K-State's Prince fired / LJWorld.com

Archive for Wednesday, November 5, 2008

K-State head coach Ron Prince has been fired.

By John Marshall - Associated Press Sports Writer

November 5, 2008

Kansas State head football coach Ron Prince is escorted from the field following the Wildcats' 52-21 loss to the Jayhawks Saturday at Memorial Stadium. Prince was fired Wednesday, effective at the end of the season.

If it's my hire and TCU's Gary Patterson says no thank you, which he likely will, I know where I turn next.

Not back to Bill Snyder. He had a great run, but things tailed off at the end.

Not former Snyder co-defensive coordinator Bret Bielema, Wisconsin's coach who went 17-1 to start his tenure in Madison and has gone 8-9 since.

Not even Todd Graham, who did an impressive job in his first year at Rice before returning to Tulsa, where he had been an assistant coach. So far, he's 18-5 at Tulsa and would be my second choice at K-State.

I would try to convince Turner Gill, former Nebraska quarterback, Heisman Trophy finalist and long-time assistant coach, to return to the Big 12.

In just his third season at the University of Buffalo, Gill already has turned one of the nation's losingest programs into a winner.

In the past two seasons, Gill has won 10 games and counting, quite an accomplishment at a school that had won 10 games in its first seven seasons as a Division I-A program.

A native of Fort Worth, Texas, Gill has a deep pool of Big 12 recruiting contacts, a winning personality and a gifted offensive football mind.

- Tom Keegan

Kansas City, Mo. — Kansas State coach Ron Prince was unable to rebuild the Wildcats into the Big 12 contender they were under his predecessor.

Now after 2 1â2 seasons in Manhattan, Prince is on his way out and K-State is in the market for another coach who can do what Bill Snyder did in the Little Apple.

Kansas State athletic director Bob Krause fired Prince, effective at the end of the season, on Wednesday, just three months after signing the coach to a five-year contract.

Prince took over for Snyder in 2006, his first head coaching job after 14 years at six different schools. He never lived up to the standard Snyder set, going 16-18, including 4-5 this year.

"It's a decision that we arrived at in the best interest in the institution and the program," Krause said during a conference call. "All along I've looked at understanding we're in a performance-based profession, and in the final analysis, we're at a point that while our goal remains the same, a change is necessary."

Snyder was a consistent winner in 17 years as Kansas State's coach, turning a team that won one game from 1987-89 into one that racked up at least 10 victories seven times, and reached bowl games 12 straight seasons from 1992-2003.

He retired after a 5-6 season in 2006, handing the program over to Prince, Virginia's relatively unknown offensive coordinator the previous three years.

Prince never got the Wildcats going in the right direction.

Kansas State was 7-6 and went to a bowl game in his first season, but the program has regressed since, going 5-7 last season and losing four of five Big 12 games this year.

The Wildcats have lost three straight headed into Saturday's game against Missouri, including a 52-21 setback to Kansas last weekend that dropped Prince to 0-3 against Kansas State's in-state rival.

"The reality is that all coaches want to compete and win championships," Prince said. "That's why we came here and that's why we do what we do, and ultimately educate these kids along the way. We're disappointed, but we're in a position to accept the decision that's been made."

In August, Kansas State signed Prince to a contract that runs through 2012, paying him a base salary of $143,00 with a total guaranteed package of $1.1 million. The deal included a larger buyout, meaning Prince will receive $1.2 million, along with a prorated longevity bonus of about $150,000.

The midweek announcement, during preparation for a game, was unusual, but not the midseason move. Clemson, Washington, Tennessee and Toledo have already started looking for new leaders after announcing coaching moves earlier this season. Earlier this week, the Volunteers announced Phillip Fulmer won't be back next season.

"There's a plan in place and there's some consultation I want to have with some individuals," Krause said. "It's coming down to the point where you have a list of folks you think have the ability to take the program and accomplish the things we want to accomplish."

Prince's teams never had trouble generating offense, with a wide-open attack and strong-armed quarterback Josh Freeman piling up yards and points.

Defense has been a problem, though.

Kansas State had one of the nation's worst last season, allowing 30.8 points and 400.6 yards per game, and the Wildcats have been even worse this year. They rank 107th in scoring defense at 33.7 points per game and 108th in total defense at 444.67 yards per game.

Kansas State allowed 110 points in its past two games, more than 50 three times this season.

"Our objective in coming to Kansas State in December of 2005 was to establish a program that was built to last, a team that would consistently compete for championships," Prince said. "Today, we ran out of time to accomplish that."

Discussion

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5 November 2008
at 4:14 p.m.

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c_dubya (Anonymous) says…

So much for that 'contract extension' eh? Good riddance to bad rubbish.
5 November 2008
at 4:19 p.m.

