C'MON FLORIDA Atlantic University, you blew it. As you usually do.
You had a chance to make a splash. You had a chance to revive Conference USA's greatest tradition.
You had a chance to land Lane Kiffin as your head football coach. He would have been perfect to join C-USA, the island of misfit coaches.
Oh, well.
As late as Friday night, reports had the former Oakland Raiders, Tennessee and Southern California coach about to reach a deal to come to Boca Raton. By Saturday morning, reports said negotiations hit a roadblock.
So it's back to Tuscaloosa for Kiffin, who is on the verge of his second championship ring as Alabama's offensive coordinator. Good for the Crimson Tide, bad for C-USA.
Why wouldn't you want somebody who suffered an on-the-job character assassination by late Raiders owner Al Davis? Or someone who sparked a campus uprising when he deserted Tennessee? Or someone who was pulled off the team bus and fired at the airport after a road game?
C'mon, FAU. Pony up and get this guy!
Kiffin would have joined a diverse crew of basketball and football coaches such as Larry Eustachy, Isiah Thomas and Mike Price, those who either looked to resurrect their coaching careers or were otherwise unconventional hires.
My favorites:
Larry Eustachy, Southern Mississippi basketball: I'm partial to this former Iowa State party animal because he is the last coach thrown out of a game at Cam Henderson Center. His four 20-win seasons at Southern Miss qualify as a minor miracle.
Isiah Thomas, Florida International basketball: I remember sitting in the Henderson Center media room as he dissected one of his 65 losses, wondering how much money he shelled out for that suit. His most bizarre moment was trying to be a consultant for the New York Knicks while keeping the FIU job.
He left FIU with 26 wins over three seasons, and saddled the school with Academic Progress Rate sanctions.
Mike Price, Texas-El Paso: For all we know, this man was one ill-advised strip-club visit from being revered by Alabama fans. Or reviled; who knows?
He spent nine years in El Paso, battling the reality that football success is hard to come by in one of America's most geographically isolated programs. He is a tremendous guy and one of my all-time favorite interviews.
Ron Turner, FIU football: Turner had been out of the college game for nine years, and he can go back to the NFL after being fired with a 10-30 record over three-plus seasons. That hire was doomed from the outset.
And now, Butch Davis returns to the college game six years after his controversial firing at North Carolina. FIU started a 2017 season-ticket drive immediately upon his hiring.
Tom Herrion, Marshall basketball: To his credit, he recruited Ryan Taylor. On the other hand, he recruited Elijah Pittman, emblematic of the program's implosion. And he had that legendary embellishment on a sideline brush with a Central Florida player.
Carl Pelini, FAU football: He doesn't fit the mold, but is "honored" for coaching his last game against Marshall, a 24-23 Herd win in 2013. Alas, the Owls had the next week off after Pelini took a trip to Key West that didn't end well.
Perhaps FAU athletic director Pat Chun and Pelini could bury the hatchet and get together again. OK, maybe not.
Skip Holtz, Louisiana Tech football: Conference USA and Holtz were made for each other, which is why he never should have abandoned East Carolina for a wasted three years at South Florida. With two division titles at Tech, he leads all C-USA coaches with four - and he leads in the longest press conference category, no doubt.
Dan D'Antoni, Marshall: This hire was so off the wall, some Conference USA coaches celebrated. Now, they hate, hate, hate playing the Herd's "athletic ball" offense.
Just think about it. He's a 69-year-old man returning to the college game after four decades at other levels. He doesn't get uptight over wins and losses, prefers good shooters and teaches a college basketball offense that is watchable. With West Virginians, at that!
Yep, D'Antoni belongs on this island of misfits. And at 34-40 in his third season, he has blown by ol' Isiah Thomas.
nnn
I couldn't add Toledo coach Tod Kowalczyk to the growing list of visiting coaches who declared their defense to be woefully deficient against the Herd. After the Herd beat his team 111-105 in overtime Saturday, he could easily have followed Ohio coach Saul Phillips in that regard.
Instead, he offered flattery.
"They pass so fast and cut so hard," Kowalczyk said. "They're tremendously well coached, offensively, tremendously well coached. As good of an offensive system as I've seen."
And the most sincere compliment: "To be honest, before the game, we stole some of their stuff."
Here's an item: Marshall went 9 of 19 from 3-pointer range - and those 19 attempts was not a season low.
Yep. MU went 7 of 18 against Morehead State and 4 of 14 against Jackson State, both wins at home. The Herd is averaging 25.7 attempts from long range, compared to 29.8 attempts last season.
But, hey, the Herd still leads C-USA in attempts, with only Rice (23.7) close. MU's 36.8 percent is better than 33.7 percent, so that shot selection may be more judicious. (Jon Elmore exploiting openings to the rim has that effect.)
That, and Austin Loop is hitting 48.4 percent.
nnn
Finally, a golf note: Charleston native Christian Brand has attained conditional status on the Web.com Tour, as he did in 2014.
He did so by advancing to the final round of the tour's "Q School," which was played Thursday through Sunday. He finished at 2-over 288, putting him in a 16-way tie for 89th.
He was five shots out of the top 45 and ties, which guaranteed starts in the 2017 tour's first eight events. Now the pressure is on - as in 2014, Brand must hope to get in a tournament, and make the cut when he does. If he does that, he can improve his status in periodic "reshuffles."
Brand had a good 2016 on the Swing Thought Professional Tour, 13th on the money list with $21,302 earned. In July, he won the event at Grand Island Golf Club in Albany, Georgia.
Contact Doug Smock at 304-348-5130 or dougsmock@wvgazettemail.com. Follow him on Twitter @dougsmock and read his blog at http://blogs.wvgazettemail.com/dougsmock/.