Invariably when there's a coaching change, whether it's a head guy or an assistant, the new guy gets the benefit of the doubt while the old guy gets the benefit of, well, nothing.
Think about it. When is the last time a coordinator was hired at Clemson and not almost universally embraced as the guy who was going to get everything fixed? OK, there were some doubts about Billy Napier when Dabo Swinney decided to give him the coordinator title in 2008. But other than that, it seems the new guys have been showered with love.
And it's like that pretty much everywhere, largely as a result of human nature (or maybe fan nature). It's natural for fans to hope that all the problems were the fault of that moron who got shown the door, and operate under the conviction that the new guy has the formula to get it all corrected.
Once upon a time, just three years ago, Kevin Steele's addition was almost universally applauded. A lot of fans celebrated the departure of the man he replaced, Vic Koenning.
Obviously Koenning wasn't nearly as bad as people thought. Obviously Steele wasn't as good as people anticipated. The truth is usually somewhere in between the extremes that can be synonymous with fan culture.
There are a bunch of Clemson people who think Brent Venables is the answer at defensive coordinator. I agree with the sentiment. Love the guy's intensity. Love his tenacity on the recruiting trail. And love the fact that he has loads of experience confronting high-powered offenses.
But we won't really know until he produces (or doesn't produce). We'll have a pretty good idea after this season, and a much better idea after 2013 and 2014.
It's interesting to see what they're saying about the defense in Oklahoma now that Venables is gone. You have your typical predictable stuff, guys saying Mike Stoops is the answer to all that ailed the Sooners last year. But you also have some fairly insightful stuff, too.
In the Daily Oklahoman, an interesting exchange when a reporter asked Bob Stoops what it's like not having Venables around after spending 13 years by his side.
Bob Stoops was asked Monday during Big 12 Media Days about beginning his first season as OU’s coach without former defensive coordinator Brent Venables on staff.
“Well, I mean, it’s …” Stoops said, seemingly unsure of what to say.
John Hoover from the Tulsa World, who asked the original question, added, “You’re side by side for 13 or 14 years …”
Stoops responded, “Yeah, but that’s … that’s life; you know?”
After a brief pause, he added, “It’s OK; We’re all big boys,” and chuckled.
Cornerback Demontre Hurst told Chip Brown of Orangebloods.com that the Sooners "kind of lollygagged" in a lot of games last year.
"We weren't focused in on all four quarters. Coach (Mike) Stoops is going to get us right."
Another snippet from Brown:
Landry Jones almost sounded surprised when saying that Mike Stoops, who has returned to OU as defensive coordinator, isn't as loud as Brent Venables on the practice field.
"I thought Coach (Mike) Stoops would be more of a screamer," Jones said. "But Coach Venables was way more of a screamer. Coach (Mike) Stoops almost seems laid back by comparison."
Interesting takes in this article from the Oklahoma student newspaper:
Despite all the hoopla, the transition from former defensive coordinator Brent Venables to Stoops shouldn’t be too drastic.
Keep in my mind both Stoops and Venables come from the same coaching tree, so schematically, the two defenses are very similar. Both coaches run a 4-3 Cover 2 base defense, with Stoops preferring to bring pressure via zone blitzes and Venables preferring to stick with a four-man rush.
As far as coaching philosophies go, the biggest difference between Stoops and former defensive coordinator Brent Venables isn’t so much the Xs and Os, as it is the personnel they utilize to make their defenses run.
For the most part, Stoops employs bigger, stronger guys to be more physical in run support, especially in the secondary.
As a result, expect junior defensive back Tony Jefferson to takeover a true safety position this fall instead of the strong side linebacker/safety hybrid he’s played during his first two seasons, and junior defensive back Aaron Colvin to return to his natural cornerback position, freeing up the other safety spot for senior Javon Harris.
And later:
Another change to expect this season is how the Sooners will defend receiver-heavy spread formations.
Last season, Oklahoma typically stayed in its base defense even when opposing offenses tried to spread the Sooners out. As seen in the spring game, Stoops likes to match speed with speed, often swapping a defensive back for a linebacker in a 4-2-5 Nickel package whenever the offense uses 10 personnel — a four receiver, one running back set. This is a set the Sooners often went to in Stoops’ original stint at OU with Brandon Shelby specializing as the nickel back — a role that could be filled by junior Gabe Lynn or sophomore Julian Wilson.
Expect the Sooners to go to a five-defensive back package frequently this season when playing West Virginia, Oklahoma State, Texas Tech and other teams that like to air it out.
A few Thursday links:
-- Mark Blaudschun established himself as a respected college football voice while spending decades writing for The Boston Globe and Dallas Morning News. Now, unfortunately he's out of a job like a bunch of other newspaper people. Good news is he's doing a blog, and a recent post contained an interesting nugget about the ACC and Notre Dame.
Speaking of ND. The Irish and the ACC continue to focus on a deal which would allow ND to play 6 games a year against ACC teams in exchange for getting full membership in the ACC in all other sports.
The sticking point would be in basketball. Putting together a schedule for a 15 team league is much tougher than doing it for a 16 team league. Talks will continue.
-- Doesn't seem like Greg Reid's dismissal is a surprise to anyone in Tallahassee. Here's a look at his rocky road.
-- Athlon comes up with 10 ACC storylines, and Venables is at the top of the list.
-- Auburn begins spring practice and, uh, who made the call on these shorts?
LW
No comments:
Post a Comment