Why James Franklin fired Kirk Ciarrocca, even though he knew he might need to replace Mike Yurcich next year | Jones

Three main issues arise from James Franklin’s swift exchange of his offensive coordinator, announced yesterday morning with more than any surprise:

1. How do you fire Kirk Ciarrocca after just a single season, when he had no personal preparation work because of the COVID pandemic with players he barely knew, and then lost his two best running backs before the second series of the season ? Doesn’t the guy deserve another year?

2. How will Ciarrocca’s replacement Mike Yurcich’s attack be considerably different or more effective? What in your past as OC in Texas (2020), QB coach in Ohio State (2019) and OC in Oklahoma State (2013-18) can we extrapolate to your new job as OC in Penn State?

3. How can you depend on Yurcich to stay for more than a year, when this is his fourth show at a different school in the past four years and he is clearly ready for a job as a head coach if he succeeds?

Answer 1

I think it all comes back to a point that I feel compelled to emphasize again, although I’ve done it before and I’m getting tired of the topic: the crazy salaries of the college football coach today are driving this insane game of musical chairs. Assistants can easily double their salaries, moving from position coach to coordinator and quadruple them again from coordinator to head coach, that loyalty to the program is an archaic concept. You can’t blame them for skipping jobs.

But in this case, I will take it a step further: I think the head coaches have surrendered to market forces. They are not even trying to stabilize their teams because they think it is a lost cause.

So, men like James Franklin with big bets involved simply won’t wait any longer. They see an available assistant they want, weigh the guy they have against him, and if they think it’s an upgrade, they’ll do the same thing that a hot assistant with potential customers will do – pull the trigger.

With athletes getting new freedom of movement, it’s a game of transience in all directions. Even the alleged COVID austerity that we were told we could see appears to have had no effect in this realm. Athletic directors, head coaches, assistants, college transfers, high school recruits. Everyone reserves the right to move at any time. You either adapt to that reality or you are bound to fall behind those who remain continuously alert and proactive.

Is it fair that Ciarrocca doesn’t have more time? No not a bit. I would say it was a pretty cold move by Franklin under the circumstances.

but, you know what? With money flying nowadays, Ciarrocca will cling somewhere and take good care of his family. It’s not like being fired.

And he got to know when he moved from Minnesota to the sport scene in which he works. Even more today than the NFL, I think college football is the epitome of the phrase neo-Mad Men, “a results-oriented business”. You have a more limited window than ever before to produce. And if you don’t swim fast, the first wave will pull you back.

Answer # 2

For all intents and purposes, it is a very impressive signing. Yurcich, 45, is a guy from Cleveland who first played as a defender on the legendary Mount Union (OH) of Division III, then was transferred to California (PA), where he was a starter for 3 years.

He started a long coaching term at PSAC at a small college, first in Edinboro, then in Shippensburg, where his QB, Zach Zulli of Perkiomen Valley, set all kinds of NCAA Division II records. In 2012, Zulli led all divisions with 4,747 passing yards and 54 touchdowns (a D-II record). His 344 points scored in passes and runs were another D-II record in a single season.

This caught the attention of diligent browser Mike Gundy, who was doing extensive research on the Internet looking for a new OC. He had to fire a local firefighter who filmed the Ship U. games to record on video. But he loved what he saw. Yes, he was really thinking about hiring a D-II assistant to be his OC in a Power Five heavyweight.

The Oklahoma State coach took a while to track Yurcich over the phone, dealing with how he was with lines of communication from small colleges, unanswered office phones and tiny administrative staff. But when he did, he liked what he heard during a long conversation.

As Adam Rittenberg of ESPN.com said in a fantastic 2017 narrative, Gundy offered the job to Yurcich over the phone – $ 400,000 per season for four years – pretty much a market value for garden variety coordinator in 2013. There was no response from across the line for several seconds so that Gundy had to make sure the connection was not lost. Gundy asked Yurcich if he needed to consult his wife. He replied that no, that would not be necessary. See, he was making $ 52,000 in Ship.

It took a few years, the second harder than the first. Okie State fans were impatient with what appeared to be a signing for failure. But as soon as Yurcich started having fun with his quarterback Mason Rudolph in 2015, the Cowboys left for the races. They presented great offensive numbers and plays that pleased the audience.

The culmination came in 2017: Rudolph won the Unitas Award, passing 4,553 yards, 35 touchdowns and 9 interceptions, with a completion rate of 0.650. The nudges averaged 45 points and 569 yards per game. In its three losses, they scored 31, 40 and 52.

All of this meant that Rudolph was chosen in the third round of the 2018 NFL Draft by the Steelers and Yurcich courted by some of the main suitors. He stayed put in 2018, but finally bit Ryan Day’s hook in 2019 to be the Buckeyes’ QB coach and pass game coordinator. Training Justin Fields and the OSU receiving squad was too much to pass up. And also the annual salary of $ 950,000.

