Staying the Course: Muschamp Confident Road Map that Got Him Here will Lead to More Wins in Future
Thursday, November 3, 2011 | Football, Scott Carter
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – I am sick.
I just don't know what to say. Unbelievable. Embarrassing. Pathetic. Weak.
Awful. Awful. Awful.
In case you are wondering, thankfully those aren't emails from readers sharing their views on my writing.
Neither are these.
I want a $4 million refund!
I'll be positive and continue to believe (and hope) that the problem is lack of quality players and not lack of quality coaching.
In truth, all the italicized comments were printed on the front page of The Tuscaloosa News sports section the morning of Nov. 18, 2007. If you need a refresher, the prior day the mighty Crimson Tide of Alabama lost at home to Louisiana-Monroe.
You read that correctly. Not Louisiana State, but Louisiana-Monroe, a program that everyone in Alabama became familiar with in Nick Saban's first season due to one of the most shocking losses in Crimson Tide history.
“I apologize to the people who support this program,” Saban told reporters afterward. “We didn't represent it with class today, and we will continue to work to get where we want to go. That's our mission, and that's what we will try and do.”
Alabama lost the next week too, dropping the Iron Bowl to Auburn – Gators head coach Will Muschamp was the Tigers' defensive coordinator – to end the regular season on a four-game losing streak and 6-6 record.
Saban's mission to return Alabama to the top of the polls was off to a slow start.
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Fast forward to Wednesday morning and Saban and the Crimson Tide were back in the spotlight. This time for much different reasons.
Alabama faces LSU – each seeking their second national title since 2007 – on Saturday in college football's latest “Game of the Century.'' The No. 2-ranked Crimson Tide and No. 1-ranked Tigers square off in a game that has ticket scalpers working overtime.
During his weekly appearance on the SEC media teleconference, Muschamp answered nearly as many questions about that game as the Gators' Homecoming game against Vanderbilt on Saturday.
Much like his primary coaching mentor, Muschamp understands some of the challenges Saban experienced at Alabama four years ago. The Gators are currently on a four-game losing streak after going oh-for-October, losing to Alabama, LSU, Auburn and Georgia.
In his first season as a head coach, Muschamp expected bumps in the road taking over a young Gators team that finished 8-5 in Urban Meyer's final season and still trying to establish an identity in the post-Tim Tebow era.
“The losing streak has obviously [taken] a toll on all of us,'' Gators defensive lineman Sharrif Floyd said.
Muschamp didn't envision Florida's first four-game losing streak in 23 years, but now that it's happened, he is determined to get the program back on track using the experience and lessons he learned moving up the coaching ladder as a defensive coordinator at LSU, Auburn and Texas.
“You need to stay upbeat, be technical about the situation of what you are and aren't doing well,'' Muschamp said. “You don't worry about anything outside the building. That's what I try to do from the standpoint of focusing in on what we've got to do to help and improve our football team.
“Regardless of the results recently, we've taken some positive steps forward. Not enough and not where it needs to be certainly. I think the worst thing you can do in my chair is be affected by things you can't control and be affected by the external negative talk that's out there. And there's a lot. I just try to focus in and do my job from the standpoint of coming into the office everyday and trying to improve our football team, be very technical in the approach.''
A fiery figure on the sidelines who has gained national attention for his style of communicating with officials, Muschamp is a picture of calm around the Florida football offices as he moves in and out of meetings and reviews film in his office.
Those closest to him know his first season at Florida may not be going according to the script he imagined, but they also say not to underestimate Muschamp's ability to fight back from adversity.
“When it doesn't go the way you want it to go, it can be incredibly frustrating,'' said Mike Muschamp, Will's older brother and head coach at The Lovett School in Atlanta. “The hard part for anybody who does this is getting back up on the horse and going on to the next opportunity. You've got to look at where you are, being honest with where you are, and find ways to make the situation better.
“If there is a way to be found, he'll find it. I know Will and the way he is. He is tireless. He is going to find a way to give those kids the best chance to step out on Saturday and have success. That's just what he has always done.”
Muschamp proved that during his playing days at Georgia when he worked his way into a scholarship and co-captaincy his senior season after arriving as a non-factor when recruiters backed off due to a serious leg injury Muschamp suffered playing baseball as a senior in high school.
