Posted by: Pete Roussel on May 18, 2012

The spring semester has ended for many colleges, which means it's that time of year when college football coaches hold on tight to learn the academic eligibility of their players.

Already, we have learned that Clemson running back Mike Bellamy and Ole Miss wide receiver / corner Nick Brassell have failed to meet the necessary academic requirements.

Brassell is arguably the most talented player on the Ole Miss roster.  As a true freshman, Bellamy was Clemson's second leading rusher.

In the next couple of weeks, there will be plenty more to come.

While the players are ultimately accountable, the role of academic support system is critical to the success of any program and coaching staff.

The three previous head coach at Ole Miss (David Cutcliffe, Ed Orgeron, and Houston Nutt) begged former athletic director Pete Boone for academic support system leadership changes.  Not until recently, however, did Ole Miss make a change.

The reality is athletic departments that are not committed to providing the best academic support system for their players face a disadvantage in recruiting and undoubtedly face the consequences this time of year.

I will never forget Mike Sherman's quote from his exit speech at Texas A&M.

Sherman stated, "Our academic support group is second to none in the country. There is not another school in the America that helps their student -athletes the way we do.  It's by far the greatest recruiting tool we have at Texas A&M.  I am so proud of the men and woman in our academic support staff."

That, my friends, is what you're competing against.

It's not just stadiums, indoor facilities, and tradition.

In the power conferences, whether you're in the SEC or not, if you're not trying to be the best in the country in academic support, then you're wasting your time.  I can assure they are at places like Alabama, LSU, and Texas A&M.  And that's who you're recruiting against.

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Pete Roussel is a valuable resource for coaches, athletic directors, NFL front-office personnel, and college football enthusiasts. A former college football coach, Roussel shares insight on coaches 365 days a year and is recognized as the most trusted expert on coaching transactions. Follow @CoachingSearch on twitter and send your feedback to pete@coachingsearch.com

Posted by: Pete Roussel on May 15, 2012

Only 16 programs in the country were able to keep their entire coaching staff intact this off-season.  Some coaches believe the continuity serves as a real advantage for the coaches and players.  Amazingly, Chip Kelly is the only head coach in the country that will enter the 2012 season with the same 9 assistants that started the 2009 season.

Here's the list of coaching staffs that remained completely intact this off-season:

BYU: Brandon Doman enters his second season as the offensive coordinator / quarterbacks coach.  Bronco Mendenhall will once again serve as the defensive coordinator.  Coming off a 10-3 season, BYU opens the season against Washington State.  BYU plays back-to-back games in October at Notre Dame and at Georgia Tech.

Colorado: In Jon Embree's first season as head coach, the Buffaloes finished 3-10.  Colorado finished 109th nationally in total offense and total defense.  Eric Bieniemy returns as offensive coordinator, while Greg Brown will once again coordinate the defense.  The schedule begins with Colorado State (Mile High Stadium), Sacramento State, and at Fresno State.

Florida State: Jimbo Fisher recently said on the SiriusXM College Football Playbook, "I said it in a couple of our alumni meetings, I think we're going to be a really good football team.  I really believe that.  I've never said it since I've been here because I know we're becoming a program because we're developing depth and I feel very good about it."

Fisher added, "But like I told folks the other day, I said if going into a season that you lost 4 of your top 8 offensive lineman, you lost your quarterback for two-and-a-half games, your top two tailbacks never played all year except for about three games, you lost your best receiver before the year started --- he never played a down, your next best receiver got hurt in the second game for five games, then you had a freshman who was phenomenal in Rashad Green and then he got hurt for five games --- was MVP of the bowl game, and in the bowl game you play 7 true-freshman and 8 on the field at a time with a redshirt freshman in Christian Green, and finished 9-4, who you really be disappointed?  That's what happened."

Georgia: Defensive coordinator Todd Grantham recently said, "We're a mix and match team. Meaning, we're always going to try to get our best players on the field." He added, "Last year, we had 11 lineups in 14 different games because of our linebacking situation."  Georgia opens against Buffalo, then travels to Missouri.

LA Tech: Sonny Dykes is coming off an 8-5 season and agreed to a new contract through 2017.  The 2012 season begins with five non-conference games against Texas A&M (Shreveport), at Houston, Rice, at Illinois, at Virginia.  Tony Franklin and Tommy Spangler return as the coordinators.

UL-Lafayette: Coming off a 9-4 season, Mark Hudspeth was really pleased with the way his team progressed during spring practice.  He likes the make-up of his team.  Following the spring game, Hudspeth said, "The thing I continue to see is a group of guys that absolutely every time they play believe they're going to win."  Another good sign, Hud tweeted on Monday, "The UL Ragin Cajun football team just finished the spring semester with the highest team GPA in school history!!"

Miami (FL): Offensive line coach Art Kehoe recently told ESPN, "If anybody thinks Miami is gone, you're going to learn the hard way. We are not gone, and we're not falling off by the wayside. We're going to win and we're going to win big, and the reason I feel that is the guy at the top."  Coming off a 6-6 season, Al Golden enters his second season with Jedd Fisch and Mark D'Onofrio.

Michigan: Brady Hoke kept his entire staff intact after winning the Sugar Bowl.

Michigan State: Pointing the success of the program, Mark Dantonio recently told the Big Ten Network, "We understand our surroundings.  We understand the people.  I think the biggest things when you look at Michigan State as a program right now, and you look forward, not behind us, but you look forward, we've been able to get to where we are because of continuity on our staff. I think our strength coaches work extremely hard, we've improved greatly there."

