Then, on Wednesday, word leaked out that, less than six months after arriving to Seattle, Dannen was assuming the AD position at Nebraska. It provoked some ideas.
1. Don’t take a coach, athletic director or athlete at their word
This isn’t a condemnation of coaches, athletic directors or athletes so much as it is an observation. Freshly hired figures in the sports world are often placed into no-win situations when asked about their future.
They can say they want to stay long term and have such declarations thrown back in their faces if they leave, or they can be noncommittal and cause fans and/or players to question their loyalty.
Most pick the former. In late 2021, when Kalen DeBoer was hired as the Huskies’ football coach, he was asked if he was ready to put down roots in Seattle. With his wife and kids nodding enthusiastically, he replied, “Yes, absolutely. My whole family is going, ‘Yes.’ “
After two seasons, he left for Alabama. Could you blame him, though? His star was unlikely to be brighter after he led Washington to the national title game in January, and now he’s coaching what many consider the top program in the country.
Meanwhile, Dannen, an Iowa native, is back in the Midwest at a former titan of a football school. A shocking decision that betrayed his words from his introductory news conference at UW? Yes. The best thing for him and his family? Maybe so. Either way, this drives home the point that …
2. UW is not a destination school
Three departures in the past year have suggested as much. DeBoer left for what he thought was a better job. Dannen left for what at best seems like a lateral move, although proximity to home played a role. And, of course, before Dannen came to Washington, there was his AD predecessor, Jen Cohen, taking off for USC in August.
Cohen’s exit appeared easier for fans to stomach, because she had been in her position for seven years, hired DeBoer, helped lure football coach Chris Petersen to UW years earlier and had an array of other achievements to her name. But the opportunity to oversee one of the country’s most iconic sports universities in Los Angeles was too alluring to turn down.
I could be wrong about this — in fact, I’d love to be wrong about this — but I don’t see that cycle ending anytime soon. Washington is about as green as it gets, but there are pastures even greener if you succeed here.
Speaking of which …
3. Dannen’s tenure may still go down as successful
No, he couldn’t get DeBoer to sign a contract extension, but it’s doubtful that anybody could have. Dannen did hire a proven winner in Jedd Fisch to replace DeBoer, though.
Well, proven to an extent. Fisch has spent only three seasons as a college head coach, but in those three years he went from 1-11 to 5-7 to 10-3 thanks primarily to his recruiting abilities. Plenty of reasons to think this could go down as a premier Dannen hire.
Dannen also fired Huskies men’s basketball coach Mike Hopkins. This might have seemed like an easy decision, but Hopkins still had a year left on his contract, and the Huskies finished seventh — not 11th or 12th — in the Pac-12.
However, the fact that he chose to part ways with Hopkins could set Huskies hoops up for a better future.
Leave a Reply