Your new defensive coordinator is...
by GopherNation on Jan 9, 2009 11:02 AM CST
in Gopher Football
39 comments
Kevin Cosgrove (and Ronnie Lee promoted to co-DC). I assume you read other sources that provide Gopher news (if you don't, I was just kidding there are no other Gopher sources just stay here). And if so you have probably heard that this was rumored for the last day or two. Cosgrove and Brewster have a hist
ory, Cosgrove has a extensive history coordinating a defense at BCS level schools (Wisconsin and Nebraska) and Cosgrove has a decent reputation as a good recruiter. Add those together and what was a quick hire.
"We are very excited to announce Kevin Cosgrove as our new co-def
ensive coordinator," Brewster said. "Coach Cosgrove brings a wealth of experience in the Big Ten as both a coach and recruiter. Plus, he possesses a long track record of developing outstanding defenses. But, perhaps more importantly, Kevin is a great person and an outstanding fit on our staff.
"Ronnie Lee has done a tremendous job since joining our staff here at Minnesota," Brewster added. "I’m very pleased to reward him with this promotion. Ronnie has proven himself to be an excellent coach and recruiter. I look forward to him having an expanded role on our defensive staff."
Kevin Cosgrove will be sharing his defensive coordinator duties with defensive backs coach Ronnie Lee. We will talk more about Lee and his role in the future, but this post will focus on Cosgrove.
This hire does not come without controversy and opinions, of course. Kevin
Cosgrove's most recent position was on Bill Callahan's staff at Nebraska. 2007 was his final season and it was statistically the worst defense in Husker history. Cos was disliked by nearly everyone, hated by a few and had his life threatened by one.
I queried the author of Husker blog, Corn Nation to get his thoughts. John didn't have much good to say about Cosgrove and pointed out that the biggest critique of his defenses was that it couldn't defend the spread (gave up 76 to Kansas in his final year). That is very concerning as the Big Ten is all of a sudden full of spread teams.
The bottom line on Cosgrove is this - we knew that with him we'd never have a great defense. Since Callahan was supposedly an "offensive genius", the idea was that the defense would be good enough to win games. What a fantasy, especially in 2007 when the defense fell down so badly.... like I said, worst defense in Nebraska history. At the end of 2007, it was like they were throwing guys on the field who hadn't a clue as to what they were doing. Is that all Cosgrove's fault? No, but as far as I know, he's never said boo about it after the fact.
Cosgrove will be okay if he has to defend against traditional pro-style offenses. If he has to defend against a spread, or a mobile quarterback, then he'd damn well have been to a bunch of coaching clinics since 2007.
CN also conceded that Callahan was a control freak and may have handcuffed Cosgrove a little bit.
There are few things that I really like about this hire.
- Cosgrove appears to be a guy who will around for several seasons. His son is on the current staff (at least was a grad assistant last year), he has a history with Brewster and his name is not one mentioned as a potential head coach down the road. The Gopher defense has a new coordinator every year it seems so having some continuity and familiarity with someone over the next few seasons will be a great thing.
- He has a history of defending traditional offenses quite well. This will greatly help us in rivalry games as Iowa and Wisconsin have yet to move to the spread. These are games we have been unable to win in recent years so bringing home the Axe and Floyd would be a nice change. If Cosgrove can help accomplish this then it will be a great hire.
- He has a history in the Big Ten. This won't be new for him. He has been a coordinator in the Big Ten and that familiarity should make the transition smoother and quicker.
- He is a linebackers coach. We have a number of young LBs coming in (Maresh, Brent Singleton) and Cosgrove has been coaching linebackers since the 80s. You can't question his experience.
What I don't like?
- Perceived inability to defend the spread. Maybe we'll be fine against Iowa and Wisconsin, but the rest of the Big Ten runs the spread. 2-6 in conference every year will bring the Brewster era to a close sooner rather than later. Obvoiusly his hire doesn't mean guaranteed losses to spread teams, but Cosgrove's history suggests he hasn't adapted very well to this. Hopefully the help of Lee and a year off to think about things will greatly help this perceived weakness.
- Although known as a decent recruiter he doesn't have a history or close ties with a recruiting hot bed (south, Tex, Cali, Ohio, Penn, etc). He is from Illinois, but that doesn't always translate into having inroads to Chicago area recruits.
