ESPN College Football

McLovin? What kind of a stupid name is that, Fogell? What, are you trying to be an Irish R&B singer?

• Life has been hectic for former Arizona QB Nick Foles.
• Arizona State coach Todd Graham on Pittsburgh: It was a mistake.
• A chat with former California offensive lineman Mitchell Schwartz as he joins the Cleveland Browns.
• Will this guy be Colorado's tight end of the future.
• Keeping track of Oregon's De'Anthony Thomas. A good cause over at Addicted to Quack.
• Lots of good stuff in this Oregon State notebook.
• The youth on UCLA's staff should help it connect with its players. This Bruin might go both ways.
• We learned this spring that USC WR Marqise Lee might be the only receiver in the country as good as Robert Woods.
• Former Utah tackle Tony Bergstrom is now a Raider.
• Why didn't former Washington RB Chris Polk get drafted? Tosh Lupoi gets a couple of recruiting connections.
• Looking at the Washington State offense, post-spring.

Athletic directors don't last long when football and men's basketball struggle, and that appears to be what has happened to Lisa Love at Arizona State.

Love will be replaced as the Sun Devils athletic director by Steve Patterson, the school announced Wednesday. Patterson was hired in July as the athletic department's chief operating officer and managing director of the Sun Devil Sports Group.

The school's official release says Love "is leaving ASU to pursue other career opportunities." The Arizona Republic, however, reported that she was fired after meeting with school president Michael Crow on Tuesday.

Love was hired in April of 2005. While many of the the Sun Devils' nonrevenue sports have thrived, Love's big-name hires haven't, including Dennis Erickson for football and Herb Sendek for men's basketball. Love also had a contentious relationship with successful baseball coach Pat Murphy, who was fired in November of 2009 during an NCAA investigation. Further, the search for a replacement for Erickson, which eventually ended with Todd Graham's hiring away from Pittsburgh, was far from smooth.

Patterson's background is mostly in pro sports. He spent nearly a quarter of a century as an executive in the NFL with the Houston Texans, in the NBA with the Houston Rockets and Portland Trail Blazers, and in professional hockey with the Houston Aeros. Prior to joining ASU in July 2011, he was the president of Pro Sports Consulting.

Quotes from the press release:

"In his time at ASU Steve Patterson has shown a level of sports management expertise rarely seen at the college and university level," said President Michael M. Crow. "He is the ideal person to build on the foundation Lisa built and to take Sun Devil sports to the next level - to the highest level.

"I wish to thank Lisa for seven years of excellent service. During her tenure here ASU won seven national championships and the academic performance and graduation rates of our student-athletes improved dramatically."

"I'm excited that Dr. Crow gave me the opportunity to oversee Sun Devil Athletics," said Patterson. "We expect to have a program that consistently competes for Pac-12 championships, with athletes that graduate, connect and serve our community, and operate with integrity, discipline and respect. It's time for our men's basketball and football programs to compete for championships and perform at the same level as our successful spring sports."

More Patterson background from the release:

Steve Patterson has built championship professional teams and designed, financed, built and run stadiums and arenas. As General Manager of the Houston Rockets he built the 1994 NBA Championship team. Later, he successfully led the effort to bring the Houston Texans NFL team and Super Bowl XXXVIII to Houston, Texas. As President of the Portland Trail Blazers, The Rose Garden and Rose City Radio, Patterson refined his skills as a turnaround specialist, while garnering national recognition for his player acquisition skills player acquisition skills when he took over as the team's General Manager.

Patterson also served as the President, General Manager and Governor of the Houston Aeros hockey team. For his efforts he was named the 1995 winner of the Andy Mulligan Trophy as the IHL's Executive of the Year.

In addition to his roles with the Aeros, Patterson also acquired and served as President and Partner in Arena Operating Company, which managed and operated Compaq Center, Houston's home of the Rockets, Aeros and Comets.

Born and raised in Beaver Dam, WI. Patterson attended the University of Texas, graduating with honors earning a Bachelor's Degree in Business Administration in 1980. He graduated from UT's Law School in 1984.

Oregon and Oregon State fans may not provide glowing recommendations for Patterson, whose tenure with the Portland Trail Blazers was stormy on multiple levels.

Happy Friday!

You can follow me on Twitter here.

Jeff from Austin, Texas, writes: Part of me (or rather, most of me) is wondering how much of the USC hype is coming from them being named "USC." Yes, they ended the season strong, but they only had a win over one ranked team all season (Oregon) which they nearly choked away in the fourth quarter. Sure they're good, but preseason #1 or 2?

Ted Miller: USC isn't a perfect team, as noted here. Part of the reason the Trojans are being talked about as preseason No. 1 is the lack of an obvious No. 1 (though, to me, LSU should start at No. 1, based on what the Tigers have coming back from a pretty darn good 2011 team).

But USC's résumé is pretty impressive. Let's start with last season. The Trojans were sort of "neh" through a 4-1 start. But they were outstanding over the second half of the season.

• They won at Oregon, which won the Pac-12, won the Rose Bowl over a good Wisconsin team and ended up ranked No. 4. Say what you want about how it went down, but the Trojans ended the Ducks 21-game home winning streak.
• Their other five wins over the second half of the season came by at least 14 points. They posted dominant wins over California, Notre Dame and Washington and concluded the season with a 50-0 stomping of rival UCLA.
• The lone loss was in triple-overtime to Stanford, which ended up ranked seventh and would have beaten No. 3 Oklahoma State in the Fiesta Bowl if it could kick a field goal.

That leads into what's coming back from that 10-2 team that finished ranked No. 5: 19 starters, including QB Matt Barkley, a sure top-10 NFL draft pick if he'd opted to leave, the best receiving tandem in the nation -- Robert Woods and Marqise Lee -- a 1,000-yard rusher in Curtis McNeal and their entire defensive back seven. Heck, it's worth noting that both specialists also are back, including first-team All-Pac-12 kicker Andre Heidari.

