In fact, it always has been the best reason for UNC to rehire Mack Brown: he is an easy 'fit' in Chapel Hill and at UNC. Yes, that can be used as a silly excuse to make and keep bad hires (such as Bunting), but it nonetheless always should be taken into account at every turn.
Auburn boosters by and large are nuts and vicious, and they gravely harmed the program they love by undermining Harsin before he ever held a practice as Tiger HC. That said, it also is true that Harsin, who was 50 games over .500 at Boise St with 5 double digit win seasons out of 6 possible such seasons, is a westerner who is not close to a natural fit to any SEC program.
I think the best way to understand 'fit' right now is Bret Bielema. As a young, 1st time HC, he won 3 BT championships at Wisconsin. He also had a 12-1 team that did not win the BT. And he was an IL country boy, actually raised on a hog farm. So it seemed logical to assume that he could win at Arkansas. But his 5 year record there was 29-34. Bielema never could fit into Arkansas or the SEC. He was a midwestern fish out of water around Fayetteville and among HS coaches ands recruits across the southwest and the SEC area. He stood out as an odd duck among SEC coaches at SEC Media Days.
And now look at Bielema. In 2021 he took over the basket case that is Illini football. Before Bielema, Lovie Smith had 5 consecutive losing teams at Illinois and was 22 games under .500. In his first year in Champaign-Urbana, Bielema was 5-7, and this year, the long inept Illini are 7-1 and ranked #14. Midwestern born and raised, and BT trained (he played at Iowa and was an assistant at Iowa and was Wisconsin DC before being named Wisconsin HC), Bielema is a fit in the BT. He is working a small miracle now in the BT.
Auburn boosters by and large are nuts and vicious, and they gravely harmed the program they love by undermining Harsin before he ever held a practice as Tiger HC. That said, it also is true that Harsin, who was 50 games over .500 at Boise St with 5 double digit win seasons out of 6 possible such seasons, is a westerner who is not close to a natural fit to any SEC program.
I think the best way to understand 'fit' right now is Bret Bielema. As a young, 1st time HC, he won 3 BT championships at Wisconsin. He also had a 12-1 team that did not win the BT. And he was an IL country boy, actually raised on a hog farm. So it seemed logical to assume that he could win at Arkansas. But his 5 year record there was 29-34. Bielema never could fit into Arkansas or the SEC. He was a midwestern fish out of water around Fayetteville and among HS coaches ands recruits across the southwest and the SEC area. He stood out as an odd duck among SEC coaches at SEC Media Days.
And now look at Bielema. In 2021 he took over the basket case that is Illini football. Before Bielema, Lovie Smith had 5 consecutive losing teams at Illinois and was 22 games under .500. In his first year in Champaign-Urbana, Bielema was 5-7, and this year, the long inept Illini are 7-1 and ranked #14. Midwestern born and raised, and BT trained (he played at Iowa and was an assistant at Iowa and was Wisconsin DC before being named Wisconsin HC), Bielema is a fit in the BT. He is working a small miracle now in the BT.
