are you and have a great day are part of who I am." The last line reads: "I am the respectful Rocket!"
A similar code, with a change in the name, is likely for Illinois.
Beckman's "Rocket mission statement" mentions the football team as a family. It closes with "We will be the class of college football and the Mid-American Conference."
Beckman and his team will be heavily involved in the community.
"They'll be reading to the young kids in the schools," Strahm said. "They will be parading in the halls."
Illinois has tried different approaches when hiring football coaches. It went for a pro head coach (John Mackovic) and an NFL assistant (Ron Turner). It has tried coaches from big-time programs (Zook, Mike White). It has tried assistants from the Big Ten (Gary Moeller) and from its own staff (Lou Tepper, Ray Eliot).
But it has never gone to the MAC. Until now.
" 'I think that job is the right job," Strahm said. "He will recruit at Illinois. There is no question about it. I don't know how many of his staff he's bringing along with him, but I know they were outrecruiting everybody in the Mid-American.' "
Yep, outrecruited everybody ... except Northern Illinois, Ohio, Western Michigan ...
There's been a lot of talk that he's a defenisive minded coach. Let's see, with these so-called recruits that are better than everyone in the MAC, the Rockets gave up the following points this season: 22, 27, 40, 33, 13, 16, 21, 28, 63, 63, 17, 28.
Yes, they gave up 63 points in back-to-back weeks, didn't even win their division in the conference and this is who Mike Thomas hires?? Congratulations Illini fans, you have another 7-10 years of missing bowls, bad bowl games and a school that clearly isn't dedicated to winning.
I agree the mediocrity that has been Illini football for far too long likely continues under Beckman. In 3 years time Beckman and Thomas may both need to be fired and get an AD in here that is willing and able to step up to the plate and truly hit a home run out of the park with head coaching hires. Recruiting will suffer appreciably with this new coach, mark my words. Plus the new coach is so similar to Zook it's almost uncanny. From some angles they look alike. Like Zookie, Beckie had one of the worst special teams in the country. Also like Zook with his inept special team and defense coaching, Beckman is also fairly inept coach in that his defenses rank poorly both while at Oklahoma State and at Toledo. If Beckman fires Koenning, look for Illinois top ten defense to revert back to a below average to bottom third defense. There are so many more promising coaches out there than Beckman, it confounds me that Thomas didn't make a more concerted and sincere effort to contact them and dangle his $3.2M per year incentive at them. Instead took the easy way out and gave us middle of pack guy.
Look at the Illini record- would you take the job for any reason other than money? 9 coaches here since Ray Eliot retired and only Mike White and John Mackovic had winning records. Look at how many have been fired. I don't understand why so many people think we can land a "big name" coach. If I was a good coach and wanted to move up I sure wouldn't take this job. It sure looks like something is missing from the program based on 9 coaches records.
How the H do these guys know what they are talking about? If Toledo didn't recruit Chicago (see yesterday's IlliniHQ), I suspect Northern did better in Chicago than Toledo. "Worst since Bob Blackman"? The man hasn't coached a game here. Pathetic that these "experts" can't be out solving the economic crisis or curing cancer; they obviously are stunted geniuses
A really sad day for the Illini, maybe the next go around we can get a good coach.
I agree with Jran and cretis12, it is a small time hire from a small time AD that still thinks he is hiring for a small school.
Said the same thing when Zook was hired, he was a cast off that was going down the tube. Now we have a wannabe big time coach with a crap defense that is similar to Zook's "special teams".
Everybody is trying to sugar coat this and put a positive spin on it, the reality is we are screwed.
Floridaillini if we would have hired Monken that wanted to come here we would of had a top 10 offense and a top 10 defense, he wanted to come here.
Time to hold the donations
Beckman has the right stuff for the Big Ten.. Boy, does that say it all having moved to Florida years ago, I realize the rest of the world considers the Big 10 only slightly better than the MAC ... Big Ten… Midwest… button down… boring….snoozville…let’s keep telling ourselves it’s the 60’s… Beckman has the right stuff for the Big Ten-a perfect heading….folks this is more an indictment on a week boring, non innovative conference than the school.
How about giving the new coach a chance? Mike Thomas has a pretty good record of hiring head coaches and looking at the Illini's schedule for next season, I see no reason that next year's team can't go at least 6-6 again and get to another bowl game. I'd like to see improvement on this year's 2-6 conference record too.
