1- Billy Napier
@GatorsFB
2- Eli Drinkwitz
@MizzouFootball
3- Andy Thompson
@SacHornetsFB
4- Kane Wommack
@SouthAlabamaFB
5- Jacob Bronowski
@MiamiOHFootball
6- Charlie Weis Jr.
@OleMissFB
7- Kevin Coyle
@FresnoStateFB
-
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Kirk Herbstreit's Top Performing Coaches of Week 3: Billy Napier
- Thread starter Escambia94
- Start date
1- Billy Napier
@GatorsFB
2- Eli Drinkwitz
@MizzouFootball
3- Andy Thompson
@SacHornetsFB
4- Kane Wommack
@SouthAlabamaFB
5- Jacob Bronowski
@MiamiOHFootball
6- Charlie Weis Jr.
@OleMissFB
7- Kevin Coyle
@FresnoStateFB
One "sour note" in all this, coming (OF COURSE!) from Paul Finebaum's show a little while ago...
I honestly didn't MEAN to be even tuning IN to him--certainly NOT to hear him try to rationalize, or simply IGNORE his previous drivel on this matter. But I was in a local "beer'n'burger" sports bar (Twin Peaks) for lunch with a friend earlier this aft and sure enough, there was Paul, slingin' it.
I TRIED to totally tune him out, but the volume was turned way up for all the local Longhorns basking in all the "Texas is BACK"-talk, and then THIS one bored straight into my brain:
"Well, we still have to question why Billy called that timeout with seconds left, starting that whole tit-for-tat thing with Heupel...He wouldn't be the FIRST coach who just wanted to revel in the big win on the sidelines for a few more minutes, I guess..." He and his guest went on about this for a few moments, discussing how HE "put his guys at risk" in baiting Heupel and his frustrated team "for no good reason at the end"...
Wait a minute! Were these guys watching the same game, in the same reality as the rest of us??! That is NOT what HAPPENED.
Do I even have to redraw the final moments here?
It was without a DOUBT a petulant HEUPEL who precipitated the whole deal: Billy had started trotting across the field for the perfunctory after-game handshake when Josh, half is own PLAYERS already gone from the field and halfway down the tunnel, CALLED THE SUPERFLUOUS LATE TIME OUT (eight seconds left on the clock)!
Everything AFTER that was on HIM (although yes, though completely predictable under circumstances where young linemen perceive their QB is endangered, and DESPITE the somewhat admirable display of team pride abd protecting your QB-1, our Coach was then obligated to mete out some punishments, another "teaching opportunity": THIS lesson having to do with keeping your cool, NOT OVERreacting--precisely BECAUSE it is likely to lead to anything FROM useless post-play injury to post-GAME sanctions...which subsequently DID come down).
Thankfully, some online "fact-checking" upon returning home a little while ago would seem to support my previous assumption that MOST folks witnessed a reality that more closely matched my own; no "Mandala Effect" on this one, anyway. However, we are still left with somehow our guy (Micha) suspended for the next first half while the guyin protecting his quarterback) whom he squared up against (front and center, for all to see) himself receives NO PUNISHMENT AT ALL
Aside from Finebaum attempting one more "Napier sideswipe" even in the same moment that he was confronted with having to face (if only for a brief moment) his own complete inadequacy as an analyst (on his own SHOW, no less), I suppose something like the above was to be expected. Like Stephen A. Smith attaching himself to the Deion/Colorado story and hanging on for all he is WORTH, where Paul on THAT one is a "minor player", he has fastened onto the whole "Crucify-the-GATORS generally and Coach Napier SPECIFICALLY" thing and made it his own for exactly the same reason: Numbers (watchers/listeners). With that whole ridiculous-to-the-point-of-absurdity "Primetime comes to UF" forecast he has even found a way to force-LINK the two "stories".
OK then:
Here's where I DROP IT.
Some corrections:
- Napier called a timeout because the stupid team was not lined up—not to revel in a victory.
- Heupel called a timeout because he is an asshole and an idiot.
- The SEC suspensions were fair.
