[NU Sports] Cardiac Cats!!!!!

[CHerron604 at aol.com]

The only issue with 'insider only' candidates, is that the last hire, Greg  
Colby, was not hired in this manner.
 
Colby's only 2 connections to RW were tenuous at best.  In 1988 and  1989, 
while RW was coaching Running Backs at NU, GC was coaching Outside  Linebackers 
and Special Teams at Illinois.  We lost to the Illini 9-14 in  Champaign in 
'88, and again 14-63 in Evanston in '89.  We went 2-19-1 those  2 years (under 
Francis Peay), and Illinois went 16-7-1 under John Mackovic,  losing to Florida 
in the All-American Bowl in 1988 and beating Virginia in the  Citrus Bowl in 
1989.  So the extent of RW's connection with GC might have  been being 
impressed with the linebacking or special teams during one long  afternoon in 
November of 1989.
 
The second would have been in November of 1998, when RW was head coach at  
Miami, and they beat Kent 56-0, with GC serving as Kent's DC.  Kent went  0-11 
that year, giving up about 42 points per game.
 
So Randy Walker faced Greg Colby across the sidelines exactly 3 times in a  
14 year period, in 3 rather forgettable games.  The team Colby was  associated 
with probably only impressed RW slightly in '89.  The other two  performances 
could not have left much impact.  Yet he brought him into the  program in 
2002.  Since this was the most recent DC hiring, and PF is known  to deeply 
respect the things RW did, why would we assume PF would only bring in  someone who 
had an NU connection, or whom PF had worked with closely ?   Might he be brave 
enough to make an outside hire, since this is what RW had done  only 6 years 
previously ?
 
Chuck Herron   Tech '85



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