With the abrupt departure of former football coach Urban Meyer, athletic director Paul Krebs said yesterday that a national search for a replacement will begin immediately, and that he must act quickly to find Meyer’s replacement.
Meyer leaves the program after establishing it as one of the premier programs in the Mid-American Conference. He helped the team rebound from six straight losing seasons to post a 17-6 record over the last two seasons.
“Two years ago, when we looked for a new football coach, we had to convince people we were serious about Division I football,” Krebs said. “People questioned the University’s commitment. … We recognize the discipline, the spirit and the class with which our football program has run for the last two years.”
Bowling Green is a considerably more attractive place to coach now than two years ago, as Krebs alluded to. The Falcons gained much national exposure this season, as the team was ranked nationally for the first time since 1985, after winning their first eight games.
“We are on the map in Division I football,” Krebs said. “There’s a lot of interest in this job, there’s a lot of people interested in the job. We are going to move as quickly as possible to find a replacement. There is interest internally from our current staff, and we’ll look both internally and externally.”
“As far as criteria we’re looking for in a coach, I certainly believe we want continuity,” Krebs said. “We want to continue the progress we’ve made as a team in the last two years. We want someone who is familiar with the MAC, Ohio, and the Midwest. We obviously want someone who is a good recruiter, and definitely someone who can get the faculty involved, and promotes the football program. The president and I will be moving forward as quickly as we can to find a candidate.”
Krebs said that although he would like to find a replacement quickly, he wants to hire the right person for the position.
“I would like to do this as quickly as possible,” Krebs said. “Recruiting is critical, and we will move as fast as we can move, but these things often develop their own legs. What’s more important is that we get the right person for the job — you don’t rush to hire a coach just to get one recruiting class in.”
Krebs said he and Meyer’s coaching staff, whom he met with earlier in the day, were unsure of who would be remaining here and who would be leaving. Internally, the team has two well-qualified assistants in coordinators Gregg Brandon and Tim Beckman, who are likely candidates for the position.
Brandon has served in the collegiate coaching ranks since 1981, and has coached at Weber State, Wyoming, Utah State, Northwestern and Colorado. Brandon was the man behind the Falcons’ potent offensive attack in 2002, a unit that averaged 40.8 points per game, ranking them third in the nation. BG also ranked eighth in the nation in total offense per game, at 448.9 yards per game.
Beckman’s defense came on late in the year after struggling through injuries during the early part of the season. They finished by allowing 25 points per game. Beckman has coached collegiately since 1988, at Auburn, Western Carolina, Elon and Bowling Green.
Quarterback Josh Harris said it was important for some of the current staff to stay on.
“I think that would be real nice,” Harris said. “That’s not our decision to make, though.”
Linebacker Mitch Hewitt said that he is confident that Krebs will find the coach who will help the team the most.
“I think it’s important for that too, but I know Mr. Krebs will do what he thinks is in the best interest of the program,” Hewitt said.
