Coach Cronic

[Marvin Everett]

LR is a perfect fit for Drew. He can get everything he wants right here in my opinion.

[Chuck Bitner]

LR is a perfect fit for Drew. He can get everything he wants right here in my opinion.

Possibly. Some coaches are very content in Division II and stay for a long time. I haven't spoken to him about his career goals but I would imagine that having 63 scholarship athletes and a Division I salary are very appealing. LR can't provide those.

[Marvin Everett]

[D2FootballFanatic]

So with Cronic going to Mercer where does LR go from here? Does he take his whole staff with him? Do they hire someone off of his staff or do they open a national search? Interested to hear what the thoughts are.. never easy to lose a coach who flipped a program like that one, paid a lot more attention to LR this year after seeing what he did last year. Seems like a stand up guy, that the players really responded to, and a tough one to lose for LR

[Chuck Bitner]

Footballscoop updated their story indicating the deal between Mercer and Cronic is done. Just awaiting official announcement.

[canadarican]

Hearing they might bring back Ian Shields :-P:wink:

[Eagle74]

Well Bears, I know it was a fun ride with Coach Cronic, but now you have to realize that there could be big changes in store for your program. First of all it's typical when a coach leaves, you see players opting to transfer to more stable programs. This is especially true if a new coach isn't brought in soon, or if one is brought in with a completely different style and philosophy about how the team should operate.

No doubt, during this time period of transition, other programs (including those in the SAC) will consider this as an opportunity (open season) to pick up talent from LR's existing roster, so don't be surprised when it happens. Also, keep in mind that rebuilding a program with a new hire can take time, so patience will be required, or you will end up with a revolving door program with little stability or success.

Best of luck.

[LR1891]

Not too overly worried. We have fared well against the Eagles over the last decade regardless of who is coaching (10-3 over that span.) Good luck Eagles!

[canadarican]

LR does have the Eagles number over the past decade for sure. Those 10 wins have gotten them to a grand total of 17 since their first meeting 60 years ago

[LR1891]

We are well aware, and were reminded for decades. But the worm does turn!

[Marvin Everett]

[Marvin Everett]

[Marvin Everett]

Maybe we both get great hires for HC and keep the SAC strong. You guys should try to bring Carl Torbush out of retirement.

[canadarican]

Maybe we both get great hires for HC and keep the SAC strong. You guys should try to bring Carl Torbush out of retirement.

I love Coach Torbush, but hard pass Lol. I imagine CN fans would be more receptive of Torbush than LR fans if they brought back shields. There would be riots in hickory

[BearsLRU]

Not too worried, LR has dominated the SAC the past 10 years, and our players are usually pretty loyal. If we get a bad coach we'll get rid of them pretty quickly.

There is NO WAY Shields is coming back ever haha. Wonder if Coach Bell would come to Hickory? That could be fun. Donnie Kirkpatrick was a favorite last time around, maybe he wants a HC job as well.