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The Next Belichick? Maybe One Day

I can’t believe what I am about to write. No, really. I can’t. In a matter of minutes, I am going to say NICE things about (ugh) Steve Spurrier.

But wait, before anyone jumps to conclusions, at least let me explain myself.

See, I am from south Louisiana. Really south, as in about an hour below New Orleans. Part of growing up Cajun, along with a love for seafood and taste for king cakes, is a passionate devotion for everything LSU. And in that devotion is a clause of sorts guaranteeing hatred and revulsion for anything that shows the least bit of dominance over the Fighting Tigers.

And for a guy who spent all his teenage years in the 1990s, nothing reflected any such dominance as the Florida Gators. In Spurrier’s 12 years of rule, the fun ‘n’ gun Gators were the complete antithesis of LSU’s once-proud football program. While the Tigers were stuck in first gear trying to find a power running game under coaches like Curly Hallman and Gerry DiNardo, Spurrier was coachin’ em’ up and, well… you know. I think 122 wins, six Southeastern Conference championships, and a national title pretty much says it all. Before Spurrier left, I can only recall one LSU victory over the Gators and their cocky, smug, overconfident genius of a leader.

To say it nicely, I HATE Steve Spurrier. No, I loathe Steve Spurrier. Wait, I detest, abhor, despise… You get the point. He ranks up with George Steinbrenner, Michael Jordan and Satan on my all-time scale of disgust list (Jordan is numero uno, but that’s for another day).

And all that was before he seemingly shadowed my move to our nation’s capital. His penchant for crushing setbacks as Redskins coach is the only thing that kept me sane then.

So, to say the least, I was ecstatic to read that he told Florida AD Jeremy Foley to look elsewhere for a new coach after the season, but not for the reasons you expect. I’m not worried about Spurrier coming back to wreak havoc on the SEC again.

I really don’t believe he would reach the same level of success again with the Gators. The SEC is different now. LSU, Georgia and Auburn have all improved to Spurrier-Florida level. He would have a harder time recruiting with Miami being a national powerhouse again. And, of course, like his successor in DC, he would just have a tough time living up to the deity-like name his legacy possesses in Florida.

The Florida job was not for him. Not now. So what’s next for the ol’ ball coach? Rumors have had him going everywhere from North Carolina to Texas to California. None of these situations really fit him. The place he needs to be is in the NFL. That’s right, the National Football League. Believe it or not, I honestly think he CAN coach in the NFL.

Don’t worry, I just threw up, too.

Now before anyone responds to this, remember, I was there in DC. I saw the colossal failure his tenure was. I saw the playcalling, and I saw the slew of ex-Florida players that were brought in to show everyone that Spurrier’s system could work. I also now see the way everyone is writing him off as an NFL coach. Heck, I saw that today when I was apparently one of the six people nationwide who watched “Around the Horn.”

What many of those doubters seem to not realize is that Washington was the wrong place for Spurrier. It was a bad situation all the way around, from owner Daniel Snyder’s front office to Spurrier’s coaching staff to the players, many of whom weren’t Florida alumni (although the media would make you believe otherwise). By the time, Spurrier got to Washington, the players there were on their fourth coach and staff in two seasons. It was their third different offensive system; ditto for the defense. I really don’t care who the coach is, if you have no continuity as a franchise, you will not win, save for a few teams who managed to catch lightning in a bottle. Strike one.

That’s not to say Spurrier didn’t make mistakes (with making fun of him every step of the way, by the way). Bringing in a college coaching staff was chief among those miscues. It has been proven time and time again that the professionals need to be coached by professionals; the college guys, for the most part, just do not relate to them. He further hurt himself by bringing in all the Florida guys who just couldn’t pan out anywhere else. Strike two.

After a 7-9 debut season, Spurrier’s weaknesses were obvious. But despite the following season’s 5-11 record, he was beginning to show that he was learning the pro game. By that second season, most of the Florida crew was gone. He made (or was forced to make, depending on who you listen to) the decision to go with Patrick Ramsey as his quarterback. He settled on Laveranues Coles and Rod Gardner as his receivers. HE also had Jon Jansen, Fred Smoot, Champ Bailey and Lavar Arrington. Growing pains were obvious, but for the first time in many years, there seemed to be a thread of a plan in the most powerful city in the world.

And that’s when Snyder, the man who had to have Spurrier so bad that he dumped Marty Schottenheimer after a 8-3 finish to 2001, called strike three and sent Steve packing with his contract in tact. Resignation may have been the word that day, but have no doubt the was helped out the door. Snyder was responsible, along with Vinny Cerrato, for bringing in the multitude of players and coaches that have passed through the Redskins’ revolving door the last several years, and he was at it again.

I’m getting a little long-winded, but the fact is Spurrier, in the right situation, can be a successful coach in the NFL. He’s a smart man, and he knows that it would take some tinkering with his “system.” And when he decides again that it is time to take on the league again, he will do it. Coaches are able to adjust, and Spurrier is and will be no different.

Maybe it’s like comparing Mozart to Rob Zombie, but the situation is awfully similar to that of Bill Belichick. It was only a decade ago that the best coach in the NFL was ran out of town in Cleveland and written off for dead. He made the right adjustments to his style, and look at him now. Will Spurrier manage to do the same? Maybe so, but here’s hoping he gets the chance (am I still writing this?).

And, hey, if he fails again, I just have more reason to laugh at him.

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