This and that, 8-9-2011

Written by Duane Long | 08 September 2011

Looking back on last week there were several things that stood out to me. Unfortunately, the behavior of a couple of coaches topped the list.


Ohio State and other major programs pay a pretty penny to visiting schools who come into their home stadiums to play. A few years ago someone, I believe it was a state legislator but don't hold me to that, came up with the idea of Ohio State playing instate schools so that money stays in the states higher education system. Ohio State fans were appalled. There was no upside for Ohio State. No instate school had beaten Ohio State since 1921. No MAC school had beaten Ohio State since 1894. Beating, no, crushing, MAC opponents was expected so wins, no matter how big, gained Ohio State nothing. A loss would be devastating. Last Saturday we saw what we expected when an Akron program, coming into Ohio State off a 1-11 record, got crushed.

Afterword, Akron's second year head coach Rob Ianello, accused Luke Fickell of bad sportsmanship for blitzing late in the game and for putting starting running back Carlos Hyde back in the game. CBS sportswriter Greg Doyel pointed out something in his piece on the subject ( http://www.cbssports.com/collegefootball/story/15536707/theres-no-crying-in-football-unless-youre-a-coach ) that I was not aware of. Rod Smith had carried the ball on the previous 11 rushing attempts. It was a miserably hot day. Due to suspensions and injuries the Buckeyes were down to 2 backs. Who was going into game to carry the ball if not Hyde? Beyond that, the Buckeyes are filling some holes due to graduation and to suspension. It is not Luke Fickells job to worry about Akron. It is Luke Fickells job to prepare his football team. That means having his younger players execute the offense and the defense in game situations. Both Chris Speilman and Urban Meyer, who were in the booth calling the game said it was up to Akron to stop Ohio State, not Luke Fickell. I would go a step further. It is up the decision makers at Akron to not schedule Ohio State. When an Akron schedules an Ohio State it meansthe odds are awfully good that you have served up your football team as a sacrificial lamb. No matter how academia minded an administrator is, somewhere in one of those books they must have read about OhioState. Some adviser had to mention who Ohio State was. You went for the big pay check. That is fine. The ugly part is complaining about the beating that you had to see coming, not the beating itself.


I don't know if you saw the sideline rant by Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly. Sometimes a coach needs to get in a players face. Sometimes a situation calls for a person to raise his voice and make it point. There is a point where righteous anger becomes something ugly. That is what we saw with Brian Kelly. He made a spectacle of himself. He actually made a spectacle of himself several times last Saturday. The first was brow beating a receiver who did not see the ball coming his way, it skipped off his helmet and into the arms of a defensive player. The screaming in your face tantrum that Kelly threw right up in the grill of that player was so over the top I thought someone would intercede. I thought the player would walk away. I wished the player had walked away. Bob Knight once said he would never coach at the pro level because a pro would bust him upside the head. Brian Kelly should heed that advice. Later he came out on the field ranting again. It did not take a trained observer to read his lips. It was as foul-mouthed as it was loud and obvious. The worst part is I have not heard a thing about it from higher-ups at Notre Dame. When Nebraska's Bo Pelini did a similar thing last year on the sidelines, the Nebraska powers that be called him into the office. Sometimes coaches have to get loud. Sometimes they need to drive a point home. Coach Kelly went too far. There is such a thing. If I was the father of a recruit I would remember how coach Kelly berated and humiliated that young man last  Saturday.


I imagine anyone who sees Georgia coach Mark Richt sitting down can tell you he is doing alot of wiggling around. There has been much talk about Georgia not living up to expectations in the last year or two. The loss to Boise State on their home field made Richts seat that much hotter. When is the last time Georgia won a big game? The state of Georgia is a fertile recruiting ground. There is no lack of talent on campus. On the other side of the field all Boise state does is continue to beat schools they are not supposed to beat. How much longer they can keep Chris Peterson as head coach is the biggest question about Boise State.


When are sportswriters going to accept that the Pac-12 is not all that? USC was an exception. Pete Carroll built something special when he was there. Oregon is the media darling right now. They look so pretty, just so so pretty, running up and down the field in their fashionable gear putting up 40 points a game.......against Pac-12 defenses. That is the thing that I am surprised at. Sportswriters are supposed to know the game a little better than that. The flash and dash should not get to them. Oregon continues to get smacked around the field against top out of conference opponents. I remember before the Rose Bowl two years ago that many in the sports media were saying the Oregon - Ohio State match-up was not a good one. Old school and slow Ohio State stood no chance. One writer said Oregon was going to hang 50 on the Buckeyes. I mocked it at the time, and I was right. Ohio State physically dominated Oregon. Auburn did the same thing in last years Rose Bowl. Nick Fairley was in the backfield as much as Oregon's quarterback was. This year Oregon starts out with LSU, a team with several key players suspended. They lose again. The most telling stat is 40 points against their defense with LSU's starting quarterback suspended. It is not just Oregon is overrated. It is the Pac-12 in general. Offense fills seats. Defense wins championships. Nobody should know that better than Oregon now.