Augie throwing down his anchor....

B

Buck-Horn

Guest
Not that this is some sort of breaking news, but looks like Augie will fight to stay, per today's AAS story. If Perrin decides to give him the boot, he'll have to go kicking & screaming. So, Augie pleading that he is a turn-around specialist & can get it done next year...NOT!!! His quote...

"I want to finish next year and I will do all I can to convince the powers that be that I’m capable of turning it around because I have five times in the past and I’ll do whatever it takes and make any adjustments I need to make to turn it around,

Of course, the logical retort to Augie's argument is....then why the hell didn't you 'turn it around' the last 3-4 years?!?!?
 
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I wonder if they tell him that he can either be fired or resign if he will consider his choice "going out on his own terms"?
 
If he used that logic / argument with me I would say: Why are you now capable of turning it around in your LAST year? Why haven't you done it the past few years?
 
From what I have come across, the "powers that be" want to make the change, but nobody wants to be the hatchet man.

They want Perrin to do it, but he doesn't want to. So Augie knows this and is turning up the pressure as far as he can, to make it as difficult as he can, for Perrin to do.

If Perrin decides that I don't want to do it, what are the higher ups going to do, fire him, this is your "catch 22." Besides it's just baseball, let,s wait and there won't be that big a deal made out of it, in the long run.

This is becoming "Mack Brown Part Deux," he wanted to stay and pass DKR's victory total, he wasn't going to go either. Finally the Regents told Powers, he either told Brown to go, or they would send him packing. They had agreed to let Powers stay on another year earlier, but that deal was about to be short lived, if he didn't get the job done.

Unfortunately, what we have here is an AD, with limited time left. He can refuse to make the change, with little to no chance of any repercussion.

Just more possible fallout, from hiring the wrong AD, a few years ago.

The opportunity to turn things around came when Harmon was let go. That went out the window, with the hiring of Nicholson, which has just made things worse.

 
I guess I just don't understand why the AD would have a hard time pulling the trigger. Baseball is big, but not football big. In the end will there really be any fallout from firing a coach who hasn't done a good job not just this year, but really for several years in a row now, the flukey conference tournament win last year notwithstanding??? I just don't see it.

The only potential fallout I can see is if they hire the wrong guy and the program really tanks. But that's where doing your due diligence comes into play.

The baseball program has cratered. The AD is paid big bucks to make difficult decisions. This ISN'T a difficult decision. The hiring of a new coach may well be difficult, but letting an underperforming coach go shouldn't be, no matter the overall win total. We don't get conference titles, regional appearances or CWS bids because the coach has a lifetime achievement award.
 
TxnByBirth said:
I guess I just don't understand why the AD would have a hard time pulling the trigger.
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Honestly it's just not that hard, be a pro and do the job. You have to stop looking at coaches like they were living tissue. These are well compensated resources with clear objectives. Cull the under-performing assets, raise ticket prices (soft pitch strategy = VALUE) and go get a winner. Fans will love you for it, I should know.

Hook'em!

sp
 
I could be in the minority, but I would like to see the athletic department honor Augie's contract and let him retire after the 2017 season. This is a man who is a legend in NCAA baseball and has meant A LOT to the UT athletic program over the past 20 years. He took over for Cliff when the program was declining, and brought this program back to where it should be. I agree it's been rough sledding since 2011, but this is a program that was in Omaha in 2014 and won the big 12 tournament in 2015.

This year has been difficult to watch from all levels, and has been a perfect storm of bad defense, no timely hitting, and the pitching has struggled more than it has in the last 10+ years, but...this team is incredibly young and could be an Omaha team next year and the years after. Would making a change right now really make that large of a difference instead of just waiting one more year? Keep in mind with Augie leaving likely means an entire new staff at UT, and that usually means a 3-5 year transition period so what is the big hurry to make a change now instead of 2017?

I guess you have to ask yourself, is the candidate we want available now and won't be available after the 2017 season? I am guessing the candidates will still be lined up at the door in 2017, so I'd like to see us respect Augie and everything he has meant to the program and allow him to go out on his terms (end of his contract).

I agree this year has been unacceptable for UT standards, but everyone was calling for Augie's job back when he first started at UT as well, and all he did was make this program the nation's premier program in the 2000's. The assistant coaches here are well respected as well and among the best in the country, so why rush to make a change now with a change coming in 2017 anyways?
 
HFB,

"This team is incredibly young" - recruit baseball players and it won't matter. Let's see - how old was Greg Swindell when we rode his arm to the final game in Omaha? HE WAS A TRUE FRESHMAN!

