Hauck will be back next season because he deserves more time

Progress. We have heard the word often this football season in describing Bobby Hauck's third UNLV team, in debating whether competing into the fourth quarter and not being boat-raced on a weekly basis should be enough to earn him a fourth season, in shifting between opinions that insist winning is the only barometer by which Hauck should be judged and those who think enough improvement has been made to stay the course.

Then there is the man who will ultimately decide Hauck's fate.

"I believe very seriously in what we're doing, and I know that might offend those who think we haven't shown enough progress," UNLV athletic director Jim Livengood said. "But this program wasn't in any type of shape to expect a one- or two- or three-year turnaround. Where we are today and where we will be tomorrow is that Bobby Hauck is our football coach and should be."

Translation: He isn't going anywhere.

My take: He shouldn't be.

The Rebels begin a four-game stretch of winnable games to end the season today by hosting New Mexico, a month's worth of opportunity that will also see them host Wyoming while traveling to Colorado State and Hawaii, a quartet that owns a combined record of 8-24.

If progress for UNLV against a team such as UNR means going from one passing yard last season to 31 points at halftime this one, shouldn't it also mean at least two if not more wins the next four weeks as competition lessens? Perhaps.

It just won't change this fact: Hauck is certain to return next season.

A friend wondered the other day how, if UNLV loses out or only finds one victory among the Winnable Four, Livengood and those who market his department could sell a one- or two-win football coach entering his fourth season in 2013.

To which I asked: And they could sell a three- or four-win coach?

UNLV football has lost for long enough that until a winning season is produced, few if any will believe such success is possible. Hauck is without question a coach who benefits from the lovefest UNLV fans have with their basketball program, those who seem to tolerate and be amused by football until round balls begin bouncing in the Mendenhall Center.

It's fair to surmise that if Bob Davie in his first season at New Mexico can turn one of the nation's worst teams into the highly competitive 4-5 side, Hauck in his third season should be better than 1-8.

It's also fair to question that if San Jose State can go from 1-12 to 5-7 to now 6-2 under third-year coach Mike MacIntyre, why the Rebels aren't any better than 5-29 under Hauck.

A thought: Maybe those other coaches are just better. Maybe they have better assistants. Maybe they inherited more veteran players to begin the building process.

There are all sorts of reasons one program rises quicker than another, but know that the UNLV team running from its Sam Boyd Stadium locker room today starts one senior on both offense and defense.

It starts 14 freshmen or sophomores across each side of the ball.

It has a redshirt freshman quarterback (Nick Sherry) and two sophomore wide receivers (Marcus Sullivan and Devante Davis) and a junior running back (Tim Cornett) who are among the most skilled at their positions in what will be a weaker Mountain West Conference next season with the departures of Boise State and San Diego State.

Sorry. The best course of action isn't to bring in a new coaching staff with a new system and philosophy to this young a team just now understanding what it means to play at this level.

It doesn't mean Hauck's defense still can't cover a turtle or that he absolutely should give up running special teams (hardly his strong point), but a fourth season is needed.

I'm not even saying he has earned it.

I'm saying that in the grand scheme of building a program from the basement-level of talent Hauck inherited, it's necessary he receives it.

"More than anything else this season, I wanted to see us competitive and have a chance to win games," Livengood said. "We've done that. People get tired of hearing those things after three years, and I never want anyone to misunderstand how important I believe winning is. But if this were a senior-dominated team, I would be giving you a totally different answer. It's not.

"I'm not going to say that if we were to finish 1-12 we could paint a picture that everything is rosy, because it's not. We need more numbers in the left-handed column. But I am more concerned about the overall program than any one season, and no one is working harder or wants to make this thing right than Bobby Hauck. I am more excited today about our potential in terms of the future than I was the day we hired him.

"I also know that the time will come when you and others ask me questions about what (Hauck) has to do in a fourth season in terms of wins and losses. And when that time comes, those will all be very fair questions.

"I have seen enough progress."

No translation needed.

Las Vegas Review-Journal sports columnist Ed Graney can be reached at egraney@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4618. He can be heard from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Friday on "Gridlock," ESPN 1100 and 98.9 FM. Follow him on Twitter: @edgraney.