Some interesting insight, I posted the 2nd article in another thread but I think it just got lost in there.
Montana makes it official: Bob Stitt to coach Grizzlies
Scott ManschTribune Sports Editor
http://www.greatfallstribune.com/story/sports/2014/12/16/montana-makes-official-bob-stitt-coach-grizzlies/20512225/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
It was the worst-kept secret of the week.
But at the end of the day, Montana athletic director Kent Haslam said there is no intrigue in his mind concerning what Bob Stitt brings to Grizzly Nation.
"We're excited to have him here and excited to get him going," Haslam said, declining to speak more specifically until Friday morning's scheduled press conference.
"I'm excited for what he brings and I'm excited for the type of person he is," Haslam said.
Stitt will be formerly introduced as Montana's new head football coach Friday morning at a press conference in Missoula. The news broke Friday, originally reported by Fox Sports, that Stitt, a successful head coach at NCAA Division II Colorado School of Mines the last 15 years, would replace the retired Mick Delaney as UM mentor.
But Haslam on Friday night denied an offer had been made.
"It was the full truth, 100 percent true," Haslam said. "He was offered the job late Saturday night. At the time on Friday when I talked there were still things I was processing. Whenever you do a search like this, and I know that everybody wants to know and have the inside scoop, but it's not respectful of the folks in the mix for me to come out and announce something until it's signed and done.
"Things can go a lot of different directions when you get into those final days of negotiations and you have agents involved and decisions being made. On Friday, that wasn't a half-truth. It was 100 percent truth."
Stitt responded to a text message Tuesday night, but did not address specific questions.
"It's been pretty crazy around here the last few days and I'm trying hard to get back to everyone," Stitt texted. "I'm very excited to get out there and get started. We will try to get to everyone's questions on Friday at the press conference."
Stitt, 50, is a former running back at NAIA Doane (Neb.) College. He was 108-62 at Colorado Mines and led the Orediggers this fall to a 10-2 record and a berth in the NCAA II national playoffs.
Stitt, a native of Tecumseh, Neb., who also lettered in baseball and track at Doane, was the offensive coordinator at Harvard before taking over at Colorado Mines, located in Arvada, Colo. He served previously as offensive coordinator and offensive line coach at Doane, and assistant head coach at NCAA Division III Austin (Texas) College.
Stitt is considered an offensive-minded coach. His team this fall averaged 39 points and 523 yards of offense per game. The Orediggers had a high-powered passing attack that produced 4,539 yards and 38 touchdowns, with just 11 interceptions.
The Grizzly job officially became vacant Dec. 6, when Delaney's club lost at Eastern Washington in the second round of the FCS Playoffs.
Haslam said a stealthy search was necessary. On Monday, amid more reports of Stitt's imminent hiring, Haslam couldn't be reached for comment.
The news became official at midday Tuesday with a UM press release.
"I get it," Haslam said of the high interest level. "I wasn't trying to be ... coy or evasive. I believe in calling people back. But I'm not in a position to start talking about things until it's officially done. I just don't think that's a prudent way to conduct a search."
It's believed and has been reported that Bobby Hauck, the former highly successful Grizzly head coach who just stepped down at UNLV, and Brent Pease, the former UM quarterback and longtime assistant coach at the major-college level, were among the finalists for the job.
But Haslam wouldn't confirm it.
"I'm not going to comment about other candidates," Haslam said. "Bob Stitt was the guy we hired. I visited on the phone or face-to-face with at least 10 people. This was a truly a search that involved a lot of candidates and it was wide-open on many perspectives. These happen slow. Things change dramatically from day-to-day on who's interested and who wants to pursue it further. If their needs are going to be public and all over the place, then they're backing out, because they're navigating other things. They're just done in such a different way than a normal search."
Haslam's search was conducted much differently than nearly 10 years ago in Bozeman when Montana State Athletic Director Peter Fields looked for a new head football coach. Fields announced four finalists, brought them to campus for interviews and public forums, and eventually announced that Rob Ash had been hired.
Kevin McRae, Deputy Commissioner for Communications and Human Resources for the Montana Board of Regents, which oversees both UM and MSU, said there is nothing wrong with either method.
"The short answer is that the Board of Regents is supportive of both of the approaches," McRae said. "It's hard to do a parallel-test analysis of the two approaches. I will say that increasingly, in higher education, we are being advised by national associations and so forth, and not just for athletic positions but for a lot of recruitments, that the traditional process and the pagaentry of bringing multiple finalists to a campus for interviews can actually have an inhibitive effect on qualified applicants wishing to be considered. Because there are a lot of candidates who will say 'I have no interest in doing that.'
"Ultimately the goal is to get a good coach. Sometimes a great candidate who isn't looking for a new job is unlikely to stick his or her neck out, if approached, and apply for a job that entails being part of a parade of candidates on campus. Especially when they are happy where they are, they don't want to lose support where they are, for a roll of the dice in the campus parade."