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moderationman (Anonymous) says…

I was hoping they would give him a lifetime contract. Oh well, Terry Allen is available.
5 November 2008
at 4:44 p.m.

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calvin (Anonymous) says…

He never had a chance. It is always hard to be the “guy after the guy”. Normally, however, the guy after the guy who was after the guy does well. The Mildcats were on a decline in Snyder's last couple of years and Prince didn't stand a chance. Phil Fullmer is available though.
5 November 2008
at 5:18 p.m.

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jason2007 (Anonymous) says…

Isn't K-State a sports program in Kansas?! I don't get it…accountability? A “performance profession”?! What in the world is that kind of talk?We have Herm Edwards in KC basically saying, “We did great today…we got beat but man we really hung in there.” And everyone nods and smiles. We have KU getting their hind quarters handed to them by Tx Tech and a recent article quoted a player saying, “All you can do is smile” Mangino was so soft-spoken about the butt whoppin' I thought the guy was filling in for Martha Stewart and selling some towels.I'm not calling for anyone's head in KC/KU (ok, I do think Herm should be canned today, not tomorrow, today!) and love Mangino but I want to see some FIRE from my team when they lose.It's good to see that K-State gets that and can drop the axe when it needs to.
5 November 2008
at 6:04 p.m.

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looza (Anonymous) says…

the bad economy has hit Manhattan. People losing their jobs, wins hard to come by. The prophet Barack shouldstep in and appoint someone to lead this group/
5 November 2008
at 6:10 p.m.

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ronwell_dobbs (Anonymous) says…

Can we punish both K-State and Herm Edwards by forcing him to coach the Wildcats?
5 November 2008
at 6:17 p.m.

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Confrontation (Anonymous) says…

Anyone else notice how the poster “KStater” disappeared once Beasley left K-State? Must be pretty sad to be a fan of that pathetic University.

5 November 2008
at 7:11 p.m.

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Judgesmails (Anonymous) says…

Speaking of sad and pathetic, theres the always bitter “Confrontation” chiming in……………..Lol
5 November 2008
at 7:11 p.m.

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JOEHAWK (Anonymous) says…

I think the KSU administration got his resignation letter about 2 minutes into the 2nd half when he went for 4th and 8 on his own 30.
5 November 2008
at 8:04 p.m.

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kusp8 (Anonymous) says…

noooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Ron Prince was the best thing to ever happen to KU Football! I will miss him!
5 November 2008
at 8:20 p.m.

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jaywalker (Anonymous) says…

As weak as the North has been the past two seasons I imagine K-State's lack of success is even more frustrating, but I still think this may be a bad move. College football is primarily about the quarterback, especially these days. Freeman is talented but makes too many mistakes and misses too many throws. If he plays better the last two years Prince still has his job.
5 November 2008
at 8:59 p.m.

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kujayhawk (Anonymous) says…

No KSU fan here, but Prince got a raw deal. K-State's athletic department is a cluster ****.
5 November 2008
at 9:26 p.m.

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labmonkey (Anonymous) says…

Did you see the ESPN article on this? It mentioned the KU fans chanting “Save Ron Prince,” on Saturday.
5 November 2008
at 9:47 p.m.

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JayCat_67 (Anonymous) says…

As far as Snyder's last couple of years, it had to be hard to recruit when the kids knew he was going to retire soon. And it's not like recruiting to Manhattan, KS is particularly easy to begin with… “Over here we have Aggieville, and if you go around the block and back up the street you have Aggieville and … Oh yeah, did I mention Aggieville?” Having been to both, if I had to choose a University based on the town in which it's located, I'd pick KU in a heartbeat. That being said, it was time for Prince to go. The team was doing nothing but getting worse over the past three years since he got there. I got the opportunity to meet Mark Mangino once and told him that I looked forward to the KU/KSU game determining the winner of the North division and I sincerely mean that. When I first started at KU the Coaches were Bob Valesente at KU and Stan Parrish at KSU and the best game we got out of either of them has been dubbed the “Toilet Bowl” as both teams sucked too da(r)ned much to win the game (ended 17-17 on a blocked field goal attempt). Trust me, 'tis better to beat a good team with a good team than to just happen to suck less that day.
5 November 2008
at 10:32 p.m.

