Often times there will be some movement this week as schools start working again after Thanksgiving. A little early for hires but for schools like Kentucky or Villanova which made moves before the season ended, they should be announcing. If not you have to wonder if, 1. They are really giving it a priority? 2. People are being offered and saying no 3. They are looking for people who are/have been still coaching.
My guess is that KY is being very diligent in this process. Too many things are going well for KY in all their other athletic teams. I'm thinking they will want to get this right and make a big hire?? The SEC is a tough league and internally, their men's soccer team is setting a high bar. So, they might be aiming high in hopes for that special coach. Georgia is very similar. They got a taste of success this year. They will want to continue that progress and build on last year.
That's a big step up. 10 Big Sky teams are 200-plus in the RPI, including Weber State at 212, the team Montana beat in the final this year. Not saying he wouldn't do a good job, but surely there are coaches out there who are competing well against tougher teams. I continue to beat the drum for Angie Hind at ODU.
Well it seems I may have been right: Breaking on @EqualizerSoccer: The Orlando Pride plan to hire Amanda Cromwell as their next head coach, per multiple sources. Cromwell has coached UCLA since 2013, when the Bruins won a NCAA title. It would be a rare jump to #NWSL for a college coach.➡️ https://t.co/T9InbSTmY0 pic.twitter.com/zffnEOX9gp— Jeff Kassouf (@JeffKassouf) November 30, 2021
Big pay cut, but as I mentioned this move makes sense for her in many ways. It will be interesting to see what direction UCLA will take.
Does it make sense? I guess it does if her situation at UCLA had become untenable. I certainly wondered how she'd seemingly managed to escape any culpability in the admissions scandal--but clearly there were internal tensions related to that episode of corruption. But she will now apparently earn significantly less money to coach a team that hasn't been good for years in a league that seems constantly beset by problems. And like most pro coaches, she'll have far less job security than established college coaches. It's a step down, IMO, but if a change is necessary one doesn't always have a bunch of ideal options.
She also probably needs pro experience to be considered for the USWNT job some day...but I do think fallout from the recruiting scandal is forcing this move sooner rather than later....
What I don't understand is why didn't Cromwell just take the Angel City FC coaching job then when it was available? I didn't think she would ever leave her UCLA job and btw, where the hell does that leave the program now? She's invested in ACFC and has pushed a bunch of tweets promoting ACFC which is why the move to Orlando is going to make zero sense and be a conflict of interest.
What was her contract status at UCLA? There is a new AD in town. Did he not indicate a renewal? Just throwing possible ideas out there. I know nothing about the situation. I am just as perplexed as you are, McSkillz on why she did not go after the Angel City gig.
She was an investor at Angel City, correct? If that is true, my burning question is whether she was forced to sell her share of Angel City. It determines whether I can actually take that league serious.
Danesha got fired from Houston and Villanova as an assistant. Her and JJ of course had a good year this season, but no way she has a chance at the UCLA job just because of being an alumni. Pacific had a good non conference season, but still only improved their conference wins from 1 to 2. Hopefully Danesha and JJ can kick on from this season, still no way good enough to get the UCLA job.
It makes sense if she wants to coach the USWNT some day. The only thing that doesn't make sense is, as you suggest - why not just take the Angel City job? I can only imagine things at UCLA with a new AD weren't comfortable, and it was time to leave SoCal. And yeah she'll have to divest from Angel City, probably not a big deal. As for who gets that job - I would think they'll stay female and would want a big name with success. Erica Dambach or Nikki Izzo-Brown, then in the next tier down possibly Denise Schilte-Brown of South Florida, etc.
USC coach KM might be leaving very soon. Good for him. Another good job open in California. Don't know if anyone wants to move to California with the economy etc. But there are a lot of jobs open in California
For real? I don't think any of these places are going to have a whiff of difficulty filling these positions.
USC and UCLA will both find talent immediately. Jen Klein would be a shoe in at USC if she wanted it. McAlpine told his players this morning. Cromwell told her players last week
https://www.si.com/college/ucla/oly...hire-ucla-womens-soccer-coach-amanda-cromwell Cromwell signed a multi-year extension to remain at UCLA back in 2014, but the team has not publicly announced any updates to her contract since.
A new AD will likely bring in a brand new staff. He will not want ties to the old staff due to the admissions scandal issue, in my opinion. This is the AD's chance for a clean slate.