As a Kentucky fan and an NC State alum, trust me, we don't want this guy. UK's defense, while young, was pretty much awful.

Wildcats' Archer talks to N.C. State
NEW COACH O'BRIEN HAS OLD TIES TO DEFENSE COORDINATOR
By Chip Cosby
HERALD-LEADER STAFF WRITER
University of Kentucky defensive coordinator Mike Archer is a candidate for the same position at N.C. State, UK spokesman Tony Neely confirmed last night.

Archer flew to Raleigh on Wednesday to interview with new N.C. State coach Tom O'Brien and returned to Lexington yesterday. Archer and O'Brien, who left Boston College to take over for the departed Chuck Amato, were on the same staff at the University of Virginia from 1991-92 and have maintained a friendship, Neely said. Neely added that O'Brien approached Archer about the position.

The UK defense has struggled for the most part during Archer's tenure. Things got off to a decent start in Archer's first year of his second stint at Kentucky, as the Cats gave up 26.7 points and 382.2 yards per game. But the production has declined steadily since, and Kentucky spent most of the season ranked at or near the bottom of Division I-A in total defense.

Archer did lead his unit to a strong finish, though, as the Wildcats were stout in a 17-12 loss to Tennessee in the regular-season finale and in a 28-20 Music City Bowl win over Clemson. The Cats were also opportunistic on defense, finishing fifth in Division I-A in turnover margin.

Kentucky head coach Rich Brooks and Athletics Director Mitch Barnhart have agreed in principle on a contract extension, and both men have stated that the entire staff would be retained.

UK is expected to return eight starters on defense next season, including several freshmen and sophomores who saw game action this season.

1/5/2007 7:55:23 AM

is he the one that allowed the bluegrass miracle

1/5/2007 7:58:29 AM

^NO. Guy Morriss was still the UK coach then, not Rich Brooks.

Here's more info from the N&O.

Archer interviews for Pack's defensive coordinator spot
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The Associated Press
N.C. State football coach Tom O'Brien is looking to fill out his new staff and Kentucky defensive coordinator Mike Archer could be in the mix.
Archer interviewed for the Wolfpack's defensive coordinator position this week, Kentucky athletics spokesman Tony Neely confirmed Thursday night. Neely said Archer was in Raleigh on Wednesday and returned Thursday to Lexington, Ky.

O'Brien and Archer were on the Virginia staff of former Cavaliers coach George Welsh in 1991 and 1992. Archer went to UVa after being fired as head coach at LSU, where he led the Tigers to the 1988 Southeastern Conference title.

The Wildcats finished 8-5 this season after a 28-20 victory over Clemson in the Music City Bowl. Kentucky was last in the SEC in scoring defense and total defense but led the league in turnover margin at plus-13.

Although O'Brien has not officially announced new staff additions, those from his former Boston College staff who will join him at NCSU are: associate head coach/recruiting coordinator Jerry Petercuskie, offensive coordinator Dana Bible, offensive line coach Don Horton, tight ends coach Jim Bridge, running backs coach Jason Swepson and defensive line coach Keith Willis.

1/5/2007 7:59:31 AM

do us a favor and edit out that bullshit that dont belong
please use copy/paste responsible

1/5/2007 8:43:37 AM

Quote :

" last in the SEC in scoring defense "

wow, i hope that stat is based on shitty personnelle on the field

1/5/2007 11:51:58 AM

you guys are telling me that TOB is about to do the same shit he was criticized for at BC?

No Way

1/5/2007 12:09:19 PM

We hired him.

University of Kentucky defensive coordinator Mike Archer has resigned to accept the same position at N.C. State.

The resignation ends Archer's second stint at UK. He was on Bill Curry's staff from 1993-95 before leaving to take an assistant job with the NFL's Pittsburgh Steelers. He returned to Kentucky in 2003 when Rich Brooks hired him to his first UK staff.

After a respectable first season, Archer's defenses struggled mightily at UK. Kentucky was hampered by NCAA probation and injuries the past three seasons, and things seemed to bottom out this fall as the Cats were at or near the bottom of Division I-A in total defense for most of the year. Still, Kentucky managed to win eight games and earn its first bowl bid since 1999.

And while the defense struggled to stop people, it was very opportunistic: UK generated 32 takeaways and was +15 in turnover margin. The Wildcats' defense also finished strong, holding Tennessee in check in a 17-12 loss in the regular-season finale and shutting down Clemson's vaunted running game in a 28-20 win in the Music City Bowl.

"I appreciate everything Mike Archer has put into the UK program," Brooks said in a statement. "Obviously, we had a very difficult rebuilding job, but he got it done this year with a relatively young defensive group. We wish him well. We'll be making an announcement on a replacement soon."

"I greatly appreciate what Coach Brooks has done in support of me," Archer said in a statement. "I also thank our coaches, our players, and our fans. The bowl game was a great experience, something I'll never forget, especially how our fans turned out for the 'Cat Walk' before the game. I'm looking forward to the next opportunity and challenge."

Archer will be working for new N.C. State Coach Tom O'Brien in Raleigh. Archer and O'Brien were on the same staff at the University of Virginia from 1991-92.

1/10/2007 7:49:16 AM

fuck..


why didn't we just keep dunlap?

1/10/2007 9:24:19 AM

don't forget UK was on probation while Archer was DC. it's not like he had any talent to work with.