- Recent stint at Nebraska is disconcerting. I've heard it many, many times from people who follow the Huskers. 2007 was the worst defense in Nebraska history. 37.9 ppg allowed, which is bad but it gets worse. Gave up 65 to Colorado, 76 to Kansas and gave up 40+ four other times. So half of their games they allowed 40 or more. 112th in yards allowed, 114th in points allowed, 116th in third down conversion and 116th in red zone scoring. He is fortunate the Gophers were worse that season!
Kevin Cosgrove Bio
Birthdate: December 27, 1955
Hometown: Chicago, Ill.
High School: Mt. Carmel
College: Wisconsin-Oshkosh, 1978
| Resume | ||||||||
| Years | Title | Location | ||||||
| 2004-2007 | Defensive Coordinator & Inside Linebacker Coach | Nebraska | ||||||
| 1995-2003 | Defensive Coordinator & Linebacker Coach | Wisconsin | ||||||
| 1990-1994 | Linebacker Coach | Wisconsin | ||||||
| 1989-1990 | Linebacker Coach | Colorado State | ||||||
| 1988-1989 | Defensive Coordinator & Linebacker Coach | Missouri State | ||||||
| 1983-1987 | Linebacker Coach | Illinois | ||||||
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I posted a FanPost about many...
…of my thoughts and they coincide with the Nebraska blogger’s concerns about Cosgrove. Who is Brewster kidding by calling Cosgrove a developer of outstanding defenses? He destroyed Nebraska’s defensive tradition over the course of 4 years.
And I have little confidence in Ronnie Lee’s ability to coach at all. And the whole co-coordinator thing just doesn’t. work. at. all. Didn’t we just learn that with Dunbar and Smith?
Like I said, I hope this works out. I am greatly concerned, however.
I don't think you are alone
personally I’m neutral, but this has the potential to be the move that brings down Brewster
what you say here can, and will, be used against you
Did Cosgrove...
..work last year, anywhere?
Did Brewster make the best choice he could? I don’t have a list of available coordinators handy, but was this on the top end of what we could expect? Could we have tapped a BCS-game defensive positions coach for this job (if I had to pick a position group and take their coordinator, I would like Ohio State’s defensive line coach, or anyone from Florida. Charlie Strong included. Anyone from USC or Penn State’s defensive positional coaching staffs as well.)
he did not work last year, spent time in Madison
part of the issue though is a head coach doesn’t want to hire someone he doesn’ t know. Brewster’s butt is the one on the line so as sexy as a position coach from Florida might be, he’s not going to hire someone he doesn’t know at all. Cosgrove has plenty of experience and has been successful in the past.
I agree that this is not a sexy hire and it does nothing to inspire me but it makes some sense from TB’s perspective.
what you say here can, and will, be used against you
by GopherNation on Jan 9, 2009 11:56 AM CST up reply actions
You're right...
…Rodriguez from Michigan hired his DC from last year sight unseen from Stanford. They clashed, the team had its worst defensive output in history, and Shafer is now gone, coaching the defense in Syracuse (which should be interesting on September 5th). Brewster is correct not to do the same, unless they get an intensive interview process.
One other thing that I’ve gleaned from Michigan’s DC search. There are public disclosure laws that require open public university positions to be posted for a certain period of time before they are filled. That is why Rodriguez didn’t “instantly” fill the position. However, it seems to me Brewster may not have that restriction. I thought it was a federal EEOC requirement. When did Roof officially resign? Can we hire a replacement this quickly, without posting for the job?
While I'm willing to give this guy a chance
I see nothing that inspires my confidence.
Bad hire
Even though I think Cosgrove will fail miserably on the field, my biggest concern so far is not even related to on-field performance of the Gopher defense next year. It is the huge negative perception that will now surround the program. Because of the Nebraska debacle, Cosgrove is largely considered a dinosaur and leftover scraps. It will be hard to sell the program as an up-and-comer when we are hiring leftover scraps. The effects of this could be felt immediately. I would not be surprised if we have decommits and transfers from the defense. Brewster really miscalculated on this one.
Is it worth....
….having a Cornhusker blogger analyze the 2007 defensive effort, so we have an idea of the schemes, personnel and packages we’re going to see at TCF? Actually, let’s all look for something and if one of us finds it, please link to it. I will do the same. Nebraska is similar to a Big Ten-style school (say, Wisconsin or tOSU) so we should get a grasp as to what we’re going to expect to see next year.
click on the "disliked by everyone" link in the story
it is the list of all stories done by Corn Nation that included Cosgrove.
what you say here can, and will, be used against you
by GopherNation on Jan 9, 2009 11:59 AM CST up reply actions
Dunbar was a leftover and a dinosaur
he was on his way out of Cal after a fairly public poor relationship with the Cal HC.