The issues are obvious: Questions on the defensive line and overall depth issues. (Man, could the Trojans use a couple of LSU's surfeit of future NFL D-linemen).

To me the top-two heading to 2012 are fairly obvious: 1. LSU; 2. USC.

And that would be a heck of a final game, if it held.

LSU would get a chance for revenge over the fact that no one really thinks of it as the true 2003 national champion.

Brian from Liberty Lake, Wash., writes: My question is have we seen the last of [Kevin] Prince as UCLA's QB? I think I speak for most UCLA fans when I say I hope so. Prince is a good guy but not the answer UCLA needs at QB.

Ted Miller: If I were a betting man -- giggle, giggle -- I'd lay my money on redshirt freshman Brett Hundley. He's a true dual-threat QB with tons of upside. And he is the future (though the Bruins signed two very good QBs in this recruiting class).

That said, the situation is as simple as this: Whoever plays the best in spring practice and fall camp is going to win the job. Jim Mora doesn't strike me as a guy who coaches by hypotheticals. He wants to win now, and if Kevin Prince makes it clear in advance of the season that he's the best guy to run the Bruins offense, then Prince will start at Rice on Sept. 1.

I also like that you pointed out that Prince is a "good guy." He is. And he's been a stand-up guy under difficult circumstances, whether you are talking about injuries or changing offensive coordinators on a near-annual basis -- Noel Mazzone will be his third. He's run a pro-style offense, a pistol and now will (probably) be asked to run a spread, mostly out of a traditional shotgun formation.

By the way, just because I'm a lean for Hundley doesn't mean I see it as anything close to a done deal. He clearly wasn't ready to start last spring when he looked overwhelmed, and he's yet to see action when the lights are on. Meanwhile, Prince has 26 career starts and is among the top-10 in Bruins history in passing yards and total offense.

Nik from Portland writes: With the new rules about kick offs, that are suppose to help protect players by having more touchbacks, do you feel that the some of the games excitement is going to be lost? as in less 40+ kick returns or even a repeat something like THE PLAY (Cal Vs Stanford). Or do you think more of them will happen?

Ted Miller: The new rule is this: Kickoffs will be moved up from the 30 to the 35-yard line next season. Players will also be limited to a 5-yard running head start. The reason? Fewer kickoff returns mean fewer injuries. At least, that's the -- reasonable -- theory. (The NFL moved up kickoffs up 5 yards this past season and touchbacks increased dramatically, according to the AP story).

Will excitement be lost? Sure. If there are more touchbacks, there will then be fewer exciting kickoff returns. Taking the ball away from guys like De'Anthony Thomas, Jamal Miles or Robert Woods means fewer oh-no-he-didn't! moments.

But you'd assume this wasn't a half-cocked decision: There is evidence that this new rule will yield fewer injuries, particularly concussions. So you want hear me whine about that.

It also will create a bit of new strategy. If you have a big-footed kicker, do you always want him to blast it into the endzone? Or might you try to get more hangtime and see if your kick team can pin your opponent inside the 20? Might we see a few more on-side kicks? And, if kickoff returns decrease in importance, will player like Thomas, Miles or Woods become less likely to be used for them?

This is a move that chips away at some excitement but with the intention of improving player safety. Hard to get too bent about that.

Pittsburgh from Pittsburgh writes: Not cool to denigrate places where people live. When you put something out there like that, life has a funny way of humbling you.

Ted Miller: I agree it's not cool to denigrate places where people live. And also that life has a way of humbling you. Try writing a high volume of stories for public consumption for a living.

But I don't think I denigrated any place where people live when I wrote about new Arizona State coach Todd Graham this week.

I wrote:

Graham took a lot of heat from a pandering, sanctimonious media and a whiny Pittsburgh fan base for how he left the Panthers. "He didn't even say goodbye," they collectively sobbed. "Waaah." Of course, Graham does have an unfortunate habit of describing every job as his "dream job." All that stuff is mostly hogwash, though. What matters is winning, and if Graham does that, the media will all come down en masse to Tempe pretending they didn't trash Graham's character for taking a better job, in a better conference, in a better place to live while making his family happy in the process.

Am I making fun of the reaction to Graham leaving Pittsburgh for Arizona State? Absolutely. I think it was ridiculous. Predictable, but nonetheless overblown.

Did I say anything bad about the city of Pittsburgh? No, I called Tempe "a better place to live." Obviously, that pure opinion. But Graham made that a centerpiece of why he bolted, and I'd wager that if you polled 100 random people across the country, more would choose to live in the Phoenix area rather than Pittsburgh.

People vacation here. People retire here. Spring training will shortly start. There's a reason for all that. It was chilly and rainy today in Pittsburgh. Over here in Scottsdale, I'll be grilling tonight in my bare feet.

By the way, I've been to Pittsburgh a few times. I like Pittsburgh. I'm, in fact, on record lauding it -- see this travel piece I did before the 2006 Super Bowl. (And, yes, I felt bad I left out Primanti Brothers).

By the way II, not to pander to Panthers fans, but you might find this interesting: It seems I'm a big fan of your new head coach.

Oregon coach Chip Kelly was baffled in a phone interview before the Rose Bowl. How the heck could little-old-him be important to a reporter?

"The big story," he said conspiratorially,"is all these new coaches."

Well, it's the big story now as the Pac-12 turns its attention away from the 2011 season and toward 2012 spring practices. And, of course, Kelly is part of a reason there are four new coaches in the conference. Mike Stoops, Dennis Erickson, Rick Neuheisel and Paul Wulff -- fired at Arizona, Arizona State, UCLA and Washington State, respectively -- never beat Kelly and, in fact, came within double digits of his Ducks only once (Arizona, with a 44-41 loss in 2009).

