What to Expect When You're Expecting

Your Louisiana Tech Bulldogs are coming off an incredibly disappointing season in 2021 — yes, due largely in part to their play on the field, but due also to our our ever-climbing expectations as both an athletic department and a fanbase. Okay maybe it was just the play on the field; fans are never wrong! But if what they say is true and ‘all disappointment is born from unmet expectations,’ Is it really our fault? I know for me, Austin Kendall and his combination of big game experience and untapped potential had me beyond excited heading into this year. Considering the other guys we had in that QB room, it felt like a home run. You didn’t have to watch Kendall’s tape very long or go to too many practices to get excited about how he commanded the offense with a toughness that we haven’t seen since Cody Sokol. Tack on how well he played at Mississippi State in the first game of the season (**cough, 21-point fourth quarter collapse, cough**), and we were all left feeling hopeful for what felt like it could be a special season. Kendall for Heisman, Skip for Coach of the Year, and a CUSA title — probably.

TECHingly enough, by the end of the day on November 25th, the 2021 Bulldog campaign concluded with a 3-9 overall record, an empty coach’s office, and a red hot coaching search to replace a guy who some people had already broken ground on a statue for. I mean, how can you not be romantic about College Football?

All this to say, expectations are a tricky thing. It has been one of the most consistent arguments among the Tech faithful for years. With the well-known budget issues and other circumstances outside of our control, how much should we really expect out of this football program on a year-in, year-out basis? How much should we expect out of a new coaching hire? What kind of standard should he be held to? Since we haven’t done this whole “coaching search” thing in a while, I thought it might be worth digging into.

I can already see it. September 3rd, 2022. Tech’s first drive against Baylor at McLane Stadium. Two runs and an incomplete pass on third down (from whoever on God’s green earth our QB is at that given moment), and then — Tech twitter, the message board, Facebook, and the fax machines start going off. “Here we go again. Skip 2.0. Nothing has changed.” “Going to be a long season boys. Get ready.” “Spotlight is too big for Cumbie, I told y’all!” Ready or not, it’s coming. It may not be the first drive. Maybe it is after the first loss that should have been a win. SO, if we are going to have these expectations, let us at least do our research.

Let’s take a ride down Tech Drive and look at what the last four Louisiana Tech Head Coaches accomplished in their first seasons at the helm. And, because this is BleedTechBlue and not some rag tag operation, we will also make a quick note as to the state of the program when each coach was handed the keys.

Jack Bicknell, Jr. – 1999-2006 (43-52 Overall Record )

Bicknell inherited the program from Gary Crowton in 1999 when Tech was still a Division 1-A independent. In 1998, Crowton led the Bulldogs to a 6-6 record before leaving for the NFL to be the Offensive Coordinator for the Chicago Bears.

In ‘99, Bicknell was promoted from his role as Tech’s Offensive Line Coach to Head Coach of the Bulldogs. What did his first year as head coach look like? I will warn you: it does not help us taper our expectations…

- 8-3 record

- First AP Top 25 Ranking in School History for Football

- 29-28 upset over No. 18 Alabama Crimson Tide, who would go on to become SEC Champs

Bicknell’s Bulldogs went on to win the 2001 WAC Championship, but his quick success would be short-lived, and he ended up mustering just one 7-win season across the next five, culminating in a 3-10 record during his final season.

Bicknell had an impressive first season to say the least. Sonny C, I think I speak for all of us we would be okay with this start!

Derek Dooley – 2007-2009 (17-20 Overall Record)

Derek Dooley was hired in 2007 after Bicknell’s squad went 3-10 the prior season. In Dooley’s first season, he led the Bulldogs to a 2 game improvement from the year before and posted a 5-7 record in 2007. Not lighting the world on fire by any means, but I will give him some credit — Dooley was also serving as Tech’s Athletic Director and running a full overhaul of the entire athletic department. So, you could you imagine he may have been a little distracted. Either way, keeping up with the trend, he did bring a slight improvement in the win column during his first year.

Though Dooley did a lot of good things for the program, he was not exactly known for being a warm and fuzzy guy. So nobody was surprised when he jumped on the Tennessee job faster than he switched his tie from blue to orange before he’d even driven away from campus.

The Other Sonny — Dykes — 2010-2012 (22-15 Overall Record)

Sonny Dykes comes along in 2010 from his previous gig, offensive coordinator at the University of Arizona. With him, he brought Texas Tech's famous "Air Raid” offense. Dooley’s last season at Tech finished with a disappointing 4-8 record, and as Dykes took over, Tech needed a change in offensive philosophy. Dykes delivered — sort of. Showing a modest one game improvement, Tech finished the 2010 season 5-7 overall. It is worth noting (you know, for our expectations), that it was the next season that Sonny Dykes really began to spoil the Tech faithful. After a shaky 1-4 start in 2011, Dykes rattled off seven consecutive wins to finish the season 8-4 with the WAC Champion trophy riding shotgun.

Sonny 1.0 would spend one more year in Ruston, in which the ‘Dogs would lead the nation in total offense, averaging 51.4 points per game, 577 yards of total offense per game, and finish 9-3 before Dykes headed off to Berkeley to become the head coach at Cal.

Skip Holtz – 2013-2021 (64-50 Overall Record)

Louisiana Tech hired Skip Holtz as its head football coach in December of 2012. Holtz inherited a 9-3 football team coming off a fairly disappointing end to an incredible season that saw them left out of playing in a bowl game altogether. You can send your “thank you” cards to BVDV for that one. For the sake of keeping the vibes up, I will refrain from reliving those details. Along with the winning record, the end of the 2012 season took with it some heavy hitters in Tech’s first ranked offense. The likes of Colby Cameron, Quinton Patton, Myles White, David Gru, Lyle Fitte, Ray Holley and others left big holes in the roster. It goes without saying, Skip’s first year would undoubtedly be labeled a rebuilding year. The Bulldogs went 4-8 in 2013, (a five-game slide from the previous year) before returning to another nine-win season in 2014.

Sonny Cumbie – New Head Coach

Sonny Cumbie is Tech’s 34th Head Coach in program history. Coach Cumbie is taking over a talented, albeit underachieving Bulldog football team desperately in need of a culture change. Tech finished a miserable 3-9 this season. Though that number may not be pretty to Tech fans, it almost ensures that Cumbie will bring immediate improvement by default.

So that begs the question: what can our realistic expectations be going into the 2022 season? Is it actually possible for us as Tech fans to have… patience to let this team build, adapt, and develop? Three of our last four head coaches saw an improvement in their first year (and I could even be talked into giving the Skipper a pass given the circumstances). Universities make coaching changes because they are seeking significant growth within their program, and in this day and age we want to see it quickly. Cumbie brings new life into a building (and frankly, a town) that is in great need of it. In fact, the undeniable buzz on campus since his hire was announced is evidence to that very fact.

I think all of us expect better in 2022. We not only expect it to reflect in the win column, but in the locker room, in the stands, and the quality of football on Saturdays inside the Joe.

Best of luck Coach Cumbie! The Bulldog faithful is behind you.

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