Friday morning, with the administration in the midst of a search for a new head coach after head coach Derrick Burroughs left to become the defensive coordinator at Jackson State, 106 Lane College (D-II - TN) players marched into the admission offices and got withdrawal slips.
In a stand of solidarity, the students have threatened to use those withdrawal slips if interim head coach Malik Hoskins is not part of the coaching staff for the 2014 season. Just in case that stance wasn't clear enough, a group of seniors also started a petition to retain coach Hoskins.
The players met with a few members of the administration and coach Hoskins late on Friday afternoon and were able to voice their support, according to the Jackson Sun.
Lane has improved their win total each of the past three seasons, finishing with a 6-4 mark this past season. With the upward trending success, many of the players want to make sure that the school keeps a hire from within the current structure of the program, and many of them feel that Hoskins, who spent this last season as the offensive coordinator, is the right man for the head coaching position.
“We all feel that Hoskins deserves to have this head coaching position. With the success we’re having, come on. Let’s keep the ball rolling. Let’s keep this family together.” Senior quarterback Chris Rini explained.
While trying to force a university's hand hardly ever works out the way that it's planned, it is an impressive show of support for coach Hoskins. And if he doesn't end up with the permanent head coaching gig, the new head coach would seemingly have a huge advantage with getting players to buy in if he was able to find a spot on his staff for him.
We'll keep you updated on how this one plays out.