BuckeyeBrutalty

I often ask myself..... What is the better strategy and what does an elite coach do?

A) Recruiting the best athletes you can and tailor your offense or defense to suit those players.

B) Recruit players who best meet the criteria of your already built system.


I've seen it successfully work both ways , but the most vivid example that comes to mind is the way Urban Meyer adjusts his playbook and style to suit the athletes he has. There is not "Trying to fit a square peg into a round hole" type deal.

Meyer has erected a championship churning machine with that Spread Offense which is specifically designed to utilize Tim Tebow's explosive running ability in addition to his throwing skills. The entire offense runs through Tebow to utilize his talents which it should since he's obviously Florida's heart and soul on offense.

Likewise when Tebow graduates or if he ever got hurt this season, Meyer will be running a more pro-style type offense tailored to suit Brantley's cannon-like arm and pinpoint accuracy.


I think the key is creating your team's indentity and sticking to it once it's identified.


Being a Buckeye fan, I'm an annual victim of Tressel's notorious "fit a square peg into a round hole" routine. He has a wonderful athlete in Terelle Pryor at QB and still trying to run a conservative "Ground and Pound" Power-I/Play Action offense to complement his always tough defense and special teams.

Problem is, you don't have a bruising mauler of a RB anymore in Chris Wells, Pryor can't throw a consistent accurate ball and isn't a precision pocket passer, and you don't have an elite receiving core. This offense is designed to centerpiece a pocket passer with a power running back which is built around the idea of "Managing the game by controlling the clock and gaining 5-6 yards per play with the occasional home-run playaction deepball."


It's truly frustrating to no end to watch your coach try to apply a universal identity to his team to try and get the job done. He has zero imagination or creativity and certainly no adaptability.

I'm interested to know the opinions of all you die-hard college football fans out there: What are the ingredients of an Elite Coach?

Well the NFL regular season has come to a close and I must say, I'm impressed with how the Niners finished strong down the stretch even though the competition wasn't the greatest.

Two things have changed recently that I think will take the Niners back to playoff status. First is the hiring of a hardnose defensive minded coach with a desire to win and no tolerance for any nonsense in Mike Singletary. Second, John York has humbly stepped down as team president and Sunday we announced Jed, his son, as team president. I suppose neither of these leaders are fully proven yet, however one commonality exists; their passion of the game of football. They both want to win.

Hopefully Jed has that same charisma that Eddie had with our beloved team with what feels like so many years ago. Now that we have assumed some permanent leadership for the better, the second issue is infusing some more talent onto the existing roster.

Our most glaring need in my mind is either a defensive tackle, an offensive tackle, or a wide receiver. It all starts with the pressure and protection from the lines up front. Free Agency has an abundance of possibilities for us, but I'm not quite sure how much cap space we have left, especially after giving up 80 mil/8 yr deals to cornerbacks (ie Nate Clements).

Some big names in free agency available for our primary needs:

WR: TJ Houshmanzadeh, Marques Colston

DT/DE - Bertrand Berry, Albert Haynesworth, Julius Peppers, Paul Spicer,

T - Marvel Smith, Mark Columbo

DB - I didn't really mention DBs but we could always use some better depth in our secondary. I'm not sure how big of a contract Asomugha is looking for from Oakland, but I'm sure he's looking to leave Oakland. Mike Brown and Brian Dawkins are both unrestricted as well.

Obviously pending salary cap issues, we'll be able to figure out who we can realistically target and where, but there's always the draft to look forward to. Either way I'm excited with the progress we made and can't wait til the draft and next season. Go Niners!