- February 13th, 2007, 8:37 pm
#60590
The guy must be good, he drops a New England Patriots reference...
http://content.hamptonroads.com/story.c ... &ran=33891
http://content.hamptonroads.com/story.c ... &ran=33891
ODU's Wilder lays out his vision for football program
Bobby Wilder, ODU’s football coach says, ''I believe in something the New England Patriots are very good at: recruit and develop.'' CHRIS TYREE/THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
By JIM DUCIBELLA, The Virginian-Pilot
© February 13, 2007
NORFOLK - His suit was a lush Monarch blue, nicely appointed with an Old Dominion University lapel pin. The briefcase he carried onto the stage at the Constant Center featured a growling, pawing lion - ODU's athletic logo - on the flap.
Bobby Wilder covered all the bases Monday, his first day as Monarchs football coach. All except one.
"I forgot to change the message on my cell phone," Wilder admitted sheepishly. "It still says I'm the associate head coach at Maine."
That portion of his career ended once he signed a six-year contract worth upward of $190,000 a year and was greeted with a standing ovation by about 200 guests inside the Big Blue Room.
He's likely to receive the same reception from thousands more tonight when he is introduced during ODU's nearly sold-out hoops showdown with Hofstra.
"This is a very important moment in ODU history," university president Roseann Runte said via conference call from Washington, D.C., where she was on school business. "I believe he's a winner, and I believe he'll be coaching a winning team very soon."
Wilder won't be doing much coaching for a while. The Monarchs don't play their first game until 2009. Before then, Wilder will be given the opportunity to place his mark on every football-related decision the university makes - and there are dozens of them.
"Keeping momentum and building the war chest," he said of the immediate future. "I'm also dealing with a lot of people here who have worked very hard but don't know how to run a football program. So it's going to be, 'Here's how you run a recruiting weekend, here's how you do this.' "
But first, he said, he will hire offensive and defensive coordinators, which could occur in the next six weeks. In a change of plans, athletic director Jim Jarrett announced that the university will hire a third assistant quickly, possibly a recruiting coordinator. That would put in place half of Wilder's eventual staff.
They'll be selling - to recruits, high school coaches and the ODU community - the philosophy Wilder brings from 17 seasons on the Maine coaching staff. Most commonly known as "the spread offense," it often features the no-huddle, quarterbacks in the shotgun and five-receiver sets.
"If you like to tailgate and kickoff is at 1, don't be late getting inside the stadium," Wilder warned playfully. "We may do something on the kickoff you've never seen before. We're going to play a fun, aggressive style."
Wilder, who has lived all but two of his 42 years in Maine, addressed questions about lack of extensive recruiting experience in Virginia. He has already begun compiling a database of every high school and coach in the state. He plans to begin pilgrimages throughout the commonwealth to introduce himself as soon as NCAA rules allow coaches back on the recruiting trail.
"We will make sure the high school coaches we talk to know that we are here for the long haul," he said. "I will surround myself with people who understand recruiting."
Assistants, however, will not be hired based on their familiarity with state high schools, he said.
"I've seen a lot of coaches who tried to hire people because they were familiar with a region, but they did not know" the guys they were hiring well enough, he said. "It caused trouble. Most of all, I need two things in my assistants: They need to be loyal to me, and they need to be loyal to Old Dominion.
"We'll have a real problem here if we have turnover on the staff every year or so. We have got to hire people here who want to build something."
Wilder admitted that Maine's recruits were rarely highly prized players, but added that was done partly by design.
"I believe in something the New England Patriots are very good at: recruit and develop," he said. "We are going to recruit the best people, the best students and the best athletes we can, then try to develop them over five years."
ODU's first class of recruits will be signed next February and then spend the fall of 2008 redshirting. However, Wilder and his staff can spend 20 hours a week meeting and practicing with them that fall.
Wilder said he didn't become interested in the job until speaking with fellow coaches after Christmas.
"The buzz among college coaches was that this was a diamond in the rough," he said. "That's what they called it.... I had a lot of chances during my 17 years at Maine to leave, but it had to be a great situation for my family and one where the president, the athletic director, the students and the alumni were supportive of the program. I've found that here."
TIMELINE TILL KICKOFF
Late Feb.: Luxury suites and club seats go on sale.
March: First assistant football coaches hired.
Construction on the field hockey/lacrosse and softball facilities on Powhatan Avenue begins.
May: An assistant athletic director assigned to football hired.
September: CAA begins playing football as a conference sport.
Feb. 6, 2008: National Signing Day; ODU announces its first class of players signing letters of intent.
Open tryouts for ODU students to walk on to play football.
June 2008: Powhatan complex completed.
July 2008: Foreman Field renovation begins.
Season tickets go on sale.
August 2008: First players arrive on campus to begin fall workouts.
September 2009: ODU plays first football game since 1940.
ALERT
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