Tim Albin’s pledge: ‘We are going to win’ at Charlotte

CHARLOTTE ATHLETICS

Tim Albin, who coached Ohio football to three straight 10-win seasons and the 2024 MAC title, will try to replicate that success with the Charlotte 49ers, who went 5-9.

New Charlotte 49ers’ football coach Tim Albin was overcome with emotion at his introductory press conference.

Through the apparent nerves, his first proclamation to Niner Nation was: “We are going to win.”

Call it bold if you will, but Albin has proven he knows how to do that from his time at Ohio. After going 3-9 in his first season, Albin has rattled off three consecutive 10-win seasons, and last week won the Mid-American Conference title game, Ohio’s first since 1968.  Charlotte Athletics Director Mike Hill said that in the search process, the candidate he and his staff were looking for had three qualities. Albin checked all the boxes.

“I reminded myself every single day of the search that we were looking for a coach with three personal attributes … hungry, humble, smart, and man did we ever find that in Tim Albin,” Hill said. “Tim is a winner in every sense of the word.”

Albin realizes winning isn’t done overnight and that it is going to take hard work and the people around him are going to be crucial in the process.

“In my 30-plus years of coaching, I’ve learned that building a championship program takes a village,” he said. “We are off to a hell of a start. It’s not about the buildings but the people inside those buildings. There’s work to be done here, but I’m also confident that with the leadership and the people in place, we can work together to make Niner Nation proud.”

Albin suggested that to build a program, recruiting needs to start locally. Charlotte has proven to be a hotbed of talent with many of its top players going to Power Four conference schools. Albin plans on getting into local high schools and make sure recruits know Charlotte is building something worth their consideration.

“I can't sit here and tell you I know every school,” he said. “I've been to some schools in the area over my years. I just know that to be a developmental program, you have to start in your own backyard. And that doesn't mean you got to go in there and sign three guys every year, but you got to go in there and you got to start building relationships. I’m going to want to build relationships, and we're gonna recruit the best players, and we’re going to start right here.”

Albin said that in the modern era of college sports where Name, Image and Likeness deals are problematic for programs like Charlotte, where their best players are often poached by Power Four schools, building strong relationships is key to convincing them to stay.

“I [met] the team today,” he said. “I was honest with them. I don’t want to come in here and clean house. I want to build something here. I told them ‘my wife and I, we chose you.’ We chose you for a reason.”

While he values relationship building, Albin knows the importance of raising money for Charlotte’s NIL collective and mentioned multiple times that he will “come knocking.”

Albin isn’t putting a timetable on winning. He wants it to come soon and thinks that through the proper processes, that can happen. The 49ers have a tough schedule next season with North Carolina coming to Jerry Richardson Stadium and a road game at Tulane, which made it to the AAC title game. If that wasn’t tough enough, Charlotte will travel to SEC champ Georgia, which advanced to the College Football Playoff.

Albin knows the challenges ahead but plans on a deliberate approach. To build a winning team, steps can’t be skipped, and he doesn’t intend to do so.

“Right now, my focus is on this on the staff,” he said. “We’ve got to get that done, and I’ve got to get some people here working now. This is finals week now, so the guys are going to be finishing those things up. We got our fingers crossed that it goes well. I'm going to be on the phone a lot, because I’m going to talk to every student athlete on the football team and everybody in the building and get a feel for it. I haven't gotten past spring practice and dates and all those things. There's a lot [to do] before we start spring practice, but we’ve got to get the building blocks in place.”

With several 49ers already in the transfer portal, Albin has the task of building relationships with the remaining players and recruiting the portal to fill the roster. Quarterback Deshawn Purdie has not yet entered the portal and Albin said he was going to meet with him.

“I want to listen to him,” Albin said. “His dad is going to be on the call as well. I want to listen to both of them. I am just going to explain our vision and how we see it and go from there. I’ve had these conversations before. That is all I know to do is just listen to the players. I’m not going to go in there and try to be someone different. I am going to be Tim.”

According to Albin, he and Purdie shook hands after Monday’s team meeting and told him he was looking forward to talking with him more. Albin feels confident Purdie can do what it takes to win based on his own football philosophy.

“You put your best 11 [players] out there,” Albin said, “then you build your scheme around your talent. This past season we had a guy that was dual threat. Two seasons ago, again we won 10 games and designed the offense around the arm strength of a player. So, you have to change it up a little and design it around your players both offensively and defensively, designing your scheme around your talent.”

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