But the story isn't just four new coaches. It's four new coaches whom folks have heard of, each of whom is getting a big-boy salary that would fit in among the SEC or Big Ten. Big salaries are the new normal in the Pac-12 after the conference signed a $3 billion TV deal with ESPN and Fox.

So out goes Stoops and his $1,456,000 salary, and in comes Rich Rodriguez and his $1,910,000 paycheck. Out goes Erickson and his $1,503,000 salary, and in comes Todd Graham and his $2 million tab. Out goes Neuheisel and his $1,285,000 salary, and in comes Jim Mora and his $2.4 million annual take. Out goes Wulff and his $600,000 salary, and in comes Mike Leach and his $2,250,000 price tag.

The chief idea is obvious: Pac-12 schools are paying for an upgrade in coaching talent, and there are high expectations for getting their money's worth. And, by the way, there's an added bonus for each hire: Each new coach has a chip on his shoulder and something to prove.

• In 2010, Rodriguez was ingloriously dispatched at Michigan after three tumultuous and unsuccessful years. Athletic director Greg Byrne is betting that Rodriguez is far closer to the highly successful coach he was at West Virginia than the one who got run out of Ann Arbor, and Rodriguez surely wants that impression to be his legacy. It helps that he got his man, Jeff Casteel, to run the Wildcats' defense, which he failed to do at Michigan.
• Graham took a lot of heat from a pandering, sanctimonious media and a whiny Pittsburgh fan base for how he left the Panthers. "He didn't even say goodbye," they collectively sobbed. "Waaah." Of course, Graham does have an unfortunate habit of describing every job as his "dream job." All that stuff is mostly hogwash, though. What matters is winning, and if Graham does that, the media will all come down en masse to Tempe pretending they didn't trash Graham's character for taking a better job, in a better conference, in a better place to live while making his family happy in the process.
• Mora was fired in 2009 after only one season with the Seattle Seahawks, and he's bided his time looking for another head-coaching job. Seeing that he was two or three names down UCLA athletic director Dan Guerrero's coaching list -- Chris Petersen! Kevin Sumlin! -- some Bruins fans reacted with disappointed smirks to Mora's hiring. Then Mora hired an outstanding staff. Then he reeled in an outstanding recruiting class. Some of those frowns are turning upside down.
• Leach was fired at Texas Tech in 2009. He's one of the best offensive minds in the nation, and the almost universal reaction is athletic director Bill Moos hit a home run with this big-name hire. The Pirate Captain looks like the perfect match for Pullman and the Cougs, and he'll be plenty motivated to prove his critics wrong and erase the bad ending in Lubbock.

It's fair to say these four hirings have generated positive momentum for these programs, though, of course, to varying degrees. There's a hope among the fan bases that these four can create quick turnarounds.

And that also leads into another major coaching story entering the spring: The Pac-12's most senior coaches, California's Jeff Tedford and Oregon State's Mike Riley, sit on the hottest seats.

Tedford enters his 11th season in Berkeley having followed up his first losing campaign -- 5-7 in 2010 -- with a middling 7-6 finish in 2011. Riley, the man deserving the most credit for making one of the worst programs in college football respectable, enters his 12th year in Corvallis -- two tenures wrapped around an ill-fated stint with the San Diego Chargers -- burdened by consecutive losing seasons, including a 3-9 finish that felt so 1987.

Spring practices for Tedford and Riley will be about setting up turnaround season that give their frustrated fan bases hope -- and keep their athletic directors from issuing dreaded votes of confidence while checking their coaching Rolodexes.

Meanwhile, Kelly and USC's Lane Kiffin, still relative coaching newbies in the conference, enter spring likely trying to tone down the positive hype. Both will begin the 2012 season ranked in the top 10. USC could be preseason No. 1. Both are overwhelming favorites in the North and South Divisions. And their meeting on Nov. 3 in L.A. could have national title implications.

But that's looking ahead.

The big story this spring in the Pac-12 is newness and rebirth. One-third of the conference's teams hope that newness at the top of their programs will create a rebirth in the Pac-12 standings.

Some highlights and notes from the Pac-12 recruiting world over the weekend.

By now, you've all heard that Oregon landed ESPNU 150 prospect Arik Armstead (Elk Grove, Calif.). If you haven't, scroll down and read. Here's a good analysis by ESPN's Craig Haubert on why Armstead will fit in better with the Ducks on the offensive line rather than on defense.

Writes Haubert:

Armstead, a top twenty five prospect overall as a OT, could develop into an outstanding O-lineman for the Ducks. He's a good fit for their offensive scheme with his combination of size and athletic skills. He can quickly come off the ball low and hard, knock defenders back and, at times, dominate them in the run game. Capable of being a tough finisher, he has the foot quickness and body control to locate defenders on the move and be very productive playing on his feet in space which could be huge in the Ducks wide-open up-tempo offensive ground attack. With his ability to bend and slide his feet and stay balanced he could also be asset in pass protection as well facing athletic edge rushers in the conference.

In other conference recruiting news:

• A nice pickup for UCLA coach Jim Mora grabbing athlete Devin Fuller (Old Tappan, N.J.). He ranks 39th on the ESPNU 150 list and is a versatile athlete who can play on either side of the ball. Though from what he said at his announcement, he's thinking offense.

"I felt like it was the best fit for me, with the offense they run, the coach, Coach Mora believed in me a lot," Fuller said. "I have family out there and the last thing was the beautiful weather.

"I just felt most comfortable there. I felt like I was already part of the family."

• According to ESPN's Max Olson, Jameis Winston, the nation's No. 1 quarterback, is still seriously considering signing with Stanford. Writes Olson:

On Saturday, Stanford coach David Shaw called Winston's father to confirm Winston has been admitted into the school should he choose to sign there.

