Fred Huff on SIU Sports
</element><element id="paragraph-1" type="body"><![CDATA[ Here we go again.
Maybe not, but there's got to be some serious concerns in Office # 100 of Lingle Hall. That's where athletic director Mario Moccia hangs out during the working hours.
Moccia, who came to southern Illinois from a top assistant director's position at the University of Missouri,
had the impressive wisdom of hiring a guy by name of Dale Lennon to replace Jerry Kill when the latter chose to depart SIU for greener pa$ture$ at Northern Illinois University two years ago.
A chance? A risk? A roll of the dice? Absolutely . . . all coaching hires are just that.
It came up "SEVEN" for Moccia, however, as Lennon has delivered beyond all expectations. His second-year performance has been marvelous.
The Salukis, now taking a 9-1 record onto Southeast Missouri State's campus in Cape Girardeau Saturday, will be returning home with a 10-1 mark, a 10-game winning streak and a # 1 ranking in at least one national poll.
In case you haven't noticed or are difficult to convince, SIU's football team is good . . . real good.
A top seed in the NCAA playoff system will be forthcoming Sunday and that's when the true fun begins.
We'll never forget receiving the call from an NCAA rep in 1983 informing us that the Salukis had received the # 1 seed and a first-round bye in the Division I-AA playoffs.
We also recall vividly receiving another call four weeks later -- and again on a Sunday morning -- from coach Rey Dempsey informing us that he had just accepted an offer from Memphis State and would be departing immediately.
In between calls Dempsey had guided the Salukis to a national championship.
That's the problem SIU is facing now with Lennon completing his second superb season with the Salukis and a strong run in the playoffs a possibility. No, we believe it's a probability.
Not pretending to know Lennon well or how he feels about the football program at SIU, the new stadium, living in southern Illinois or any of the other factors, his reaction to forthcoming job offers is just a guess.
However, it's only natural for ambitious coaches to listen to offers.
Dempsey did and reacted immediately.
Bruce Weber, who had been unable to attract much interest as an assistant at Purdue for 19 years, didn't waste much time in making the switch to Illinois after transforming SIU's so-so program into a national attention-getter.
Matt Painter followed suit.
So did Kill and he had become about as much as a true southern Illinoisan, as anyone could possibly imagine. He talked and walked like a lifelong native of the area. And, yet . . . .
The reasons are obvious.
Not only is the gra$$ greener on the other side of the fence, but there's a question in every coach's mind as to just how far up the ladder he might be able to climb.
It's interesting and perhaps not relevant to the present situation at SIU, but keep in mind that one former Saluki assistant coach, Jim Caldwell, is now the head man with the Indianapolis Colts in the NFL where he has never lost a game.
One never knows and that's why rolling the dice sometimes pays off.