How old was Kurt Krippner? TRUE FRESHMAN!

Sure they had better supporting casts, but that supporting cast is on Augie for not recruiting better. (Gosh, seems like something I heard over at Memorial Stadium.) How many times did we go to Omaha only to see our bats go dead? Seems I remember having to throw our #3 pitcher in the championship game in Omaha in 1983. We had the depth - again recruiting. We had the discipline - coaching. We had a belief that we were going to win every time we stepped on the field - haven't seen that in a few years.

Yes, there were people who wanted Augie gone not long after he was hired, and I was one of them, but NOT for performance on the diamond. That subject gets dropped now!

Any new coach brought in that takes 3-5 years to "right the ship" is a bad hire and damn well should be gone before the end of year three.

Help him to go gracefully to being a television analyst, but most importantly help him go!
 
Sure we should go ahead and do Augie the favor if only had a recent couple of down years. But it's not just a few years we have been a far cry from the standards set by Gus and Augie in his competent years.

Gus' 'declining' program last finished 39-22 and won the conference. It's called a decline because it was a decline from the 40+ wins over the last 17 seasons.

Compared to 4 of the last 5 years under Augie, Gus' final product was a dream season.

Regular season record:
2012: 30-22 (no playoffs)
2013: 27-24-1 (no playoffs)
2014: 38-16 (CWS run)
2015: 26-25 (0-2 playoffs)
2016: 22-30 (no playoffs)

Augie's overall reg season record the last five seasons is 133-117-1. 4 of 5 years we have been a dog compared to the stellar past of our program. It's time to cut bait.

This is the same mess we screwed around with giving Mack another year. And we're still paying for it on the football field.

Texas baseball is more important than individual goals of one of our historical coaches.
 
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Yes, you are in the minority, because of what is obvious to people, that follow Texas Baseball closely.

Augie doesn't mean anymore to the program, than the two coaches that preceded him. I think what is going on now is a little different, than the 1998 season. For the record, I also defended him at that time.

The program has declined now in record fashion, if you hadn't noticed, the changes needed, were not made.

You answer your own question, when you say this is not acceptable.

Coach Gus never had a losing season, much less 30 losses, in a 52 game season. Lots of history is being made, such as the only losing seasons in the past 60 years. Every game before the radio broadcast you hear Augie say,"that winning is mandatory here," I guess he didn't mean it.

The question you need to ask yourself is this. Is one person more important than the Texas Baseball program? No past accompishments earns you the right, to run the program into the ground.

New records are being set all the time these days and they are all negative. Let's not rush to make changes, that should have already been made years ago, but weren't.

Let's just keep being one of the worst hitting teams in the Big 12 year after year after year. Now the worst fielding team in the conference, which had always been top notch.

If you think Tommy Nicholson is one of the best assistant coaches in the country, that's all I need to know.

Winning the Big 12 Tourney last year, just helped keep masking major dificiencies in the program, that have been there for many years.

Also if your been here for any length of time, I have also talked about the transition period to restore the program, just like it took Augie, four years to do. He didn't know the Texas scene and neither will a new coach, from another region of the country.

This is why I have said that Skip Johnston be given the job, because he has head coaching experience. He knows the state of Texas as well as anybody, for baseball purposes. He could also hire two top notch assistant coaches, that know the Texas recuiting scene, as he does. People who can actually coach and help players in slumps. The pitching would also continue to be good to excellent, unlike the hitting and now fielding.

Maybe we can actually have players again that can hit and field their position and help out the pitching staff, who has carried the load the past several seasons. You know, the only reason that Augie still has his job and that is all done by Skip. Go back and see how the 2014 CWS run and Tournament win last year happened. It sure wasn't because Texas slugged it's way there. Maybe he could go on the recruiting trail and tell pitchers that they would get some run support again. He can't even tell them we have excellent fielding, to help them out now.

You want to see a change, think what three good Texas knowledgable recruiters could do, with all three out there actively doing it.

I have gone into this since 2010 and it just never seems to sink in. Each year this will be the year the offense is good, then excuse after excuse as the season goes on, but nothing changes. Check out the stats for the past eight years, if you question this. See which aspect of the game has done the job and which hasn't.

Baseball Statistics - Big 12 Conference - Official Athletic Site

But if a whole new staff was brought in, hopefully from a successful program in Texas. This would be better than what has gone on, the last several years. They would all at least go out and recruit actively, which hasn't happened in years. If you think it has, your sadly mistaken. Think back to why Harmon was fired, Augie hasn't done it in years. Nicholson has been worse than Harmon was, in his last few years, when he quit going out and recruiting hard.




