When Randy Edsall sat down and accepted the head football coaching job at Maryland after a successful run at Connecticut, a lot of people scratched their heads. The Huskies, at the time, were a member of the now defunct Big East, a conference then considered relatively equal to the ACC, where Maryland then resided.
Now there are multiple reports indicating that Edsall will be let go soon by the current Big 10 school and no one should be surprised. The Terrapins are 2-3 this season, including a home 48-27 loss to Bowling Green. When Edsall was hired in 2010, he joined a long line of coaches calling their new job their “dream job” when, in reality, it was their next job only because money talks and the prior school walks. Two years later, Steve Addazio was hired by Boston College and also called that his dream job. That claim stretched the boundaries of credulity, because a football coach saying Boston College is his dream job is a little like a cook saying working at Boston Market is his dream job.
In reality, these coaches are probably better served not chasing the money, especially Edsall. He knew that Maryland was about to become a member of the Big 10 and probably should have understood the landscape precluded a seamless transition from the ACC to a much tougher conference. Now, after he’s fired, Edsall will probably have to rebuild his reputation in a smaller environment like the MAC or the Sun Belt and that’s a big comedown.
Edsall parlayed an appearance by UConn in the 2010 season Fiesta Bowl into his Maryland job, but had he remained at UConn, any additional football success might have hastened an invitation for that school to replace Maryland in the ACC and Edsall could have enjoyed similar success.
Instead, Edsall walked into a buzz-saw at Maryland, a situation where no coach would have had an even playing field to begin with, and his dream job is turning into a nightmare. The blame for this whole mess belongs to Edsall for chasing the almighty dollar. It’s something all coaches in similar situations should think about before grabbing what at the time looks like easy money.
Mike Gibson is a featured writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @papreps , “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google.