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KStater (Kristen Murphy) says…

Confrontation (Anonymous) says: Anyone else notice how the poster “KStater” disappeared once Beasley left K-State? Must be pretty sad to be a fan of that pathetic University.I'm still here! I just haven't been posting - but thanks for thinking of me! :o) It's a good day in K-State land. Yes - Prince got the raw end of the deal, however K-State has high expectations - granted it was hard for someone to follow in Snyder's footsteps but he was given a great team to work with. The only person he recruited was Freeman. That was it. Jaywalker you're right - if Freeman didn't make so many freshman mistakes as a Junior then I think things would have been different…

5 November 2008
at 10:40 p.m.

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Mixolydian (Anonymous) says…

My regional sports team can beat your regional sports team.Earlier today it was reported that he resigned, now the headline is fired. What gives?
5 November 2008
at 10:49 p.m.

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jonas_opines (Anonymous) says…

K-State has a Prince? Why don't we have a Prince? We could even call them Jack.
5 November 2008
at 10:53 p.m.

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KEITHMILES05 (Anonymous) says…

Josh Freeman isn't sleeping well tonight. His big daddy isn't gonna have his back next year. He's not good enough to go league yet.
6 November 2008
at 12:16 a.m.

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Phogfan86 (Anonymous) says…

Ever notice that you never saw Terry Allen and The Not-so-Fresh Prince in the same room together?Coincidence?
6 November 2008
at 2:57 a.m.

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mikeisthename (Anonymous) says…

Lane Kiffin (ex-Oakland coach) is available. That's probably wishful thinking. I am both a KU and K-State fan except when they play each other. I root for KU in those matchups. Sorry to see Prince go, but at least KU can put a win over K-State on the board for the next few seasons.
6 November 2008
at 4:58 a.m.

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Take_a_letter_Maria (Anonymous) says…

The biggest problem with Keegan's laundry list in the sidebar is most of those guys are under contract and talking to K-State during the season would be tampering (not that it stopped UNC a few years back). As for Turner Gill,he'd be a great selection right up to the point Bo Pellini fails his anger management class and is shown the door at Nebraska.Kristen talks about high expectations and Prince inheriting a great team. My question for you is who beside Jordy Nelson did the “legend” leave behind on that team? Snyder passed on Freeman - who had verballed to Nebraska - and only made a run at Jake Sharp after he committed to Kansas. Those are just two easy examples of how far Snyder's commitment to excellence had slipped before he retired. A few years off may have regenerated the batteries of the old boy some, but he doesn't have even five more years in him if they bring him back.
6 November 2008
at 9:15 a.m.

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KStater (Kristen Murphy) says…

Take_a_letter_Maria - Snyder never really recruited Freeman, Prince did. Prince convinced Freeman to back out on Nebraska and come to K-State. Which I commend, but Prince never really recruited anyone else. I think maybe they could have given him one more year but how many years are you going to say we're rebuilding? I don't think you can really rebuild when you bring in a bunch of Juco transfers only because after 2 years you have to rebuild. I would have been so excited if Sharp would have came to K-State. He's an amazing player. I think the problem was - regardless of who K-State brought into the program after Snyder (and I will agree - Snyder was slipping after the BIG XII win) was going to have high expectations of a win right away. Realistically, K-State fans (and Alums) should have known that any coach who comes in is not going to follow the same offense/defense as the previous (successful) coach. I guess we as the fans put too much pressure on Prince to succeed right away - especially after watching Bobby Stoops go down to Oklahoma and turn them into a huge powerhouse.Does that make sense? Honestly though - after listening to the press conference yesterday - I think the rumor that Bill Snyder is coming back is what it sounds like. Do I agree with that? I don't know. I had issues with how the game was playing Snyder towards the end. I thought he wasn't making that many changes and if he is coming back - I hope he has a brand new game plan. But at this point - who knows.
6 November 2008
at 9:35 a.m.

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hail2oldku (Anonymous) says…

I don't know about Maria, but here's my .02 worth Kristen.K-State fans pushed Prince to try for the quick fix JUCO route after seeing KU go 12-1 last year with the Orange Bowl victory. Mangino's success last year forced the homerun swing instead of moving towards rebuilding upon the solid foundation Snyder built.Snyder never even tried on either Freeman or Sharp. Once Jake committed to KU, Snyder tried to steal him away, but he never attempted to challenge NU. He was worn out and getting lazy. Jake is a kid similar to Sproles who excelled for him just a few years earlier.To me, I think Prince deserved the opportunity to have a team that was composed of all his players before makingany move to can him, but I am not there seeing what is happening on a day to day basis. I do know there were a lot of people calling for Mangino's head before the season started last year, and look what happened. Could Prince have pulled off something similar? Who knows, but I don't think anyone expected him to be able to beat Texas two seasons in a row either.Following Snyder wasn't but half the problem, having the legend hanging around and critiquing (sp?) you daily played equally on Prince's and the team's development.

