I feel safe in saying that I am not the only one who saw this coming. The Tigers defense had regressed this season after progressing as the seasong went along in 2006. The final two games in 06 against Houston and UTEP showed the talent and effectiveness the Tigers had in them. But ‘07 was a backwards step. Yes, I have also said that the loss of Bowens and Jackson hurt the defense. But I think TW made the right decision here as it seemed there was malaise among Tigers fans about the direction the defense took this year. Apparently Tommy West felt the same way.

Now the real question out there is who will replace Kravitz? The one I want and always have wanted the school can’t afford is Keith Butler. The truth is that as a linebacker coach with the Steelers he makes a lot more money in Steeltown. The Tigers can only match it if he takes the HC job. I’m talking money that is near the HC’s salary and since we’re not a BCS school we can’t afford that.

I’ve heard the rumors saying John Thompson is being considered. To which I respond with an emphatic NO, NO, and in case you misread it NO. If you look in Webster’s and look up the word vagabond, you will see his smiling face. He took the Tigers DC position in 99 thinking Rip Scherer would be fired at the end of 1999 and he would ascend to the HC job. When Rip was retained he kinda sorta pitched a fit in private circles. That’s why he left and I’m glad for it. Tommy West was hired as DC in 2000 after he left and the rest is history.

My choice is Tim Walton who was recently released as the defensive coordinator at Miami. Tim was at Memphis under Tommy in 2000 and 2001 when he coached DBs. His work with defensive backs has been second to none and we can all agree that is something we need to improve. While the Hurricanes defense dropped in 2007, it was his first year as a coordinator and he’s a good coach with a proven track record. His recruiting is second to none and with Florida ties we might be able to get more players out of the Sunshine State.

The problem that schools like Memphis face is money. Unlike the bottom dwellers of the SEC, ACC, Big-10, Big-12, Big East and PAC-10 we don’t get a multi-million dollar check for our conference brethren’s accomplishments. It is one of the true inequities in the game but that’s another blog altogether. Hopefull we can come up with a competitive package to land young Mr. Walton. His upside is worth the extra cash.

Whatever Coach West does he needs to do it quickly as recruiting is in full swing in short order. So as Dan Whitney would say, “Get R Done.”