BOULDER — New Colorado football coach Mel Tucker is no stranger to starting late and finishing strong in the recruiting cycle.
Tucker will sign his first class at Colorado on Wednesday — just two weeks to the day after taking the job as Colorado's 26th head coach. By all accounts, it will be a class that will add depth and talent to the Buffs' roster, as well as address some immediate needs.
He's been there before.
"I think the process has gone fairly smoothly," said Tucker, who has also spent the last two weeks building his coaching and administrative staffs, along with addressing the hundreds of other details involved with taking over a program. "We've been organized, which is the No. 1 thing. Everyone has to have clear marching orders and understand this is where we were, this is where we are right now, and this is where we're going. When you have self-motivated people in your organization, which we have, all they need to know is, 'What do you want me to do?'"
It is a process with which Tucker has first-hand experience. After all, it was just three years ago that he went through a very similar task, when he and Kirby Smart left Alabama the day after the national championship game (a 45-40 win over Clemson) to take over at Georgia. Smart became the Bulldogs' head coach while Tucker assumed defensive coordinator duties.
"We played on a Monday (in Phoenix) and I got to my hotel room and got settled and got into bed around 3:30 in the morning," Tucker recalled Tuesday morning. "I met Kirby in the lobby at 6 a.m. and we got on a flight to Athens. We had about three weeks to put together a recruiting class and when we got off the plane, we hit the ground running. I think we finished with the seventh-ranked recruiting class in the country."
Tucker's duties this time around have obviously increased significantly. But the process is still the same — meet with players who have already committed to the program and secure those commitments; then identify other possible signees and bring them into the Buffs family.
"You get a lot of players here who are committed to the school and are committed to Boulder and everything this place has to offer," Tucker said. "The only question for them is 'Who's the coach? Who are the coaches going to be?' At that point, it's a matter of introducing yourself to the players and to their parents and their coaches and whoever is involved in the decision-making process. Then you lay out the vision and philosophy of your program and you do it face-to-face as much as possible."
That, Tucker said, is an educational and relationship-building process.
"You can't take it for granted," he said. "You have to inform people and educate people as to what we're all about here. This is the program that we have now and you have to be very, very clear about that. Ambiguity is a killer. People don't want uncertainty. When they don't have enough information to make a major decision, it's difficult for them. You do your best to eliminate that uncertainty."
At the same time, Tucker said, he and his staff — the three coaches retained from the prior staff along with new additions — assess the current roster and identify high-need areas.
"The coaches who were retained were able to provide perspective and information," Tucker said. "Then, as I hired coaches, they burned the midnight oil on our current team and then also our prospects. We have been recruiting from the minute we get up in the morning to the time we go to bed at night."
While the entire process has been an all-consuming whirlwind, Tucker said it has by no means been overwhelming.
"Seven years ago, I had a tremendous experience that has helped me put everything since then into perspective," he said. "Nothing since then has been overwhelming."
That experience came when he was the defensive coordinator for the Jacksonville Jaguars. With five games left to go in the season, the team fired head coach Jack Del Rio. The owner, Wayne Weaver, called Tucker and asked if he would serve as interim head coach for the remainder of the season. Tucker, naturally, agreed.
"We had a practice scheduled that day (a Monday), which I canceled," Tucker said. "I called a team meeting to talk about how we would move forward. When I got out of the meeting, I got another phone call — the team had been sold to Shahid Khan."
Thus, in the span of a few hours, Tucker went from defensive coordinator to head coach (and still defensive coordinator) under a new owner with five games left in the season — and his next three games would come in an 11-day span, with a Monday night, Sunday and Thursday game on the docket.
"That prepared me for just about anything that can happen in this business," Tucker said.
Tucker then coached three more seasons in the NFL before rejoining Nick Saban for a third stint, this time at Alabama. Then came three seasons with Smart at Georgia before his first college head coaching job.
Every one of his stops has been preparing him for this opportunity.
