I notice you keep suggesting that I somehow got Felix hired. I'm glad you think I have so much power. I don't. For the record, my vote was for Beltran at the time. I thought Felix made a better impression, but I felt that what both he and Straub would bring to job was inferior to what Beltran could have brought.
As for the events you've listed, I'm glad E-Town is doing better than SFU in the 110HH for men (we had three in the four years I attended, one of whom was only there for a semester. The second transferred after a year, and the third redshirted his only outdoor season at SFU). Similarly with the deca and pole vault, there was one male in each event in the four years I was there. The pole vaulter was on the team for a semester, and the decathlete particapted in his first deca as an unattached athlete after transferring out of SFU. This probably comes off as defensive, but I though that context might be helpful. The female events you've mentioned are impressively superior. Coach Straub certainly has a fantastic resume, and I'm sure his athletes at E-Town are appreciative of his great coaching abilities.
During his talk with the SFU team, though, Coach Straub mentioned that athletes were expected to have a "buddy" that should follow them everywhere. I--and many of my teammates--did my workouts as they were given to me, raced the events I was told, and did well in my classes. I was no longer in kindergarten, and I didn't need a "buddy." I needed workout partners, and a coach to oversee my training. Discipline might have been a problem with certain athletes, but from my perspective it was more of a problem with the distance athletes (who were too busy drinking 4 and 5 nights a week) than with those in the sprints/jumps/throws.
Over the years I had been training, both before I came to SFU and during my college years, I learned that certain types of workouts aided me more than others. What Felix promised in his interview was a chance to discuss matters like these to help make training more effective for the athletes. Unforuntately, he didn't actually do this. Coach Straub didn't offer a hint of this type of collaboration during his interview, though. He waved his result binder and delineated exactly what athletes were to do at all times. What he presented was a rigid training plan that precluded the possibility of those types of discussion that would allow a coach and athlete to work together to tweak training regimes. If he meant to come off otherwise, he should work on his presentation skills.
I don't think that Felix was a great coach, but I also think that he was not interested in coaching a group of athletes who bitched and moaned at him from day one. I can see how that might be a tough environment in which to do one's best work. Nevertheless, these past two years were not a success, and a change was necessary. Straub might have been better, but, from my perspective, he wasn't the type of coach who would help me advance as an athlete. The proper choice was, I think, Beltran, and it's a shame that he was not hired as the head coach.
To end this on a positive note, one of SFU's great qualities is its student-athlete population. Plenty of athletes there are self-motivated and really willing to work with a coach to succeed in the classroom and on the track. There aren't always superstars, but there are a bunch of decent, hard-working kids who are thrilled to keep running beyond high school at a Division I school. The track that was recently put down is nice and fast, and there is a wonderful alumni community that can be contacted for support (I'll stoop so far as to include myself in that). Loretto and the surrounding area is picturesque with a local community that, like the alumni community, is supportive of the university. Any coaches interested shouldn't hesitate to apply.