Will,
If you have the time, I would suggest going back and re-reading the archived threads on this topic. Although they invariably crash and burn at the end, many valid points supporting both points of view are presented in those threads. That said I am fine with new discussion on the topic.
Our team has used mostly student coaches from 2000-2008, and mostly an adult coach from 2009-2012 (as you should know well by now

). We have had some great seasons with both arrangements. There are numerous reasons for the shift, and I would love to talk to you about them at the MAR Championship. Suffice to say, for us, putting an adult in the booth has as much (if not more) to do with interacting with alliance partners as it does for our own robot's coaching.
Jared