Winston remains verbally committed to Florida State, but he said gaining admission into one of the country's most prestigious universities was an honor

• Arizona State has lured outside linebacker Chris Young (Yuma, Ariz./Arizona Western College) away from Oregon State.

• Colorado got a commitment from two-star athlete Jeffery Hall (La Place, La.).

• Athlete Brandon Beaver (Compton, Calif.), once thought a heavy lean toward Washington, says Cal is back in the mix after taking a last-minute visit over the weekend.

• Zach Hoffpauir (Peoria, Ariz.) has de-committed from Cal, but the Bears aren't completely out of the picture.

• Looks like Clive Georges (Key West, Fla.) liked his visit to Arizona over the weekend as multiple sources sayhe's going to sign with the Wildcats.

• The 'Cats also swiped two-star defensive back William Parks (Philadelphia) from Pitt.

• Jason Thompson (Burien, Wash.) has dropped Washington for Wyoming -- presumably for the opportunity to play quarterback.

• With an eye on the future, USC hosted 2013 linebacker Su'a Cravens (Murrieta, Calif.) for an unofficial visit. Cravens could be the top player in California next year.

Be sure to check the Stanford blog in about an hour for a Stanford-specific recruiting roundup.

You don't often get to be a university president without strong rhetorical skills, and Arizona State president Michael Crow certainly has those.

So it perhaps should come as no surprise that he makes a very strong case here against the massive national overreaction against new Sun Devils coach Todd Graham bailing on Pittsburgh after just one year.

What you start to realize about this business -- big-time college football -- is that a school scorned is going to aggressively back-channel the negative spin. That happened to Rich Rodriguez at West Virginia, Mike Leach at Texas Tech, Lane Kiffin at Tennessee, Rick Neuheisel at Colorado and Washington, etc., etc.

And, of course, Graham at Pittsburgh.

Said Crow: "He caught a lot of flak because he was unable to talk to his team. We requested permission to speak to him and [Pitt] said no. For him to speak to us, he had to resign and then he could no longer speak to his players. We don't set those rules, we asked for an opportunity and didn't get it."

Of course, Graham also stepped in it when he said at his introductory news conference at Arizona State that he wanted to go back and talk to his Pittsburgh players. Just about everyone hearing that immediately thought, "Er, no."

As for whether Crow saw Graham's two-time, one-and-done tenures as a red flag:

"When you sit and spend hours with someone and talk to references about them, you get a better sense of the character of the person," he said. "You go from Tulsa to Rice and then back to Tulsa in one year, what's the reason? You talk to the people at Rice and you find out yes, there was a reason. You go to Pittsburgh and ask why you go to Pittsburgh, why don't you like Pittsburgh, what's going on? There's an explanation, coaches can have explanations like 'My family doesn't like it here, we'd really like to be somewhere else.'"

Not to bring up Arizona for Arizona State fans, but my opinion of Rodriguez's departure from West Virginia -- a spin battle Rodriguez initially lost badly -- completely changed over the years, most notably after reading "Three and out" by John Bacon. That book is mostly about Rodriguez's doomed-from-the-start tenure at Michigan, but the insights into the politics at West Virginia is fascinating.

Pittsburgh certainly won the spin battle with Graham, and at the Rose Bowl, after chatting with a lot of writers, I learned that not many folks in the media feel much reason to consider Graham's perspective on things.

But if he wins, they'll all come down to Tempe with backslaps and smiles on their faces, and the Pittsburgh departure will become just another footnote.

Arizona State has hired Shawn Griswold as its strength and conditioning coach.

Here's the official release:

Shawn Griswold, whom head coach Todd Graham calls “the best strength and conditioning coach in America,” has been named the Director of Strength and Conditioning at Arizona State University. Griswold comes to ASU from the University of Pittsburgh, where he was one of Graham’s first hires upon taking over that program.

Prior to joining the Pitt staff, Griswold spent three seasons as the Director of Strength and Conditioning at Tulsa under Graham. Griswold's efforts were instrumental in helping Tulsa field one of the country's most explosive teams over the past decade. The highly conditioned Golden Hurricane averaged nearly 80 plays a game in 2010, ranking fifth nationally in total offense, sixth in scoring and 15th in rushing yards. Tulsa's mentally tough defense ranked third in turnovers forced.

"Shawn is instrumental in everything we do," Graham said. "His work in strength and conditioning provides the necessary foundation, both physically and mentally, for our football program to succeed on the field."

Griswold had two stints at Tulsa (2004-06 and 2008-10) as Director of Strength and Conditioning. During that time the Golden Hurricane earned four bowl berths and captured the 2005 Conference USA championship. In addition to working with the football team, he also had oversight of the entire strength and conditioning program for Tulsa athletics. He spent the 2007 season in Louisville as an Assistant Strength and Conditioning Coach for the Cardinals.

Prior to Tulsa, Griswold spent five years as Head Strength and Conditioning Coordinator at his alma mater, Utah State. He oversaw the athletic development for 16 varsity sports and was directly responsible for designing the strength and conditioning programs for football, basketball and volleyball.

A former football student-athlete at USU, Griswold's career began as a graduate assistant coach for the Aggies before he was promoted to Assistant Strength and Conditioning Coordinator.

Griswold earned both his bachelor's and master's degrees from Utah State. He received a bachelor's degree in exercise science in 1996 and a masters of science degree in 1998.

Arizona State has hired Paul Randolph as "senior associate head coach." He's spent the past six seasons working under new Sun Devils head coach Todd Graham, most recently as associate head coach, co-defensive coordinator and defensive line coach at Pittsburgh.

While the release doesn't specify what Randolph's specific coaching responsibility will be, it's likely that he will at least co-coordinate the Sun Devils defense.

If you are looking for a concern, Randolph has no West Coast experience -- living or coaching.