He added, "You've got the same players, very little attrition, so we don't have 25 guys we're recruiting every year.  We've maintained about 19 or 20 guys that we recruit every year, so not a lot of guys leaving.  Then we also have great team chemistry in our locker room, so I think those things have afforded us to try to move forward in every year we've been here."

Minnesota: Jerry Kill recently brought in Tony Dungy to speak to his team.  Dungy told the Gophers, "Most people think it takes talent, but that's really way down the line.  You got to have talent to win a talent to win a championship, but that's not #1, #2, #3, #4.  I coached seven years in Indianapolis.  We won one Super Bowl.  That Super Bowl team was probably #5 in terms of talent level in all the teams we had, but that team was the team that worked the hardest, that stuck together the most, that was willing to pay the price to overcome adversity and that's why we won."  Kill admitted during spring ball that he doesn't want any of his players to get too comfortable knowing they've got a position secured.  The Gophers open at UNLV before returning home to play New Hampshire and Western Michigan.

Mississippi State: Dan Mullen said recently, "I wanted to get rid of the complacency this spring."  The Bulldogs begin the 2012 season against Jackson State, Auburn, at Troy, and South Alabama.  Keep your eyes open if you're eating dinner at Chili's in the state of Mississippi. It's possible that you'll see co-defensive coordinator / linebackers coach Geoff Collins sitting at the Chili's bar watching spring cut-ups on his iPad.

Northwestern: Offensive coordinator Mick McCall, who interviewed for the Tulane head coaching job during the off-season, returns for his fifth season under Pat Fitzgerald.  Mike Hankwitz will once again coordinate the defense.  Northwestern opens at Syracuse before returning home to play Vanderbilt and Boston College.

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Oregon: Chip Kelly is the only head coach in the country to keep his entire 9 assistant coaches intact since the start of the 2009 season.

San Diego State: Rocky Long enters his second season as head coach with the same 9 assistant coaches including offensive coordinator Andy Ludwig.

Texas: Defensive coordinator Manny Diaz made the list of 11 coaches that will keep college football fans entertained in 2012.  Meanwhile, Brian Harsin just invented another pre-snap shift.

Virginia: Mike London was able to keep his entire staff intact including offensive coordinator Bill Lazor and defensive coordinator Jim Reid.  Lazor will now coach the wide receivers in addition to serving as the offensive coordinator / quarterbacks coach.  Shawn Moore shift from wide receivers to tight ends.

Virginia Tech: Frank Beamer opens the 2012 season with a Monday night 8 pm ET kick-off against Georgia  Tech.  The Yellow Jackets have a new special teams coordinator in Dave Wolkosky.  He's probably thinking, "Great.  My first game as the Georgia Tech special teams coordinator and I get 'Beamer Ball' in Lane Stadium on national TV with the entire country watching on a Monday night."

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Pete Roussel is a valuable resource for coaches, athletic directors, NFL front-office personnel, and college football enthusiasts. A former college football coach, Roussel shares insight on coaches 365 days a year and is recognized as the most trusted expert on coaching transactions. Follow @CoachingSearch on twitter and send your feedback to pete@coachingsearch.com

Posted by: Pete Roussel on May 14, 2012

After admitting he actually met his wife at a blackjack table in Vegas, recently married Bret Bielema talked about the Wisconsin program today with Mark Packer on SiriusXM's College Sports Today.

The Badgers head into the 2012 season with six new assistant coaches, but Bielema is glad the program can rely on their identity and foundation.

Bielema explained, "I'm a farm boy, came off the farm.  Always know that you got to build with a foundation what counts.  And we start on offense and defense with our line.  A neat stats I came across the other day, we're going to send out a recruiting letter... My left tackle Ricky Wagner will be projected to be a first-round draft pick.  When he started on that line a year ago for the Rose Bowl, that means my two tackles were first-rounders, my left guard was a third-rounder, my center was second-rounder, and my right guard was a first-rounder.  So that's three first-rounders, a third, and a second.  When you have those kinds of numbers coming out, the kids really take notice of that when you're eighteen years of age."

The Badgers have 14 players sign NFL contract two years ago and followed up with 13 more this year.  Alabama, as Bielema noted, only put eight players in the league two years ago.

Bielema said, "I get a little concerned when you see so many players going to the next level, but it's kind of a badge of honor for our kids to step in to that next role.  It's another brick on the wall and hopefully to earn your right in history and the NFL."

Still, Wisconsin doesn't get as much credit as it deserves.

Bielema, who was ranked as the 12th best head coach in the nation recently by the Sporting News, said, "We're number four now since I've taken over in total winning percentage in the world of college football.  I think Boise State, Oklahoma, and Oregon are ahead of us."

"I think right now in my seven years as head coach, we have the second best winning percentage at home in college football.  To put it in perspective, LSU has won 19 straight.  We've won 18 straight.  We've had kids that have graduated and during their starting career over a two or three year span, have never lost at home."

So how does all of this affect recruiting?

"We're not going to tell people what we're going to do.  All we do is tell people about what we do.  The right type of kids will be into that type of program."

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Pete Roussel is a valuable resource for coaches, athletic directors, NFL front-office personnel, and college football enthusiasts. A former college football coach, Roussel shares insight on coaches 365 days a year and is recognized as the most trusted expert on coaching transactions. Follow @CoachingSearch on twitter and send your feedback to pete@coachingsearch.com