His being a dinosaur didn’t hurt our offensive recruiting.
what you say here can, and will, be used against you
by GopherNation on Jan 9, 2009 11:58 AM CST up reply actions
You're right....
…Dunbar ran an attractive offense that put many Cal players in the NFL. He was on his way, had he gotten the offensive linemen to work with, to doing the same for a number of Gopher players.
he was only at Cal for 1 year
not sure he gets much credit for Marshawn Lynch. He was at NW for several years before that.
what you say here can, and will, be used against you
by GopherNation on Jan 9, 2009 12:42 PM CST up reply actions
Let's get it over with
I generally like guys who have something to prove. I think Cosgrove definitely has something to prove after the anal rape he presided over in Nebraska.
However, since it sounds like he is one of those stubborn ‘traditional football guys’ (see Al Davis) I am very disappointed in the hire. I predict he will be gone in less than a year and so I will only refer to him hereafter as ‘Cos.’
I fear that Burrito will be gloating about it by xmas of ’09.
Burrrrito . . . .
is easier to spell than Barreiro.
It also tastes way better on the grill.
by the accomplice on Jan 9, 2009 3:58 PM CST up reply actions
one year?
he’ll be here two years minimum. The only way he’d be gone sooner is if he clashed with others on the staff, but it sounds like he is a good guy.
what you say here can, and will, be used against you
You sure he's a good guy?
I don’t get the greatest vibe on the stuff I’ve been reading in your links, and through my own investigation online. Seems a little defensive (he’s in the perfect job then, right?)
I don't have the links
but I’ve read in a couple different places that he is a good human being.
what you say here can, and will, be used against you
Well.....
……he can’t be better than Tim Tebow, according to what I heard last night from Thom Brennaman. Good grief.
Frankly, if Nick Saban walked through the door, who by many accounts is a terrible human being, I’d take him. I could care less if Cosgrove beats his dog, I want him to help the U win football games.
Read....
…. this.
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2004/writers/stewart_mandel/07/27/mailbag/index.html
It doesn’t touch upon whether Cosgrove’s a good guy, but does talk about Cosgrove leaving Wisconsin, Bielema taking over, and the mysterious decline of Wisconsin’s defense coinciding with Cosgrove’s tenure. This and Nebraska make me scared.
By the way, have a look at some of the names in the article in their prior positions. Bielema. Darren Sproles. Justin Vincent. Ell Roberson. Interesting to look backwards.
WI Scoring Defense Under Cosgrove
I went with scoring defense, since it accounts for the bend-but-don’t-break approach better than total yards. 1999 is as far back as I could find, though if memory serves, the 1998 Wisky D was top 20 from a scores allowed standpoint:
1999 – 5th (13.2ppg)
2000 – 34th (20.4)
2001 – 81st (28.8)
2002 – 38th (23.0)
2003 – 50th (23.5)
Overall, not awful, but, with the exception of 1999, not spectacular either. I believe we were 61st is scoring D this year, so any result but the 2001 season would be an improvement for us. I’m willing to give him the benefit of the doubt based on what he did with Wisky’s defense from 1995-2000. That said, I’m very concerned by the reports that he’s rigid in his philosophy and incapable of defending the spread. We shall see, I guess.
Are you willing ....
…to give him the benefit of the doubt based on his scoring defense with Nebraska from 2004 – 2007?
2004 – 27.1 ppg
2005 – 21 ppg
2006 – 18.3 ppg
2007- 37.9 ppg
It’s hard to know what to think about what Cosgrove is gonna do here.
I am dismayed, though, that he got hired because he’s Brewster’s friend from their time at Illinois.
Well, except for 2007...
those numbers aren’t awful. 2007 was butt-ass terrible, but it’s hard for me to judge the dude’s entire career based on the results of one wretched year. So to answer your question, yes, I’ll still give him the benefit of the doubt.
I’m also not as concerned about the fact that Brewster and Cosgrove had a friendship from their time in Illinois. I think Brewster wants to have people around him who can trust and, consequently, felt more comfortable hiring someone with whom he’d previously worked. Furthermore, it’s not like Cosgrove has spent his career working for UPS, turnip farming, or some other non-football career. But for the 2007 season and the hyperbolic reaction of the rabid Nebraska fanbase, I think we’d be thrilled with the Cosgrove hire and charges of cronyism would be muted.