From the Arizona State press release:

Prior to his arrival at Pitt, Randolph spent four seasons at Tulsa, playing an instrumental role in the Golden Hurricane's emergence as a perennial bowl team. Tulsa won 36 games during that time, including three bowl victories. He helped mold a defense that led the country in interceptions in 2010 (24) and ranked third in turnovers forced (36).

In 2006, Randolph served under Graham as assistant head coach, defensive coordinator and linebacker coach at Rice. His efforts helped produce one of the most impressive revitalizations in recent college football history. The Owls earned their first bowl berth in 45 years after a 7-5 regular season that included victories in six of their final seven games.

Prior to Rice, Randolph was the defensive ends coach at Alabama (2003-05), where he helped the Crimson Tide boast one of the nation's toughest defenses. In 2005, Alabama led the country in scoring defense (10.7 points/game) while ranking second in total defense (255.1 yards/game), fifth in pass defense (160.8 yards/game) and ninth in rushing defense (94.3 yards/game).

Randolph also distinguished himself on the recruiting trail during his time in Tuscaloosa and was named one of the country's top 25 recruiters by Rivals.

He also spent time at West Virginia in 2002, coaching the defensive line. His other collegiate coaching stops include Toledo, Illinois State, Valdosta State and his alma mater, Tennessee-Martin.

An all-conference linebacker at Tennessee-Martin, Randolph went on to a decorated professional playing career in the Canadian Football League. He played eight seasons with Winnipeg (1988-95) and then served two years as a team captain and player-coach with the Montreal Alouettes (1996-97). Randolph helped Winnipeg to Grey Cup championships in 1988 and '90 before receiving induction into the Blue Bombers' Hall of Fame in 2002.

Randolph earned his bachelor's degree in electrical engineering technology from Tennessee-Martin in 1990.

The Arizona Republic has published details of new Arizona State coach Todd Graham's contract here.

Here are some highlights.

• Graham's salary is $2 million per year, consisting of $600,000 base salary and $1.4 million additional salary.
• ASU has agreed to pay $1 million to cover Graham's obligation for opting out of his contract at Pitt.
• Graham will forfeit and repay all compensation and bonuses paid if any achievements should be vacated, diminished or in any way affected by sanctions, whether imposed by ASU, the Pac-12 or NCAA, resulting from violations of NCAA or Pac-12 rules.
• If Graham terminates the contact and takes another NCAA job, ASU may require him to pay up to $1 million.
• If Graham terminates the contract, he can not obtain employment as head coach at another Pac-12 school for the rest of the original contract's term.
• Graham gets $50,000 if ASU wins eight games; $100,000 for nine; $150,000 for 10: $250,000 for 11 and $350,000 for 12. (Total possible bonus: $900,000.)
• Graham will earn $250,000 for leading the Sun Devils to any BCS bowl. If they win, he will earn an extra $100,000.

Happy Friday.

Follow me on Twitter.

To the notes!

Zach from Mesa, Ariz., writes: Not sure how I should feel about Todd Graham coaching my Sun Devils. Seems like a used-car salesman and he really hasn't done anything.

Mike from Philly writes: I'm not going to call you an idiot, even though that might help get this published, but you've missed the mark on Graham. Not sure if he can coach, but he's completely full of it. He's a liar. He's spineless. Why would anybody want him to lead their sons?

Ted Miller: Got plenty of feedback on my admittedly quasi-Machiavellian takes -- and here -- on Todd Graham bolting Pittsburgh after one year for Arizona State and texting his departure to his players instead of meeting with them face-to-face. I have many thoughts on this, but I'd rather not do another 1,000-plus word column. So I'll try to be brief. Briefer, at least.

Let's start with this: Recall just a week ago when Graham said, "I don't know how else I can say it. I've said it on three different occasions. I'm not going to be the Arizona State's coach."

Oh. Wait. That wasn't Graham talking about Arizona State. That was the best coach in college football. That was, gulp, then Miami Dolphins coach Nick Saban, talking about Alabama, not Arizona State, and who just days after saying that became... wait for it... wait for it...

Alabama's coach!

And what did Saban say when he later sat down with ESPN Chris Mortensen, who asked if Saban's disingenuousness would be an issue for him in recruiting going forward?

"The number one thing for me, Nick Saban, whatever anyone thinks, is to be a good person," Saban said. "Honesty, integrity, loyalty, being fair and honest with people is always been the trademark of what I've done."

So know that when Graham talked about how important "relationships" were for him Wednesday, that same forehead slap of indignation over the unintentional irony has happened before. And will again. It's the nature of their business.

You cannot compare Saban's and Graham's resumes, of course. But Saban has long been a climber at the highest level while Graham has been scratching and clawing -- some might suggest scurrying -- to arrive at an A-list job. That means you often leave unhappy people in your wake.

Do any Alabama fans care about Saban's messy departure from Miami? Are you kidding? No coach in America is more beloved by his fan base. Why? Have you looked at Saban's win-loss ledger and trophy case?

Same goes for Bobby Petrino at Arkansas, who didn't even finish his only season with the Atlanta Falcons before bolting for the Razorbacks, leaving behind only a note for his players.

Graham, suffice it to say, is not alone in the Hall of Coaching Transition Infamy. Don't gloat Arizona fans. You might recall your new coach, Rich Rodriguez had some issues at West Virginia, too.

Then let's consider this name: Mike Riley.

Riley left Oregon State in 1998 after just two season -- his hometown team! -- for the San Diego Chargers, where things went badly. But he got lucky. The Beavers were willing to re-hire him in 2003, believing he'd learned the proverbial "the grass is always greener lesson." No coach in the nation has been more loyal to his university since then while not getting super-rich. At $1.3 million a year, Riley is now the second lowest paid coach in the Pac-12.

