December 04 2024
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Blondie and I were cruising along I-85 North headed to Richmond last Tuesday when my OMG notification went bonkers. It was BL Buddy “DownEast Doug”.
That could only mean (1) his son had caught a “PB”…. OR …. (2) The Mack2.0 Era at UNCCH had gone “Humpty Dumpty”. …. I.e. “Sack Mack”. There was no picture of a grinning young man holding a big fish …. It had to be #2.
Internet Legends have a keen intuitive sense for such things.
DISCLAIMER: For 10+ years I have acknowledged that UNC AD Bubba Cunningham is a personal friend. However … I have NOT discussed Mack2.0 with Bubba. Certainly not the machinations involving “Sack Mack”. My thoughts on how it “went down” are my own.
FWIW … the quite asinine comment by UNC Trustee John Preyer was neither the first nor, likely, last asinine comment by a UNC Trustee. Preyer’s “shameful” comment joins “Coach Davis, is all this affecting recruiting?” by Trustee Barbara Rosser-Hyde in 2011.
For well over a year I have suggested that this season be “it” for Mack as HFBC at UNCCH. Halftime of the JMU game did not affect my opinion. Nor did the 4th Quarter versus Duke … Nor the beat down at BC … Nor even the 4th consecutive Loss to NC State.
The seismic changes in Big Time College Football have obliterated the world that Mack, Nick Saban, Tony Bennett and their coaching colleagues have succeeded within over multiple decades. Whether those changes are good or bad or both is irrelevant. They are in force albeit subject to modifications via legislation or common sense.
Say what you will about NIL / Portal but this season has been as “Humdingery” as any I can remember. Every week there was at least one “Biggest Game of The Year”.
That said … in the past two years of NIL /Portal have you (1) heard the term “student athlete” or (2) any reference to a FB/BB player having “academic issues” …. or (3) a recruit needing a higher test score to be admitted to XYZ college. Athletics and Academics are apparently no longer linked.
Although I matriculated at UNCCH many decades ago, their wins/losses don’t cause me to lose sleep. I appreciate that is not the case with many / most of you who ARE “heavily invested” emotionally in wins/losses of “your team” and of your “hated rivals”. I’m not suggesting that “my way” is better. Each of us is an ever-evolving product of our individual life experiences.
Back to Sack Mack …. the world’s thinnest pancake has two sides. Over the past ten days, Mack has been “holding court” with an eager media concerning HIS version of how his “firing” came to be. “Being fired” is an emotional experience regardless of who – when – how. Mack’s feelings were hurt. His feelings were also hurt when he was ousted at Texas.
I equate this exiting image of a whiney Mack to an aging Willie Mays falling down in centerfield as a Met. Not the way an otherwise very successful man wants to be remembered.
I guarantee you that there is another version of “how it all went down” … and I’m talking about over weeks and months not simply a week ago Monday. Several scenarios were presented that would have been less harsh. All ending, however, with UNC Football moving forward under new leadership. For various reasons the “less harsh” options were removed from consideration as negotiations concluded.
Within the next few days, a new Head Coach will be named and a new era of UNC Football will begin. I have no clue who that will be; but am confident that the overly-caffeinated “sleeping giant” faction of UNC Football fans will be disappointed and angry because they pretty much always are.
I did check recent arrivals at The Carolina Inn. No one named Saban, Meyer or Belichek has checked-in the past week. Of course, they could have used an assumed name. FWIW: Rush always used “Chuck Noll”.
I have seen several speculative “short lists” from various uninformed sources. One of the names being mentioned might be the choice … or not. I have no “my choice” from the lists I have seen.
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While Ws and Ls don’t much matter to me, I am fascinated by the on-going conference realignment issues. On that subject ….
With the exception of SMU and Miami and Clemson … The current ACC is incredibly well-balanced and competitive … resulting in a lot of close games between programs that share certain institutional elements in the NIL / Portal Era.
Acknowledging that NC State has indeed defeated UNC four consecutive years, at least two of those games came down to last minute plays. To claim a decided dominance in the overall strength of the two Hated Rivals is a partisan fan’s “right”. To claim four consecutive Ws is a “fact”.
Duke won the mythical State Championship with several last minute heroics. Is Manny “for real”? Too early to tell. Can Manny keep Duke in the 7-8-9 W range? How long can Duke keep Manny?
As long as Dave Clawson is at WFU, they will be well-coached with talent on their first string. Depth of talent will always be an issue. Don’t schedule WFU in. September … wait until November.
IMO … no matter who is UNC’s next HFBC … the best he will be is 7-8-9 Ws and a Whozit Bowl …. IOW … what Dour Dave has going at NCSU.
If one breaks down the programs of NC’s “Big Four” (?) along with UVa, VaTech, GaTech, BC, Syracuse, Louisville there is a competitive balance that translates into “on any given Saturday”. I like that.
Note I left out Florida State … was this season’s nightmare a “Bobby Ewing Shower Season” or will the ‘Noles rebound and to what degree? The two California programs are both TBD.
Clemson, however Dabo utilizes The Portal, will remain a top 2-3 ACC team because Dabo’s system does work … maybe no more NatCamps but still a top 15 program.
IMO … Miami will always go heavy in The Portal and pay high dollar for NIL … but never return to the glory days of 25-30 years ago … but don’t try to tell that to the “Scarface” crowd in Coral Gables.
That leaves SMU …. IMO this year was NOT “a fluke”. SMU has unlimited Beverly Drive oil baron NIL mega-$$$ to spend and Texas HS football to pick from. Unless their coach is lured away – always possible – SMU will be a permanent fixture near the top of the ACC … as it exists today.
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If I have learned anything in 25 years of this website … it is that …..
There will – alas – always be goggle-eyed, spittle-spewing, foam-fingered delusional lunatics within EVERY fan base …. “sleeping giant” gangs convinced every “committee” is against them … the refs are “out to get’em” and GLORY awaits “our team” if only the stoopid coach would “throw more to the tight end”. ……….. sigh.
There will – alas -always be some version of “flag planting” that will cause “fans like me” to cringe. There is an ethno-cultural reality to Big Time College Football and Basketball that is here to stay. Spectators and Gladiators …….. sigh
There will – alas – always be cussin’ and bitchin’ about which teams should be in the playoffs. No matter who comprises “the $#%#@& Committee” and no matter what criteria is used to rank the teams … the Universal Right of Fans to rant and rage their silly little conspiracy theories in ALLCAPS on social media platforms will outlive us all. ……….. sigh.
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