I'm hopeful that Coach Koenning will stick around. That sure cure any possible issues that Toledo had on defense. It sounds like Toledo's offensive coordinator is becoming the Rockets' next head coach, so I'm wondering who will be the next offensive coordinator...
Toledo has a nice page up on Coach Beckman. Some of you might want to read it. I like the values that he instills in his players and it looks like he'll run a good clean program with athletes that we'll be proud to call Illini.
Welcome to Illinois Coach Beckman!
Go Illini!
I thought Mike Thomas knew what he was doing when it comes to hiring winners, well this hire does not lead me to believe that. Come on! A coach from the MAC you have got to be kidding me! Even my 5 and 7 year old boys are in shock and are complaining that they cant even go to school anymore because they are sick. WOW! This completely idiotic hire is not making my family and I want to return to Memorial Stadium any time soon! There comes a point in a persons life when they just have to let their money do the talking. And my money is not going to be wasted on going to see a terrible product put on the football field.
The guy hasn't even shown up on campus yet and he's already a failure? That's exactly what is wrong with this fanbase. The damn negativety is never-ending with you people. Even when we sell out at Memorial Stadium people are still sitting on their hands and God forbid stand up and cheer because you'll have ten people behind you bitching cause they can't see. Watch an SEC game, or hell even a Mich-Ohio St game and people are up making noise the whole game. It's really getting old listening to people complain about every single decision made. If you can't get behind a university, team, or coach maybe you should just find another school to pull for, or at the very least stay off of here. And the ticket prices are about the last thing people should be complaining about because on several occasions last year you could get single game tickets for about $10-20/ticket.... And what were our alternatives? Monken and Wilson were probably the most popular choices but neither have had a head coaching job anywhere so why not try and bring someone in from a MAC school? Believe it or not people but some pretty good coaches got their start there. At least give the guy a chance and see what he can do on the field before deeming the hire a complete failure.
This is the hire that was supposed to exite me? I dont get it? Is this some kind of inside joke that i dont know about? I am completely exasperated.
Mediocrity on the football field pays the bills so there is no incentive to excel except in the smaller, overlooked illini sports programs.They should be receiving the pay reserved for the football staff. Yes, wrestling, gymnastics,golf, and womens volleyball and soccer coaches should be rewarded for puting an elite type of product on the field instead of continuing to pour money down the bottomless football rathole.
I would donate my left kidney to get away from the socialist hellhole known as Illinois and the UofI administration/professors, but alas i was born in Champaign, and the current economic climate makes escape, nothing but a pipe dream.
I belive i will volunteer to work on Saturday afternoons from now on in order to avoid having to watch anymore of this fiasco. I dont believe i can continually suffer through any more moronic exercises in futility and my heart cant take this suckfest anymore.
Perhaps we should put Monken, Koening and some others on automatic speed dial set for 3 years from now (when thier resumes are more acceptable to the powers that be) when the whole thing implodes, again. As the AD, MT should already have a plan in place for 5 years from now, and i refuse to accept that failure and dispointment is built into the plan. I could be wrong, in some kind of continuing to fleece the stupid peasants, kind of way?
Maybe all you "fans" that expect instant gratification, like you get from your phones...........should download an "app" for How To Coach College Football. I'm sure there are apps that tell you exactly what, how, when and who to recruit....and then how to motivate them!
Maybe all you "fans" that expect instant gratification, like you get from your phones...........should download an "app" for How To Coach College Football. I'm sure there are apps that tell you exactly what, how, when and who to recruit....and then how to motivate them!
Can we let the guy walk on campus and maybe coach a game before we label him the worst hire in the history of illinois football? Take it easy, guys. Who did you want us to get, Paul Bear Bryant? As people have stated, Illinois isn't a great football program and doesn't have a rich history of success so why would we land a big-time coach? Maybe you guys are right, maybe we'll go a combined 6-30 in the next 3 years and he'll be fired. But, Beckman could also come in and recruit well, get some w's, and stick around a while. No one knows yet.
I'm also betting that most of the people who are already bashing Beckman was calling for Zook's head. Honestly, i've never loved zook but there weren't really any big time coaches out there to go get. A new AD isn't going to bring in someone with a shaky past (Mike Leach, Jim Treseel, etc.) Not saying I would or would not have kept zook, i'm glad it wasnt up to me to make the decision.
As the article stated, Illinois has tried numerous different ways of hiring coaches (NFL assistants, college head coaches, coaches from within, etc) and only 2 of them have worked. I'm just saying give the guy (Beckman) a chance before you fire him.
