I had such a great post ready to go when Schiano got fired….thanks a lot, Keli!

I did. I started writing a pretty lengthy post back in September about the “take aways” from his being let go….great ideas wasted. For now. I’m still saving it for another day!

Although I may tell you a few a little later.

As the season unraveled, more than a few folks commented about how they were completely disappointed and fed up with Zinn for not saying….something. Maybe like this statement from the Tulane AD after the 60-10 drubbing they suffered at the hands of Tulsa….at home. A statement that said the result was:

unacceptable, and far below the standard that we have come to expect in recent years. I understand the frustration and disappointment that our supporters feel. I am embarrassed by what transpired on the field….

Pretty blunt, pretty harsh. For the record, Tulane is currently 4-5 in The American and, per CoachesHotSeat.com, its head coach, Will Hall, is No. 30 on the hot seat weekly with a “warm” rating.

Speaking of that site’s ranking, guess who lost his No. 1 spot as the hottest seated coach? Yup, GS dropped from the top spot and completely out of the top ten; he’s currently No. 16 and is just “warm”.

There were a lot of thoughts offered after Keli Zinn announced Schiano would return in 2027. Some, as noted above, were critical of Zinn for not doing or saying something as the season dragged on. Others, though, were more understanding of her position and her actions.

From the “What were you thinking?” file:

Ron2347

In reply to JeffreyPalm: She had a choice, and chose the wrong one. She chose the cowards way , to kick the can down the road! Cut our losses and start over. After next seasons mess, why would a “half decent” coach accept the leadership of this s__t show? Everyone should be tired of listening to Schiano’s post game comments of, I have to coach better, we have to play better, that’s on me, we’re almost there, and keep chopping! Every other BIG team would have fired Schiano, instead of bringing hom back!

AndOthersReceivingVotes

In reply to RU858: Do the math, 18 mil payout or piss away 30 mil in NIL for another two or three win season. Add in the empty seat cost, lost parking and concession revenues and least we not forget less booster money contributions. Now, how terrible does that 18 mil buyout sound?

Joe1480

Surprised by this. As a long time RU fan and season ticket holder, I don’t see this helping. They will probably lose fans, but maybe from their perspective it was at a lower cost than the buyout would have been. Long term this could be a big mistake since hiring a new coach might have brought some excitement and new recruits. A BIG school should not be in this position where they are unable to financially fire a coach who is failing.

And from the “She had to play a very bad hand” file:

JeffreyPalm

Let me say one more thing about the news Keli Zinn released today; While practically everyone of us fans are disappointed she had no other choice than to have Schiano return. If you’re upset at the AD, if you feel slighted don’t blame her! Blame the former AD Hobbs and the Rutgers Board of Directors that was asleep at the wheel.

RU_Mike

In reply to JeffreyPalm: I am not upset at Zinn, as was said earlier by others, she was painted into a corner. What concerns me most is board members who appear to be more aligned with Schiano than making the best decision for the University.

John Catapano (Spacecat)

In reply to RU858: I think it’s clear in her statement that the way the program is run is going to fundamentally change. I also think Schiano knows damn well how much he failed as a “GM” this off season and realizes he needs one pronto.

BobR

I get it. I don’t like it, but I get it. KZ could not raise the money for the buy-out, or she couldn’t get the OK to even try. (Perhaps she faced a limited pool of $$ and it was either NIL or buyout.) Whatever, it’s done. The road forward is now clear. Significant improvement next year (winning record) or GS is gone. (Start like this year and he could be gone in Oct.) I’ll find a way to live with that.

We could go on with both lists for some time. As of this writing, the comments exceeded 150. Clearly, the action by Zinn struck home very sharply.

For me, it was all about the money. As readers commented, and I have noted in various posts, Rutgers does very poorly in so many categories of revenue: ticket sales, merchandise sales, donations, and on and on. If Schiano was fired at the end of this season, Rutgers would owe him $17,296,875. Wait til after the ‘27 season – assuming there isn’t a dramatic turnaround by him and the team – and the buyout drops to $11,723,437.50. That’s $5.6 million “saved” that can better be spent on other things, like a new coach. By the way, Schiano is due a $500,000 raise next season; I wonder if that was renegotiated in the conversations the two had.

Personally, I had had it with Schiano. Sure, the NIL funds were sadly lacking. But, was there any real growth? Were we developing players so much beyond their innate skills that his methods made Rutgers equal with, say, Iowa? The Hawkeyes and Kirk Ferentz were mentioned a lot by GS in comparing what was happening in Iowa City and Piscataway. Right now, Iowa is No. 15 in the CFP rankings; Rutgers isn’t.

Oh, the post I had prepared? I’m still saving it for….some day. But a few thoughts from it, which kinda sorta still apply.

On Coaching:

But he did work at and succeed at some high powered schools. He did recruit some very good players to RU, and he coached them to careers in the NFL. That doesn’t happen with just luck.

On process vs. results:

In Schiano 2.0, there was limited success There was no growth, no progress. In conference, there were twice as many losses as wins. And in the development of players’ skills, not much to show; look at quarterback play as a prime example. And how many coaches worked under him? Turnover was pretty high.

On leadership:

Three fired ADs and another leaving under a cloud, a president who didn’t really think much of athletics, leaders who didn’t fully understand/accept what it took to run a D1 program….and all that before NIL, portals, and paying players. I’ve watched Rutgers sports for almost six decades (scary, right?) and seen the ups and downs, strong and weak leaders, great achievements and mind-boggling losses. It all ultimately led to a lack of focus and commitment to what it takes to be competitive. That had to change.

On Rutgers getting a second chance:

For all his faults, Schiano did bring Rutgers out of oblivion, although he’s now also led it back there. We are still in the Big Ten with all that offers; this is a second chance to get it right.

Everyone needs to step it up. Donors are going to be needed to support a lot of things, from NIL to facilities. Right now, they don’t necessarily have a reason to do so; Zinn needs to give them that reason.

This needs to be an “all in” process; the entire school needs to support all aspects of the University, including athletics. That means engaging and, literally, recruiting faculty; they are a part of this. Athletics, the “front porch of the school”, can raise the image and standing of Rutgers. Promote that.

State government or, perhaps more specifically, the people there have often been the enemy of Rutgers. I don’t want a blind eye turned, but it would be nice to see and hear positive things coming out of Trenton.

We do belong in the B1G based on our academics, our research, and the potential of what Rutgers can be and do. But as a former principal of mine used to say, potential means you haven’t done anything yet.

So?

I’m still shaking my head…a little. For now, I’m taking a deep breath, swallowing hard, and crossing my fingers. Again.