The Difficult Decision Facing Athletic Director Rob Mullens
A story of riches to rags, football head coach Mark Helfrich watched his career at the University of Oregon come to a close. Taking over a well-crafted Chip Kelly team and anticipating the 2013 season, the future looked bright for him. His initial two seasons included an Alamo Bowl victory over Texas and a trip to the BCS National Championship, which ended in a loss to Ohio State. Following the runner-up finish of 2014, Oregon’s football program began to falter. A mediocre 9-4 record accompanied by a devastating 47-41 loss to TCU in the Alamo Bowl set the stage for the team’s decline this year. The team closed out the 2016 campaign toting a 4-8 record and – after a crushing loss to rival Oregon State – Oregon found itself at the bottom of the Pac-12 North.
Firing speculations surrounded Helfrich intensified after the loss to the Beavers in the Civil War, and Tuesday night, news surfaced of his dismissal. He and athletic director Rob Mullens met earlier in the day after returning from recruitment processes in California. Despite Helfrich’s $11.6 million buyout and no staff within the program ready to assume such a role, Mullens and the U of O fired their first football head coach in the past 40 years. In a press conference Tuesday night, the athletic director thanked Helfrich by saying, "We want to thank Mark for his eight years with the University of Oregon and appreciate his efforts on behalf of Oregon football. We wish Mark and his family the best."
The disastrous final season of Helfrich’s tenure is already impacting the future of Oregon football. Since Tuesday, two four-star recruits have retracted their commitments to U of O - defensive end Langi Tuifua and defensive back Deommodore Lenoir. The 2017 recruiting class now has just 13 commitments, only one of which is a four-star recruit (cornerback Jaylon Redd of Rancho Cucamonga, California), ranking them sixth in the Pac-12.
Before any progress can be made in the recruitment process, a new head coach needs to be signed. Top names on Mullens’ radar are Western Michigan’s P.J. Fleck, Brian Kelly of Notre Dame, UCF’s Scott Frost, Jim McElwain of Florida and, of course, Chip Kelly of the San Francisco 49ers.
Already, Frost, McElwain and Kelly have expressed disinterest in the coaching position. Frost told reporters, “I’m not a candidate for Oregon. I’m where I want to be.” He was the Ducks’ offensive coordinator from 2013 to 2015 and finished UCF’s season at 6-6, hinting at a possible return to the Pacific Northwest. After a to-the-point interview, all suspicions were quelled surrounding the UCF coach.
McElwain followed in the footsteps of Frost, for different reasons though. He said he has not heard from Oregon yet, but is content with Florida’s current state, “Look, I’ve got a heck of a job. In case anyone has checked, this is the University of Florida and we’re playing in what they call the SEC Championship Game. It hasn’t really crossed my mind.” Additionally, McElwain spent a lot of time with recruits recently, working to improve the Gators football program for the future.
Oregon football savior, but NFL flunk, Chip Kelly is the ideal man for the job. From 2009-2012, his teams took first in the Pac-12 every season, won the Rose and Fiesta Bowl plus earned a trip to the BCS National Championship game. Helfrich spoke to Kelly a few weeks ago “when it looked like this was going south,” but believes Kelly will stay and seek success in the NFL. To further bury the hatchet, Kelly told reporters in an interview that he will not be returning to Oregon football, nor has the school conveyed interest in bringing him back.
Outside of Frost, McElwain and Kelly, Oregon has contacted P.J. Fleck and Brian Kelly for the head coaching spot. USA Today’s George Schroeder and FOX’s Bruce Feldman participated in an interview on the Bald Faced Truth radio show with John Canzano of The Oregonian/Oregon Live; they discussed both coaches and how they would hypothetically fit into Oregon’s system.
First was P.J. Fleck, who Feldman speculated on whether or not could handle the jump from Western Michigan to Oregon. Schroeder similarly thought Fleck might not impress Oregon’s higher-ups at the interview, but states he does have substance behind just one successful season.
Brian Kelly didn’t impress Schroeder with his embarrassing 2016 campaign, saying “a lot of deflection of blame” occurred. Feldman, alternatively, ignored the bad season and focused on his recent success in previous years. He explained, “I know a lot of people don’t like him because you’ll see him red-faced yelling on the sideline or he doesn’t handle a press conference well”, hinting at the concept of Kelly meshing well in Eugene.
With the change in staff for the Ducks, little thought has been given to how current players feel towards the head coach’s dismissal. Matt Hegarty took his feelings to Twitter, posting a picture with Helfrich, captioning it, “Pleasure to be coached by this man for 1 great year. Have never met a more caring head coach that was committed to doing it right. Sad for UO”. He added another comment shedding more light on Helfrich’s connection with his players, saying “FWIW this pic was right after I disloc. my knee and finished my college career. I’ll never forget the genuine hand squeeze he gave me. Cared.” His impact was clear during the four-year administration, not only in reaching BCS bowl games, but also in bonding with players, giving them motivation to play their heart out. His firing is still debatable, but one thing is for certain, the football program of the University of Oregon is now heading in another direction.