I believe that Gary Moeller, Lou Tepper and Ron Turner (at the end) have already sewed up those spots for the foreseable future. Beckman will have to destroy the program like they did to go that low.
So there is a bright, optomistic thought. The mathmatical odds favor him being just plain bad to merely subpar. Godaweful and worst ever coach will take some hard work and dedication to the task.
Unbelievable how many idiots are on here making comments. Give the guy a chance. I believe this is a fantastic hire. The guy has been successful everywhere. The only other available coach I saw with as much success was Leach and that would have come with a different set of issues. At least Guenther didn't make this hire. Stop overreacting!
Yes, Blackmen, Moeller, White, Mackovic, Tepper, Turner, Zook were all labeled as sucessful when they were sold to us. How many of them truly were here? Based on win/loss only White (barely) and Mackovic (who rode off his coattails). Thats almost 50 years of futility and what have we learned? Aparently, Nothing! That's not too impressive for an institution of "higher learning" full of self-declared geniuses (who granted dont care about sports, only getting rid of the Chief and "social justice").
How about ponying up the dough and settle for stealing someone away who is fricking "outstanding" instead of merely successfull? Many individuals idea of successfull is "showing up", "being competative" or being one game over .500?
I would rather throw 5 mill at someone "outstanding" (didnt Shadid Khan volunteer $4 mill a year?) and double the ticket prices than settle for "successful" and swallow the bait yet again like some kind of stupid cocker spaniel that continually returns to the hand that slapped him and never leans his lesson.
21-16 at TOLEDO is not what I call a rsounding success. This defensive guru led the Rockets (and not my Unity Rockets) to the 89th ranked defense in the nation. WOO HOO! Escitement abounds.
No Illinois connects fro recruiting. He'll be coaching against Ohio State, not Ohio. Michigan not NIU.
No, he's not a Bob Blackman but he doesn't impress me, either.
Illinois Athletics drops the ball yet again...Ohio State Hits a grand slam with Meyer, PSU will probably hit a homerun despite their issues, and we foul out to the catcher....great job Mike Thomas good way to start out...hopefully we will have a add out in the classifieds for a new football coach and AD sooner rather than Later this time...might have to root for A&M since they have the dedication to go out and nab the guy would should have had the drive to go get....
It seems logical that if the naysayers would have started a bank fund to collect money to help the AD out bid everyone for the "right person" then things would be perfect for them. The problem is not with the UI or the football team, but rather with the naysayers. I imagine many of them are not even UI fans, but rather support another Big 10 school.
Ron Zook was a big name?? What were you reading???? That thought escapes me. Everybody knew he was simply a salesman and didnt know his X's from his O's and that was his national reputation. He was the best available that week and we settled for him.
If what was reported is true, MT has $3 mill and Kahn offers an additional $4 mill, that should be close to $7 million. That buys a lot of interest in the job and if we cant get one of the brightest offensive minds in football for that, close up the shop boys, we are out of business. (Although, frankly Kahn might have been distracted or dissed and turned his attention to buying the Jacksonville Jaquars).
Instead, we did what we always do and low balled it, expecting outstanding success to appear like a rabbit out of a hat, instead of importing some magic from somewhere else. (i.e. buying the chinese made tool every 6 months when it breaks, instead of buying an american made one that lasts a lifetime.)
Man some of you people are so off the wall its actually kind of amusing and sad at the same time. What kind of home run hire are you wanting MT to make? Maybe MT should have offered Nick Saban? Oh wait he WOULDNT COME HERE!!!! Get it through your heads people, the big names (yes Sumlin, Peterson, and Fedora are "big names") WONT COME TO ILLINOIS. I think this is a great hire and it seems like he wants to come to Illinois. Maybe if TB has 5 straight 10 win seasons and a couple Rose Bowls, coaches might look at Illinois as a destination job, but for now yes we have a MAC coach. And a pretty good MAC coach who lead a Toledo team to respectability.
I was referring to those who are already shunning Tim Beckman without giving him a chance. Shame on them, and you too if you're one of them.
As for the ones who thought Illinois could make a home run hire with 3 million (or more) per year, they are either an Indiana troll or a fan who has lost complete grip on reality. That is not going to happen until a lesser known coach comes here and establishes a consistent winning tradition.
