New Coaches, new opportunities: Part Two

Work hard, demand excellence and stay focused on the details has been preached as a sure path to success in America. While a good prescription for obtaining success, and except for the case of Kentucky basketball coach Joe B. Hall in the 80’s, is generally an absolute necessity. Not always though. In business you can sometimes do everything just right and still not create success. The same is true in coaching college football. You can make all the right moves, but still fail because the pieces were just not there when you arrived to make things go in the time available to you. The other day we looked at coaches who look like they are the right guy, in the right place, at the right time. Today, we glance at coaches who may or may not be the right guy, in the right place at the right time. Wednesday we will pay regards to the ones that are just in the wrong place no matter what their skills might be.

Lane Kiffin, Tennessee-Remember Al Davis? The crazy owner of the Oakland Raiders where Kiffin coached before the two proved they could not work together. Given Kiffin’s antics since arriving in Knoxville you actually have to scratch your head and wonder if this time Davis might be the one who is sane. On the plus side for the Vol’s coach: His dad is a proven defensive innovator, he has assembled a staff of talented recruiters and pulled in some dynamic players. On the negative side: He has alienated every coach in the conference, played loose with NCAA rules and beyond his dad, has not assembled a staff full of great x and o’s people. Kiffin has thirteen returning starters, including the incredible Eric Berry. He has a rabid fan base. Does he have the ability to pull everything together fast enough to keep from being bitten? His own actions have put him on a pretty short leash.

Frank Spaziani, Boston College-If Spaziani wins he might just become the true BC man the school wants for a head coach. He has been on staff for thirteen years coaching defense for the Eagles, and has waited patiently for his opportunity. Last season Boston College won nine games. ACC champ Virginia Tech beat them twice and there was a tough loss to North Carolina that was surprising. The Eagles will have fourteen starters back with an equal number on both sides of the ball. What Spaziani has going his way is the potential for an improved offense. Working against him will be road games at Clemson, Virginia Tech and Notre Dame.

Dabo Swinney, Clemson-Swinney is a passionate coach who works hard at recruiting talent. Last year the players responded during his interim tenure by winning big games against Boston College and in- state rival Gamecocks. To help him be a success at Clemson he will have a solid offense taking care of the ball and a defense that should improve as the season progresses. The challenge will be getting the program to rise above the mediocrity that has enveloped the Tigers the last several seasons. If Swinney can produce as he is capable, then Clemson should make their way to the ACC Championship. A first for the program.

These guys are fortunate. Their success or failure is tied in many ways to what they do with the situation they are in. The jury is out on if they can actually get it done. The coaches we will take a look at on Wednesday might be better technicians than these guys, but their situation indicates they should not get to comfortable in their new offices.

New coaches, new opportunities

Not all opportunities in life are created equal. Do you really think there are not better actors in the world than Megan Fox, except she is the one with the good looks? College football is much the same. You can be a genius when hired as the new head coach for a school, but your success is often times dictated by who surrounds you and where you are walking a sideline. So, who are the new guys that might be in the right place, at the right time? Here are a few of them. Monday we will look at the ones who the jury is out on. Wednesday we will consider those that need to keep their resumes’ up to date. For now, here are the winners?

Staying Power

Gene Chizik, Auburn-The Tigers were a better team than their five wins from last season indicate. With fifteen returning starters and a staff on the same page look for the Tigers defense to lead a turnaround while the offense finds a rhythm with the quarterback position settled. Looking at the long term one has to believe that Chizik has done an excellent job assembling a group of people that know how to coach football. He will also have better recruiting success than the prior regime enjoyed after Saban’s arrival in Tuscaloosa.

Steve Sarkisian, Washington-What is success? After going zero for the season, three of four wins will help improve the mood around the Husky campus. That can by you several years in Seattle right now. Here is the key to Washington’s 2009: Are the eighteen returning starters a year more mature, or is it a case of returning that many football players who can’t win? Opening against LSU is not a good way to change the momentum, but there are winnable games against Idaho, Stanford and Washington State on the schedule. A few upsets and the Huskies might get to five wins. Getting Jake Locker back at QB will also be a big plus. He is a fiery, athletic quarterback.

Chip Kelly, Oregon-Here is the key to a great year for the new top man at Oregon. Beat Boise State in the opening game. This team is probably a year away from having a legitimate opportunity to compete with USC in conference play, but the table is set here for a nice long run in the Pac 10. Look for Kelly to stay active in the offensive game plan and the Ducks to score lots of points.

So, of the eleven coaching changes we will look at, only three seem to have staying power. That will tell you just how hard it is to keep a head coaching job for more than a few years in big time college football. Monday we will take a look at the guys who might go either way. Kickoff is just around the corner.

