Hoke to San Diego State a puzzling move

2009-09-08T11:21:01-04:00

2008-12-15T02:26:39-05:00

2008-12-17T00:31:14-05:00

2062

Sandy Underpants

Los Angeles 481510

21 LOL. Duhwhine Walker lost out on another promotion. I guess he's stuck being a loser Bruin for life. Hey, Pete Carrol told Walker that UCLA was a dead-end job, should've listened to a guy who had his best interests at heart. DW, go back to selling encyclopedias, now that's a step up. 3681342

2008-12-16T14:35:55-05:00

ehazard

New York 31810

20 You know, McCartney, you could do something radical like calling Hoke up and asking him. It seems to me that they teach interviewing and source building in journalism schoool. 3675142

2008-12-16T12:50:08-05:00

Sparky12345

Salt Lake City 570620

19 Leaving to be a head coach at a college program that doesn't even have their own stadium? Good luck with that. 3672976

2008-12-15T18:14:49-05:00

http://img.fannation.com/upload/user_profile/image/363/129/thumb/ndsucks.jpg 90 IN

NDSUCKS08

Notre Dame 363569

18 Hey they almost beat ND, wait almost everyone has beat the Irish the last two years. GO WARRIORS!!!! 3665290

2008-12-15T16:43:19-05:00

http://img.fannation.com/upload/user_profile/image/634/317/thumb/untitled.bmp 1 IN

rainkote

Muncie 634957

17 Money talks. Oh what will you do for the money! I guess anything. Bye Brady. 3664024

2008-12-15T14:45:40-05:00

http://img.fannation.com/upload/user_profile/image/407/847/thumb/1185421530773.jpg 206 VA

conesy

Springfield 408287

16 Other than the reasons listed I can't help but get the feeling that he's leaving while his stock is still high 3661530

2008-12-15T12:39:34-05:00

bsufan

Bluffton 634849

15 Something tells me he knew Nate Davis is gonna try to go pro along with his senior laden offensive line not gonna be back. Hoke wants to go out with a bang. He probably panicked when auburn didn't come calling back as he already had his mind made up he was leaving. Its too bad Dante Love couldn't have rode this ride with them. They woulda gotten more respect in the polls earlier and their offense truly woulda been something special. 3659435

2008-12-15T11:43:08-05:00

http://img.fannation.com/upload/user_profile/image/483/1/thumb/byebyetn.jpg 2198

rhymeister

tea town aka Tokyo 4851

14 Nothing against the state of Indiana but SD probably has the nicest climate in the continental U.S. I'd certainly live there over Muncie but the cost of living is certainly about twice if not 3X more expensive than Munice. I wonder Hoke knows that... 3658495

2008-12-15T09:20:33-05:00

181

CuseFanInSoCal

San Diego 190925

13 SDSU certainly ought to be a top-tier mid-major job (though it isn't right now). You're in a beautiful city with perfect weather that's also a fertile recruiting area. You're in by far the best non-BCS conference, which admittedly means some very tough competition (Utah, BYU, TCU, and to a lesser extent Air Force) but also means winning the MWC means a lot more; if TCU had beat Utah, they likely would have gotten into the BCS at 11-1 -- a non-MWC mid-major would never be able to do that. Still, a lot of coaches have struggled here. I'm just not sure why. 3655968

2008-12-15T07:10:13-05:00

http://img.fannation.com/upload/user_profile/image/388/443/thumb/100_1066.jpg 6 KS

adastra23

Manhattan 388883

4 You know, there's something to be said in favor of living in San Diego in all of this. The campus is really nice, and its in a great part of the city. 3655310

2008-12-15T09:13:04-05:00

Aolin

Oklahoma City 634712

You know, there's something to be said in favor of living in San Diego in all of this. The campus is really nice, and its in a great part of the city.

12 Doesn't San Diego translate to "Whale ****?" Stay classy! 3655883

<div class="photo_container image_right"> <div class="photo"><img src="http://img.fannation.com/upload/si_blog_post_images/brady-hoke-sweep.jpg" alt="Brady-hoke-sweep" width="298" height="270" /></div> <div class="photo_attributes" style="text-align: left;">Brady Hoke will reportedly be named San Diego State coach. AP</div> </div> In putting a dormant Ball State program in the national spotlight, Brady Hoke was bound to be a wanted man, so his reported departure isn't going to stun anyone -- however the school he's leaving for certainly will. Hoke will reportedly be named San Diego State's next coach as early as Monday according to numerous reports, <a href="http://www.signonsandiego.com/sports/aztecs/20081214-9999-1s15azzfoot.html">including the San Diego Union-Tribune</a>. He will leave his alma mater after a 12-1 regular season that landed him a guest spot on the <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mErqJBbCjsc">Late Show with David Letterman </a>to take over a program that hasn't won more than five games since 2003 and hasn't been to a bowl game in 10 years. No contract figures have been reported, but it was believed that San Diego State could triple Hoke's current base salary of $240,000. The move isn't without its basis: Hoke has SDSU ties with his brother Jon, who was an Aztecs assistant from 1987-88 and he recruited in California while on staff at Michigan. But was Hoke really pining that much to get out of Muncie, Ind., that he'd take over a program in shambles? There are the obvious draws, like better facilities with Qualcomm Stadium and the fact that he now gets to live in a place where it doesn't have the potential to snow seven months out of the year, but for the next few years Hoke will be chasing respectability and not bowl bids. If this move makes little sense for Hoke, you can say the same about the Aztecs. They were rumored to have also been considering UCLA defensive coordinator DeWayne Walker, who recruits the L.A. area and is from Southern California. But conventional moves have made little sense for SDSU as of late, like the hiring of Chuck Long, who had no previous head coaching experience. Hoke will be taking over a rebuilding project that would turn away Norm Abrams. The Aztecs ranked 91st or lower in 13 major national categories this season, including total offense (99th) and total defense (112th). There is no quick turnaround, as Long found out in getting canned after going 9-27 in three seasons. Hoke will have his work cut out for him to make SDSU a Mountain West contender, though if he did manage to do at SDSU what he's done at Ball State, he'd likely be even more sought-after. Remember, Hokie did interview with Auburn before it hired Gene Chizik away from Iowa State, though it's unclear whether he was truly considered for the job or simply brought in at the recommendation of a search committee. Re-establishing another program could allow him to write his own ticket and maybe that's why Hoke is leaving the school where he played and received his first shot as a head coach. Still, it's hard to imagine why this is ultimately the job an up-and-coming coach would have picked following his breakout season. Of course, it is a move that is rather reminiscent of one another MAC coach made in jumping to the MWC when Urban Meyer left Bowling Green to go to Utah -- and we all know how that one turned out.     32441 http://img.fannation.com/upload/user_profile/image/471/4/thumb/mccartney_cory.jpg 15 GA

Cory McCartney

Atlanta 4734