Ricky Santos
Big Difference
The Columbia Football program is in MUCH better shape in every way compared to where it was at this point nine years ago the last time the head coaching slot was open. This is true for a number of subcategories, including player quality, facilities, program reputation, and recruiting reach.
The Al Bagnoli/Peter Pilling effect on this operation has been undeniably positive.
Bagnoli took over a team in 2015 that hadn't had a winning season in 19 years. He left after having achieved FOUR winning seasons in the seven total years he was on the sidelines, (of course one of his eight years, was the COVID year that was canceled).
What that means is for the first time since Lou Little retired after the 1956, hiring a new head coach with a familiarity for and belief in the previous (non-interim) head coach's system will be a POSITIVE.
That's why I believe there's a good chance coaches who worked under Bagnoli at Columbia in the past have a great shot of getting this job.
Former CU QB's coach and current University of New Hampshire head coach Rick Santos is one guy who checks those boxes and more. He remains close with a number of players from his years at Columbia and he's at least maintained UNH as a competitive team. Perhaps more important than all, his Wildcat teams have remained offensive juggernauts during his tenure and offense is something the Lions need to improve immediately.
Sources tell me Santos' candidacy is considered to be so strong, that some other potential coaches have decided not to apply for this job.
Another coach from the Bagnoli/Columbia tree is Jon Poppe, who's still in the midst of a 10-1 season in his first year at the helm at Union College. His Garnet Chargers (yeah, that's the team name... don't ask) are getting ready to take on Johns Hopkins in the second round of the D-III playoffs this Saturday. Poppe also has some family connections to Columbia in addition to his years under Bagnoli; his father Bill '70 and brother Will '00 both played for the Lions. All three of them are Bergen Catholic grads.
There's also Ryan Larsen who took over the QB coaching job under Bagnoli after Santos left before becoming the head coach at Carnegie Mellon in 2022. All Larsen has done in his two seasons for the Tartans is oversee a 21-2 overall won-loss record.
WOW Factor?
But maybe the above scenario and names are only what everyone is expecting Pilling to do.
Remember, Pilling knocked our socks off with the Bagnoli hire in 2015, and he's had ample time to set up something major like that again.
Months ago, I learned that former Mississippi State and Florida head coach Dan Mullen had made some inquiries with the Columbia administration about the head coaching job. Just how serious those inquiries really were, I do not know.
Pilling is also a guy with heavy connections to the Philadelphia area and Villanova in particular. A number of folks have mentioned Chris Boden, the current offensive coordinator for the Wildcats as a possible candidate for Columbia.
Another trend in sports is for assistants for newly hot teams to become heavily in demand for open jobs elsewhere. That would make James Madison offensive coordinator Mike Shanahan an interesting possibility (no he is NOT related to the family of current 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan).
I'm sure there are plenty of names I'm forgetting, but let the speculation begin!
124 comments:
Ricky Santos wouldn't leave a good coaching job in UNH for a position at Columbia.
Columbia job would be a significant step up in salary I suspect.
Stovall would be an outstanding HC and the players want him
You are right about Stovall. Of course, he would have to bring in a strong offensive person.
One thing that might work against him, is that any new coach, particularly if they are an offensive person, would likely want to keep him on staff. That might hurt his chances.
Who is still on the staff? Who is handling recruiting, off-season training program, speaking with seniors eligible to come back, etc.? I thought that the press release regarding Mark’s non-retention was pretty sterile and could have been a little more gracious in thanking Mark for stepping in as interim HC on short notice.
I had thought of Stovall. I think that probably depends upon whether Pilling and his inner circle think that we just need some tweaks to the program and staff as opposed to a fresh new look. Is Al in the loop on this?
Stovall, huh???? Ummm, did you see the defense this year (minus the LBs)? You have hobbits for DBs and FS’ who can’t tackle and you want to reward this??? Yeah, that sounds about right.
