On the Banks, a Rutgers Scarlet Knights community

The possibility was always unlikely, but soon-to-be former Pitt offensive coordinator Frank Cignetti Jr. has confirmed that he has no interest in the vacant IUP job. Cignetti is an IUP alum, and his father coached there for many years. Unfortunately, the article has no other information about his plans, but it's safe to assume that he will either be a BCS conference offensive coordinator or a NFL QB coach next year. On a somewhat similar note, Pitt beatwriter Paul Zeise returned from vacation this week with two minor tidbits of interest. Incoming Pitt coach Mike Haywood apparently wanted Jeff Hafley to shift jobs, and an unnamed Pitt staffer is close to landing another job. That could mean anything given their assistants RU has no interest in (like Phil Bennett), but maybe things will start happening in earnest after their bowl game is concluded.

Sorry, a little behind because of the holidays. Anyway, yesterday's announcement that Steve Addazio was being named the new Temple HC drew a lot of criticism. Addazio struggled as Florida's offensive coordinator last year. I disagree, as being a successful coordinator doesn't necessarily require the same skills as being a good head coach. Steve Addazio is a strong recruiter in the northeast, and that is 90% of the job at a program like Temple. They have the best recruiting base in the MAC, and it was even more important to secure those players with Kent State (Darrell Hazell) and Ball State (Pete Lembo). It's hard to believe that the combination of Addazio and Temple won't be an easier sell. Of course, this hire does have a couple implications for the Rutgers end of things: 1. Hooray - no more Addazio recruiting at Florida! Of course, this is partially balanced out by Golden at Miami, and Florida can always hire another assistant to cover the area anyway. 2. If Addazio succeeds, he'll be the next obvious candidate for regional BCS conference openings in a few years. 3. Media reports out of Philadelphia named Frank Cignetti as a candidate at Temple. My wish is that there's one less obstacle in the way to him being the Rutgers offensive coordinator next year. If that doesn't happen, at least the OC market will loosen up a bit and somebody else could be in need of a job. Still wondering what Miami does there...

USA Today once again continues its terrific college football investigative reporting this week with their annual report on coaching salaries. (It does not yet include data for assistant coaches, as the 2009 report does.) It is important to note that the data is very incomplete. Private schools do not have to comply with FOIA requests. Many public schools do not share information on outside income sources. IIRC, Pitt/PSU/Temple are considered semi-public institutions in Pennsylvania and do not have to respond to certain records requests either. This year Greg Schiano ranked 25th of athletic departments that at least partially responded to USA Today's survey, a dip from 22nd in 2009. If you're curious as to where he ranks in the real numbers, another 2009 study had Schiano 27th in total compensation. The figures do not adjust for taxes and cost of living, which would further diminish the relative value of Schiano's compensation.

On the heels of ranking 59th nationally in total offense (albeit much worse when it came to scoring passing efficiency, and turnovers), Texas offensive coordinator Greg Davis is reportedly out after after fifteen years of working under Mack Brown. Texas fans have been calling for the head of Davis and his "horizontal offense" for years, although I think coordinators often make easy targets and can be unfairly over-criticized (see McNulty, John) at times. There's bad, and then there's Gary Crowton-bad. Davis at least had the excuse of having to replace Colt McCoy this year, but somebody had to take the fall for 5-7. While the athletic culture is clearly different in Austin than from Piscataway, it would be telling if Rutgers did not see similar changes after the season with the team's offense currently ranking 107th nationally. Texas acted quickly, and I think Rutgers likewise has to follow their lead both to get a crack at the best candidates, and to restore confidence that player development is in good hands.

The Philadelphia Inquirer has an editorial today about the shortfall between athletic scholarships and total costs for student athletes at top-level academic institutions. It's in reference to a new study on the topic. Even with a scholarship covering tuition, fees, room, board, and books, a Division I student-athlete can expect nearly $3,000 a year in other school-related expenses, says the study by Ithaca College professor Ellen J. Staurowsky and the National College Players Association. Out-of-pocket expenses can include parking, software, medical care, and more. Depending on the school, the estimated uncovered expenses for last year ranged from $200 to almost $11,000. The study found a gap of $1,500 a year at Villanova, $2,345 at Rutgers, $3,924 at Penn State, and $4,436 at Temple. That total ranks sixth in the Big East conference, with only West Virginia and Syracuse having smaller gaps. This is important when you think of recent medical emergencies like Eric LeGrand's paralysis, or Missssippi State's Nick Bell quickly succumbing to cancer. There was a great NYT piece about insuring student athletes last year that everybody should read.