"I've always treated every coaching job that I've had as though it was going to be the only job that I would ever have," he said. "That's been my philosophy. However, along the way, I've paid close attention. I've tried to look at things not just from 10 feet, but also from a 1,000-foot perspective in order to see the big picture. The programs I have been a part of and the coaches I have worked with and worked for have allowed me to transition into this role with a tremendous amount of confidence."
For the last two weeks, he has been taking that confidence into the homes of recruits and into his new digs in the Champions Center for recruiting visits.
"The reception has been positive," he said. "I haven't had any negative experiences anywhere I've been. The overall message that I've received from folks outside of the program is that Colorado has the potential to be a championship program."
That is a message he has emphasized since the day he took the job and one he stressed to every recruit he hopes to sign on Tuesday.
"As of right now, we're a no-excuse operation here," he said. "We're establishing a culture of accountability here for our players and our coaches. The bar has been raised. Expectations are high. When you have high expectations, you can achieve great things."
And, he said, those expectations begin immediately.
"First and foremost I don't think the cupboard is bare now," he said. "There's talent on both sides of the ball and I think guys are eager to win. Most of the time, coaches coach will try to downplay and lower expectations. I don't think there's any reason to do that. I've never been a part of any program at any level where you weren't expected to win every game. Our goal is to win championships here and be in the championship conversation year in, year out. I look out my window out of my office at a beautiful stadium and mountains behind it and all I see out there is green grass and opportunity. I don't believe in self-imposed limitations."
RECRUITING COVERAGE: For complete coverage of Wednesday's National Signing Day, head to CUBuffs.com and follow the Buffs on all social media channels at @RunRalphieRun.
Coverage will begin at 5 a.m. with a continually updated National Signing Day CU roster, as well as biographies, photos and videos. Also scheduled throughout the day will be interviews led by voice of the Buffs Mark Johnsonwith various CU staffers, including head coach Mel Tucker.
Coverage will also include up-to-the-minute updates as each letter of intent is received, as well as a behind-the-scenes look at signing day from the CU football Instagram account.
A press conference to discuss the latest recruiting class with Tucker will be held Thursday morning, and will be live on Facebook and Twitter.
Tucker will sign his first class at Colorado on Wednesday — just two weeks to the day after taking the job as Colorado's 26th head coach. By all accounts, it will be a class that will add depth and talent to the Buffs' roster, as well as address some immediate needs.
He's been there before.
"I think the process has gone fairly smoothly," said Tucker, who has also spent the last two weeks building his coaching and administrative staffs, along with addressing the hundreds of other details involved with taking over a program. "We've been organized, which is the No. 1 thing. Everyone has to have clear marching orders and understand this is where we were, this is where we are right now, and this is where we're going. When you have self-motivated people in your organization, which we have, all they need to know is, 'What do you want me to do?'"
It is a process with which Tucker has first-hand experience. After all, it was just three years ago that he went through a very similar task, when he and Kirby Smart left Alabama the day after the national championship game (a 45-40 win over Clemson) to take over at Georgia. Smart became the Bulldogs' head coach while Tucker assumed defensive coordinator duties.
"We played on a Monday (in Phoenix) and I got to my hotel room and got settled and got into bed around 3:30 in the morning," Tucker recalled Tuesday morning. "I met Kirby in the lobby at 6 a.m. and we got on a flight to Athens. We had about three weeks to put together a recruiting class and when we got off the plane, we hit the ground running. I think we finished with the seventh-ranked recruiting class in the country."
Tucker's duties this time around have obviously increased significantly. But the process is still the same — meet with players who have already committed to the program and secure those commitments; then identify other possible signees and bring them into the Buffs family.
"You get a lot of players here who are committed to the school and are committed to Boulder and everything this place has to offer," Tucker said. "The only question for them is 'Who's the coach? Who are the coaches going to be?' At that point, it's a matter of introducing yourself to the players and to their parents and their coaches and whoever is involved in the decision-making process. Then you lay out the vision and philosophy of your program and you do it face-to-face as much as possible."
That, Tucker said, is an educational and relationship-building process.
