I don't have a problem with Sean Lewis leaving Kent State for the offensive coordinator position at Colorado. However, he could have at least encouraged his players to stay and finish their degrees at KSU. But since loyalty was never a virtue of the team, 14 of his players entered the transfer portal a week after his departure.
This was not the first time a favorite team of mine was adversely affected by a head coach's decision to bolt. Back in 2014, Penn State hired James Franklin away from Vanderbilt. Among Franklin's Penn State commits five were former Vanderbilt commits who followed him and his staff to Penn State and flipped their commitments just hours after he was introduced as Penn State's 16th head football coach.
What Franklin was able to add to a Penn State class that was ranked 22nd by ESPN Recruiting Nation greatly detracted from the Vanderbilt group that he and his staff put together.
As a result of Franklin's poaching, Vanderbilt fans continued to refer to Franklin on social media sites as "Poach Franklin" as the Commodores class had as few as nine commits shortly after Franklin's departure. Ultimately, Derek Mason and his staff compiled a 22-man class that tumbled out of the ESPN Recruiting Nation's top-40 ranking. It was a far cry from the 29th spot Vanderibilt held on Jan. 9, just two days before Franklin was introduced at Penn State.
Flipping players wasn't uncommon even back in 2014, but according to ESPN Franklin's five flips were the second most in the college football offseason that year. Washington coach Chris Petersen secured commitments from six previous commits since he took over on Dec. 6.
If poaching five of Vanderbilt's top recruits wasn't bad enough, Franklin also kept his former Vanderbilt staff intact as he moved to Penn State.
Coaches like Lewis and Franklin have every right to move on, but their exodus can be done in a manner that won't adversely hurt their respective schools. It only seems right particularly when the school gives them their first head coaching job.
This was not the first time a favorite team of mine was adversely affected by a head coach's decision to bolt. Back in 2014, Penn State hired James Franklin away from Vanderbilt. Among Franklin's Penn State commits five were former Vanderbilt commits who followed him and his staff to Penn State and flipped their commitments just hours after he was introduced as Penn State's 16th head football coach.
What Franklin was able to add to a Penn State class that was ranked 22nd by ESPN Recruiting Nation greatly detracted from the Vanderbilt group that he and his staff put together.
As a result of Franklin's poaching, Vanderbilt fans continued to refer to Franklin on social media sites as "Poach Franklin" as the Commodores class had as few as nine commits shortly after Franklin's departure. Ultimately, Derek Mason and his staff compiled a 22-man class that tumbled out of the ESPN Recruiting Nation's top-40 ranking. It was a far cry from the 29th spot Vanderibilt held on Jan. 9, just two days before Franklin was introduced at Penn State.
Flipping players wasn't uncommon even back in 2014, but according to ESPN Franklin's five flips were the second most in the college football offseason that year. Washington coach Chris Petersen secured commitments from six previous commits since he took over on Dec. 6.
If poaching five of Vanderbilt's top recruits wasn't bad enough, Franklin also kept his former Vanderbilt staff intact as he moved to Penn State.
Coaches like Lewis and Franklin have every right to move on, but their exodus can be done in a manner that won't adversely hurt their respective schools. It only seems right particularly when the school gives them their first head coaching job.
