Been digging more because things being posted on these candidates are frustrating me, so will fight that with more disputes…
The fact that there is an argument over these three candidates is laughable. There is a clear pecking order, and it isn’t close, when you pull the onion back on all their resumes and do some research to dispute the claims made on this forum thread. The order is clear to this Griz soccer alum and it isn’t close.
I also spoke with a committee member today (
sits in influential chair in the dept and was there when I played). Two interviews down. One left. Told me that if they let Max leave campus on Monday without offering him the job it would be a huge mistake. Committee member said that Weber was “impressive” to the committee members with his vison to take Griz Soccer to new heights and build off the tradition, his charismatic nature, and ambition.
Further insight...I have a former Griz teammate who is a long-standing youth coach at one of the largest, most successful ECNL clubs in the country. I called and asked her if she knows of Weber and she says she knows him well. Asked her for her insight into the topics being discussed on our little Griz forum.
Topics of Dispute:
1. Big Sky Conference Experience.
- She said…look directly at what Weber did in the Big Sky during his tenure there. He helped take EWU from last place in the Big Sky to two NCAA Tournaments as Big Sky Champion, against our Griz, and did it quickly. Took over in 2014, went to NCAA tournaments in 2016 and 2017 and took USC to OT in one of those years. We didn’t win a single championship when he was at EWU. A Montana native beating us in our own conference. The moment he leaves for BSU, Chris gets hired and Griz start winning again. Hmmm.
2. Recruiting.
She said... the guy is one of the best recruiters in the country- flat out.
We have no players. We need an elite recruiter to get just the semblance of a team. Weber seems to be that. Has helped build repeat championship programs, at some difficult places mind you (
Walla Walla & Cheney), let alone BSU success since he arrived. Come to find out, two of the most decorated high school Montana players ever (
Brittany Delridge and Olivia Collins) both were recruited to the programs he was coaching at. Both were Gatorade Players of the Year and hell Delridge is a Missoula native and chose EWU over our Griz. Collins , from Bozeman, plays for BSU and is a senior I believe. I watched these women play- in high school- two of the best Montana kids ever- both went to play for a Montanan instead of the Griz. Tells ya something.
3. Head Coaching Experience.
She said…he coached games this year as Head Coach at BSU…so I looked that up. Come to find out, Weber was the acting Head Coach for two games this past season, when Boise State won back-to-back Mountain West Championships. First against Colorado State at home (
Head Coach suspended from red card previous game) and won 1-0 and on the road at Grand Canyon University (
can’t find out why Head Coach wasn’t there) and he won 1-0, which clinched the regular season championship. There is your Head Coaching experience. Happy now?
How do you expect someone to become a Head Coach without giving them the opportunity? Chris was an Assistant Coach at North Dakota (finished last in the Big Sky the year he got the job). Weber was an Assistant in the Big Sky at the same time and won the conference championship….each sat in the exact same chair. Look at the College Football Seminal Coaches….all were Assistants then got their first Head Coaching jobs (Lanning @ Oregon, Smart @ Georgia, Golding @ Ole Miss). Stop with this silly narrative.
4. Weber applies for jobs and doesn’t get them.
She says…she knows that he has been offered several jobs within the Big Sky alone over the past couple years. Told me Idaho State, Eastern Washington (after he left), for sure he was offered and turned down, and she thought one of either Northern Arizona/Weber State. She never heard that he chases jobs, but the opposite in fact, that he hasn’t left for offered jobs due to family, location, and pay structure. Clarified that WSU went after Chris and him. Those two were chased for the job. Weber was a finalist for WSU along with Chris. Those were the final two candidates. Been verified by several sources. So …the program that hired away our Griz head coach…had Weber as the other finalist. A program, in WSU, with even more tradition than that of my Griz program thinks that highly of a candidate some of you have as not as our hire.
5. Youth Coaching – College Recruiting Rumors
- She said…this sounds like a jealous parent comment. That made me laugh. She said his youth teams do very well at the ECNL level, which is impressive because they are “little Idaho” playing and finding success at that level. She said he places his players all over the country at good college programs, to play, but the best ones usually stay and play for BSU. I looked up Boise based players on the BSU roster, since Weber joined, and looks like all the highest-rated local players currently play or have played for him at BSU, other than the two sisters who play at Stanford. The guy has done some impressive things as a youth Head Coach it seems in not major soccer markets. Last I looked Griz Soccer is not in a metropolis.
Lastly, I asked her if the Griz should hire Weber?
She said that they would be lucky to get him, to be their next HC. But said, if they just lost their HC due to being paid inadequately then they are not going to get Weber for some cheap discount because it is his home state.
I am hoping we haven't screwed this up.
Griz soccer is too good of a program to be working with no lights, in a glorified equipment shed, sharing restrooms with spectators on game day! 
