The CheckerBoard

Oh sorry, I didn't realize that.

The top 5 potential openings are Tennessee, Arkansas, N.C. State, Auburn and Cal. Tennessee is considered the best job because they spend money, have a great history and incredible facilities. Also, unlike almost all the others they have already hit rock bottom and are on their way back up. As one SEC A.D. said, "It may sound strange but they have momentum." Dooley has done the heavy lifting and someone else will benefit from that.

Arkansas is also a very attractive job because the roster is loaded and the right guy will win very quickly. Auburn is not as attractive because the feeling is that they haven't bottomed out yet and the roster is a dumpster fire.

It's the flipside of the "rankings are everything" argument. Some people think that the # of 4 and 5 star recruits in the class is what determines a team's success, but if the coaches aren't doing their jobs properly, they're going to look like a team full of 2 and 3 stars. Likewise, a good coach can make his 2-3 stars play like 4-5 stars, and exceed expectations (Boise State is a prime example of this).

The article is right. Dooley stabilized the program, re-stocked a depleted roster, and purged some bad guys, but he won't be around to harvest the fruits. It's a shame. Next guy may look like like a genius in a short period of time, but if he's doing it with CDD's guys and then recruiting and production fall off, he won't be such a genius after all.