Shame on everyone that is already shunning Tim Beckman. He hasn't even been on Illinois' campus for 24 hours and you're already saying it's one of the worst hires ever. Give the man a chance. He has very credible people saying he is a good coach, will work harder than other coaches, and has a bright future. Let the man have a chance to shine, instead of throwing dirt on him. Everyone was excited about Ron Zook coming to Champaign and look how that turned out. Sometimes the bigger name is not always better. Just ask Wisconsin, Michigan State, and now Michigan. None of their current head coaches were big names, but they're doing great now. Beckman took a troubled and disarrayed Toledo team to back-to-back bowl games after only one year. If you are one that won't be satisfied until Illinois lands an Urban Meyer, well then, you better switch teams. Wake up and smell the coffee. Illinois' great football history ended 50 years ago. Beckman is going to try to get us back to those glory days, but he needs everyone's support. I will be one of those supporters and you should be too.
Doug Opperman
Fighting Illini Faithful
Illini Nation needs to stand-up and support our new coach!!!!! Part of the problem is the attitude of our "fans". Get behind him and be as vocal with your support as you are about your unproven dislike of the hire. He won at Toledo!!! While it is not the hotbed of D-I football, that takes some doing. We have tried to win with the "big name" hire in the past and look where that has gotten us.
Quote: 'We have tried to win with the "big name" hire in the past and look where that has gotten us.'
What big name hires in the past have we tried? Certainly not Zook, who was fired or demoted from every job he had before us. Certainly not Turner, who had exactly one year of head coaching experience at San Jose St. Tepper? No.
White and Mackovic were both successful former college HC's and they were pretty good.
Maybe you are talking about basketball, Self and Kruger were both 'names' and I thought both pretty good. Otherwise I do not understand your comment.
Half you clowns wanted Zook to be named head coach before this past season started, a testimony to what a mistake it can be to prejudge. FYI, Paterno was promoted from asst coach, Pat Fitzgerald, arguably the best coach in the Big Ten, from asst coach, Bo Schembechler, Woody Hayes came from the MAC, not sure what confererence Youngstown State was in when Tressel was hired by the top football school in the Big Ten.
In other words, gentlemen, and I use the term loosely, there is a reason the game is played rather than allowing the pundits' predictions to determine the outcome.
Give the guy a chance!
Quote: 'It's really getting old listening to people complain about every single decision made.'
Quote: "I'm also betting that most of the people who are already bashing Beckman was calling for Zook's head.'
People complain 'about every single decision made,' because generally they are bad decisions being made.
Let's take a look at this hire. Beckman is a former defensive coordinator. His defenses were poor and in the bottom quarter at OSU as DC and at Toledo as HC. His special teams were near the bottom in BCS at Toledo. His teams at Toledo lead the MAC in penalties. He has been questioned about game managment skills at Toledo a number of times now.
Knowing this is what he brings to the table, are we not supposed to question the decision?
Are his teams somehow going to be dramatically better in the Big Ten where the competition will get much harder? When doing reasearch on this hire, I read comments like, ,"does he know he can't take his timeouts with him to Illinois?" We just got rid of a coach like that.
I don't need a big name, I don't need a 'splash' but it is too much to ask that the defensive guy we hire might have a history of being good at defense? Is it too much to ask that the guy we hire has top 20 percent special teams, not bottom 20? Is it too much to ask that we hire a coach who others say is a great offensive coach or great strategist not 'has questionable game management skills?'
We are complaining about the hire, because there is ample evidence to suggest this coach may not be that good, as if somehow with stiffer competition he will somehow become a much better coach at Illinois. And I for one am tired of bad decisions being made at Illinois.
To ignore the evidence of what he has done is exactly how bad decisions get made.
Your trying to convince people who refuse to believe that bad choices/decisions, are, in the end , bad choices and decisions. After all in Disney movies there are no consequences for bad choices. Not to worry, well be able to fix this thing and turn it around in 2018.
Eric Rouse (I remember him) worried about being used as a stepping stone?? Like that’s happened a lot… 3 possible outcomes.. 1. He fails miserably and quickly and is fired.. 2. Does surprisingly well and takes us to 2 or 3 Outback or better caliber bowel games, maybe even a Rose Bowl and he leaves when his mentor at Ohio State resigns to spend more time with his family again… 3. Becomes known as the Bobby Bowden of the Prairie… taking us to bowl games and winning national championships for the next 30 years.. based on how I feel right now, I’ll take #2…
I think that this is a good hire and I am not sure who those of you not liking this hire wanted or expected. There have been many good coaches come out of the MAC. Where do all of the good coaches get their start...at a major university? No. They pay their dues as a coordinators then as a head coach at a mid-major THEN make the jump to a major university. This is not a football job that is attractive to big names, just look at the track record of Fighting Illini football. Also, llok at the football coaches that Thomas has hired. The guiy has a pretty darn good track record of hiring the right man for the job. The problem with many of you think that this program is a top-tier program when in fact it is not. Hopefully one day it will be, but until then it will be a program that struggles to make it to a bowl game year-in-year-out and whose fans are so damn fickle they won't show up.