The penalty should stand for Florida State...and Bowden

Gary Brown

College Sports Matchups

August 11, 1009

When you have been in the public eye for as long as Bobby Bowden, it is hard to fake it. He must be a good man. He is surrounded by a family that seems to adore him, stories abound regarding his dedication to serving within his church and people who know him have a difficult time finding something bad to say about him. Given these points, and so many others, it is important that his goodness and decency as a man be considered fact in any discussion regarding Florida State football and Bowden.

He can coach football. This is also an undisputable fact. With 382 career wins Bowden is in a rare class of coaches from any sport, anytime. When he arrived at Florida State the program was in a dismal state, having won only four games in the prior three seasons. Since that time he has posted one losing season, and from 1987-2000 the Seminoles were ranked in the Top Five nationally at the end of each season. In his other head coaching stops he was also a success. His Samford record was 31-6, and at West Virginia he compiled a 42-26 record. Bowden is a Hall of Fame coach and his legacy will be remembered as long as college football is played.

Here are some facts that are not as pretty though. The ones that brought the unfair glare of the NCAA to Tallahassee. Unfair because there is cheating in so many corners of college football the NCAA selectively ignores, and while the infractions committed by Florida State are serious, they were self-reported when discovered and the school immediately imposed meaningful sanctions that included suspensions and scholarship sanctions. So what are the facts of the case? Twenty-five football players cheated in class with the assistance of staff from Florida State’s academic support team between the fall of 2006 and spring of 2007.

The last fact, to this point, is from the NCAA. Florida State must forfeit the games the players appeared in. There are other details in the NCAA ruling, but for today those are the ones that matter in this discussion. Why? The outcome has potential to impact the history of the game as it relates to the leader board for all-time coaching wins. So, the question is very simple. Should the NCAA penalties stand? The answer, while many want to make it complicated, is simple as well. Yes.

While we may not like the answer, it is the correct one. Why? Look at the facts without the man involved. Some team, somewhere in time lines up a group of players who cheated in class to retain their eligibility to play. Not only did these players cheat, they also had people helping them who had been put in place by the school to make sure they received appropriate academic assistance. If this occurred in a place where we did not like the head coach, where there was not a record possibly on the line, where the career of a living legend from coaching stood to have his legacy tarnished would we think the penalty was unjust?

Florida State won games using players that should have not been on the field. The other teams, to the best of our knowledge, played the game with players who were doing their coursework the right way. When you cheat there are penalties. That is life. Would you want an official to hold a flag if Tim Tebow scored a touchdown that was aided by a clear holding violation in a game against your team? Why then do you think the NCAA should not drop one in this case?

Real men love soap operas

Who says that men don’t like soap operas? College football is an extended season of drama that drives our emotions from one extreme to the other, and hold us breathless waiting for the next episode. What will be the storylines to watch for this fall after the games begin? Here is one from each conference for consideration.

ACC-The league has not contributed to the national title conversation in quite a few years. Is this the year a team breaks through and keeps conversation regarding the national title alive until late in the season?

Big Ten- Ohio State and Penn State will keep the conference relevant all season, but the interesting place to watch will be the state of Michigan. Will the Wolverines become competitive and can Michigan State give the big two a run for the title?

Big Twelve-We watched big points be put up by Big Twelve teams all last season, but their two highest profile bowl games last year gave reason to pause and ask questions. How much good defense is being played in the conference? Has signing the number of players it takes to run the spread offense hurt the talent level of the defenses?

Big East-The best argument the Mountain West could make regarding the BCS is why the Big East gets an automatic BCS Bowl Berth and they don’t. The league schedule is only marginally better and day-in/ day-out the teams from the Big East would not be successful against their larger cousins. Will the Mountain West start to point at the Big East as a reason to allow them into the BCS?

PAC 10-USC is clearly the dominant team in the league and has been for a decade now. Just like last year the big question out west still remains this: How many years until the men of Troy have a genuine rival in the conference?

SEC-The real fun in the south will not be the East where Florida should easily win a slot in the conference championship game before playing for another national title. The West is where things will be interesting. Alabama is replacing lots of offensive parts; Ole Miss is, well, Ole Miss and LSU will be out coached in at least two games. The team form the bayou state may be the most talented on this side of the league, but keep an eye on the Razorbacks. Can Bobby Petrino take his team to Atlanta for the conference championship in only his second year?

These questions will all soon be answered, but as the drama unfolds there will be plenty of plot twists that cause us to stay on the message boards and start tracking the movement of planes around the country. You know you can’t wait. After all, real men really do enjoy a good soap opera. Enjoy.