Once he began his coaching career, others took notice of Muschamp's drive, including Florida State coach Jimbo Fisher. They were colleagues under Saban at LSU and Fisher expects by the time his Seminoles come to Gainesville later this month that Florida will be playing much better.
“Will is a great coach. He'll do a great job. He knows how to fix things,'' said Fisher said Wednesday. “He will. He'll bring them around and they'll be a good football team when the year ends, I promise you that.
“Like any coach, there's ups and downs. He's handled it, he's been there. I think he'll do a good job with it.''
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History is littered with highly successful coaches who endured not-so-great first seasons.
In Joe Paterno's first season at Penn State, the Nittany Lions finished 5-5 and failed to earn a bowl bid. Bob Stoops went 7-5 in his first season at Oklahoma. Former USC coach Pete Carroll was 9-8 in his first 17 games with the Trojans. Before he hoisted a national championship trophy at Miami, Jimmy Johnson's Hurricanes were 8-6 in his first 14 games.
Saban, who led the Crimson Tide to the 2008 national title following a 7-6 season the prior year, isn't the only coach at Alabama to struggle early in his tenure. Gene Stallings was 8-6 in his 14 games at Alabama, and Bear Bryant, the man whom all others are compared to in the Yellowhammer State, was 5-4-1 in an inaugural season that included a 0-0 tie with Vanderbilt.
Of course, there were no Internet message boards back then or the 24/7 news cycle that exists today.
In today's culture, once a loss is final, it is then reviewed, analyzed and dissected from every possible angle until next week's game.
Muschamp tries to avoid any of the negative chatter and advises his players to do the same as they attempt to turn the season around and earn a bowl bid for the 21st consecutive season. The Gators need two wins in their final four games to become bowl eligible.
“I'm not saying you don't hear some of the negativity, but you can't let it affect your judgment and that's what happens sometimes,'' Muschamp said. “If you start to listen, you start to believe what you hear. That's what I tell our players all the time. I have an old saying … 'It's never as good as it seems and it's never as bad as it seems. It's somewhere in between.'
“To me, you can't be negative all the time. You've got to build on the positives, correct the negatives and move forward.''
While some fans and bloggers and armchair quarterbacks have questioned how the Gators have lost four consecutive times, the mainstream media who cover the team regularly appears to understand some of the challenges the Gators are facing this season.
The Gators were down to 68 scholarship players until Muschamp recently added four former walk-ons to scholarship, and while the coaching staff likes the attitude and work ethic of the current team, there are certain parts of the new offensive and defensive systems that require different kinds of personnel than what is currently on the roster.
Those are growing pains that only recruiting can solve.
“I believe Will Muschamp is doing about as good as he can,'' CBS announcer Gary Danielson told Florida Today this week. “He does not have a team put together to compete at the highest level at this league, especially with an injured quarterback.”
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Shortly after answering questions about this week's “Game of the Century” late Wednesday morning, Muschamp was entrenched in work in his office.
His desk was covered with various papers and other items for his review. A large video screen was pulled down from the ceiling so he could watch game film of Vanderbilt.
“I certainly feel like our players have completely bought into what we're doing,'' he said. “Have we had the results we wanted to have? No. But certainly I've been very pleased with their attitude and their work ethic and their competitive spirit when we've taken the field.
“You look at our last four ballgames. We got beat by two good football teams. Not to take anything away from Auburn and Georgia, but we had our opportunities. Florida beat Florida in those two ballgames because of turnovers, and that's as plain as I can say it. And I give both of those teams credit that they beat us. We can cite all the different things we need to do better, but the turnover margin is what's really killed us this year at the end of the day. We've got to get that corrected. It's nothing that we're not working on or addressing, we've just got to do a better job.''
The players seem to be handling the adversity the best as can be expected as the losses piled up in October.
“It's been a long, tough road these last few games,” junior defensive tackle Omar Hunter said. “We're just talking about finishing out the season strong.''
That starts with a victory on Saturday against Vanderbilt. With a 4-4 record and out of the race to represent the SEC East in Atlanta, the real work is just beginning.
As Muschamp ponders what's ahead, he'll continue using the same road map he walked into the building with 11 months ago.
“We know what we are dealing with. And I know where we're going and where we're headed,'' he said. “Regardless of the perception, we're not far off. We need to continue to build this thing back and we need to get depth on both lines of scrimmage, which creates better practices, which creates more competition at every position. We're just thin right now.
“It's pretty obvious to see right now if you have an education.”
