John Cooper

[norcalcy]

Apologies if this has been discussed and merge this thread if it has, but this story over at Cyclones.com is pretty interesting. Cooper would have been a great hire in 1979. Sounds like the AD at the time didn't do a very good job recruiting him. We took a shot at him a few years later, but he didn't want to leave AZ State. Shows how crucial personnel decisions are.

http://cyclonesidebar.wordpress.com/2014/08/13/cooper-excited-for-isu-hall-of-fame-induction/

 

[ca4cy]

E=norcalcy;4133684]Apologies if this has been discussed and merge this thread if it has, but this story over at Cyclones.com is pretty interesting. Cooper would have been a great hire in 1979. Sounds like the AD at the time didn't do a very good job recruiting him. We took a shot at him a few years later, but he didn't want to leave AZ State. Shows how crucial personnel decisions are.

http://cyclonesidebar.wordpress.com/2014/08/13/cooper-excited-for-isu-hall-of-fame-induction/[/QUOTE]

Definitely one of the times ISU dropped the ball on a coaching hire. The Duncan hire was a lot like the Chiz. Big time assistant that was used to winning with superior talent but really couldn't match wits when on the opposite side of the equation. Cooper would have brought a passion for the university and could've built on Bruce's success. Oh what could've been. How many times have we said that as ISU fans?

 

[cycophagus]

E=norcalcy;4133684]Apologies if this has been discussed and merge this thread if it has, but this story over at Cyclones.com is pretty interesting. Cooper would have been a great hire in 1979. Sounds like the AD at the time didn't do a very good job recruiting him. We took a shot at him a few years later, but he didn't want to leave AZ State. Shows how crucial personnel decisions are.

http://cyclonesidebar.wordpress.com/2014/08/13/cooper-excited-for-isu-hall-of-fame-induction/

Definitely one of the times ISU dropped the ball on a coaching hire. The Duncan hire was a lot like the Chiz. Big time assistant that was used to winning with superior talent but really couldn't match wits when on the opposite side of the equation. Cooper would have brought a passion for the university and could've built on Bruce's success. Oh what could've been. How many times have we said that as ISU fans?[/QUOTE]

I like your comparison of the Chiz and Duncan hires. In both cases, it seemed as if we were hoping some of that big program "magic" would simehow rub off on us. Duncan, to his credit, stayed in the saddle much longer, and I think knew more about what he was getting into.

Regarding the Cooper non-hire, I had also commented on the subject in a post a couple years ago leading up to what would be the 1st of 3 games versus Tulsa (one of Cooper's HC gigs):
ISU Connections to Tulsa Gridiron Success