Miami Football: Mark Richt extension a no-brainer for Hurricanes
Miami football head coach Mark Richt received a contract extension through 2023. Keeping Richt in the fold for as long as possible is a no-brainer.
After the 2015 season, Mark Richt was fired by the Georgia Bulldogs. He contemplated retiring from coaching after a fifteen year run in Athens, GA. Over those fifteen seasons in red and black, Richt compiled a 145-51 record including an 83-37 record in the SEC and ten bowl wins.
Richt brought the Bulldogs stability in the SEC East. Georgia won five SEC East titles and two outright SEC titles. After his firing, Richt landed in Coral Gables as the head football coach of the Miami Hurricanes. Miami had undergone three dismal head coaching stints prior to Richt who has won nineteen games over two seasons since arriving in Miami.
In 2017, Richt won the ACC Coastal title before his ‘Canes team was throttled by the Clemson Tigers in the ACC Championship Game. Before his tenure in Athens, Richt won seven ACC Titles as the offensive coordinator of the Florida State Seminoles, and two national titles at FSU in 1993 and 1999. Richt also coached Heisman Trophy winner Charlie Ward and future Heisman Trophy winner Chris Weinke (won in 2000).
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The Richt hiring (and subsequent extension) is a great thing for Miami football. It brings stability to a program suffering through poor coaching since Larry Coker took over in 2001, and Miami suffered through the Randy Shannon and Al Golden eras afterwards. Starting in 2004 and proceeding through 2016, Miami was one of the most mediocre programs in college football. Randy Shannon did put together a promising 2009 season on the heels of facing four ranked opponents and coming out 3-1. However, Miami never recovered from the loss to Wisconsin in the Champs Sports Bowl in 2009.
Richt has improved facilities helping to fundraise and plan the Carol Soffer Indoor Practice Facility which opens this summer, even giving $1 million of his own money. With a high tech IPF, Miami enters the modern era of college football. In order to recruit top ten classes every season the facilities had to improve.
Miami’s 2015 class, Golden’s last, was ranked 27th in the NCAA. By the 2017 class Miami finished ranked 12th and in 2018 the ‘Canes finished 8th overall. This gives Miami the pull in South Florida to recruit and guarantee that he’s on campus for the next five seasons. In that time, Miami can pool together a succession plan that could include Ron Dugans or Manny Diaz as well as other names on top of the college football world.
On top of facilities and recruiting, Richt has also shown his ability to bring a positive image to Miami. Richt is alumni, as well as someone that has his wife on the sidelines and his son on his coaching staff. Miami needs a family atmosphere and Mark Richt definitely can provide that with strong coaching chops and excellent recruiting acumen. Mark Richt is going to have to drive the Hurricanes to multiple ACC Championship Game appearances as well as prove victorious against the Atlantic power the Clemson Tigers.
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While the Georgia boosters may have been fed up with ten win seasons the Miami faithful will accept five more years of ten win seasons as long as Richt can stay a player in the Atlantic Coast Conference and eventually knock off the Clemson Tigers. Mark Richt’s process landed Miami in their first New Year’s Day bowl game since 2004 and it only took him two seasons. With a five year extension it’s only a matter of time before Richt gets the orange and green into the College Football Playoff for the first time.