Leatherneck Nation

If he did tell the players he was not leaving, then does this, it will be a punch in the gut to them, but more importantly it tells what kind of man he is, IMO.

Not necessarily I would want my kids learning from someone who is supposed to be a leader and role model.

Idk, what I heard was that he told the players he was offered the position, but hadn't decided if he was going to take it or not yet. So it was still up in the air at that point.

EDIT: looks like according to some of the players on Twitter, he did say he'd turned down the position...or at least led them to believe as such. I can understand not saying he's going, but he should have just said he's still deciding or something rather than outright lie to them (if that is what he did).

I think the sticking point originally might have been the South Dakota policy of only giving coaches a one year contract. They probably did throw in some more money over the weekend or even today to make it a done deal. College sports is a business. I can't jump on him too hard for doing what he thought was best for him and his career.

Now that he is gone, I will throw out a few of my inner-most thoughts.

1) His heart was not in it after about midway through season. You could tell it if you payed close attention to the Bob Nielson Shows and I tuned in to every one of them.

2) very disappointed with play calling last couple of years. Way too conservative running game, very few looks (formations, motion, misdirection) to confuse the defense. First year, I could sort of see it, bringing in a new system and all but it never got any better. If you can't run the ball consistently, you cannot win the Valley. Lot of credit goes to Baker and Watson for turning absolutely nothing into something the hard way.

3) Passing game did not distribute enough to guys other than our top 2 dogs. Tight ends were always in never, never land. Very sad to see that. Did not take much to shut down our top 2 with some speed on the corners (YSU).

4) Special Teams. What can I say. When you remove accountability for it from your coaching staff roster after the season starts, that speaks volumes.

I wanted him to stay only because I thought the potential was there to take the next step forward in a fairly short amount of time if we could shore up a couple of things (2 & 4).

I do have to say it not really a lateral transfer because I think the USD roster has some promising talent returning that may be more in line with the style of play he desires. But as a coach might say it, "Next Man Up". Not sure where he will come from. I wonder what Tim Lafferty is doing down in Carthage. I prefer a HC who calls his own plays and is more engaged on the sidelines but that is just me.

Fine, leave. No loyalty. Puts Western in a bad spot. DON'T LET THE DOOR HIT YOUR SKINNY A$$ ON THE WAY OUT.

I'm not to worried about Bob himself leaving. Like posted earlier and others have said, I'm worried about the staff leaving and having to start completely over. I'm in on promoting Crutchley or Blazek for the HC job and quickly....like Friday.

Think they both have a good chance of keeping some coaches and both have 10+ years coaching with great playing experience. Think Blaz connects well with the kids and will bring some MUCH needed HC coaching excitement (I just missed Ball, but they've all been pretty blah since). We're not going to lose any players over it, so we'll be ok next year and the future still looks bright. We're not NDSU, but they didn't collapse after Bohl left and they promoted an assistant with no DIV I HC experience.

I get the move. USD is a pretty good school with some money and a state that isn't broke. Check out their endowment!!!! Talking about a school our size and in a town our size, but a Med School and Law School. WIU has made some nice improvements to campus over the years, but are very limited for the foreseeable future and USD probably isn't.

Can't wait to continue our winning streak against USD for years to come.

Couple tweets from players



Will be a pleasure playing you next year sir



All you can do is laugh

Bob is bailing out, this year was the best it was going to get for him here at Western. He got the win against South Dakota State that made the year. South Dakota State was not the Team it use to be, saw that in playoffs. He is staying one step ahead. Did nothing to promote or sell the program. Things usually work out for the best.

Wow. F that guy. Wouldn't be as bad if he didn't lie to his guys. If that is the type of man he is, good riddance.

If Bob lied to his players about staying and then accepted the position, this is in very poor character. And, you do not accept a position in the same conference either. We will be better served by someone with more honor and integrity.

For the record, I would like to know why he did this...

Bob

I totally agree with Bob Lovely. There was a time when moving from a conference school to another- as head coach- was viewed by most as unethical. Many conferences would't allow it. It still seems slimy, especially in a conference like the MVFC.