Coach James Willis will be the new LBer Coach at.....

[The Prowler]

Auburn....Story is up on Rivals and al.com....War Eagle!!!

[Talon]

Fantastic! Great start to the staff by retaining/rehiring him.  :thumbsup:

http://blog.al.com/goldmine/

[Jumbo]

Auburn....Story is up on Rivals and al.com....War Eagle!!!

Great rehire, we should finish strong in recruiting!

[Snaggletiger]

I like this hire too.  First and foremost, you have to be able to get the players in to your program.  It's obvious from the comments of some of the recruits that he does a good job there, plus he's made some great strides in the Mobile area.  I'm not smart enough to know what kind of position coach he is but it appeared that the LB corp was pretty stout and a couple of guys really improved dramatically from the beginning of the year.  Josh Bynes was easily the most active player on the field and looks like potential 1st team All-SEC material.  Spencer Pybus was signed as a 200 lb. afterthought that had many people asking what the hell Auburn was doing. He didn't play lights out but the true freshman was a beast on special teams and worked his way into the playing rotation at LB.  I guarantee we're going to be wishing we had 50 more like him by the time his career is over.   

[Townhallsavoy]

War Damn Willis! 


Too bad we lost out on Searles though. 

[Kaos]

Hi. My name is Nellie.

Hiring Willis, while it might be a good thing in the long run immediately shines the spotlight on the incompetence of Gene Chizik. 

If he was going to retain Willis or even entertain the thought of doing so, why the two-week delay? And why hire now? What if the defensive coordinator he elects to hire is a LB coach?  What if the DC he eventually selects -- or is selected for him by Pat Dye -- has a linebacker coach on his staff that he wants to bring? What if the DC he's told to hire by Dye has a completely different philosophy and can't work with Willis? What if he doesn't like the fact that Willis has a white wife? (kidding there). 

Seriously, though, when you're putting together a staff you need to get your coordinators in place first and then build from their preferences to ensure a cohesive staff and a consistent direction.

I don't mind having Willis back, necessarily, but the Chizz hasn't shown me much. I give this move a 2.4 with a desperation twist.