You have know idea what your talking about. Stovall is a leader of men and the team wants him as their HC. That’s a fact. Poll the team and you will find that out. Coming from the players.
The interesting thing is that if Mark was named HC instead of interim when Al had to leave he would still be the coach. You dont pull the plug after one year. But given that he was not the HC, agreeing with other posts, even though he may be a great guy, you just could not justify elevating him given the results on the field and the expectations for this season. I think he might have been retained had he come from the defensive side of the ball or if we were losing every game 40 to 30. He was tied to the offense. It does not matter now buti am wondering if this season might have been different. had more thought been given to which assistant would run the show. I think there could have been a nicer send off for Mark thanking him for his nine years. Not clear whether he is out now or still there. I think other members of staff should be considered for sure if we think this is a quick fix and we still have good players in the program. If not, makes sense to go outside but even if the pay is good not sure how attractive this job really is. In the last 70 years, with the exception of Al who retired and Bob Shoop and Norries Wilson, this Job has marked the end of coaching jobs for the HC and i am not convinced that an up and coming young coach especially if they have a family would want to move to NYC and take this job. maybe someone like Tom Gilmore or Dan Mullin make more sense and have less to lose by coming to Columbia.
I will certainly try to be polite for fear of being yet again chastised by the fragile group of non-supporting supporters. So you all fill in your favorite descriptor for the highly skilled football commentator who shared his learned view on this year’s defense. I do not claim they were the 85 Bears, but this defense gave up 24, 0, 10, 0, 20, 13, 35, 31, 14, 14 (I backed out the 2 blocked punt and overtime td’s, I suppose I could also account for the 16 points scored by the defense but i did not). Keep in mind both Lafayette and H were ranked teams this year.
How am I supposed to not insult the person disparaging the coaches and players who produced these results?
Players will not play for Gilmore. 5th years will definitely not return for that. Cant you guys do even a modicum of research before making suggestions.
My guess is he gets hired away if he doesn't get HC. Not a reason for him to get the job but decision-makers should have it as part of overall calculus for final decision
"Leader of men"!
Gilmore is what this program needs. He is a red ass and will hold everyone accountable for results
I don't buy that Mullen would come here. That guy was good at Miss St and had 2 down years at Florida, one of which was an 8 win season. Florida has fired several guys in recent history. Seems like he could get a much better job than Columbia.
Haha. Absolutely no way would Mullen remotely consider coaching at Columbia. Maybe an up and coming D3 Coach but you are really reaching w Mullen
What about the coach from Muhlenberg?
Just curious, what research did you do to come to your conclusion about Gilmore and nobody wanting to play for him? His name has come up a few times so your statement is important, provided you've done some sort of analysis. Thanks.
Stovall… leader of men… great! He put out a defense that couldn’t compete in Sprint Football. Forget that, no, no, the kids like him! How about taking a fan pill that you had 5’8” DBs on the files play 10-15 yards off the ball. FACTS!!! Who does that? I know what Santa is bringing your son, another participation trophy.
Since 2018, Nate Milne has been 50-10 at Muhlenberg. Before coming to Muhlenberg, he was at Susquehanna, and before that at Cortland State. Once he was named Head Coach he remained the Offensive Coordinator.
Maybe if Mark Fabish did the same thing, we would not be having this conversation.
What about Mike Willis, Offensive Coordinator at Princeton for last five years? Has been at Princeton since graduating from there in 2013. In 2017, was named Assistant Head Coach. The problem may be prying him away.
The future of the game is in a pass heavy offense. Look for somebody who has developed a dynamic pass game. Santos comes to mind. As far as Stovall playing short DBs, he put the best guys he had on the field and designed a pass defense which avoided the long gains. Sure we would all like 6’2” corners and safeties, but there aren’t many of those guys playing in the IL.
He was run out of HC and was a complete dumpster fire at Lehigh. Has absolute disdain for players. They literally hate playing for him.
