Countdown to a new coach at UF

So the countdown begins.

I know it’s only five days until Ohio State and Michigan get in on in their Battle Royale for all of the marbles in the Big 10 and a shot at who will play in the national championship. But I’m talking about the University of Findlay today.

The Oilers finished the season with a whimper and not a bang as they dropped a 33-15 decision to Michigan Tech to close the 2006 football season Saturday afternoon at Donnell Stadium. It marked the end to a second straight disastrous football season at the University of Findlay.

The Oilers beat Charleston to open the season and got fired up about a story in the Courier about Ashland and former Columbus Grove star Blaine Maag and they managed to beat the Eagles 7-0 in on a crappy day for football in Ashland.

Just like a lot of voters thought in the last election its time for a change. This year’s 2-9 record was the most losses in a season for the program since 1927. Yep, I know it’s tough for a private school to compete in Division II because of limited funding and higher tuition costs, but Ron Niekamp and the basketball program seems to do OK and so does Shawn Nelson’s UF wrestling program and he works on a shoestring budget compared to most Division II programs.

The football team, as I understand it, is fully funded. That means they have the full compliment of scholarships that every other Division II school has so they are essentially on an even footing in that regard with everyone else. The only local kid making an impact for the Oilers that I can think of is Leipsic’s Joel McDaniel. If you want to boost the program’s local following at all some players from area high schools should be in the lineup and you can’t tell me there aren’t solid NCAA Division II level football players right in UF’s back yard,

The heat was definitely on UF coach Dan Simrell the last couple of weeks. He finished his seventh season in charge of the program with a 31-45 record.

On WFIN’s Coaches Corner Show last week host Chris Miller asked Simrell about his job and he promptly ended the interview and hung up on Miller. He doesn’t even have the common courtesy to show up for the show live and in person each week. He did the same thing to Courier sports writer Brian Lester with a terse “no comment.” after the loss to Michigan Tech.

So the countdown begins. It might be this week, maybe next. But from everything I’ve heard Dan Simrell is going to be out as UF’s football coach and it will be up to someone else to right the ship.

NOTEWORTHY:
AP ALL-DISTRICT: As I write this on an overcast Monday morning the brightest prep football minds in the Northwest District (sarcasm noted) are meeting to select the Associated Press All-District football teams just a block away from here at The Courier. The teams will be officially released next Tuesday.

SOCCER ALL-DISTRICT: The All-Ohio Soccer Team has been released but still no all-district teams for Northwest Ohio. Can’t say that I am surprised, it happens every single year. I just don’t get it, release the gosh darn all-district pairings BEFORE the all-Ohio picks are announced.

FREEDOM CRUSHED: The Findlay Freedom, you know our minor league hockey team in town traveled to Danbury, Conn. And got beat 14-1, here is a link to the story via Danbury, Conn.
NEWSLINKS:
Monday’s local sports from The Findlay Courier (Includes: L-B vs. Chanel game story, all-Ohio soccer selections)
Marion Local rolls past SCC
Browns coverage from the Plain Dealer
Buckeyes coverage from the Columbus Dispatch
Hopewell-Loudon offense too much for Grove
East-West Volleyball coverage from the Fremont paper
East-West All-Star volleyball match from the Fostoria Review Times