(Photo: Nicholas Badders/WCSN)
After firing Todd Graham on Sunday, Athletic Director Ray Anderson said he wants to run the ASU football program like a business. Wednesday evening showed Sun Devil fans exactly what that looks like.
According to reports by SunDevilSource.com and DevilsDigest.com, former NFL coach Herm Edwards, Anderson’s former client, will be the next head coach of the Sun Devils. Edwards hasn’t coached since 2008 and boasts a career record of 54-74. He’s never been a head coach at the collegiate level.
I guess — much like the business world — it’s not about what you know, but who you know.
Anderson fired a sixth-year head coach with a winning record and replaced him with one of his friends — someone he used to work for who has been talking about football on television for almost a decade since he was fired by the Kansas City Chiefs.
#ASU football fans: Who would you rather have as head coach?
— Ryan Clarke (@RyanTClarke) November 29, 2017
Edwards was 6-26 in his final two years in Kansas City. He’s never been a recruiter, nor does he have the experience to build a successful college football program. He couldn’t even build a successful NFL team.
For Anderson, none of that matters. He found his salesman.
“You have to have someone that’s dynamic,” Anderson said on Sunday. “Someone that’s articulate who can sell the vision.”
Nobody knew it at the time, but Anderson was describing Edwards to a T. His fiery demeanor, motivational speaking style and established notoriety could be an asset on the recruiting trail. For those reasons, Anderson clearly thinks that Edwards will get in the living rooms that Graham wasn’t able to.
In theory, everything is set up for Edwards to succeed in the short-term. He’ll likely have the same staff in place that Graham did, handing a lot of the play calling duties over to Billy Napier and Phil Bennett. Edwards doesn’t have to be the strategist or the big dog. He can be equal parts salesman and manager.
But long-term, is this move going to elevate ASU to the euphoric heights that Anderson is shooting for? Probably not.
The cold reality is this: Chip Kelly is going to annihilate ASU on the recruiting trail now that he’s found roots in Westwood. USC and Clay Helton are going to continue doing the same thing. Not even Herm Edwards is going to consistently convince 18-year-old kids that Tempe is more attractive than Los Angeles.
You also have to examine how long this coaching corps will stay together. Bennett is coming up on 40 years coaching and Napier has head coaching potential of his own. Edwards is 63 and hasn’t held a coaching job for more than five years at a time. Is this group really going to stick it out through four-plus recruiting cycles?
The program is going to be fragmented whether Anderson likes it or not. There is no overnight fix that’s going to make ASU a national powerhouse, especially now that its most successful coach in 30 years was told to hit the bricks.
Graham made strides this season that should’ve earned him another year at least. Instead, Anderson is about to make the business move of installing his own CEO with the hopes that profits soar.
The only trouble is, ASU isn’t college football’s version of Bitcoin. It’s more of a penny stock; and Herm Edwards isn’t the Wolf of Mill Avenue.
