It's both a great opportunity for Wulff and probably a smart hire by the Cougars; one that could potentially alter the balance of power in the Big Sky headed into next season.
Competition-minded Montana Grizzly fans should be happy for Wulff and also excited to see him go.
To be honest, his Eagles rightly should have come out of Missoula with a win this season if not for Ryan Bagely's miraculous catch and a Dan Carpenter field goal that boosted the Griz to a skin-of-their-teeth 24-23 victory.
Wulff, a former WSU offensive lineman, had just completed his eighth campaign as Eastern's head coach, where he totaled a 53-40 record. Under his consistent leadership, the program Mike Kramer coached into a perennial contender stayed that way and was even improved, despite winning a share of the league title just twice.
A good guy and a good coach, he is highly deserving of a shot at the Pac-10. Wulff's established recruiting prowess should help the Cougs bite into an in-state talent pool that the University of Washington has owned in recent years. His system should also make 5-7 WSU more formidable, at least on offense.
Meanwhile, as the days tick by it becomes increasingly more likely - after much speculation and hoopla - Bobby Hauck will be back with the Montana Grizzlies in 2008.
A move to Pullman seemed like one of Hauck's best shots to land a higher profile gig this offseason and on Tuesday the Coloradoan newspaper reported he also likely won't be going to Colorado State to replace fellow Treasure State native Sonny Lubick.
“Montana coach Bobby Hauck appears to have dropped out of the running,” wrote the Coloradoan's Tony Phifer. “Hauck's impressive coaching resume - he has won five consecutive Big Sky Conference titles - is countered by several off-the-field problems involving his players. Among the charges facing Montana players are murder, assault, armed robbery and DUI, so (CSU Athletic Director Paul) Kowalczyk likely would have a tough time convincing CSU fans Hauck is the right man for the job.”
Before Wulff's departure, I would have forecasted the Eagles as preseason favorites to win the Big Sky next season, with guys like quarterback Matt Nichols and wide receiver Aaron Boyce returning for their junior years.
Now with Hauck probably back and if - keep your fingers crossed - Wulff takes the lion's share of his EWU staff with him to Washington State, things could be wide open.
With talent like the Eagles', only a supreme hiring gaffe could set them back a great deal but a transition of power is always a tenuous affair. Promoting from within seems the obvious way for Eastern to stay on track, but defensive coordinator Jody Sears is another WSU graduate Wulff could take along (and the Eagles aren't known for their defense), while offensive coordinator Todd Sturdy just finished his first year with EWU.
Good, old fashioned groundless speculation has two former OCs in Beau Baldwin and Timm Rosenbach as early candidates to replace Wulff. Baldwin is the current head coach at Central Washington, while Rosenbach was on the staff at WSU under departed coach Bill Doba.
Whoever it is will have to jump into recruiting and offseason preparation. Most importantly, they'll have some big shoes to fill in a department that seemed to be Wulff's specialty - being a thorn in the side of Montana.
Sportswriter Chad Dundas can be reached at 523-5361 or at chad.dundas@missoulian.com.
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