So not really any legit info here other than his record. When you say "players won't play for Gilmore" that's really just an opinion. The Columbia kids may not even know the guy, right?
Gilmore really only had one great year, 2009 at Holy Cross.
And yet my info comes directly from lehigh player on his teams there
Santos made a name for himself in the FCS playoffs. He led New Hampshire to the FCS playoffs last year. Maybe if the Ivy League went to the playoffs he would consider Columbia but that's the stage he's used to playing on.
Good observation but unlikely to ever happen for the league.
Ok so that's decent info. That's what we're looking for here. Statements supported by some evidence. Much better.
I am all in for Gilmore. Players will not be soft playing for him
Are you saying Milne would not be the right hire? Why surface Willis over him?
We need a young, offensive minded coach who is hungry for the job. Ideally, no family and no golf clubs. We need more proof that Gilmore is a good candidate. Saying he's a red ass and all of that doesn't prove anything. Gilmore is too old and wasn't a successful HC. Can't we do better than that?
Need to read patriot league content too. Long reputation of being vindictive, thats not “tough coaching”. And in any case that doesnt work in IL. Evidently his go-to coaching move is threaten players’ scholarships
That’s only soft players and parents commenting about Gilmore. Kraft is a fan of Tom btw
What about Phil Estes? Won three IL titles
Estes will be 66 before the start of next season.
Probably playing dominoes at Del Boca Vista.
Younger than Al
Happy Festivus
"Younger than Al" - Not at the time of hiring.
The guy hasn't been successful as a head coach. He's too old and hasn't won. Also, just to be clear, if you're saying he won't tolerate soft players, you're sort of suggesting that's a problem now. Last week, Fabish was the problem. Now you want to hire an old school "red ass" to toughen the players up? We can do better.
I cannot speculate whether the experience Milne has collected being a successful head coach, even at a small school, is more valuable, than having been a successful offensive coordinator at a hugely successful Ivy League program for five years, after being on staff for a host of years.
If you think about it, Willia at Princeton or Fein at Harvard, have the same CV as Mark Fabish had.. Long term Offensive Coordinators with no head coaching experience.
The goal clearly is to find someone with a proven record of superior knowledge on both sides of the ball, who can put together and mange a staff, and gets buy in from the players.
Somehow getting someone with all those skills may not be possible. At that point, triage is required. Which of those attributes do you compromise?
Very good discussions here. My two cents is Boden from Villanova. On the younger side, played and coached in proven program. You won't see the Hurry Up and Wait, two yard pass offense nor the bubble screen. A Talley disciple which is a stellar attribute. True no head coach experience but isn't the time just right to have someone with extensive experience to take over? Follow Bagnoli's 3 OOC cupcake theory and win 2 Ivy and you have a first year 5-5!
Recruiting is #1 I would think; especially of offensive linemen, where we were basically shut out on all Ivy recognition except for one HM
I am all in on that
Estes is a GREAT idea! That guy did more with less than any other coach in the Ivies. HE would be a WOW factor and validate any concerns internally or externally.
Regarding Gilmore and these parents who say that the kids wouldn't play for him for their 5th year. They don't even know Coach Gilmore. You are trophy (participation) parents who have no clue about the game. These kids (most, not all) are SOFT! Gilmore offers tough love, accountability and he will win here!
Hear me out on this one, is there any merit in considering David Archer as our next head coach? He played in and coached in the Ivy League for the last 20 years. Given the facilities and location of Columbia versus Cornell and Ithaca, could he finally get over the top and capture an Ivy Championship? He could bring his entire staff and/or retain some of the Columbia Staff. Food for Thanksgiving thought.
Archer would never be considered as HC maybe as an assistant.
Here is a name out of left field; Bronco Mendenhall. In retirement from 2021. He did coach Virginia, which according to them, is no different than an Ivy.
Jake, here are a couple of recent commits: 1. Benny Sasso 6'3" 275 Ol, DL, Wall High School, Wall Township, NJ; and 2. Jeremiah Douglas 6'2" 175 Safety, St. Paul's School, Baltimore, Md.