6 November 2008
at 9:57 a.m.

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puzzler (Anonymous) says…

OMG - if you can't get a K-State Wildcat team fired up to play KU, then it's time to put the house on the market and update your resume.All of us K-staters in Douglas County were embarassed to wear the purple after that disaster.I don't think it's Josh Freeman's fault that his receivers drop passes or that he has to rush the plays because the o-line can't do their jobs. He is a talented athlete who is playing on a bad team.
6 November 2008
at 10 a.m.

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KStater (Kristen Murphy) says…

Oh I completely agree hail2oldku. And I think the game has past Snyder. While I would love to see him come back - I don't think its what the program needs. And I agree that it was probably hard for Prince to do anything w/Snyder always there. Who knows. The next couple of weeks should be interesting. Will they have the next coach by the end of the season? I don't think so. They might though. I dunno. It's going to be interesting.
6 November 2008
at 11:31 a.m.

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Jingal (Anonymous) says…

A few thoughts:- I love Jake Sharp, but he doesn't belong in the same sentence as Darren Sproles.- You don't really think K-State makes decisions based on KU's football success do you? What would they do in the intervening decades between Orange Bowls?- Unless Snyder has completely lost his mind (which is admittedly possible - I've met Sharon-), he would be nuts to return. Even Moses didn't try to recross the Red Sea.- IMO, Prince was fired because he ran a dismal program, that by many objective measures, was getting worse, not better. And I doubt it helped that he apparently (by my collection of independent and unsolicited accounts) managed to offend a lot of people while building his dismal program.- The K-State fan base is made up of two types; those who began following K-State football in 1996, and those who have been there since the new stadium opened in 1969. The former truly believe they will get someone like Pete Carrol to drop everything and rush to Manhattan and make them national contenders. The latter would be happy with someone like Terry Allen, so long as he didn't behave like a jerk, won between 5 and 8 games on average, and beat KU every once in awhile.- K-State would be more successful hiring a coach if they began by hiring an Athletic Director - someone who was experienced, independent minded and successful enough he didn't care if he was the most well-like person in his little community. And maybe he should smoke cigars…
6 November 2008
at 12:04 p.m.

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KStater (Kristen Murphy) says…

Excellent Jingal. That's how I feel too. Granted I've only been around since 1983 - but my parents bleed purple (my mom graduated from K-State and was apart of the athletic program in the late 70s early 80s) - so I'm not a “bandwagon 1996” fan - I've been a fan my whole life. And I do agree w/the whole hiring an actual AD. That should be #1 on the list of the new president at K-State.
6 November 2008
at 12:25 p.m.

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jason2007 (Anonymous) says…

jonas_opines (Anonymous) says:”K-State has a Prince? Why don't we have a Prince?”This reminded me of that Chapelle's Show episode where Charlie Murphy recounts playing basketball with Prince and the Revolution. Now that'd be something….Prince out there directing plays from the sidelines…he's even already primed for the school colors at KSU!
6 November 2008
at 12:47 p.m.

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puzzler (Anonymous) says…

The head coach formerly known as prince will be laughing all the way to the bank with his $1.2 million buyout.
6 November 2008
at 1:25 p.m.

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countrygirl (Anonymous) says…

Hey Jaycat—i was at the “toliet bowl” too. That had to be the worst game I've ever been too—nobody could believe that after all that it ended in a tie. Both programs have come a long ways since then.
6 November 2008
at 1:29 p.m.

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BigAl (Anonymous) says…

Jingal says: - “You don't really think K-State makes decisions based on KU's football success do you?”**********************************************************************Actually, yes I do. I think the drubbing KU put on KSU last week has a direct bearing on the firing yesterday. I also think that the past 4 out of 5 losses to KU has a lot to do with Prince's firing.

6 November 2008
at 3 p.m.

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Jingal (Anonymous) says…

BigAl:Agreed regarding last Saturday having an impact, and about 4/5 losses being a significant part of Prince's perceived failure. Disagree regarding “K-State fans pushed Prince to try for the quick fix JUCO route after seeing KU go 12-1 last year with the Orange Bowl victory.”Can't imagine KU's Orange Bowl was the proximate cause for Prince to give 19 Junior College players scholarships. If this logic applied, the K-State basketball team would never include a single high school recruit.That was the reference.
6 November 2008
at 3:17 p.m.

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hail2oldku (Anonymous) says…

So jingal, KU's football success had nothing to do with K-State fan wanting more for their team and nothing to do with Prince trying the shortcut JUCO route instead of strengthening the foundation and building with Freshman and redshirts? What then did cause Prince to switch horses recruiting wise and go the JUCO route?
7 November 2008
at 3:09 p.m.

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puzzler (Anonymous) says…

gopowercat.com is reporting that Gary Patterson has been hired as the new KSU coach.