T
taekwondaveI'm watching our sideline. Where is Bronco's fire? How is he rallying the troops around his undying faith to win? What tricks does he have up his sleeve to turn the tide of this game in his team's favor?
I want you to watch Chris Peterson at Boise. Watch KWhitt at Utah. Watch Patterson at TCU. There is a very different style at play here and I think we are getting the short end of the stick on styles.
Here is where I believe they differ:
Bronco's style: Player accountability.
Peterson etc: Coach accountability.
Here's where I think the difference is. When Bronco coaches, he's very stoic. Very stern. Very serious. Like a lion roaming the sidelines that you always THINK is just about to break loose and kill some Ute but never does. When the team does poorly, they know Bronco's face will say it all. They know they screwed up and they'll have to take responsibility for it and work on it in practice. This is interesting because as a player, if you win, you really feel like it was all you, and when you lose, you also really feel like it was all you. Bronco almost seems like he doesn't really care whether we win or lose on game day. Every game is just a chance to notice something that needs to be improved later in practice. He has faith in his game plan and sticks to it, and if we lose it's simply because the players didn't execute and that's only his fault in the sense that come practice next week, he'll make sure they get it right so they'll be more prepared for the next game. In other words, he seems to take a PASSIVE role of accountability. Rather than thinking, "I lost this game." or "We lost this game." it's, "The players made mistakes and I'm at fault only by assuming they had it down in practice when obviously they didn't." It's sort of a tongue in cheek way of accepting responsibility.
Peterson, Whitt, and Patterson on the other hand, they seem to REALLY WANT TO WIN EVERY GAME, and it seems like they will do ANYTHING AND EVERYTHING on gameday to make sure that happens; almost like they have a real sense of urgency to win; like if they lost they'd be fired or something. They make game time adjustments. They make split second decisions. Kwhitt will call a time out JUST before a ball is snapped on a field goal try or he'll run Louis Sakoda on a 4th and 6 for a thirty yard gain when it looks like it might change the momentum. Peterson's willingness to fake a punt and throw a pass against TCU turned out to be the difference in their BCS game last year. That just doesn't seem like something Bronco and Anae would do. Because they don't ever do it. It's like they just think that if they're going to win, the players are just gonna have to "step up". And unfortunately for our record this year, they're right.
But my question is: When are THEY going to step up? When are THEY going to stick their necks out there like Kwhitt did against Pitt when that field goal fiasco nearly backfired on him? When are THEY going to PERSONALLY make sure that no matter how the guys are feeling or performing on the field, that they will light the way for our team to secure a win? As fans we should know that our team will make mistakes and that sometimes in some ways we will be outmatched, but we should also have the confidence that it won't matter, because our coaches will ALWAYS FIND A WAY TO WIN.
Now, Bronco's way SOUNDS good at first mention, but when compared to his competition, he seems to be lacking something important.
Perhaps we are forgiving of his style because of his record. Or perhaps it was because Gary Crowton went SO overboard to the other side that we felt like the players didn't believe in themselves and seemed to just think Crowton's genius would get them through it. We clearly don't want THAT again. But man! Give me some FIRE, Bronco! Give me some HOPE! Rally those troops and accept responsibility. Tell them you can work the kinks out in practice later with them but for right now let's WIN THIS STINKING GAME!! Give me THAT, Bronco, and I'll believe again. But the longer you roam that sideline like a lion on a leash, the less I believe you can carry this team to the promised land. What good is a lion on a leash?
I want you to watch Chris Peterson at Boise. Watch KWhitt at Utah. Watch Patterson at TCU. There is a very different style at play here and I think we are getting the short end of the stick on styles.
Here is where I believe they differ:
Bronco's style: Player accountability.
Peterson etc: Coach accountability.
Here's where I think the difference is. When Bronco coaches, he's very stoic. Very stern. Very serious. Like a lion roaming the sidelines that you always THINK is just about to break loose and kill some Ute but never does. When the team does poorly, they know Bronco's face will say it all. They know they screwed up and they'll have to take responsibility for it and work on it in practice. This is interesting because as a player, if you win, you really feel like it was all you, and when you lose, you also really feel like it was all you. Bronco almost seems like he doesn't really care whether we win or lose on game day. Every game is just a chance to notice something that needs to be improved later in practice. He has faith in his game plan and sticks to it, and if we lose it's simply because the players didn't execute and that's only his fault in the sense that come practice next week, he'll make sure they get it right so they'll be more prepared for the next game. In other words, he seems to take a PASSIVE role of accountability. Rather than thinking, "I lost this game." or "We lost this game." it's, "The players made mistakes and I'm at fault only by assuming they had it down in practice when obviously they didn't." It's sort of a tongue in cheek way of accepting responsibility.
Peterson, Whitt, and Patterson on the other hand, they seem to REALLY WANT TO WIN EVERY GAME, and it seems like they will do ANYTHING AND EVERYTHING on gameday to make sure that happens; almost like they have a real sense of urgency to win; like if they lost they'd be fired or something. They make game time adjustments. They make split second decisions. Kwhitt will call a time out JUST before a ball is snapped on a field goal try or he'll run Louis Sakoda on a 4th and 6 for a thirty yard gain when it looks like it might change the momentum. Peterson's willingness to fake a punt and throw a pass against TCU turned out to be the difference in their BCS game last year. That just doesn't seem like something Bronco and Anae would do. Because they don't ever do it. It's like they just think that if they're going to win, the players are just gonna have to "step up". And unfortunately for our record this year, they're right.
But my question is: When are THEY going to step up? When are THEY going to stick their necks out there like Kwhitt did against Pitt when that field goal fiasco nearly backfired on him? When are THEY going to PERSONALLY make sure that no matter how the guys are feeling or performing on the field, that they will light the way for our team to secure a win? As fans we should know that our team will make mistakes and that sometimes in some ways we will be outmatched, but we should also have the confidence that it won't matter, because our coaches will ALWAYS FIND A WAY TO WIN.
Now, Bronco's way SOUNDS good at first mention, but when compared to his competition, he seems to be lacking something important.
Perhaps we are forgiving of his style because of his record. Or perhaps it was because Gary Crowton went SO overboard to the other side that we felt like the players didn't believe in themselves and seemed to just think Crowton's genius would get them through it. We clearly don't want THAT again. But man! Give me some FIRE, Bronco! Give me some HOPE! Rally those troops and accept responsibility. Tell them you can work the kinks out in practice later with them but for right now let's WIN THIS STINKING GAME!! Give me THAT, Bronco, and I'll believe again. But the longer you roam that sideline like a lion on a leash, the less I believe you can carry this team to the promised land. What good is a lion on a leash?