I do agree with the posters who have expressed disappointment with the nature of some of the recent anonymous posts. All the good will you have built up over the years is going to be adversely affected by the one or two bad guys who have infiltrated your blog.
"Here is a name out of left field; Bronco Mendenhall. In retirement from 2021. He did coach Virginia, which according to them, is no different than an Ivy."
Not a chance. They have a new ranch in Bigfoot, Montana. If he coaches again, it would be in the West near Montana.
lol
From one of those tough guy, 4 wins in 4 years Columbia alums? Dude your team nickname was Bye Week
He was a juco head coach in Florida for a number of years before he returned to Villanova
This has to be a joke.
There's no merit in bringing a guy who didn't win in a decade at another Ivy.
You say Gilmore "will win here". Can you provide thoughts on why he hasn't won yet? Why is Columbia a better situation for him than Holy Cross and Lehigh. What do we offer him that was missing in his earlier jobs?
I expect there will be a few candidates considering all three openings, Columbia, Cornell and Stoney Brook.
Aliquippa High School Football - class of 1982.
Former Dartmouth player here--while Gilmore was not my positional coach, I can assure you that his players gladly would have followed him into any battle.
Why all the posts about Tom Gilmore, Jake didn't even mention his name as a possible candidate. Doubtful they would consider him given his past record at Lehigh.
Perhaps, but that is not what players at HC and Lehigh say. People change over time, not necessarily for the better. There is ample evidence his style is no longer successful
Has anyone stopped to wonder just what kind of access to information jake has? He aint no shefty (or more appropriately he aint no RapSheet)
LOL, there is so much disinformation on here. Reading this stuff is like watching the news on TV.
My son is Justin Townsend #36 and he does more than participate. Stovall, the coaches and the players have my entire support. Feel free to sit next to me at the games next season and we can talk about X’s and O’s Let’s go Lions.
Brown has a top offense in the IL. Is there anyone on that offensive staff that should be considered?
I’m sure Jake has more access to inside Columbia information then the majority of posters here including me… lol
Based on …
If the admin had balls they would hire Jeff Devanney from Trinity. Defensive mindset, young, players love him. multiple conf titles. Knows New England recruiting. 121-21 record
Please never make a comment on this blog again, this idea is preposterous. Archer spent 10 years in Ithaca and had no winning season.
"I expect there will be a few candidates considering all three openings, Columbia, Cornell and Stoney Brook."
Yes I would think they will be looking at some of the same candidates.
"Please never make a comment on this blog again, this idea is preposterous. Archer spent 10 years in Ithaca and had no winning season."
Whoever posted about Archer was joking obviously, don't take things so serious. lol
Boden! A no brainier.
You have a former Dartmouth player on this Blog telling you years later that Gilmore breeds loyalty and people still question him? Gilmore was handcuffed at HC because of lack of scholarships. HC opened it up, along with transfers (previously unheard of at HC) with the new coach and then they won. The Leigh administration gave up on Gilmore too soon. Yeah, you can deem all of these as excuses, I get it, but I would rather have this guy on our sidelines with his passion as opposed to some Div.-III coach that will take three years just to get up to speed. Gilmore knows how to build a program, given the time!
I played at CU in the 80s and I can tell you that all of his players saw that he wanted to suit up with you every practice, every play and every game! That's the coach that you want on your sideline!
Enough about Stovall, please. Okay, the players like him, great. His defensive schemes were atrocious. If you listened to the broadcasters of the Yale, PU and Harvard games, they were all befuddled by the fact that our DBs were 10-15 yards off the ball???Opposing OCs, TEs and WRs thank him. Also, they questioned our (entire) secondary's tackling ability; or lack there of. Who teaches players NOT to wrap up? They kept using their bodies to try to tackle. And for those of you who said that the 5'8-5'9 DBs were all that we had... Take an athletic WR, who is not eligible for Sprint Football like our DBs, and put him out there. We would have been better off. If the new coach does retain Stovall, hopefully he will learn his lesson...