He could have doubled his pay when Alabama came calling. He could have tripled his pay when USC came calling. But he remained loyal. And he's been praised for it. Which is nice.

Yet now, despite averaging nine wins a year from 2006-09 at a program that didn't post a winning season from 1971-98, two consecutive losing seasons have him sitting on the conference's hottest seat heading into 2012. There's a vocal minority of fans who believe he should be fired now. A larger percentage believe he needs to make a staff overhaul. My belief is he won't survive a third consecutive losing season.

If Riley had been "disloyal" to Oregon State and bolted in 2010 for USC -- he was widely seen as then-athletic director Mike Garrett's first choice -- he would have more job security today than he does now and a far more financially-secure future for his family. This side of the story is rarely considered, but such cautionary tales pass by word of mouth among coaches -- i.e., watch your back and look out for No. 1.

Maybe Graham is a double-talking con artist. Or maybe his circumstances and opportunities just have been different than other coaches, particularly in terms of timing. Maybe he felt like he and his family being unhappy at Pittsburgh was a good enough reason to leave for a place they wanted to go.

What Arizona State fans need to know is this: This is a tempest in a teapot. It's the story of the week. If Arizona State wins eight games next year, there will be grins all around in Tempe. And if the Sun Devils go to the Rose Bowl within five years with Graham, his exit from Pitt will, at most, be a curious sidenote.

---

Brian from Pullman, Wash., writes: In your post "Imagining the perfect coach," you said that "There are only 10 or so destination jobs in college football -- places where there really isn't a move up." I'm curious to know which universities you believe are on this list.

Ted Miller: My list of 13 destination jobs would include (in alphabetical order): Alabama, Florida, Florida State, Georgia, LSU, Michigan, Nebraska, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Penn State, Texas and USC.

Of course, everyone's personal list would be different. I'd rather be the coach at Stanford or California -- Bay Area! -- than Nebraska or Oklahoma. But the quality of area restaurants is more important to me than most coaches.

And immediate circumstances matter. Even before the Penn State scandal, following Joe Paterno would have been an extraordinary challenge. No one likes to be the man after the man.

Factors? Tradition, stadium size, all-time winning percentage, recruiting base and revenue.

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Lolita from Riverside, Calif., writes: My name is Lolita Anderson. I am Dres Anderson's mother. I am so elated! Thank you so much for my son's recognition. You absolutely made our family's Christmas! By the way what rubric do you use when making these decisions? This is Awesome!!! Go Airforce! Go Utes!!

Ted Miller: Most of it has to do with on-field performance.

But some of it is based on having a cool mom.

Happy Friday.

• An update on Arizona recruiting.
• Considering the messiness of Arizona State's hiring of Todd Graham. Also here.
• California picks up another receiver commitment.
• Oregon TE David Paulson is all business -- and very good. The season hasn't been a kick for these Ducks.
• Oregon State is evaluating its game-day experience.
• When Andrew Luck is gone, Stanford will have a fierce quarterback competition. And whoever wins won't have this guy either.
• New coach Jim Mora believes UCLA is making a new and improve commitment to football.
• USC OT Matt Kalil talks about his decision to enter the NFL draft.
• Utah has two coordinators in the hunt for the Hawaii head coaching job.
• Washington is back at practice, and quarterback Keith Price feels better.
• Lots of info in this Washington State notebook, including potential staff hires for Mike Leach.

No! No! I want an Official Red Ryder Carbine-Action Two-Hundred-Shot Range Model Air Rifle!

• Rich Rodriguez and Todd Graham go way back, so the Arizona-ASU rivalry just got more interesting. The Wildcats are eyeballing some QBs.
• Paola Boivin's exasperation in this column about Graham amused me. The whining is thick in Pittsburgh, which recently ditched the Big East for the ACC due to self-interest.
• Aaron Rodgers is the best QB in the NFL, but he's still mad about California's Rose Bowl snub of 2004. And the Bears donned burnt Orange to liven up practice.
• Life for Colorado defensive coordinator Greg Brown -- and other Pac-12 DCs -- will be tougher in 2012.
• Oregon WR Josh Huff played through pain this year. RB LaMichael James won't confirm it, but The Oregonian reported he's headed into the NFL draft.
• Oregon State athletic director Bob De Carolis is unhappy with losing but believes in coach Mike Riley.
• There is no one or thing to blame for Stanford QB Andrew Luck finishing second for the Heisman Trophy a second consecutive year (other than RGIII, maybe).
• Yes, things are a bit odd at UCLA practice. More on Jim Mora's coaching staff.
• Ten reasons for USC QB Matt Barkley to stay for his senior season.
• Thoughts on Hawaii taking a look at both of Utah's coordinators for its head coaching vacancy.
• What was the biggest play of Washington's season?
• The Mike Leach radio tour continues so Washington State fans can hear the mellifluous sounds of Leach's voice. He's the Sinatra of coach chat.

There's the real world. There's the theoretical world. And there's the world of spin.

The real world: Todd Graham left Pittsburgh for Arizona State and didn't even get a notable raise on his $2 million salary because he'd rather be the head coach at Arizona State than Pittsburgh. His reasons? Really, it doesn't matter in Tempe. That's a question Pittsburgh should ask of itself, not Graham. It could be revealing.

The theoretical world: Todd Graham should have stayed at Pittsburgh because he said it was his dream job and he talked to his players about commitment and told boosters about his commitment to the future and because a high-character person would honor commitment above all else. And he certainly wouldn't announce a breakup with a text message.

The world of spin: Todd Graham was Arizona State's first choice and everyone is thrilled. Graham feels horrible about the way he left Pittsburgh because he loves and respects everyone there. It just couldn't be helped.

You want absolutes of honor, character and integrity in college football? Two names: Joe Paterno and Jim Tressel. How are your absolutes doing now?

