Debunking more myths

I fear that if BC continues winning you’ll hear more and more about Jags winning with TOB’s players. It pisses me off and is unfair to the current staff and a convenient crutch of the new NC State coaches. This article by David Glenn sparked this post, but I am sure there is more TOB-Jags spin to come. Let me reiterate: talent and experience explain part of BC’s success and part of NC State’s failures, but not all of it. Coaching style and use of your players is as important.

First let’s poke a few holes in the cupboard is full theory and TOB won because of strict roster development. Jags inherited a very good team, but not all the starters are 23-year old Seniors. Take a look at the starters for the Bowling Green game. You have two true freshman and a Sophomore on the offense and three Sophomores (two of them true) starting on the defense. There are also numerous underclassmen scattered throughout the depth chart. To say the 2003 class was all by design doesn’t jibe with TOB’s actions before and after. He played seven true freshmen last season. He played four true freshmen in his very first year at BC. Redshirting is a good policy but never a mandate.

Jags is also working around TOB’s inability to find a dominant pass rushing after Kiwi, a very thin backfield and an overrated offensive line unit. Next year Jags will have to deal with TOB misfires in the 2005 and 2006 QB recruiting. Every staff in the country deals with holes. The new staff has done a good job of finding their own talent (true freshmen and Jags recruits Castanzo, Momah, Gause and Newman) and coaching up guys who weren’t starting for TOB (Tennant, Ramsey).

TOB can whine about injuries, but Jags lost Brian Toal, B.J. Raji and Jeff Smith all before the season even started.

The second part of the success is giving players schemes and gameplans in which they can succeed. Jags first good move: keeping on Spaz. The continuity on defense has been obvious and made the transition much easier. He then went out and found a good teacher and play caller in Steve Logan. As much as the defense looks the same, the difference in how BC approaches offense is obvious to even the most casual viewer.

BC is 5-0 and in position to do something big in part because of the players but also because Jags has been very shrewd in what he changed and what he didn’t change. You will find very few BC fans that believe we would be 5-0 now under TOB.

I don’t know as much about the NC State roster or even the game to game decisions that may be hindering the Wolfpack. I do know from reading that TOB is blaming the lack of talent and the adjustment to his system. This wouldn’t be the first time he wasted talent in order to move to a system. It may pay off in Raleigh and Jags may not be able to duplicate TOB’s long-term success, but the wins and losses of the 2007 season can be attributed to the current coaches of both schools and no one else.