I could not pick Gilmore out of a one person lineup, and I have never watched Villanova play. I cannot imagine Willis leaving Princeton, or Fein, Harvard. Yes, there are numerous possibilities. Whomever, gets chosen will likely be better than Mark Fabish was this past season, or Pete Mangurian was pre-Bagnoli.
I think the area of greatest concern, is the present quarterback situation.
It is too late to find some stud recruit who can step in as a Freshman. Maybe, there is a transfer lurking some place.
Sadly, there never was an opportunity to see what the other quarterbacks on our roster can do.
The Al Bagnoli premise of “win with defense, and just do not your offense lose the game” clearly does not work.
This year’s offense did not really turn the ball over at inopportune moments, or give the opposition a short field. They simply did not move the football with any regularity.
The key to success in football is quarterback play, (see the Jets). There are not going to be too many Harvards, where two inexperienced quarterbacks are going to propel you to victory. The truth be known, if Harvard had better quarterbacks they might have beaten Yale in the fourth quarter and won the title outright.
The next set of coaches have to be able to develop a more than adequate starting quarterback with the undefined talent that is already on the team. Having said that, I am more encouraged about next season, sans Fabish. Might Fabish have been great in maybe Year Three of Four, we will never know.
I don't see Collegiate Sports Associates coming back to Pilling and possibly his small committee and putting Gilmore, Estes or guyots like that in front of him. It's gotta be a list with a few young OCs. I don't know the landscape like many here do. However, a guy like Willis at Pton would be good. Maybe not him, but a guy like that.
Young, offensive minded and comes from a winning program. Willis probably wants the Pton job but that's 10 years away. He can stay where he is or run his own program. He may leave at some point but that's what success brings.
One more thought as per above comment. The Columbia job is really hard. As another poster mentioned, it's been the last job for a few guys. Most of those guys were older I think. A young guy like Willis or similar can take the risk of failure and it won't end his career. Willis could not do well and he'd probably still have options. Maybe he goes back to Pton as an assist etc. Again, I'm not suggesting a specific guy and I don't have a great list to provide. My point is simply that a young, offensive type of coach from a winning program might be a good way to go.
Gilmore is the right choice. And he has ties to Kraft
Comment about our DBs not wrapping up—even in the NFL most of the DBs no longer wrap up when they “tackle”. I saw this during a full day of watching NFL football yesterday. I think it’s because 190 pound CBs don’t like to take on 230 pound RBs.
Very true about DBs
As far as QB play, I think the issue was going all in on Bell early in the season, based upon the way he closed out the prior season. As far as Green, in his ROY season he showed a great deal of poise and talent. Of course, he had a decent OL and a better receiving corps, plus two very good RBs including one who could turn a corner and the other of whom could catch out of the backfield. This season I would have started Green and used Bell situationally, right from the Lafayette game. But even that might not have helped in light of the atrocious OL play. Give any decent QB 4 seconds or more to throw and he will usually find a receiver. Our QBs were lucky to get 2 seconds. Maybe a more creative OC would have worked around this, but who really knows?
Won't even get an interview
Larsen was Green’s QB Coach his ROY season.
Do we have the money/ability to go after not just the best head coach but staff? If not, why? If we have what it takes, then we can't settle for people who have lost at prior stops. MANY factors to consider, but demonstrated success has to be at or near the top. Need to pay the staff and resource the program at heights above any other Ivy, if we want to win the Ivy.
"Gilmore is the right choice. And he has ties to Kraft"
Please explain the ties.
" Need to pay the staff and resource the program at heights above any other Ivy, if we want to win the Ivy."
Not very likely.