The Board of Regents must approve Stitt's hiring before it becomes official.
Montana makes it official: Bob Stitt to coach Grizzlies
Scott ManschTribune Sports Editor
http://www.greatfallstribune.com/story/sports/2014/12/16/montana-makes-official-bob-stitt-coach-grizzlies/20512225/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
It was the worst-kept secret of the week.
But at the end of the day, Montana athletic director Kent Haslam said there is no intrigue in his mind concerning what Bob Stitt brings to Grizzly Nation.
"We're excited to have him here and excited to get him going," Haslam said, declining to speak more specifically until Friday morning's scheduled press conference.
"I'm excited for what he brings and I'm excited for the type of person he is," Haslam said.
Stitt will be formerly introduced as Montana's new head football coach Friday morning at a press conference in Missoula. The news broke Friday, originally reported by Fox Sports, that Stitt, a successful head coach at NCAA Division II Colorado School of Mines the last 15 years, would replace the retired Mick Delaney as UM mentor.
But Haslam on Friday night denied an offer had been made.
"It was the full truth, 100 percent true," Haslam said. "He was offered the job late Saturday night. At the time on Friday when I talked there were still things I was processing. Whenever you do a search like this, and I know that everybody wants to know and have the inside scoop, but it's not respectful of the folks in the mix for me to come out and announce something until it's signed and done.
"Things can go a lot of different directions when you get into those final days of negotiations and you have agents involved and decisions being made. On Friday, that wasn't a half-truth. It was 100 percent truth."
Stitt responded to a text message Tuesday night, but did not address specific questions.
"It's been pretty crazy around here the last few days and I'm trying hard to get back to everyone," Stitt texted. "I'm very excited to get out there and get started. We will try to get to everyone's questions on Friday at the press conference."
Stitt, 50, is a former running back at NAIA Doane (Neb.) College. He was 108-62 at Colorado Mines and led the Orediggers this fall to a 10-2 record and a berth in the NCAA II national playoffs.
Stitt, a native of Tecumseh, Neb., who also lettered in baseball and track at Doane, was the offensive coordinator at Harvard before taking over at Colorado Mines, located in Arvada, Colo. He served previously as offensive coordinator and offensive line coach at Doane, and assistant head coach at NCAA Division III Austin (Texas) College.
Stitt is considered an offensive-minded coach. His team this fall averaged 39 points and 523 yards of offense per game. The Orediggers had a high-powered passing attack that produced 4,539 yards and 38 touchdowns, with just 11 interceptions.
The Grizzly job officially became vacant Dec. 6, when Delaney's club lost at Eastern Washington in the second round of the FCS Playoffs.
Haslam said a stealthy search was necessary. On Monday, amid more reports of Stitt's imminent hiring, Haslam couldn't be reached for comment.
The news became official at midday Tuesday with a UM press release.
"I get it," Haslam said of the high interest level. "I wasn't trying to be ... coy or evasive. I believe in calling people back. But I'm not in a position to start talking about things until it's officially done. I just don't think that's a prudent way to conduct a search."
It's believed and has been reported that Bobby Hauck, the former highly successful Grizzly head coach who just stepped down at UNLV, and Brent Pease, the former UM quarterback and longtime assistant coach at the major-college level, were among the finalists for the job.
But Haslam wouldn't confirm it.
"I'm not going to comment about other candidates," Haslam said. "Bob Stitt was the guy we hired. I visited on the phone or face-to-face with at least 10 people. This was a truly a search that involved a lot of candidates and it was wide-open on many perspectives. These happen slow. Things change dramatically from day-to-day on who's interested and who wants to pursue it further. If their needs are going to be public and all over the place, then they're backing out, because they're navigating other things. They're just done in such a different way than a normal search."
Haslam's search was conducted much differently than nearly 10 years ago in Bozeman when Montana State Athletic Director Peter Fields looked for a new head football coach. Fields announced four finalists, brought them to campus for interviews and public forums, and eventually announced that Rob Ash had been hired.
Kevin McRae, Deputy Commissioner for Communications and Human Resources for the Montana Board of Regents, which oversees both UM and MSU, said there is nothing wrong with either method.
"The short answer is that the Board of Regents is supportive of both of the approaches," McRae said. "It's hard to do a parallel-test analysis of the two approaches. I will say that increasingly, in higher education, we are being advised by national associations and so forth, and not just for athletic positions but for a lot of recruitments, that the traditional process and the pagaentry of bringing multiple finalists to a campus for interviews can actually have an inhibitive effect on qualified applicants wishing to be considered. Because there are a lot of candidates who will say 'I have no interest in doing that.'
"Ultimately the goal is to get a good coach. Sometimes a great candidate who isn't looking for a new job is unlikely to stick his or her neck out, if approached, and apply for a job that entails being part of a parade of candidates on campus. Especially when they are happy where they are, they don't want to lose support where they are, for a roll of the dice in the campus parade."
The Board of Regents must approve Stitt's hiring before it becomes official.