Truthfully, I have no idea how Cosgrove will do here, but I’m hoping for the best without (I hope) being a Pollyanna. Do I think we could have done better? Indeed.There were, in my opinion, equally qualified candidates available who wouldn’t have caused the chicken-little responses we’ve seen from Gopher Nation as a result of the Cosgrove hire. With that said, I find it hard to believe Cosgrove will be as bad as the speculation here and on other Gopher boards indicates. This is really Brewster’s opportunity to make a name for himself as a head coach, and to believe he’d hire an abject failure to manage his defense just doesn’t pass muster for me.
And by Gopher Nation...
I meant the community of Gopher fans, not the esteemed author of the post. :-D
No offense taken...
…even if it was targeted at me : )
I hope Cosgrove works out. My season tickets and my alumni status bear that out. It’s high team we succeed. My concern only comes from the hope this doesn’t fail, because if it does, we’re looking at another transition period.
My Nebraska Buddy
Shot out an email already and said this was the greatest day of his life… I don’t like this hire. I hope Cosgrove proves them all wrong.
Something to prove is good ....
… but I woiuld have liked it to be someone rising up the coaching charts. Someone with head coaching ambitions, a young position coach instead of a tired retread who has failed and been passed over for countless jobs (presumably) explaining his time off in Madison.
Not excited.
Maroon and Gold Headquarters: The Daily Gopher
I agree
My Nebraska buddy claims that he took over a top 10 defense when he came to NE and by the time he left he had the 118th ranked defense (2007) and the only defense that was worse statistically (ironically) was the Gophers. He also claims that this past year NE improved to a mid 50’s ranking with 4 walk on’s starting.
Not good.
Is it possible...
he just wanted a year off after the 2007 season (thus, explaining his time off in Madison last year). If I’d received death threats prior to leaving my last job, I don’t think I’d be in a rush to start a new job. Fortunately, I spend all day in a cube fawning over my nine managers, so death threats aren’t really an accupational hazard for me.
Sounds like...
…he’s a great recruiter though. “Barry Alvarez said Cosgrove was one of his best recruiters, especially in the Midwest. He was especially strong in the St. Louis area,” the Tribune reports.
Hummmm, a lot of good recruits coming in and no one to coach them. LOL
John Maynard
I don't get the sarcasm
Brewster has proved he is a good recruiter. In order to succeed in recruiting, your entire staff needs to be dedicated to it and have a similar philosophy about it. Head coaches don’t make every single recruiting trip. Assistants make many more of the trips. The other coaches often end up being the face of the University.
All in all, I agree with Rooney09. I don’t see why we all think the sky is falling. We aren’t Auburn. We aren’t Tennessee. We don’t have that pedigree. Brewster is trying to build it, but it won’t come in one, two, or probably even five years. I don’t think Cosgrove has been as bad as advertised other than one bad year.
I don’t think Minnesota will ever pay their assistant coaches extraordinary amounts of dough. They are more concerned about academics—the law school, the business school, the med school, the economics department. We should expect coaches to leave if they get exorbitant offers elsewhere.
The sarcasm is...
…the implication that Cosgrove doesn’t need to recruit because that’s Brewster’s specialty. I am acknowledging that the entire staff recruits players. And under Brewster, they recruit especially well. That’s all.
I don’t think the message is “the sky is falling.” The message is that “uh oh, the sky has fallen with this new hire before, and I’m concerned it’s going to fall here now, and given the excitement around the program with the new coach, new recruits, and new stadium, and the increased concern after 55-0 and Kansas, a coach who failed in historic proportions at his last job gives us all concern going into what’s going to be an exciting yet pivotal year for the program.”
Now put that message on a streamer behind a plane!
Well now, I wouldn't say that.
If he and Callahan were such great recruiters, as we were told when they got in Lincoln, why did we need 3 walk-ons as starters?
We may have had 4, as GreasyLlama’s buddy states, but I think that was because originally we had a converted RB starting at Linebacker, and when he was removed, a backup walk-on was moved up to starter.
Which presents another wrinkle. If they were such good recruiters, why is an I-back one of our starting linebackers?
“Hummmm, a lot of good recruits coming in and no one to coach them. LOL”
That’s what a lot of us thought of the Huskers in 2007.
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