BSD Mailbag 10.6.22

So Manny Diaz, are you going to have his baby or am I?

Now I know it’s really early, only 5/12 off the regular season. But that hire appears to be a home run. Will we get lucky and have him one more year?—swift_retribution

His defense is definitely different than our traditional BBS defense we’ve been running variations of for decades - the big test for me will be the next three games. We were able to stop a fairly good running attack at Auburn, but was that because we can stop a running attack or was it because Auburn’s o-line didn’t have enough speed and athleticism to go up against a Big Ten defense? We’ll see over the course of October.

As for the notion that he’s leaving, I would be very surprised (not shocked, just very surprised) if he’s not here next year as well. Most coaches who have to rehab their images do it in more than one year, except for those who rehab under Saban; and who knows, maybe Diaz will realize he’s a far better DC than he ever could be a coach. And if you’re a high schooler being recruited now, there’s no better testament to Diaz’s skills as a DC than unexpected high performances from guys like Chop Robinson, who burst out of nowhere to be one of the most disruptive guys on the PSU defense.

This should probably be a poll question, but here it goes.

Through 5 weeks (not including week 0) we have 2 B1G coaches that were canned with Scott Frost getting the boot from Nebraska, and now Paul Chryst gets the pink slip after Wisconsin drops a third game. Both of these men had deep roots at their schools, and the buy outs seem to be small potatoes. So who is next in the B1G? It doesn’t have to be this year, but besides a coach leaving for a “better” HC job, or getting hired to an elite program as a OC/DC, which B1G coach is getting canned next?—PeteZockyU

I don’t think it’s fair to compare the situations Frost and Chryst found themselves in. Frost was the golden child, winning a faux national championship at UCF before “coming home” to Lincoln and never having a winning season in his time as head coach. Chryst took the Wisconsin job after going .500 at PItt, and was fairly successful there, winning the Big Ten West a few times. Frost was the golden boy who never got it going (nowhere near exceeding expectations), and Chryst was a slight gamble that really paid off at first before going stagnant. It remains to be seen whether this move in Madison was Pelini-esque, but Wisconsin surely knew that the writing was on the wall with Big Ten’s divisions, and that they’d never play in Indianapolis again under Chryst when the championship game would be between the top two teams in the conference, without divisions.

As for what’s next in the Big Ten, there’s a lot of candidates whose seats will be very warm next year (though I think the firings are done for 2022). Will Mel Tucker be able to justify his very rich contract? Will Jeff Brohm finally break through with all the promise Purdue has shown? Will Iowa finally make the decision virtually everyone wants and part ways with Ferentz? Only time will tell.

I think the odds aren’t bad for Ferentz to actually retire, or for Day to go to the NFL. I actually think Bielema is (ugh) doing a really great job at Illinois so he could parlay that into a more prestigious position, maybe even take Ferentz’s place in Iowa City. I don’t think Harbaugh, Day, Allen, Fitzgerald, or Franklin are going anywhere, though.

How do you feel about mid season firings? I’m generally opposed to it, but some of these sites commenting on it seem to be the same sites complaining that players needed to be paid.

I feel like now that the players are being paid, couches are fair game for this.

Oddly, I also feel nebby did better by Frost by giving him his full buyout.—JayMPSU

It depends entirely on the situation to me. I truly understood why Nebraska fired Frost or Georgia Tech fired Collins midseason, but Chryst didn’t make as much sense to me, but maybe the powers that be in Wisconsin were afraid their pick would go to a different school rather than they did.

If you don’t see a way out of the muck and want to salvage your recruiting class (since early signing day is in December), it makes sense. If you’re trying to rebrand your identity while you’re basically doing ok, it doesn’t make sens.

Also, I completely disagree with your assessment of Frost. I’m convinced that they only did it when they did because a booster paid the entire buyout; he’s been a liability for them for a while, as recently as this past summer where he either lied about making his players vomit over a dozen times in each practice, or exaggerated it so he seemed like he was a good coach there. Either way, it was not good.

How hard do you think it would be to score a game ball or practice ball that the team has used and is done with?—PSU1979dude

Fairly easily, actually! Penn State auctions them off every year (around blue white, I think), there’s a ton of sports memorabilia sites you can get them from, and heck - there’s even ebay. It all boils down to how much you’re willing to spend.

Any thoughts on Justin Beiber getting caught on camera urinating on the golf course?—LarzLion

I have exactly zero thoughts about this or any other Justin Beiber thing, except for the fact that Serena Gomez lucked out.

Twice within the last week I’ve pulled into a Sheetz to fill up the car, only to find all the gas pumps taken (Brookville), and all-but-one (Lantz Corners). In both cases only one pump was actually in use — all the other vehicles were just sitting empty (there were plenty of open parking spaces!) while their owners were inside. How did people ever get the idea that this behavior is OK? (And before you say they were inside paying cash, they weren’t. I went in.). Can’t we make it legal to fire neon yellow paintballs at cars whose owners are buttheads so the rest of us are forewarned?—Smee

Honestly, if this isn’t a microcosm of how selfish our society has gotten in more recent years, I’m not so sure what is. It’s become cool and admirable to not GAF about anyone other than yourself, and what makes you happy and is easiest for you, rather than your neighbors or fellow citizens or even, in some cases, friends and family members.

How difficult would it be to pull up into the lot? Not difficult at all, especially when the other pumps are full. It’s just easier not to, which is why folks don’t.

Any big plans for the weekend? I would imagine many of the mid-Atlantic’s golf courses are a bit waterlogged.—LarzLion

I have a pretty full weekend ahead and it doesn’t include golf. My doctor doesn’t want me to do any activity where balls fly at my nose.

Do you know if the overlords have any thoughts on bringing back the polling function in FanPosts, and if so, what are those thoughts?—Smee

I haven’t been aware of what the overlords are doing or thinking about doing for a while, at least three years. Some of their decisions, like the one you mention here, are just baffling to me - polling seems like a relatively easy and interactive thing to keep that truly fosters a sense of community like the one we have at BSD. It’s just so weird why they’d get rid of it, and get rid of easy access to others’ historical comments.

Who are the overlords and why does it take forever to get posts permitted? Used to spend time on BSD everyday since probably 2009-10 but not worth the hassle anymore.—bva-psu

What do you mean by it taking forever “to get posts permitted”? I don’t understand what that is. Comments should come up right away, and if you’re concerned about the waiting time to be a full-fledged commenter on BSD, that’s been in place since at least 2012.

Anything beyond that is also beyond me, sorry.