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LAST WORD D A V I D E C K E R T | D A V I D E C K E R T 9 8 @ G M A I L . C O M midst a year in which it seems like just about every aspect of life has slowed down or stopped, the col- lege football coaching carousel has churned at its typical mile-per-minute pace. It's not all that surprising when you consider that college football, for better or for worse, is a results-driven busi- ness. Even a season that felt more than a bit hollow with no fans in the stands, no tradition and no spectacle still gave us the results that athletic departments around the country use to make uncom- fortable decisions. It doesn't matter if you lose in front of 80,000 screaming fans or a couple hun- dred cardboard cutouts. Losing is los- ing, and losing drives personnel change. Penn State, after finishing one of the strangest seasons in college football history at 4-5, relieved offensive coor- dinator Kirk Ciarrocca of his position and brought in Mike Yurcich. Yet an- other head coaching failure at Ten- nessee sparked a chain of events that led to safeties coach Tim Banks heading south to become the Vols' defensive co- ordinator. Organizational failure at the NFL level in Jacksonville caused a regime change, which prompted tight ends coach Tyler Bowen to take the next step of his career in the Sunshine State. Every football game played at the col- lege level has a loser, and as long as someone out there is losing, changes are going to be made. So, if you haven't already, get com- fortable with staff turnover, Penn State fans. Because whether it's PSU or some other program that is underperforming, changes are going to happen. Asked about staff continuity during a press conference in January, James Franklin pointed out that expecting to retain a coaching staff year after year simply isn't realistic. "I think obviously, in a perfect world, you'd love to have continuity," he said. "But I could also show a number of ex- amples where that's not happening. You look in college football, that's just the nature of the beast now." The gold standard for everything in college football these days is Nick Saban's program at Alabama, which is fresh off a 52-24 steamrolling of Ohio State in the national title game back in January. That performance wrapped up Saban's 14th season as head coach of the Crimson Tide. Among his assistant coaches, three were in their third season in their present role in Tuscaloosa, six were in their second season, and two were in their first. There's not a whole lot of longevity there, and that's a reflection of the way the college football coaching carousel works. If your program isn't faring well, you plunder what you can from a pro- gram that is. The constant need to replace assistant coaches hasn't slowed Alabama's jug- gernaut one bit. Saban has already been forced to replace several members of his coaching staff again this off-season, and the Crimson Tide are a safe bet to return to the pinnacle of college football yet again next season regardless. Before I get too carried away, it should certainly be noted that Penn State is not Alabama. It does not have the most rec- ognizable name in college football lead- ing the way, and it does not have hardware from five of the past 10 na- tional championship games resting in its trophy case, nor does it have a com- parable budget when it comes to staff payroll. Replacing a crucial staff mem- ber is a bit more of a challenge when you don't have rings for all but three of your fingers like Saban does. But, when you look at how the Nittany Lions handled their three departures this off-season, it seems like they've done a pretty solid job. Yurcich is among the game's most well-respected offensive minds. He has developed excellent quarterbacks at all three of his stops at the collegiate level, and he'll embrace the explosive style Penn State wants from its offensive co- ordinator. Elsewhere, Franklin replaced Bowen by promoting offensive analyst and Penn State letterman Ty Howle to an assistant coaching position overseeing the tight ends. Partially as a conse- quence of Bowen's departure, the Nit- tany Lions lost a commitment from four-star tight end Holden Staes. How- ever, they're filling Bowen's role with a coach who has a great understanding of Penn State's culture and its goals. Howle was heavily involved on the recruiting trail before taking this job, too. Four- star tight end commit Jerry Cross said he's even met Howle's wife and kids. Finally, as safeties coach, Franklin hired Purdue's Anthony Poindexter, who recruited very well with the Boiler- makers and will help replace Bowen's recruiting influence in the Maryland, Virginia and Washington, D.C., area. Purdue reporter Tom Dienhart called the hire a win-win for Poindexter and Penn State. The lesson here is a simple one: Don't fret over coaching turnover too much. It's a part of college football culture that is here to stay. "You'd like to have as much continuity as you possibly can," Franklin said, "but I don't know if that is realistic in today's college football." ■ Winds of change A

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