Once again, Yurcich introduced himself. That is, Fields and his targets were executed. QB had a phenomenal second-year season, pitching for 3,273 yards, 41 TDs and just 3 interceptions with a percentage of 0.672. Day and Kevin Wilson executed the attack, so Yurcich did not announce plays. He simply did the exact job for which he was hired – turning a rough diamond into a finished jewel that maximized the production of Chris Olave, KJ Hill, Binjimen Victor and Garrett Wilson receivers. Only Penn State and Wisconsin came close to slowing the Buckeye pass game; not even Clemson really managed in his win by 28-23 CFP semi.

Which led to a call from the Buckeyes’ old assistant in the same role, Texas coach Tom Herman, the man who switched three OSU QBs due to injuries en route to the 2014 national title.

Having reached his maximum limit in Columbus and eager to reconnect with his duties as a coordinator, Yurcich accepted an annual salary of $ 1.7 million as an offensive coordinator for the Longhorns (later downgraded to $ 1.5 million for a cut in the payroll. UT COVID payment), making him the tenth highest paid assistant in college football. He would technically share the role of OC with line specialist O and former PSU assistant Herb Hand, but Yurcich was in control.

Or was he? Among a quartet of Texas experts I consulted for this story, everyone expressed doubts that Yurcich was giving the cards. Three, regardless, commented that they thought he was forced to alter his usual “jet” pace for the more conservative Herman, partly because the Longhorns’ defense was awful at first and Herman thought it was important to keep him out of the field as much as possible. possible .

Texas had some big numbers, especially late. But there were doubts as to why true first-year runner Bijan Robinson, a future NFL pro, didn’t pick up the ball until the last few games, including an explosion at the Alamo Bowl in Colorado. And others about Herman’s love affair with QB Sam Ehlinger, a tough runner who really didn’t have the arm to effectively threaten defenses in depth.

The Horns won 5 of their last 6 and scored a lot of points, but looked sloppy in the streak. They lost a 10 point home advantage in the third quarter to the state of Iowa and lost a critical decision of 23-20, missing a fake punt and then a 4th and 1 after avoiding a 30-yard field goal that would have put them 7 in the middle of the fourth quarter. These were certainly decisions overturned by Herman, the kind that a coach usually makes.

According to all reports, Yurcich tried to adapt his scheme – racing game with force and a pocket passer QB launching vertical game action, always out of the gun – for his inadequate staff and domineering head coach. But the Horns’ 7-3 result with defeats to the Oklahoma, Texas Christian and ISU Nemeses caused Herman and his team to be fired. His unexpected layoff by Texas AD Chris Del Conte last week (in favor of Steve Sarkisian, of all candidates) freed Yurcich at an extraordinarily late date in what Franklin likes to call the “silly season”, the coach confusion in December and its endless monitoring of rumors.

Answer # 3

Which, incidentally, never generated much talk about Yurcich, and not a tweet from the national agent’s hunting dogs linking him to Penn State. Franklin moved stealthily.

Interestingly, after spending 12 seasons on the dark levels of NAIA and Division II, and then six more on his first stop at FBS, Oklahoma State, Yurcich began to embrace the career ladder. Gundy told Rittenberg, in that ESPN.com story three years ago, that he expected Yurcich to become a head coach, although he was never at any level. And when assistants start to work in droves, that is almost always the end goal.

Well, Yurcich is still a step away. He could have climbed from Texas if Herman hadn’t been fired. While Ciarrocca professed little ambition to become a head coach and has the modest and unassuming personality of a career assistant, Yurcich certainly seems to have the necessary ambition and momentum and the lively personality to match. An AD could sell it to its donors, chancellor and fan base.

There is certainly material to work on at the PSU next season, especially with a pair of experienced pocket passers, talented running backs and talented young receivers in the stable. The recently announced return of WR Jahan Dotson could not have hurt Franklin’s pitch to Yurcich.

The potential reward is there for everyone if the new OC turns PSU into a points machine.

So, the answer is: Franklin can’t hold him back if the Nittany Lion’s attack has a big 2021 and performs in the big games. Like Joe Moorhead after 2017, Yurcich will be worth at least four times what Penn State pays him and will have a chance to run his own store.

Then, the man who earned his primary teacher salary just eight years ago will move on to fifth school in five years to earn a hundred times more.

And Franklin will begin to flip through his black book again. That’s how it really works today in big college football, where austerity measures are still basically a rumor.

More PennLive sports coverage:

• What should Penn State’s new crime be like in 2021? Meet Mike Yurcich, his style and more.

• Penn State’s James Franklin sends Kirk Ciarrocca away after one season to debut in his fifth OC in eight years.

• For Frank Reich, a trip back to Buffalo for the wildcard playoff brings back good memories, but now it’s all business | Jones.