This is a good hire!
I do not like it but for 9 million dollars over 5 years we are stuck with him and our new A/D.
Based upon this guys stats AND record, I would not have hired him to be defensive coordinator but he is here for awhile and I suggest we either support him or stop supporting/watching Illinois football. I've been watching, supporting, and rooting for Illinois for 47 years so I guess I'll keep watching as it can't get much worse than most of those years.
While most of you are going crazy over this hire, the MAC produces some very good coaches for the B1G. I'm not going to look at yesteryear and speak of Woody and Bo. Current michigan coach Brady Hoke coached in the MAC for 6 years. His record in that span, 34-38. He then went to the MWC conference for 2 seasons. His record there, 13-12. In his first season at michigan he went 10-2. He was considered sucessful everywhere he coached, but his coaching record before michigan was 47-50. So I will take a coach from the MAC that went 21-16.
Go ILLINI!!
I'm a big Urban Meyer fan, from back in the day when he coached Utah. Started out as a MAC coach, went to Utah, then to Florida (replacing Ron Zook), and now he is Ohio State's head coach.
Anyway, one positive note: Tim Beckman is an Urban Meyer protege. Meyer said: "I've known Tim a long time. He was my defensive coordinator at Bowling Green, and he is one of the top coaches I've ever worked with. You won't find many coaches as quality as Tim Beckman is; he is a great hire for the University of Illinois and the Big Ten Conference."
I'm reminded of Spiro Agnew's famous "nattering nabobs of negativity" quote. I say all the naysayers should give Beckman a chance. And I'll also remind them that the failure to attract a "big name" head coach does not reflect on Mike Thomas' ability as AD. Illinois has never been a football school that attracts "big name" coaches.
I'm an Illinois grad (and UI retiree), and my father played on the UI football team. I'm a diehard Illini fan, through thick and through thin (mostly thin). I say we give Thomas and Beckman a chance to prove themselves before we try to burn them at the stake...
It is amazing how many people are not being realistic about our football program. Ohio St gets top hires, because they are a top program. As long as Illinois goes 3-8, 5-6, or even 6-6 they are going to get middle of the road hires. Give the guy a chance! Some of you guys on here wouldn't be happy if we hired Saban. "What are we doing hiring Saban? He can't win in the Big Ten." Who would want to come to Illinois? Recruits and coaches catch hell from arm chair coaches on the chat boards before they even step on the field.
I must say at first I wasn't thrilled with MT's pick of Beckman; I was really hoping for Sumlin or Leach. But I guess given our recent spotty history it was gonna very difficult to convince Sumlin to come here, no matter how much money MT threw at him. That said, I am willing to give Beckman a fair shot; reading on his history he seems to be well-organized (something we couldn't say about Zook) and will stress discipline on and off the field (something that's been sorely lacking as of late). So let's not dump on him, let's give him a chance to build the football program into something we Illini alums can be proud of. And with a good number of returnees next year, with a couple of tweaks he just might win 8 or 9 games, and that would be a terrific start.
What Monken and Wilson had was a sense of history about the school. Strong recruiting ties to the state and NFL background. Top recruits want to know how to get to the next level. As, for coaches that succeeded without coordinator or head coaching experience: Urban Meyer, Kurt Ferentz, Les Miles, Dabo Sweeny etc. Top running backs and OL would consider ILL if Wilson was here w/2 super bowl rings: Coaching Rashard Mendenhal(didn't he go here) Emmett Smith, Curtis Martin, Edgerin James, Stephen Davis,Troy Davis 2X 2000 yd rusher Coached w/Carroll, Gruden, Green, Gibbs, Tomlin, Tiller. Something should have rubbed off. BTW played at ILL. That recipe is working at Northwestern 6 straight bowl games. If we were going to get a MAC coach get the guy at NIU. He was a Big Ten Coordinator and has recruited Chicago and the state. We will have similar post in 3 -4 years.
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