"You can't take it for granted," he said. "You have to inform people and educate people as to what we're all about here. This is the program that we have now and you have to be very, very clear about that. Ambiguity is a killer. People don't want uncertainty. When they don't have enough information to make a major decision, it's difficult for them. You do your best to eliminate that uncertainty."
At the same time, Tucker said, he and his staff — the three coaches retained from the prior staff along with new additions — assess the current roster and identify high-need areas.
"The coaches who were retained were able to provide perspective and information," Tucker said. "Then, as I hired coaches, they burned the midnight oil on our current team and then also our prospects. We have been recruiting from the minute we get up in the morning to the time we go to bed at night."
While the entire process has been an all-consuming whirlwind, Tucker said it has by no means been overwhelming.
"Seven years ago, I had a tremendous experience that has helped me put everything since then into perspective," he said. "Nothing since then has been overwhelming."
That experience came when he was the defensive coordinator for the Jacksonville Jaguars. With five games left to go in the season, the team fired head coach Jack Del Rio. The owner, Wayne Weaver, called Tucker and asked if he would serve as interim head coach for the remainder of the season. Tucker, naturally, agreed.
"We had a practice scheduled that day (a Monday), which I canceled," Tucker said. "I called a team meeting to talk about how we would move forward. When I got out of the meeting, I got another phone call — the team had been sold to Shahid Khan."
Thus, in the span of a few hours, Tucker went from defensive coordinator to head coach (and still defensive coordinator) under a new owner with five games left in the season — and his next three games would come in an 11-day span, with a Monday night, Sunday and Thursday game on the docket.
"That prepared me for just about anything that can happen in this business," Tucker said.
Tucker then coached three more seasons in the NFL before rejoining Nick Saban for a third stint, this time at Alabama. Then came three seasons with Smart at Georgia before his first college head coaching job.
Every one of his stops has been preparing him for this opportunity.
"I've always treated every coaching job that I've had as though it was going to be the only job that I would ever have," he said. "That's been my philosophy. However, along the way, I've paid close attention. I've tried to look at things not just from 10 feet, but also from a 1,000-foot perspective in order to see the big picture. The programs I have been a part of and the coaches I have worked with and worked for have allowed me to transition into this role with a tremendous amount of confidence."
For the last two weeks, he has been taking that confidence into the homes of recruits and into his new digs in the Champions Center for recruiting visits.
"The reception has been positive," he said. "I haven't had any negative experiences anywhere I've been. The overall message that I've received from folks outside of the program is that Colorado has the potential to be a championship program."
That is a message he has emphasized since the day he took the job and one he stressed to every recruit he hopes to sign on Tuesday.
"As of right now, we're a no-excuse operation here," he said. "We're establishing a culture of accountability here for our players and our coaches. The bar has been raised. Expectations are high. When you have high expectations, you can achieve great things."
And, he said, those expectations begin immediately.
"First and foremost I don't think the cupboard is bare now," he said. "There's talent on both sides of the ball and I think guys are eager to win. Most of the time, coaches coach will try to downplay and lower expectations. I don't think there's any reason to do that. I've never been a part of any program at any level where you weren't expected to win every game. Our goal is to win championships here and be in the championship conversation year in, year out. I look out my window out of my office at a beautiful stadium and mountains behind it and all I see out there is green grass and opportunity. I don't believe in self-imposed limitations."
RECRUITING COVERAGE: For complete coverage of Wednesday's National Signing Day, head to CUBuffs.com and follow the Buffs on all social media channels at @RunRalphieRun.
Coverage will begin at 5 a.m. with a continually updated National Signing Day CU roster, as well as biographies, photos and videos. Also scheduled throughout the day will be interviews led by voice of the Buffs Mark Johnsonwith various CU staffers, including head coach Mel Tucker.
Coverage will also include up-to-the-minute updates as each letter of intent is received, as well as a behind-the-scenes look at signing day from the CU football Instagram account.
A press conference to discuss the latest recruiting class with Tucker will be held Thursday morning, and will be live on Facebook and Twitter.
