He was generally a good recruiter but failed miserably to recruit linemen. In the one long conversation I had with Dick Baird in 2009 he scoffed Neuheisel taking 7 wide receivers at the expense of the offensive line one year. The part I found hard to take was watching UW lead the conference in rushing in 2000 and by 2002 and 2003 we were near the bottom.
that was the hard part for me. Rick was the start of the focus on the flash player instead of the big uglies that win games. Championships are won in the weight room, not at the track meet. Rick never understood that. Probably still doesn’t.
But almost everyone knew Gilby was not the answer since he had failed so hard at Cal. Man was a solid Ugly himself but not the caliber of head coach we needed. In answer to the original question, yes, I’d say most Husky fans thought Rick was not all that but we missed him because it was ALL downhill after he left.
Fisch has shown good recruiting and competence overall. As I see it he has two real weaknesses: play calling/ in game adjustments and enamored by pedigree. He likes the shiny pedigree coach and is likely missing the no name guys that could really get him to the next level.
Rick is by far my favorite tv/radio analyst. I would have never believed 20 years ago that one day I'd go out of my way to listen to his radio show on Sirius.
He was always smart. He's matured from a smug know it all (multiple firings and long walks on the beach?) into a wise old dude who chooses his words carefully. He knows his shit.
The timing of firing RN was incredibly dumb. He was probably getting let go after the 2003 season but instead UW’s inept leadership decided to fire him in June. To make matters worse, instead of naming Gilby the interim and waiting until November/December to hire a coach, Gilby got the job outright.
If you expect UW to make good decisions regarding football, you’ll be disappointed.
I rolled into UW the same year as Rick and he did some dumb shit his first year (losing to BYU and Air Force, getting blown out at home by ASU and losing to UCLA in OT on the road when we had to win it and the Apple Cup to win the conference) but he delivered 2000. Losses in 2001 really pissed me off and then the 2002 Michigan end of game debacle, plus the rest of that mess of a season, really soured me on him where I wanted someone else.
We royally fucked up the someone else part and at least Rick cared about football and making it THE most important thing even if he couldn't execute on it.
As was brought up, Rick was fired after 2002. It took until 2016 for Petersen to make the playoffs. It took until January 2024 for DeBoer to win a NY 6 bowl that happened to be a playoff game. The first one since Rick
All through Gilby Ty and Sark the apologists kept ripping Rick while the latest savior failed to match him
I think the jury is still out on whether DeBoer is closer to Rick or closer to Saban. This year is the first blemish on his resume. We’ll see what 2025 holds.
Comments
Rick was 11-1 in 2000 which is proof that he was the Messiah!!
Interesting thanks. Foreboding though
He was generally a good recruiter but failed miserably to recruit linemen. In the one long conversation I had with Dick Baird in 2009 he scoffed Neuheisel taking 7 wide receivers at the expense of the offensive line one year. The part I found hard to take was watching UW lead the conference in rushing in 2000 and by 2002 and 2003 we were near the bottom.
that was the hard part for me. Rick was the start of the focus on the flash player instead of the big uglies that win games. Championships are won in the weight room, not at the track meet. Rick never understood that. Probably still doesn’t.
But almost everyone knew Gilby was not the answer since he had failed so hard at Cal. Man was a solid Ugly himself but not the caliber of head coach we needed. In answer to the original question, yes, I’d say most Husky fans thought Rick was not all that but we missed him because it was ALL downhill after he left.
Fisch has shown good recruiting and competence overall. As I see it he has two real weaknesses: play calling/ in game adjustments and enamored by pedigree. He likes the shiny pedigree coach and is likely missing the no name guys that could really get him to the next level.
Rick is by far my favorite tv/radio analyst. I would have never believed 20 years ago that one day I'd go out of my way to listen to his radio show on Sirius.
He was always smart. He's matured from a smug know it all (multiple firings and long walks on the beach?) into a wise old dude who chooses his words carefully. He knows his shit.
Upvote for the lawnmower comment.
The timing of firing RN was incredibly dumb. He was probably getting let go after the 2003 season but instead UW’s inept leadership decided to fire him in June. To make matters worse, instead of naming Gilby the interim and waiting until November/December to hire a coach, Gilby got the job outright.
If you expect UW to make good decisions regarding football, you’ll be disappointed.
This is basically my view too.
I rolled into UW the same year as Rick and he did some dumb shit his first year (losing to BYU and Air Force, getting blown out at home by ASU and losing to UCLA in OT on the road when we had to win it and the Apple Cup to win the conference) but he delivered 2000. Losses in 2001 really pissed me off and then the 2002 Michigan end of game debacle, plus the rest of that mess of a season, really soured me on him where I wanted someone else.
We royally fucked up the someone else part and at least Rick cared about football and making it THE most important thing even if he couldn't execute on it.
…yet.😉
Keep working Mrs Snow’s phone, DDJ!
As was brought up, Rick was fired after 2002. It took until 2016 for Petersen to make the playoffs. It took until January 2024 for DeBoer to win a NY 6 bowl that happened to be a playoff game. The first one since Rick
All through Gilby Ty and Sark the apologists kept ripping Rick while the latest savior failed to match him
Look for more of the same as we have already seen
Most coaches suck. People keep forgetting that
Some coaches catch lightning in a bottle with a messiah QB but can’t sustain the success.
El Paso is a magical place to spend the holidays!
DeBoer has a 90% winning percentage over a decade at several stops. He ain't one of them
Like I said they were ripping Rick for a decade after. Why don't other coaches get messiah quarterbacks and get lucky like DeBoer?
Because they suck.
I think the jury is still out on whether DeBoer is closer to Rick or closer to Saban. This year is the first blemish on his resume. We’ll see what 2025 holds.
@Doog_de_Jour does love her some Mrs Snow. Folks here have seen it in person.
Saban had blemishes.
People forget that.
The jury is in as is the verdict
Find another way to cope. This is silly
DeBoer made Haener look good enough that most of you wanted him over Penix
Fisch sucks. DeBoer ain't got nothing to do with it
I cope fine Boss.
I don’t care about Fisch. Fire him next year if there’s not good improvement.
The jury is still very much out on DeBoer at Bammer. Would he survive another 3 loss season in 2025 ? Probably not.