We should get this out of the way before I’m labeled a Greg Robinson apologist: I’m not here to say this man shouldn’t be fired. No coherent argument exists for that. An 8-32 record speaks for itself. Greg Robinson is gone. The only question is, when?

But that’s what this debate is about: timing. And the best thing for this program is to let Robinson finish the season.

I know, I know. You want action. You want change. And, of course, that line of logic is more than justified. This team has shown next-to-no improvement from the last three sorry seasons. They’re five games into what looks like it will be another humiliating turn in this seemingly endless tailspin.

Robinson has done nothing to warrant keeping his job. Yet it doesn’t do this program much good to ship him out before this season is over. Fire him, sure. But allow him to stay on until the season is over. To serve as a caretaker of sorts until Director of Athletics Daryl Gross plucks a new savior for this plagued program.

If you fired Robinson now, who would replace him? The obvious candidate would be offensive coordinator Mitch Browning. But as good a job as Browning has done with this offense, he’s not a head coach. Never has been. Neither has anybody else on this staff on the collegiate level. Yes, Robinson’s gameday coaching follies have been all-to common this season. But there’s more to being a college football coach than calling the plays.

Remember, a college football coach doesn’t just run a team. He runs a program. There’s nuances to this gig – recruiting, administrative duties, dealing with the media – that all falls on the head coach. Forget the fact none of Syracuse’s assistants have an ounce of experience running a practice or calling the shots on the sidelines. None of them know how to run a program.

So if Robinson’s going to get fired, it would make sense for Syracuse to bring in a head coach right away to replace him. There has been no shortage of candidates circulating in cyberspace.

How about Lane Kiffin? The former Oakland Raiders head coach whose big name and USC ties would make him an obvious target for Gross. What about Lloyd Carr? The former Michigan front man who’s been pegged on blogs and message boards as having been on the Syracuse campus in recent weeks?

Hire one of them now, so the argument goes, and let them take over the program midseason. The new coach would still have time to put together a recruiting class and install his system. Start to right the ship now instead of next fall.

But that line of thinking is flawed. Remember the last time Syracuse rushed its coaching search? That was four years ago, when Paul Pasqualoni was dumped on Dec. 29, 2004. That left Gross, then-newly named athletic director, with just weeks to find his replacement. The result was a co-defensive coordinator from Texas named Greg Robinson.

‘You have to remember, we had about a month to do a search,’ Gross told The Daily Orange earlier this year. ‘…To find a Greg Robinson with his resume, that’s why when we hired him nobody complained, they all applauded.’

So why would Gross want to rush his search this time around when he doesn’t have to? Kiffin or Carr might be the right fit for the job, but it’s important for Gross to conduct a thorough hunt. Exhaust all options until he decides who the pick of the coaching litter is. It’s impossible to do that search mid-season, before any current college coaches become available.

Which is why firing Robinson, but allowing him to coach through the season, is the right solution should the defiantly cheery coach choose to accept it.

It would give Gross plenty of time to truly evaluate coaching candidates and determine his targets. And make no mistake, Gross’ decision needs to be measured. He’s only made one real mistake during his four years as athletic director – that mistake is named Greg Robinson. He needs to be sure the next coach he hires the right one. The last thing he needs during that time is to be worrying about who’s running his football program.

So Gross should let Greg Robinson stay on for seven more games. Then he can make a rational decision on who he hires to fix this mess.

John Clayton is the sports editor of The Daily Orange, where his columns appear occasionally. You can reach him as jsclayto@syr.edu.

Published on October 5, 2008 at 12:00 pm