You believe in absolute honesty? When you last broke up with a girlfriend/boyfriend did you say: 1. It's not you, it's me; or, 2. You've gained 10 pounds since we started dating and your laugh drives me crazy. And I hate your friends. Except for the one I might ask out.

What did Todd Graham have to say about how he left Pittsburgh during his introductory news conference at Arizona State?

I want to first start and talk about my players from Pitt. The last few hours have been extremely gut wrenching for me, obviously for my family. I love those guys. I'm very proud of the growth that they had this year, both on the field, off the field, in the classroom and in the community. I'm very proud of them. You never want to leave a program, and I never dreamed that I would have to leave a program under these circumstances.

The timing of these processes are extremely rapid, and it did not allow for me to address the team, and that is very hurtful. I've never had to endure that, and I really regret that. I really regret that I didn't have the opportunity to do that. I reached out to them in the only way that I knew how, the only means that I had at my disposal because I absolutely did not want them to hear about this on the news. I wanted them to know first. The only other alternative I had was not to communicate at all, and that was just unacceptable to me.

I plan on my return to Pittsburgh to reach out to them and to communicate to them. Obviously my staff that's there has communicated, as well, and those young men, I just want them to know that I love them. Coaching and teaching is a passion to me, and that's something that's very, very important before I talk about anything else, that I want my players from Pitt to know that I love them and I'm proud of them.

You can believe it or not.

If Graham loved his Panthers and was proud of them, why did he not insist on delivering the news of his exit personally?

Well, obviously this transpired this morning in a rapid pace, and it was last night and this morning, and there wasn't an opportunity to have a team meeting and be able to meet with them.

Now, these processes move very quickly and very rapidly, and that's the tough thing about this business and about coaching. I've had experience with that before, and if there was anyway possible, again, that's — I never want to do that, and that's the greatest regret you can have, and it's the most horrible feeling that you have. But again, I reached out in the only way that I knew how because I absolutely was not going to just have them see this on the news.

In other words, Graham put what he termed "a gut-wrenching experience" in his left hand and the opportunity with Arizona State in his right and decided to endure the one because of the appeal of the other. He made a tough decision that many people make in the job market, only the news media wasn't Tweeting about it all day Wednesday. And there are, whether folks back East are willing to admit it or not, real world reasons why Arizona State held such great appeal to Graham.

ASU athletic director Lisa Love admitted she was aware of Graham's now even more justifiable reputation as a mercenary climber who constantly eyeballs better jobs.

Said Love: "I love the fact that [Graham's wife] Penny's parents are sitting right here and they drove up the road. I love the fact that Todd has family here. I love the fact that Desert Mountain was a place where they were investing and prepared to invest in property and believed him. I believed him. I can tell you that I saw that on job movement, but I believed him."

Trust. It's dangerous. But Love needed a coach after a muddled 17-day search that Wednesday's spin couldn't smooth over, and there was Graham -- eager, affordable and with a fairly solid resume. Ergo, leap of faith.

Of course, track records don't disappear. What if Georgia or Ohio State comes calling with $4 million a year? Why should Arizona State fans believe this is a better dream job than his last dream job, a phrase that the effervescent Graham throws around a lot.

Question: Because of your track record, how do you convince Sun Devil Nation, future recruits, the football team, everyone affiliated with ASU that you're here for the long haul?

COACH GRAHAM: I think the only way to respond to that is just being here. Obviously it was, like I said earlier in the remarks, that this is a dream opportunity for our family. It's obviously the first decision I've ever made that has actually benefited my wife and benefited our family. You know, I think that the only way you can do it is, like I said, I'm going to work hard to earn their trust, and I think trust is earned, so that's all I can do.

Right. Actions, ultimately, are real world tangible. Words are for worlds of theory and spin.

But words are all there are at present, and many of the words are going to be negative about Graham, and not completely without justification. Graham's perfect grasp of massaging talking points Wednesday evening often strained credulity. For example, he celebrated former Sun Devils greats Pat Tillman and Terrell Suggs. Suggs took a shot at him on Twitter, and Tillman, an absolutist on integrity in both word and deed, would not likely have been at the presser clapping for Graham had he not given his life for his country.

Graham also seemed to be unaware of the term "irony."

Question: When you get settled in, what's the first thing you do to get this program going in the Todd Graham way?

COACH GRAHAM: One word: Relationships. Start building relationships. That's a key component.

He's — officially — referring to the theoretical world. But he's — in reality — speaking of relationships of convenience. You do your best to get along with folks at your office whom you might not like. You talk as pleasantly as possible to annoying neighbors because, well, it seems smarter than telling them they are annoying gasbags. You nurture your world and love your family and friends.

A football coach enters relationships of convenience with a football program. He's got his AD. He's got his school president. He's got boosters who want to play golf with him. He's got to shake hands with lawyers who will offer unsolicited advice on using the tight end more and being more "attacking" on defense. He's got 85 scholarship players who need to be pushed, prodded and coddled in ways unique to their individuality. There is lots of talk of family but it ultimately is a business based on what the scoreboard says.

The real world will be more difficult for Graham because of his present standing in the theoretical world, and no spin can change that. He doesn't have a clean slate. Some will resist giving him the benefit of the doubt.

Relationships? What about those guys at Pitt?

But if Graham is who Love and school president Michael Crow say he is, "just being here" is a reasonable point A for hope. Point B be will be maintaining a recruiting class that seemed headed for a top-25 national ranking before Dennis Erickson was fired.

And the endgame? That's where the real world intrudes over all else: Winning, winning, winning.

A glimpse at the future ...

On the evening of Jan. 17, an Arizona State pep rally broke out in the most unlikely of places -- at a basketball game.

With the Sun Devils cruising to a win over Northern Arizona, the Sun Devils' newly minted head football coach, Todd Graham, took the microphone at halftime.