 
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NB,

In fairness to Augie, Gus got to coach against some cream puffs and novice coaches like Jim Brock, Rod Dedeaux, Ron Frazier, Gary Ward, and of course the coach who ruined more talent than most coaches see in a lifetime, the one and only Tom Chandler.

Exclusive of Chandler, if there is a coach of that caliber who has brought his team to DischFalk in the last 5-7 years, please enlighten me.
 
So by going out on his own terms does that mean as an angry mean drunk who divides locker rooms, creates angst on teams and destroys positivy?

Go away Augie. Find other wives to sleep with.
 
Coach Gus also coached against some really talented Fullerton teams, with a much younger, Augie Garrido, that had some very good hitters. They hit with power, not much small ball then.

I remember those games and often talked to Augie, afterwards. I have two of those red, white and blue Fullerton hats, with the big block F on them, as proof.
 
NBHorn7 said:
Coach Gus also coached against some really talented Fullerton teams
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I also have very unfond memories of D.C. Olsen and Mark Kotsay crushing the ball at the Disch.

Remembering those early 90's days only further cements how far we have fallen.
 
They want Perrin to do it, but he doesn't want to. So Augie knows this and is turning up the pressure as far as he can, to make it as difficult as he can, for Perrin to do.
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Hell, I will pay *them* to let me do it.
 
Phil,

I turned down the opportunity because I wanted expanded power for my hour of fame. There would be plenty of openings in the 78713
 
Here's another stat to look at.

RPI ratings for Texas schools in baseball, after the end of he regular season.

4. aggy
12. Tech
17. TCU
31. Dallas Baptist
32. Rice
43. Sam Houston
72. Houston
97. UT-Arlington
104. Baylor
112. Stephen F. Austin
147. Texas State
148. Texas

 
All those teams above Texas have combined for 21 trips to Omaha, winning the CWS once.

Texas has been there 35 times with 6 championships.
 
Yes, life is frequently so much nicer through the rear view mirror. Do it with class and dignity, but make the change.

Just like football, the choices for a replacement are very limited. Could we please not grossly overpay this time' like Powers did?
 
SabreHorn said:
Yes, life is frequently so much nicer through the rear vIew mirror. Do it with class and dignity, but make the change.

Just like football, the choices for a replacement are very limited. Could we please not grossly overpay this time' like Powers did?
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There's not many ways you can fire a person with class and dignity. I've never understood why fans make such a big deal about that. He hasn't gotten the job done. He can either give his resignation or get fired.
 
rattfatt said:
There's not many ways you can fire a person with class and dignity. I've never understood why fans make such a big deal about that. He hasn't gotten the job done. He can either give his resignation or get fired.
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Yes there is, and Augie is in control. He can agree to a face saving separation or he can put up a fight. He is in charge not the school.
 
ViperHorn said:
Yes there is, and Augie is in control. He can agree to a face saving separation or he can put up a fight. He is in charge not the school.
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As an employee of the University I don’t see how any coach is "in control" as you say.
 
Driver 8 said:
As an employee of the University I don’t see how any coach is "in control" as you say.
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He can choose to go quietly into the night or get publically humiliated. His choice.

Yes the AD should have the stones to just fire him, but Augie, for all of his recent faults, did bring continued Omaha success in the-mid part of his stay at Texas.
 
The problem with giving Augie 2017 is that he'll end 2016 with 1972 wins. Given recent history (see post #13), he won't make 2,000 wins next year, but will come close enough that folks will start clamoring to give him 2018 to reach the milestone. All that does is delay the desperately needed rebuild that everyone acknowledges will take 3-5 years. So if we want Texas Baseball to be relevant again before the next decade, we need to start IMMEDIATELY!
 
ViperHorn said:
He can choose to go quietly into the night or get publically humiliated.
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IMHO, the public humiliation has already occurred due to the losing year for UT baseball under his watch.

Being let go for that I don't see as humiliation, just facts. You don't do that to UT baseball. Nothing personal, he's just not doing his job. "It's not personal, it's just 'the beezniss' ."

HE is the source of the humiliation, NOT UT-Austin. Garrido could mitigate any humiliation on his part by doing the right thing, thanking UT for the opportunity, speaking proudly of his overall record at UT, but recognizing it's time for a change and accepting the consequences of his recent, and seemingly continued trending, failures.

Anyway, UT-Austin usually has a history of fairly lucrative termination parachutes, unless it gets nasty, say with Penders.
 
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