Football question

[WichitaSooner]

DeMarco was a very very good coach and recruiter ... which is why Ohio st tried to hire him last year .. and he had lots of choices this year

I have no idea how you could possibly call someone who got horrible production for the past three years from a room full of highly rated backs a "very very good coach." Add in the fact that for three years, the rotation was in flux from week to week, and I think it's safe to say that once we finally fired JJF, he was the worst coach on the staff.

 

[hoopsaustin]

DeMarco was a very very good coach and recruiter ... which is why Ohio st tried to hire him last year .. and he had lots of choices this year

You're cray cray Boulder.

 

[WaymanFan]

I agree with all of this except for the Magic part. He didn’t get mad at Van Exel because he was less talented, like you said it was because he was lazy. I like NBA coaches that do that. Van Exel had issues his entire career because he was lazy & the worst starting PG defender in the league.

I'm a Lakers fan, and I agree with you on Van Exel being lazy. But screaming at a player when you're on your first game as a head coach was a bad look. I knew he wouldn't make it. Larry Bird is another good example. While he was much more calm than Magic, if you paid attention to his timeouts you would see assistant Randy Whitman coaching up the players while Bird listened in.

As for football position coaches, Mean Joe Greene was mediocre and Charles Haley was just bad. If you look around, you'll see a lot of that with the great players. Two Sooners I thought would get into coaching (and maybe they have) are Curtis Lofton and Rocky Calmus. Lofton was a good (not great) NFL linebacker, but his instincts while calling the defensive plays were impeccable. Calmus didn't have the size to play in the NFL (tried gaining weight but that just led to injuries), but other than Bosworth, has OU ever had a more instinctive linebacker? I would imagine both would have the right disposition to be effective position coaches or better.

 

[BoulderSooner]

I'm a Lakers fan, and I agree with you on Van Exel being lazy. But screaming at a player when you're on your first game as a head coach was a bad look. I knew he wouldn't make it. Larry Bird is another good example. While he was much more calm than Magic, if you paid attention to his timeouts you would see assistant Randy Whitman coaching up the players while Bird listened in.

As for football position coaches, Mean Joe Greene was mediocre and Charles Haley was just bad. If you look around, you'll see a lot of that with the great players. Two Sooners I thought would get into coaching (and maybe they have) are Curtis Lofton and Rocky Calmus. Lofton was a good (not great) NFL linebacker, but his instincts while calling the defensive plays were impeccable. Calmus didn't have the size to play in the NFL (tried gaining weight but that just led to injuries), but other than Bosworth, has OU ever had a more instinctive linebacker? I would imagine both would have the right disposition to be effective position coaches or better.

also a Lakers fan and while I love magic as a player he was a terrible HC ..

 

[BCSooners]

I'm a Lakers fan, and I agree with you on Van Exel being lazy. But screaming at a player when you're on your first game as a head coach was a bad look. I knew he wouldn't make it. Larry Bird is another good example. While he was much more calm than Magic, if you paid attention to his timeouts you would see assistant Randy Whitman coaching up the players while Bird listened in.

As for football position coaches, Mean Joe Greene was mediocre and Charles Haley was just bad. If you look around, you'll see a lot of that with the great players. Two Sooners I thought would get into coaching (and maybe they have) are Curtis Lofton and Rocky Calmus. Lofton was a good (not great) NFL linebacker, but his instincts while calling the defensive plays were impeccable. Calmus didn't have the size to play in the NFL (tried gaining weight but that just led to injuries), but other than Bosworth, has OU ever had a more instinctive linebacker? I would imagine both would have the right disposition to be effective position coaches or better.

Agreed Magic being horrible, and yeah probably don't do that 1st game. Van Exel was frustrating though because he could've been so much better. I think Bird could've been a good HC, just you could tell he wasn't all in about it. To be a successful HC, especially at a high level, you have to be a little bit obsessed with coaching.

 

[Eielson]

also a Lakers fan and while I love magic as a player he was a terrible HC ..

Magic is terrible at everything outside of actually playing basketball. I'm glad he's stepped away from the spotlight and not putting his foot in his mouth so frequently.

 

[The_Banker]

The same worry I had about DeMarco I have about Witten. I don't care which sport, but those who were great or at least distinguished players seldom make good coaches. Yes, there are exceptions, but not many. The primary reason is because things came to them so naturally or their work ethic was so amazing that they have a difficult time relating to those who don't carry those same traits. One example - they let Magic Johnson coach the last 10 or so games of a lost Lakers season more than 30 years ago. In his first game, Nick Van Exel did not hustle back on defense and Magic called timeout. He would not even wait for Van Exel to head toward the bench. He met him half-way while screaming at him. Yes, that's an extreme example, but it's on point. These greats seldom have the patience to relate to less talented individuals. Fingers crossed Witten is one of the exceptions.

Couple defensive staffers think Witten is legit. High high offensive IQ.

 

[Eielson]

DeMarco was a very very good coach and recruiter ... which is why Ohio st tried to hire him last year .. and he had lots of choices this year

I feel similar for DM and Valai. They're fine, but I don't care at all that they're gone.

He's not perfect by any means, but it's also humorous to hear them fumble over 47 different reasons why excellent production for Kennedy Brooks and Eric Gray don't count. Those might be the two best examples of maximizing RB talent of the past 30 years of me watching OU football. It's not surprising in the least to see Brooks had no NFL career. Gray isn't doing much either despite running for nearly 2K.

It's also funny that the people that said Tatum was a superstar that DM sabotaged have gone mostly silent since seeing UM immediately moved him to defense. It's like people don't remember Cale coached guys like Jermie Calhoun.