"One of the things I can guarantee you is we will be blue collar, hard-nosed and physical," Graham told the spirited crowd. "We are going to restore the Best of the West!
We will work to bring Pac-12 championships, BCS bowl championships and a national championship to Arizona State!"

The above is plagiarism. Apologies. It's a paraphrase of Graham's introduction from his official bio on the website of the Pittsburgh Panthers, where Graham bolted Wednesday for Arizona State after just one 6-6 season.

College football is a crazy business. Sometimes it makes you want to take a shower. But to employ a hackneyed term that has become so because it's so convenient: It is what it is.

Graham is going to get hammered in Pittsburgh and all points outside -- and some points inside -- Tempe. Graham, for a second time in his career, is one-and-done. He previously bolted Rice for Tulsa after a single season in 2006. Not only did Graham suddenly leave the Panthers in the lurch, but he announced his decision to his players via a secondhand text message.

That won't play well with many folks. Panthers players are blistering him on Twitter. And it will stick to Graham for a while. It looks cowardly and reminds folks of the horrible transition for Randy Edsall from Connecticut to Maryland, where his first year was an absolute disaster. When the media comes calling this spring and next fall, it will be a central part of their "Meet Todd Graham at ASU" stories.

It will mostly be malarkey. But it will be everywhere, which is often how malarkey becomes accepted truth.

Look, folks: Being a college football coach is a job. It is not a charitable calling. Loyalty? There are going to be more than 25 coaching changes next fall. There are 120 FBS teams. The nature of the business is to get fired or to climb. It's best to do the latter.

Todd Graham wants to coach at Arizona State more than Pittsburgh. Most folks would. So instead of doing something he doesn't want to do, he's doing what he wants to. His only loyalty should be to his family and friends, not his bosses.

Some will throw around insults like "liar." They will say things like Graham told his players he was staying. Well, he was staying. Until he got a better offer. The lesson the players should learn from this is to be ambitious and to learn how the big-boy world works. In other words, Graham just helped them grow up.

By the way, this is not an inconsistent opinion from me. Some Arizona State fans might recall this about former Sun Devils coach Dennis Erickson when he left Idaho.

Is this a ringing endorsement of ASU's hiring of Graham? No.

Understand: The only Pitt game I watched this season was the Panthers' home date with Utah. The Utes won 26-14, manhandling what looked to me like a feckless team with the worst offense in the history of the world.

That said, Graham has a solid track record. Sure, he bolted Rice after one season. But he did so after taking a 1-10 team to its first bowl game in 45 years and winning Conference USA Coach of the Year.

At Tulsa, he went 36-17 and 3-0 in bowl games. His final season, 2010, he won 28-27 at Notre Dame.

He's a defensive guy -- he got his start in big-time college coaching working for new Arizona coach Rich Rodriguez at West Virginia -- who is known as much for potent offenses. To use his term, he likes "high-octane football." He's a longtime believer in the no-huddle, spread-option.

He had some clumsy media moments this past season. He's a fast talker who doesn't shy away from taking shots at players. But the general feeling among Pitt fans was positive. Until he left. Now he's the second coming of Lane Kiffin.

How's the third coming of Lane Kiffin going?

Still, it's impossible to ignore the reality that being a perceived mercenary climber brings baggage that will make Graham's job more difficult.

It's likely some Sun Devils will greet any early talk of "family" and "the Sun Devil way!" with eye rolls. Graham's reputation will make it more difficult for him to mend a fractured locker room. Selling loyalty and commitment to recruits will not be easy. It also will make it harder for school administrators to get boosters to open their wallets.

The first question some will ask: "What's his buyout?"

Here's a statement from Arizona State:

"Criteria for our head coach was established, and the word that was at the forefront of discussions was `energy'...energy towards promoting our program in the community and with former players. Energy towards instilling discipline, leadership and in recruiting. Energy towards representing our brand in every facet of the program," notes Love. "In Todd, we have not only hired a young and sitting head coach, but one with a history of success on the field and in hiring top-notch assistant coaches. For the first time in his career, he will be taking over a program with a strong nucleus at the beginning. We are excited to watch Coach Graham take over a very well-positioned program and elevate it to the next level."

So: boilerplate.

Arizona State's coaching search was sloppy. Graham was well down the list of top candidates. And the June Jones debacle -- no matter how the school has tried to spin it afterward -- was embarrassing.

But the ultimate measure of this coaching search is no different than the ultimate measure of Todd Graham. And it is devoid of sentimentality: wins and losses. Stay out of trouble with the NCAA. Graduate players who stay off the police blotter. Yes, in that order.

It appears that Arizona State's coaching search will end after 17 days with the hiring of Todd Graham, who coached Pittsburgh for a single season after being hired away from Tulsa in 2010.

Graham went 6-6 at Pittsburgh this year and is 49-29 overall. Graham told his players at Pittsburgh about his departure via text by assistant athletic director/football operations Blair Philbrick, which was first reported by the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.

"I have resigned my position at Pitt in the best interest of my family to pursue the head-coaching position at Arizona State," Graham said. "Coaching there has always been a dream of ours and we have family there. The timing of the circumstances have prohibited [me] from telling you this directly. I now am on my way to Tempe to continue those discussions. God Bless. Coach Graham."

Graham, who turned 47 on Dec. 5, will replace Dennis Erickson, who will coach the Sun Devils in the Las Vegas Bowl against Boise State on Dec. 22.

Graham is a native of Mesquite, Texas. Other than a stint at East Central University, he was a high school coach until 2000, but his rise through the coaching ranks was quick.

A defensive specialist, he worked under new Arizona coach Rich Rodriguez at West Virginia from 2001-2002. He was the defensive coordinator at Tulsa from 2003-2005. He spent one year as head coach at Rice in 2006, then was named head coach at Tulsa, where he stayed until he was hired at Pitt last year.

Obviously, we'll have more later.