I have often wondered why coaches of this generation are so sensitive. They respond to accusations before reviewing them, jump into the media for things said about their shows, and get upset when the opposing team seems to move up the score. And in most cases, these accusations are not justified.
Two weeks ago, Bobby Petrino pointed the finger at Les Miles when it appeared that Les was speeding up the score by kicking a field goal late in the game in which LSU beat Arkansas 41-17. Raising the score was not the plan. Les simply wanted to get as many style points as he could so that he would be in a position to play for the national championship should they lose to Georgia the following week. At halftime of that game, the reporter asked Bobby how he would hold his team together in the second half given his fragile state in the past. Bobby objected to this comment, but the fact that Arkansas was crushed in the second half showed the legitimacy of the statement.
Last week, Clemson coach Dabo Swinney was asked about a statement Steve Spurrier allegedly made after the South Carolina game. Spurrier was said to have made a comment that “we may not be Alabama or LSU, but at least we’re not Clemson.” Instead of verifying the statement first, he responded in 4 minutes comparing his school to USC.
I have a few theories as to why coaches are like this. When I was a kid, you only got a trophy when you won the championship, but today, we give everyone on the team trophies just for competing. Maybe that’s why, twenty years later, we’re constantly expanding the playoffs to add more teams and why younger coaches seem to be so sensitive to being up-scored, who knows?
The biggest problem I see with coaches acting the way they do is that they lose the power to create bulletin board material for the next meeting between the two teams. Bobby Petrino could have saved his anger until next year when Arkansas hosts LSU at home and then talk to his players about LSU running the score a year ago. Instead, Les Miles will likely show video of Petrino pointing the finger at his team from across the field.
Dabo Swinney could have kept his views on South Carolina until next year and then covered the entire locker room the week before the game. Instead, he went on and talked about South Carolina, where he said in every state there’s a rivalry, but in our state it’s more domination because we’ve beaten them so much. With those comments, he took all of the bulletin board material for the next year and gave it to South Carolina. Personally, I think Danny Ford would have handled the situation a little better.
To be fair, coaches today have to deal with 24-hour media and 24-hour sports channels because this generation can’t seem to get enough. I know because I am one of them. However, there are plenty of youngsters coaching college football teams these days with a lot to learn about how to handle the media. Wasn’t Andy Griffith the one who used to say, “Act like you’re smart?”