The hiring of Will Muschamp at South Carolina raised more than a few eyebrows.
Muschamp had a somewhat failed stint at Florida — accruing a 28-21 overall record in four seasons before getting sacked. He then had a one-year stint as Auburn’s defensive coordinator. Conventional wisdom suggested Muschamp would need a bit more time to rehabilitate his image before landing a big-time job.
However, USC AD Ray Tanner disagreed with this assertion.
As he told, USA TODAY, Tanner knew the decision to hire Muschamp would include some questioning from the public:
“I never went into it thinking that there would be 100% percent approval on any decisions that were made. I understand the scrutiny. There was some skepticism going into the process, but I wasn’t affected by that. It was so important we got the right person here.”
Surprisingly, South Carolina sits with a 5-4 record — one victory away from a potential bowl berth. Muschamp has relied heavily upon underclassmen — which should bode well for the future of the program. Inserting true freshman Jake Bentley at the quarterback position has led to a three-game winning streak.
Tanner then volunteered final thoughts on why he believes Muschamp is the right man for the job:
“I’ve been here a long time and felt like I understood our culture. I was just so impressed, so comfortable with what [Muschamp] represents and his work ethic, his ability to communicate. I listened to what happened in the past and where he was professionally. I just was so excited about the fit and just felt strongly that our fan base would embrace him and he’d embrace them and we’d have a chance to get this thing going again, and I’m certainly very happy with where we are today.”
