Thoughts: Princeton Fires Head Football Coach Roger Hughes

I saw the story in my morning paper and wasn't surprised. The Tigers were 47-52 under Hughes during his ten-year tenure, had 3 winning seasons and 1 shared Ivy title during that time. I've met Coach Hughes on occasion; he seems to be a nice, good guy, and I wish him well.

It's easy to pile onto Coach Hughes and say "numbers don't lie" or "with a record like that, they should have fired him a few years ago" and things like that. After all, in sports and sales, the numbers don't lie. But before Princeton alums pump their chests, say this is a great job, and say that they need someone who is a "winner", consider at least one fact that hurts the Tigers.

Princeton is the only school in the Ivies that doesn't accept transfer students.

And, if it did, like any other Ivy, it would not only accept athletes, but bassoonists, classicists, creative writers and fencers. Which means that you wouldn't see a pipeline of gridders coming through Old Nassau every year.

But, according to someone very familiar with Princeton football, the aggregate numbers aren't the issue. This person told me several years ago that one transfer -- even every other year -- could make a huge difference. Several years ago, the star Harvard running back transferred from Northwestern and the star Yale running back from Air Force. Yale's QB this year transferred from Nebraska, and over the years Penn's had transfers from Duke and North Carolina play quarterback. Presumably, these are upper echelon talents for the Ivies who can really make a difference.

Again, the number of transfers that Princeton takes for any activity -- zero.

So, imagine if you're another Ivy, and you have a need for a specific position. The Ivies have prestige, they recruit lots of kids, including some kids the Ivies reach for. Kids who the Ivies would be thrilled to get but who opt for scholarships elsewhere (as opposed to need-based financial aid) or better football opportunities. Those kids fall behind others on the depth chart, still want to play, and look to the schools that initially recruited them and then transfer. Or, they simply look to transfer. And any other Ivy with a need can match up its need(s) with who is available. So, if Cornell needs a defensive tackle and a kid from Stanford wants out, they can get him. If Dartmouth needs a running back and a kid from Duke is unhappy in Durham, presto, Dartmouth has a starting running back.

Now, one player doesn't a roster make, but one skill-position player who is a difference maker can help a good team be great or an average team contend in the Ivies. The transfer rule by no means excuses the overall record of the Princeton Tigers during Roger Hughes' tenure, but Princeton's decision not to admit transfers might put it at a competitive disadvantage in football. The hypothesis is more anecdotal than empirical right now, but stories abound in Ivy circles as to how transfers help Ivy football programs.

There's also some conjecture that Hughes didn't have as easy a time with the admissions office as other Ivy coaches do, but show me an Ivy coach, and I'll show you someone with a beef about the admissions office -- other schools let the prospects know more quickly that a recruit is likely to get in, the admissions office doesn't like football, the basketball team is the favorite and so forth. Again, anecdotal stuff.

At any rate, from afar the Hughes teams didn't perform as crisply on average as Al Bagnoli's Penn teams. Perhaps an occasional transfer might have helped, but Princeton A.D. Gary Walters now has the opportunity to hire a head football coach who can improve the won-loss record. Let's see what he can do.