so I get to have thoughts that are official to me even if not to anyone else): Obviously, CB and BYU fandom are both made up of a lot of different people and there is never 100% agreement on anything. That said, the prevailing opinion on athletes and coaches tends to follow a similar pattern that goes like this:

1. A new recruit or new hire is announced. The majority get excited about the potential and hype them up.
2. Usually in the first year, the inflated expectations aren't met and the majority break out the criticism machine, labeling the recruit or coach as overrated.
3. If there is an exception like Lohner or Mark Pope, people start getting angsty about their early departure. Will the athlete leave before completing four years? Will the coach move on to a place with a bigger salary? In the case of the athlete, the freshman is hyped even further.
4. If there is a sophomore slump, people start talking about the athlete being a headcase or the coach living his first year off players that aren't around anymore.
5. If the sophomore/second year goes well, the hype builds even further.
6. Almost without fail, the hype gets to a point that can't be equaled in the athlete or coach's career and the knives come out.

Fortunately we don't have a lot of experience with our coaches using BYU as a stepping stone. The last coach to voluntarily leave for somewhere else without being shown the door was Steve Cleveland. His seat was getting warm and he had a very economically beneficial opportunity to finish out twenty years as a California State Employee and qualify for a nice pension (based on the last two year's high salary, IIRC) by going to Fresno State.

As for me, I love what Mark Pope has done so far. His enthusiasm is infectious. And he has exceeded expectations both seasons. IMO, BYU has a very high ceiling if he sticks around for a while. Recognizing the cycle above, I have kept myself from getting completely on the hype train and penciling us in to a final four in the next five years. Maybe that's part of why I'm not so freaked out at the rumors he had a couple of conversations with the University of Arizona.

People seem to forget that LaVell Edwards interviewed with and had a job offer from the Detroit Lions to be their head coach right after the national championship season. And Mark Few very nearly accepted the head coach job at Oregon (Few, of course, isn't BYU's coach but his name keeps getting brought up in these conversations). Dave Rose entertained offers from other places right after the Jimmer years.

Talking to people and even interviewing are only events that invoke group pants wetting because of the internet. Everybody should stop reading so much in to the Pope rumors and look forward to next year.