BAMANEWSBOT
Staff
He made it look so easy. Too easy.
When Lane Kiffin arrived in Tuscaloosa in January I could hear the cackling up north in New York. And with reason.
Kiffin was all but a pariah in a profession where sharp objects are not allowed. He was a renegade who had failed as a head coach from sea to shining sea and, and left enough enemies to fill a video game.
And here he was, signing on as the offensive coordinator for Nick Saban, one of the most buttoned-down (outwardly, at least), controlling, business-like (that's what the recruits say, the ones who end up at Auburn...).
It was The Odd Couple 2.0.
And on this stage far from Broadway, it was going to ... bomb.
Then, of course, it didn't. The couple that seemed as compatible as a Hilary Clinton-Sarah Palin ticket proved to be as copacetic as John Boehner and, well,, never mind.
With Saban pacing on the sideline, and sometimes mumbling into his headset, Kiffin guided the Tide offense as it wielding a joy stick, dialing up improbable play calls at even more improbable times, building a first-year quarterback into one of the most confident and efficient signal-callers in the nation, andbringing giddy-up (Gus own "hurry up," in these parts) to an offense that had as safe and predictable as Saban's hair.
Heck, Kiffin even managed to overshadow a defense that was among the nation's best.
And he did while signaling "touchdown" with the ferver of a fan, at times before the ball had left Blake Sims's hand.
In short, he just had too much damn fun - and success - this season, and in so doing Kiffin has made it all but impossible for anyone looking for a coordinator gig about now - including the much-sought after Will Muschamp.
Head coach to potential coordinator:
So I need you to come in and do that Kiffin thing. You know, get us to No. 1, a lock for he playoffs, you know the deal.
Potential coordinator:
....
It doesn't matter that Kiffin had a"toy box" full of talent at his disposal when he arrived. No need to recruit, just reload. Hand it off to TJ Yeldon or Derrick Henry, toss it to Amari Cooper in the flat (to just mess with the headsets on the other sideline), then dial-up the home run against some hapless cornerback who's beat before No.6 leaves the line of scrimmage.
Yeah, everybody wants that...thanks to Lane Kiffin.
Good luck with that.
Are head coaches expecting too much of their coordinators now? Are they thekey to a quick turnaround?
Talk to me!
Continue reading...
When Lane Kiffin arrived in Tuscaloosa in January I could hear the cackling up north in New York. And with reason.
Kiffin was all but a pariah in a profession where sharp objects are not allowed. He was a renegade who had failed as a head coach from sea to shining sea and, and left enough enemies to fill a video game.
And here he was, signing on as the offensive coordinator for Nick Saban, one of the most buttoned-down (outwardly, at least), controlling, business-like (that's what the recruits say, the ones who end up at Auburn...).
It was The Odd Couple 2.0.
And on this stage far from Broadway, it was going to ... bomb.
Then, of course, it didn't. The couple that seemed as compatible as a Hilary Clinton-Sarah Palin ticket proved to be as copacetic as John Boehner and, well,, never mind.
With Saban pacing on the sideline, and sometimes mumbling into his headset, Kiffin guided the Tide offense as it wielding a joy stick, dialing up improbable play calls at even more improbable times, building a first-year quarterback into one of the most confident and efficient signal-callers in the nation, andbringing giddy-up (Gus own "hurry up," in these parts) to an offense that had as safe and predictable as Saban's hair.
Heck, Kiffin even managed to overshadow a defense that was among the nation's best.
And he did while signaling "touchdown" with the ferver of a fan, at times before the ball had left Blake Sims's hand.
In short, he just had too much damn fun - and success - this season, and in so doing Kiffin has made it all but impossible for anyone looking for a coordinator gig about now - including the much-sought after Will Muschamp.
Head coach to potential coordinator:
So I need you to come in and do that Kiffin thing. You know, get us to No. 1, a lock for he playoffs, you know the deal.
Potential coordinator:
....
It doesn't matter that Kiffin had a"toy box" full of talent at his disposal when he arrived. No need to recruit, just reload. Hand it off to TJ Yeldon or Derrick Henry, toss it to Amari Cooper in the flat (to just mess with the headsets on the other sideline), then dial-up the home run against some hapless cornerback who's beat before No.6 leaves the line of scrimmage.
Yeah, everybody wants that...thanks to Lane Kiffin.
Good luck with that.
Are head coaches expecting too much of their coordinators now? Are they thekey to a quick turnaround?
Talk to me!
Continue reading...
