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What makes a good head coach?

What makes a good head coach

  • Total voters
    54
  • Poll closed .
TiderMan

TiderMan

All-SEC
Feb 5, 2005
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Moody, AL.
After being involved in the discussion of who is the best SEC head coach, I was wondering what everyone thought made a great head coach. Some say it is strategy (x's & o's), some say good recruiting, some say good assistants, some say being able to manage/be a CEO Type, and some have even mentioned luck. I think it is a combination of all of these becuase you need to be effective in all of these. You may be stronger in one category over another, but the great one's can do it all.
 
TommyMac has hit it on the head! This is true of coaches, CEO's, generals, teachers or any other LEADERS. I think every thing on the list is required in various degrees, but without the leadership to put it all together it won't be the best.
 
The ability to learn on the job and step outside yourself. That, is the question I'm looking to be answered this season.
 
It's hard to vote for just one of those because I believe it takes strength in all of those areas to be considered a truly good Head Coach.

In today's world, a head coach has to be all things to all people and must accomplish this usually in four years or less.

I don't see where you can be strong in only one of these areas and succeed more than a full class cycle (4-5 years). If you're weak in one of these areas, it more than likely will catch up to you and cost you your job.

Especially at a high profile program like Alabama.

RTR

:biga2:
 
I think that answer is different today than it was 20 years ago! And I think that it is different depending on where you coach the game... a division one school with tons of money is a whole different ball game that a division II school or high school. The division one coach needs to be be more of a CEO/Manager type that has the skills of recruiting and assembling a great staff (who all-together have a good grasp of X's and O's). The Luck part applies from pee-wee all the way up to the NFL!!!!
 
I agree with trenda, A head coach needs all of the above to be successful. He must have the x's and o's and a good recruiting class to fill those plays and he needs to have coaches and assistants to help him to establish a wonderful team; it is so hard to choose between these choices because allthogether you need to have wonderful coaches and a wonderful team for a wonderful year!
 
A little Assistants please...

I like the idea of having good assistants, which I believe that Bama does. There are so many demands placed on a head coach in today's game, if he doesn't delegate some of the responsibilities, nothing gets done. That is way I believe a head coach is only as good as the staff he puts together. It should be a team of guys trying to execute one man's coaching philosophy. Being a good leader is very important, and it takes that to get your staff all on the same page and believing in the direction of the program. But these assistants directly control things on the practice field and even calling plays (for most Div I schools).
This being said, I really like the staff the CMS has put together. I believe in all our coordinators and assistants fully and can't wait to see what they do with all the incoming talent. RTR
 
Put me down for "all of the above."

TerryP, TommyMac, and RedwoodForest make good points. Leadership separates the great from the good.

We've got a young head coach at BAMA now, one who I believe has those qualities listed and if he doesn't, I believe he will pick them up. I agree with those who mentioned the assistant coaches. There are a couple I worry a little about, but they seem to make up a strong, motivated staff.
 
I would point out...

this: There is a significant delta between what the fans think CMS should produce this next season and what the real PTBs have decided is an acceptable result. This is inevitably going to produce some of the unhappiness we witnessed on this board last FB season...
 
TIDE-HSV said:
this: There is a significant delta between what the fans think CMS should produce this next season and what the real PTBs have decided is an acceptable result. This is inevitably going to produce some of the unhappiness we witnessed on this board last FB season...
Click to expand...

It is my hope that the results exceed both groups' expectations.
 
TerryP said:
The ability to learn on the job and step outside yourself. That, is the question I'm looking to be answered this season.
Click to expand...

I agree TerryP. Last week in the thread about expectations for next year, I stated that I am looking for maturity in the coaching staff as I believe they were still in a learning phase. Some questioned how I could feel that way. I think your quote sums up best what I was trying to say. Some feel that it is heresy to question the present staff but it is not. Regardless of the limitations of sanctions, injuries, etc, a large part of any teams' success is the quality of the staff and the decisions made by that staff. I will presume that you are referring to Bama's staff in your comment. There has to be a learning curve with a coach in his first major Division I assignment. That curve has been evident the last two years in my opinion. If the staff we have now will be here in three years, the leader will have to do exactly as you say: "learn on the job and step outside yourself". The last part of your quote may be 'physically impossible' but is as I am sure Zell would agree, a very telling 'metaphor'.
 
The bottom line is winning. "Good" coaches win. They do the things it takes to win. The method on how to get there isn't always the same.

Some coaches don't recruit the top recruiting classes but are such good teachers that they coach a "C" player up to a "B" player and a "B" player into an "A" player. There's not one standard recipe that makes up a good coach. But whatever the coach decides to do in running his program the tell tell sign of if he's a "good coach" or not is if he wins.

Not saying that he has to win a championship or anything like that but his wins out number his losses when you look at his record.

Mike Shula doesn't apply right now due to the madness he walked into. However, the further away from the sanctions we get the more the microscope is going to be put on him. I think he is still on the learning curve and has much to learn. But it makes you feel better when he can go from 3-8 to 6-5 with the cards he was dealt.
 
TEACHING...Some of the best coaches are good teachers. They are able to communicate with there players and provide feedback to them.
 
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