[Edited on January 10, 2007 at 9:34 AM. Reason : 12]

1/10/2007 9:34:08 AM

i think its a good hire..a lot of NFL teams wanted him to be their DC

1/10/2007 9:36:40 AM

o'brien's choice of staff has yet to be tested under NCSU guidelines that state assistants may only be threatened with hanging 30 seconds into the first game of the season.

1/10/2007 9:42:17 AM

wow, sentence structure

1/10/2007 9:51:11 AM

Well I don't think O'brien is the kind of guy that will care how much our fans whine, he will do things his way and believes in himself. And that is what you need out of a football coach.

1/10/2007 10:02:26 AM

i heard God gave him Cancer so he could be Heaven's new DC, but he got chemo and beat it just to come be our DC

1/10/2007 10:06:40 AM

Clemson rushing yds vs NC State-223

Clemson rushing yds vs Kentucky-130



Clemson scored 20 on both of us, and our talent level is much greater than UK's

1/10/2007 8:13:17 PM

Quote :

"i think its a good hire..a lot of NFL teams wanted him to be their DC"

link?

1/10/2007 8:16:03 PM

Quote :

"i heard God gave him Cancer so he could be Heaven's new DC, but he got chemo and beat it just to come be our DC"

That's hilarious.

1/10/2007 9:00:26 PM

We've made a grave grave error...that's all Im going to say here.

1/10/2007 9:06:16 PM

stfu Earl


its a good hire, not only has he been highly touted around the Association in the past, this past year has really made him look good given the terrible amount of prospects and talent he had to work with.

I cant wait to see what he does here at State.

the best thing about this hire???

CONTINUITY OF STAFF!!!

1/10/2007 9:54:02 PM

I think it is a good hire....I mean our defenses weren't exactly stellar under Dunlap but they were solid.

I think he is a good mind and will discipline them much like TOB and is a good fit.

1/10/2007 9:58:16 PM

they were also in top 10 in forced turnovers....NC State's D didnt force turnovers....yet we still gave up an assload of yardage against non-SEC competition.

1/10/2007 10:45:09 PM

A few things, Anyone else worried about the lack of black coaches on our new staff and how it affect our recruiting? Also is Portee gone as well? I have heard he doesn't do shit but has been around forever.

1/11/2007 12:59:31 AM

Recruiting will be THAT much more difficult now. If portee is gone, we are in a world of trouble. Who will develop our plethora of talent??Amato deserved atleast another year, just to let things pan out.

It was a tumultuous year, no doubt. But we weren't as bad as we seemed. Alot of those games we had won. But I'm not in the mood right now to touch emphasis on that.

1/14/2007 2:22:58 AM

sadly his job is not based on games we could've/should've won, else we would be undefeated every year and amato would have just won his 7th ncaa title

1/14/2007 2:34:22 AM

They placed Amato's future at the helms of boosters, and that's not good business at all. Fact.

1/14/2007 2:38:18 AM

the boosters are a primary source of business for college programs

1/14/2007 2:39:42 AM

i'm just glad they didnt put it in your hands, fuckhead

1/14/2007 2:40:11 AM

lol

1/14/2007 2:40:44 AM

See, you peeps are so wound up in money with this bling bling culture, that you loose sight of whats important. Amato was our emotional leader, and he had heart. Now what we have is some guttless pig who dosn't care about pack ball, runnning our team.

1/14/2007 2:44:11 AM

1/14/2007 10:55:30 AM

Quote :

"It was a tumultuous year, no doubt. But we weren't as bad as we seemed."

7-5 where we beat USF in their first ever bowl game followed by 3-9 is not "as bad as we seemed"?

That was the problem with Chuck. Great teams with no wins. We went 7-5 with THREE first round draft picks. I mean cut me a fucking break. If emotional leaders get you seasons like that then I will take a guy who fucking sleeps on the sidelines but gets us 9 win seasons every year.

1/14/2007 11:01:37 AM

Quote :

"See, you peeps are so wound up in money with this bling bling culture, that you loose sight of whats important. Amato was our emotional leader, and he had heart. Now what we have is some guttless pig who dosn't care about pack ball, runnning our team."

ahahahahahahaha "bling bling culture"

yeah i think i saw TOB at Zale's buying a bigass diamond watch with his signing bonus the other day.

1/14/2007 11:25:20 AM

ballers don't shop at zales.

1/14/2007 11:38:59 AM

so you guys hire a crappy DC and we (unc) hire a crappy OC. should be fun

1/14/2007 11:57:41 AM

FIRE TOB

1/14/2007 5:05:52 PM

BURN TOB(ACCO)

1/14/2007 5:08:11 PM

attention. none of Earl's posts are serious. dont bother quoting them like he means it.

[Edited on January 14, 2007 at 10:41 PM. Reason : so screwed]

1/14/2007 10:41:24 PM

Quote :

"They placed Amato's future at the helms of boosters, and that's not good business at all. Fact."

4 of the 5 top boosters wanted to keep amato...fact...because i heard it from all of them.

everything changed when we lost our last 100 games and everybody gave up including the players...i'm happy with all of the changes and look forward to seeing what happens.

1/14/2007 10:55:51 PM

i seriously think Chuck was on the verge of NCAA investigation anyways.

1/14/2007 10:58:02 PM

Quote :

"fact...because i heard it from all of them"

Quote :

"i seriously think Chuck was on the verge of NCAA investigation anyways."

That statement dosn't make any sense.

1/15/2007 12:42:52 AM

Quote :

"that you loose sight of whats important"

better tighten up that sight since its so loose

1/15/2007 10:20:09 AM