You never really know what the politics are in college sports, and we all know that there are plenty of them. But whatever politics were in play at Stillman to result in Greg Thompson’s firing, they just couldn’t have been that bad. Thompson has been too good and Stillman just doesn’t have enough juice to pull off a move like this without scrutiny.
In three years, Thompson went a combined 16-16, not bad for three years in the SIAC. 2008 was his first losing season, and while the record was a bad one, it was only the second losing season since Stillman reinstated football in 1999.
And for a school that has been pretty successful since coming back on the block, why are they so amped to be a powerhouse program in the SIAC? Tuskegee, Morehouse, Albany State and Fort Valley State have put in too much work for the past few years to easily relinquish their spots. Besides, how can you build upon the eight winning seasons in recruiting and sponsorship if you replace head coaches at the first sign of trouble?
It’s one thing for a school to have lofty aspirations, but there is a fine line between lofty and unreasonable. Unless more facts come forth about Thompson’s firing, its reasonable to say that Stillman made a mistake in his dismissal.
