re: LSU Coaching Search, 1983. Surely I misread.

Okay Roger, I’m not refuting you. You brought up Arnsparger’s NFL HC record to bring perspective to the idiots who cannot see he had a DC resume much greater than Orgeron’s.

And besides, if we ignore stellar resumes because of bumpy roads in the NFL for a potential college HC—then bingo. Forget a guy named Nick Saban.

When you have a good coach, a good AD knows how to sell him, like Brodhead did here with Arnsparger. Funny that Alleva makes no real effort to “sell” O. That’s easy to figure. First, Alleva is an incompetent little weasel. Second, there’s nothing to sell.

.. Under Arnsparger's guidance, the Giants were 7-28.

My standard response to anyone who quizzed me regarding this tarnish on his otherwise impressive resume was to fault the Giants organization, saying that Arnsparger hadn't been given enough time to build a winner. It's a good thing my friend Wellington Mara, the Giants' owner, didn't read the Louisiana papers, or he would have grown tired of assuming responsibility for Arnsparger's low winning percentage. Perhaps he would have understood that I wasn't about to let the second guessers stand in the way of a smooth transition from the old coaching regime to the new.

Besides, ten years had passed since then, and Arnsparger's record of accomplishments spoke for itself. Nine times in his eleven full seasons with Miami, the Dolphin defense ranked either first or second in the NFL in scoring defense.

I was proud of my selection, and I was confident that Arnsparger would provide the leadership necessary to turn the football program around. I had better be. The Good Old Boy Club at LSU, smarting from its first setback in decades--and at the hands of an outsider; no less--was busy tying my fate to Arnsparger's future won-loss record. Either he won, or I lost.

Some members of the media were also less than receptive to the new coach. Ron Higgins, a local sports columnist, had written the following bit of prose in anticipation that Arnsparger would be hired: "Brodhead, who once had a job promoting nails, would have an easier time selling thumb tacks than Arnsparger.

"The four problems with Arnsparger in an nutshell? He's too old (almost 57 years old); he's from Miami (fans will point to Brodhead's so-called Miami Connection), he's from the pros (LSU folks don't take kindly to a pro coach stepping into a college atmosphere) and he's not a proven major college winning head coach.

"If Brodhead wants to survive this ugly storm, he might consider shopping elsewhere for a head coach. Like at a major college."

Obviously, there wasn't going to be a run on red carpets to welcome Arnsparger, who was remaining with the Dolphins through the end of their season. I knew I had to do something. So I called my friends at ABC and asked for a favor. The Dolphins were appearing on a Monday Night Football broadcast the week after Arnsparger's appointment, and a few good words from Frank Gifford and "Dandy" Don Meredith would do wonders for my public relations campaign.

Not only were a few good words uttered from the booth, but praises were sung every time Arnsparger appeared on camera, complete with frequent mention of the LSU program he would take over at the end of the Dolphins' season. Lo and behold, the skeptics in Tiger Town were singing a different tune in no time.

The same favor was granted again during the Dolphins' playoff telecasts, and by the time Arnsparger arrived on campus in January, I had created a living legend. The biggest problem I would face from that point on was that not only had the public bought the hype, so had Arnsparger.
From Sacked by Bob Brodhead