Coaching job evaluation: Western Michigan
Western Michigan terminated coach Bill Cubit's contract just hours after a home loss to Eastern Michigan handed the program its worst record since the 2004 season, the year prior to Cubit's arrival.
The loss to the Eagles ends WMU's year at 4-8, marking the third time the Broncos finished under .500 over Cubit's eight seasons with the program.
"I want to thank Coach Cubit for his years of service and recognize the work he and all of his assistants have done over the years in support of our student-athletes," said Western Michigan athletic director Kathy Beauregard.
Cubit went 51-47 over his eight years at WMU, winning nine games in 2008 and, in 2005, completing the largest single-season turnaround in MAC history: Western Michigan went from 1-10 under Gary Darnell in 2004 to 7-4 and a third-place finish in the MAC West. He led the Broncos to three bowl games, after the 2007, 2008 and 2011 seasons.
"Although this is a time of transition, the expectations of our department remain the same," Beauregard said. "Our vision and mission is winning division and conference titles and growing our number of postseason bowls. We continue to value student-athlete success academically and expect them to be great citizens in this community."
The university announced that a national search for its next head coach would begin immediately.
What's good about the job:
As Cubit proved, it's possible to win with consistency at Western Michigan. While WMU never quite got over the hump in the MAC West, ceding divisional supremacy to teams like Toledo, Central Michigan and Northern Illinois.
Cubit-coached teams won at least six games five teams and notched several wins against BCS conference competition. Despite this season's slide – which is in part due to injuries, especially at the quarterback position – there's enough of a foundation in place for Cubit's successor to taste immediate success.
WMU also has a recruiting foothold both in Michigan (among second- and third-tier prospects) and in Florida, where Cubit's staff made solid inroads over the last half-decade. While a new staff would need to maintain those relationships, the program's name carries some cachet in certain recruiting circles.
More than anything, Cubit's successor isn't starting from scratch.
What's bad about the job:
The next head coach at Western Michigan will have to deal with three major issues: Northern Illinois, Toledo and Ball State. As long as each program keeps its current head coach, it'll be difficult for another MAC West program to take home the divisional championship.
The next head coach will also have to worry about rival Central Michigan, which seems close to finding its stride under third-year coach Dan Enos.
And WMU's next coach might need to battle the rest of the MAC West without a full deck. As in every coaching move, certain players will opt to transfer rather than play under a new staff. That worry might be doubled for WMU, due to the length of Cubit's tenure and his standing as the face of the program.
What's worse? WMU's replacement for Cubit will need to handle some significant expectations. The university fired Cubit after five non-losing seasons in eight years; what will his successor need to achieve to keep his job?
Who are the likely candidates:
A current Big Ten assistant coach is likely out of the equation. That change has played itself out in the MAC, and at Western Michigan in particular. The league's recent hiring history suggests that teams value head coaching experience over name recognition. WMU should follow in line. Here are a few candidates for the university to consider:
Indiana State head coach Trent Miles
Liberty head coach Turner Gill
Towson head coach Rob Ambrose
Notre Dame defensive coordinator Bob Diaco
Syracuse defensive coordinator Scott Shafer
Kent State offensive coordinator Brian Rock
The ideal candidate:
WMU should look young, but not at the cost of experience. Diaco is a hot name, thanks to the Irish's defense, and has been with Brian Kelly though several stops. Shafer and Rock are former WMU assistants.
But the university should focus on Miles, who has worked wonders at Indiana State, and on Towson's Ambrose. The latter has BCS conference coordinator experience at Connecticut and has turned Towson around with enough speed to put him on the radar for positions on the FBS level.