I've seen a lot of head coaches lift one side of the headset during a game, usually when a hip hop song comes on or a commercial break. They usually take that opportunity to ask a ref what the score is, or ask a coordinator why the crowd got louder.
Seriously, I like the move this year (since Anderson left) with the Munoz addition and stepping Hudson up. With a major staff change only one year ago, the offense needed the continuity more than to be introduced to a new OC and his idiosyncrasies.
Our offense was fairly solid last year, and I see it ratcheting up this year. The playcalling was the worst aspect of last year's offensive efforts.
Oh, and if the temperatures drop for most of next season's games, I think Bustle will sport some earmuffs... I mean headphones. And, I hear he has created some HC over-ride signals when he does not like the hand signaled play calls. It involves use of his middle finger lifted just slightly above his head, with a half turn and stare at the OC. If he completely turns around and shoots with both barrels, it means that he strongly disagrees. These gestures only require a change of play. He will not provide clues as to what he wants. If he calls a timeout, all bets are off.
Well, all due respect, but headphones weighed 80lbs and were massively unreliable when these guys started their professions, and both can't hear anymore anyway. I think we might want to keep the HC headphone discussion in the realm of the under 70 crowd.
I am puzzled why Bustle does not wear headphones. He isn't very animated on the sidelines. He seems to operate more like a spectator and then as a Wal-Mart greeter for players as they come off the field. As a fan, I get a little irritated being as animated as I am at the game, only to see him clapping and patting and being the gentle "that's OK, we'll do better the next series" soft-delivery motivator.
As I've seen it over the years, there are two basic schools of successful HC on Saturday. The dominant figure-head coach that uses his authority to set and maintain the intensity of his staff and team (headphones or not), or the one that dives head first into the play-calling (headphones a must).
I do like the guy, however, and think the players like and respond to him. If we get dominant on Saturday, I don't really care how he gets it done.
That is the point. Being dominant does not come with a certain personality or a certain way of doing things. John Wooden the most gentle man in basketball, at least in public vs Bobby Knight one of the most volatile. Both dominated their contemporaries.
Come December 2008 it won't matter if he wore head sets or not. All that will matter is the record and hopefully a spot in New Orleans.
I believe that when a team is not doing well, there is great scrutiny on the coach and staff. People believe that when a team is not excelling or winning, the coach should use all available opportunities to better the team's prospects of winning. That is where the criticism of Bustle not wearing headsets comes in. We were not winning. He didn't have the headsets on. He was not taking advantage of all available opportunities to put his team in a winning position. His system doesn't work.
When a team is winning, the old addage applies: "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." The same goes for a coach with a stellar track record. Such a coach is given a pass from the harsh criticism mentioned above (al least for some time). He won without the headsets. He is winning without the headsets. His system works.
All that being said, maybe Bustle was a victim of circumstances (lack of funding, NCAA sanctions for t-sirts, etc.) and we are just beginning to see his true abilities with better resources in place and coming into place (indoor practice facility, turf on field, stadium renevations, etc.). Many would disagree with that though.
I hope that Bustle succeeds.
The fact is, he isn't winning or at least at any consistent level. He has excelled at being consistently inconsistent. We beat Houston on the road and then get bombed my Middle Tennessee the next week. We have a great first half against Ohio and then drop a bomb and then get bombed by McNeese at home in front of one of our largest crowds ever.
With all due respect Jay, He aint Bowden or Paterno. Those guys have earned their respectability through their tenure but they've both had excellent coordinators. Bustle is supposed to be the offensive guru but he doesn't seem to have any contributions during the game to adjustments and personnel changes.
Jay, you'd know better than any of us due to your conversations with him, but he said last year that he wanted a more balanced attack along with the use of the deep ball a bit more to spread the field. After we didn't do that this year, he mentioned that he wished we had been a bit more balanced when he hired Munoz. He's got direct control of this and had opportunities to do this throughout the year.
Now, I don't necessarily dislike coach Bustle either. I think the program has taken big positive steps since Mr. Lawsuit. I think the quality of player and student athlete brought into the program is better and heading in the right direction. Maybe he's just not a fiery type of coach which I'd like to see but I hope he succeeds and we are complaining in a couple of years when a bigger school is after him.
Anybody else know about Hudson's philosophies or have any comments?
heads up for those interested.. on sportsnote radio show today ron will be on about 2:30 (cst)
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