Last Sunday morning, Mike Bath was simply getting ready to take his family to church.
One short phone call later, he was the head coach at his alma mater.
Quite a business, college football is. Even at Miami of Ohio.
A long proud program, Miami's fall towards the absolute bottom of not only the Mid-American Conference but the ranks of the entire FBS resulted in midseason coaching change on Sunday morning when third-year head coach Don Treadwell and offensive coordinator John Klacik were fired a day after the Redhawks lost 21-9 to another struggling program, Central Michigan, to slip to 0-5 on the season.
Miami has scored 44 points all season.
Bath maintains he didn't see any of this coming, but the former Miami quarterback gladly changed his church plans for Sunday. As for whether it will take a higher power of some sort to get things turned around, Bath hopes not but knows he's guaranteed nothing besides the chance to be the interim coach for the next seven games and get things moving in the proper direction.
Miami Athletic Director David Sayler said he fired Treadwell because "when I looked at the (players), I just saw a hopeless feeling."
So maybe there's nowhere to go but up.
"I just told the team really what was on my heart," Bath said. "I spoke about what I believe our mission and focus are going to be. It's very humbling to be in this position.
"I really didn't see it coming. I was just getting out of the shower and got a phone call on Sunday morning. Those (church) plans for the day kind of changed."
Bath was Miami's quarterback from 1998-2000. The next year, some guy named Ben Roethlisberger took over the job. By 2003, Miami had won a MAC title and finished in the top 25, and Roethlisberger was gone to the Pittsburgh Steelers in the first round of the NFL Draft. Miami won the MAC again in 2010, the year before Treadwell took over.
That kind of winning used to be the norm. The program has won 15 MAC titles and has a 7-3 all-time record in bowl games. It's been nicknamed the "Cradle of Coaches" for its impressive list of former head coaches that includes Woody Hayes, Bo Schembechler, Ara Parseghian Sid Gillman and Randy Walker. There's a statue outside the stadium of former Miami quarterback Paul Brown. Other coaches with Miami roots include John Harbaugh, Sean Payton and Jim Tressel.
Now, Miami must try to rebuild at a time when the MAC has more stable, successful programs than ever before.
"This opportunity means a lot personally," Bath said. "I'd be lying if I said it didn't. This is my alma mater and I care a lot about this place...this place has a beautiful, great, well-earned tradition. It's disappointing where this program is today.
"From my perspective it's an awesome opportunity to see if those things I really believe in can come in and help turn things around. I'll be forever thankful for the opportunity (Treadwell) gave me to come back to my alma mater and now we get to work. I see a lot of young men hungry to get out on the field and get a win."
