Auburn Tigers head coach Alex Golesh's recent USA Today interview exclusive set off the USF Bulls' fanbase, mainly because he said he was aware during his tenure in Tampa that his program never had a chance at winning the national championship.
While Green, Gold, and Bold's Joe Henderson understands Golesh had a practically impossible task in Hillsborough County to build a winner, he doesn't believe the former Bulls head coach had the right attitude about the USF job. Henderson believes the Bulls are a future Big Ten/Big 12/ACC school in the next round of conference realignment, and Golesh missed the chance to buy into the process of winning at USF with the belief that it could one day pay off.
Per Henderson, "You see, Alex, the people who have rebuilt USF's entire athletic program have set the same standards that you will be expected to meet at Auburn. They are pouring vast amounts of resources into the entire athletic program -- football included ... New head football coach Brian Hartline took this job because he bought into the vision of Higgins and trustee chair Will Weatherford -- All Gas. No Brakes. Will that mean a national championship for football this season? No. But is it an impossible dream? Absolutely not. I firmly believe USF will be in a power conference within a few years, and the Bulls will hold their own. You see, Alex, it is -- to use your favorite word -- a process. That process is ongoing. It's working. As Higgins said, you've gotta believe. But, I guess you didn't."
Meanwhile, Hail Florida Hail's Benjamin Henderson believes Golesh has a bit of nerve to make comments like that, considering what his Bulls achieved. Henderson juxtaposed Jon Sumrall's tenure with the Florida Gators so far with Golesh's time at AU. Henderson also pointed out that the coaching staff Golesh brought to the Tigers, and many of the players he recruited via the transfer portal, are the ones he claims he couldn't win big with at South Florida.
Per Henderson, "Where the difference in stories being told comes into play is that Sumrall has come to Florida and seems willing to embrace the resources Florida offers to upgrade from the players and staff he had at Tulane. Not to mention, Sumrall has made sure to be very complimentary of Tulane every step of the way since coming to Florida ... Meanwhile, Golesh talks about winning a national title when he couldn’t even win the American Conference with the same USF coaching staff he brought with him to Auburn, along with 13 players who played for him last year. His crowning achievement at USF was essentially beating the worst Florida team in history off a last-second field goal."
In defense of Alex Golesh...
It goes without saying that Golesh's camp provoked a hornet's nest by even remotely insinuating that USF was never going to do much during his time at the helm. The Bulls' losses to the Memphis Tigers and Navy Midshipmen last October and November, respectively, may now be seen by many as the result of divided attention.
Golesh admitted feeling guilty about leaving USF to Josh Pate when he was interviewing with Auburn and the Arkansas Razorbacks towards the end of the regular season. That statement, paired with the most recent one insinuating he never felt he had a chance to win it all, is not the best look. At least from many Floridians' perspectives.
In defense of Golesh, though, nothing he's ever said has been objectively wrong. Any coach, besides maybe Lane Kiffin, feels guilt about leaving a coaching job for a bigger opportunity, and no matter what Bulls fans say, USF never had a chance to win it all during his time there, and probably won't be equipped to do so for at least another five years. There were just not enough blue-chip athletes in those trenches to win it all in a field dominated by $30-plus-million rosters.
Why not make Auburn feel special and insinuate there's a legitimate chance to win the whole kit and kaboodle on the Plains? I mean, hey, with the right alignment, it's been done before.
At the end of the day, though, the glory Golesh could gain by winning big with the Tigers would outweigh any criticism he'll get from scorned USF fans or Florida fans hoping Sumrall, Auburn's initial preferred head coaching choice, proves he possesses a higher worth than Goesh in Gainesville. That goal is all that should be on Golesh's mind moving forward. The rest is noise.
"Fe," as Golesh says, and focus on the players who are being bought to buy in, now that he's at a school that's not shy about spending and has a much deeper wallet than his last employer.
Add us as a preferred source on Google