- The Vols defense is dirty, but it is legal to hit a QB who is running around burning clock. If Napier were a good SEC offensive coordinator he would have told his QB to roll out and throw the ball as far as possible—the clock will stop when the ball hits the ground. If he were a good coach he might have sent in a backup QB to do that. If he had a fucking special teams coach he could have sent out the special teams, had the Australian punter run around and then punt the ball.
- The Gators and Vols should consider themselves lucky that the SEC only suspended 5 players and did not fine coaches and sideline participants.
As for the Colorado-CSU incident, this is an unfortunate side effect of having a national celebrity (tv commercials, rap videos in addition to sports) as a coach. Every aspect of fandom is turned up to eleven. That was a legal hit, but it was dirty. Travis was near the sideline, and the defender hit him on the side where he had little padding—probably bruised his rib and sensitized his spleen. On that topic, because of Deion Sanders there are many more casual fans and celebrity followers watching the game. I am not justifying the death threats but having lived in Hollywood and been around celebrities (including my own kid) I know firsthand how fans of celebrities get hyper emotional.
- Napier called a timeout because the stupid team was not lined up—not to revel in a victory.
- Heupel called a timeout because he is an asshole and an idiot.
- The SEC suspensions were fair.
- The Vols defense is dirty, but it is legal to hit a QB who is running around burning clock. If Napier were a good SEC offensive coordinator he would have told his QB to roll out and throw the ball as far as possible—the clock will stop when the ball hits the ground. If he were a good coach he might have sent in a backup QB to do that. If he had a fucking special teams coach he could have sent out the special teams, had the Australian punter run around and then punt the ball.
- The Gators and Vols should consider themselves lucky that the SEC only suspended 5 players and did not fine coaches and sideline participants.
As for the Colorado-CSU incident, this is an unfortunate side effect of having a national celebrity (tv commercials, rap videos in addition to sports) as a coach. Every aspect of fandom is turned up to eleven. That was a legal hit, but it was dirty. Travis was near the sideline, and the defender hit him on the side where he had little padding—probably bruised his rib and sensitized his spleen. On that topic, because of Deion Sanders there are many more casual fans and celebrity followers watching the game. I am not justifying the death threats but having lived in Hollywood and been around celebrities (including my own kid) I know firsthand how fans of celebrities get hyper emotional.
Of course agree with pretty well all of your points above...I too STILL think an OC (one who is a mix of "protégé" AND "creative independent thinker", who can function in both "backup-onfield-support" and "point/counterpoint" modes) would be a wise addition by next season.
I doubt you mean to imply that Billy "isn't a good Coach" at this point, so my own take on that last play was that Coach simply wanted Mertz in there, running the offense, leading the team and finishing the game: However mistakenly, he didn't THINK Heupel was that big "an asshole and an idiot". Now we ALL do.
As for the Colorado/CSU game, all its questionable hits and the further topic of "dirty play", well, your points about celebrity, fan interest-bordering-on-worship and how it all cooks up into a rank and dangerous stew, it's all true--and getting worse all the TIME!
I too spent much time (the better part of a career) in Hollywood: I made a conscious choice to spend it BEHIND the camera--without a doubt costing me a great deal of money in the long run, but less personally assaulted (but to be sure hardly UNAFFECTED) by the vicious emotional professional backstabbing you allude to.
For us fans, sports--especially COLLEGE SPORTS (where CFB, though now teetering, is still the peak outlet for the supposed SAFE unloading of pent up emotional baggage based on regional, historical, and family-based institutional loyalties)--is supposed to be a healthy, colorful outlet for mass ritual and pageantry, but in these very manifestations we are seeing more and more of its darker side.
Alright. That's about as far down THAT over-analytical path as I wanna go right about now.
I apologize for any excess in that regard...
It's just that frankly, all this both worries and slightly disgusts me. I'M SICK OF IT.
Like so MANY things nowadays, it doesn't HAVE to so deeply divide us--to the point of supposed "DEATH THREATS"?
Sick and sad (like politics, and too much ELSE in the public realm, has become.)
IMHO.