Al raised the comp level for the staff; I imagine for continuity that one or two of the staff will stay on board. Maybe Bollinger can repay for of his sweetheart $6,000,000 loan and king sized compensation back to help fund the salaries of the new coach and staff (Bollinger’s long tenure put him at the top of the heap among university presidents, around 4 M would be an educated guess; enough for him to buy a coop in the Beresford for 11.7 million).
Also please explain why Gilmore would do better at Columbia than he did at previous schools. Why is this gig better for him? Thanks.
Looks like there will be 4 Northeast FCS jobs open soon. Bob Chesney the Holy Cross HC is rumored to be Syracuse's top choice. So you would have Columbia, Cornell, Stoneybrook and now Holy Cross openings.
I heard former Colgate HC Dan Hunt is interested.
I want a guy who wins.
"I want a guy who wins."
Thanks for that astute observation. lol
It was in response to:
"I played at CU in the 80s and I can tell you that all of his players saw that he wanted to suit up with you every practice, every play and every game! That's the coach that you want on your sideline!"
Who cares about all that? HC, Lehigh under Gilmore and CU in the 80s all never won.
Kevin Daft from Dartmouth?
Wild card coach candidate is Augie Hoffmann. On the staff now, first year. Former NFL player, incredible HS head coach, Rutgers O line coach and RB coach, offensive minded with a ton of experience. NJ native and Boston College grad. Knows the northeast well. Would be able to recruit the Jersey high schools. Players have great respect and he looks like he could still play! Might be the right guy!
Good one!
Former offensive linemen not usually preferred over former offensive QBs etc. (See the non deep thinking Nories Wilson)
Dan Mullen is expected to be named the new Syracuse HC over Bob Chesney.
Surface was an OL and that worked out pretty well.
Meant Surace
If Mullen goes to Syracuse, that might make Nunzio Campanile available. He knows New Jersey even better than Augie Hoffmann, if that is indeed essential.
What kind of person would choose to be a football lineman? I rest my case.
I don't know but I don't want any to be our head coach.
Hunt= excellent choice
HC does not "need" to know NJ, someone on staff does.
Hearing Buckeye fans are disgruntled with Day's performance against Michigan and he may be out of the job. Northeast guy from New Hampshire who could recruit the area well. Would be a big name who could probably bring in big recruits. Most likely a rebound job so wouldn’t stay more than a few years.
Hearing same. This could be the "Wow" factor we need.
Kraft loves Day btw
Day is never looking at us.
Dave Cohen, Assoc HC Wake, would do a great job. And, has all ties needed to piece a great staff together. Would have to get the $ out. Long Island guy.
He has strong NJ connections
Ryan Day coming to Columbia is about as likely as David Archer backfilling him at Ohio State or Archer getting the Texas A&M job. C’mon!!
It’s laughable to hear these FBS head coaches as possibly ever considering Columbia. People need a reality check lol
The Day posts are obviously a joke. Come on, man.
Another one of these terrible commenters who shouldn’t be allowed back on the blog. Jake, please remove anonymous commenters!
I hear a coach with close ties to Kraft may soon be available. Only problem for this crew is that his press conferences dont provide enough insight into the QB situation
This may seem off the wall, but what about Ryan Day?
No, he is not an offensive coach. BB would be terrible. He is not a young offensive genius.
I hear Mike Tomlin has connections to the program. Pilling needs to get out to Piitsburg and close the deal! Not sure what Kraft thinks though
Boden
I would be Kevin Daft the OC at Dartmouth for either the Cornell or Columbia job.
Dan Swanstrom- OC at Penn. Former HC at Ithaca and OC under Jim Margraff at Hopkins. He is a winner!
I like Penn’s offense
Whoever said UNH is at least competitive is way off base. Go look at the playoff record even last year. They also have two Walter Payton candidates on the roster this year. Go ask coaches around The FCS and they will tell you UNH is more than just competitive. Ricky makes 260,000 base plus incentives and a house.
Let me assure you, the UNH coach does not get a house. I know that for a fact.
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