For black coaches, steps forward and back
Only 4 African-Americans remain, but 3 are in position to win bowl games
Gregory Shamus / Getty ImagesTurner Gill talks with Buffalo quarterback during the Bulls' win over Ball State in the MAC Championship game.
By Chris Gentilviso
NBCSports.com
updated 3:03 p.m. ET Dec. 9, 2008
Five years ago, Mississippi State Athletic Director Larry Templeton made history.
Sylvester Croom's arrival to the Bulldogs' football program made him a notable figure in college football before he called his first play — the first black coach hired to lead a Southeastern Conference team.
Five years later, history was made again.
Croom's resignation from Mississippi State last week was the third strike in four weeks for college football's corps of black coaches in the Football Bowl Subdivision, following the midseason firings of Washington's Tyrone Willingham and Kansas State's Ron Prince.
The fact that Croom's exit was voluntary paves a different path as to why the number of black coaches in major college football pales in comparison to any other sport.
The Black Coaches and Administrators' latest football hiring report card Nov. 12 diagnosed the level of opportunities for blacks as heading in the wrong direction.
"It is easier to become a head football coach in the NFL, a head basketball coach in the NCAA, a general or commissioned officer in the United States Army than it is to become a football coach within the FBS or FCS," executive eirector Floyd Keith said in a statement. "That, America, is just not right."
Keith's report stresses college football's issues with quantity. Only four black head coaches are currently manning FBS sidelines — the lowest number since 1993. They are Miami's Randy Shannon, Houston's Kevin Sumlin, Buffalo's Turner Gill and New Mexico's Mike Locksley, who was hired Monday after being offensive coordinator at Illinois.
But when it comes to quality, 2008 may be a banner season for black coaches.
Croom's resignation is evidence that the biggest problem for future candidates goes beyond a lack of opportunities. For any coach of any color in college football, there is little time to cultivate a winning tradition.
Beyond struggling to get hired, black coaches have lacked any sense of longevity in building their programs. Of 21 black head coaches in Division I football from 1979-2007, only three coaches lasted longer than six seasons: Wake Forest's Jim Caldwell (1993-2000), Stanford's Willingham (1995-2001), and New Mexico State's Tony Samuel (1997-2004).
Of those three, only Willingham had a record of better than .500. That mark has been a goal that only Willingham and UCLA's Karl Dorrell (35-27 in five seasons in Los Angeles), were able to achieve.
Willingham coached his final game as the Huskies' coach Saturday as arguably the highest-profile black coach in college football. And thanks to his inability to win games in Seattle, there is no guarantee that he'll ever return to the sidelines of an FBS program.
"We didn't win football games," Willingham said on the day of his firing. "That's it."
Building a football program doesn't happen overnight. But all it takes is one turnaround season to receive big-money contracts and hoards of expectations.
After one eight-win season and a Liberty Bowl victory, Croom was rewarded with a $1.7 million contract extension, and higher expectations. The 2007 season set precedent for repeated success, in a conference where there is little room for error.
Croom's Bulldogs learned that the hard way this season, suffering a pair of one-point losses at home to Auburn, 3-2, and Kentucky, 14-13. Wins in those games would have made the Bulldogs bowl-eligible, catapulting them from last place to third place in the SEC West.
Would the criticism of Croom have been as high with those wins to his team's credit? With the current bowl system, a 6-6 team can reap the same successes as a 9-3 team, as long as the winner's trophy comes home.
When asked about any worries regarding the perception of the school in light of the Prince and Willingham firings, current Mississippi State athletic director Greg Byrne responded judiciously.
"Our decision-making was what we thought would be best for Mississippi State University, our football program and our athletic department," Byrne said. "That's what we had to make our decision based off of. We are certainly concerned about the way Mississippi State is viewed, and at the same time we have to do what's best for the university."
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