Bill Belichick and the divine right of coaches
My favorite NFL schemer is joining the world of college football. Why?
Last offseason, after reading “Better to be feared” by Seth Wickersham I came to a greater appreciation for the philosophies of Bill Belichick, particularly on defense. I was already a big fan of Belichick’s style and philosophy but learned a lot more from the insider look and the subsequent research I did after reading the book.
I even wrote about my excitement to see his son Steve coach in college football with the Washington Huskies. The prospect of seeing how a Belichick-ian defense would deploy against college offenses was very interesting. However, not only was I armed with a deeper understanding of Belichick’s approach, this season offered me a closer look at Georgia than I’d normally take due to my own Alma mater playing them twice in the same season. I realized from that experience that I didn’t necessarily need a “what if Belichick coached against college teams?” test because Kirby Smart’s Georgia was already offering the blueprint.
Like Belichick, Smart clearly values tight ends and linebackers for the flexibility they afford in tactics. Like Belichick, Smart doesn’t see dominating offenses with great defensive ends to be a great value, instead he prefers versatile linebackers who can be positioned in a blitz package to create pressure as needed, but maintain value when serving in other roles.
Like Belichick, Smart seems to prefer a quarterback who takes care of the ball and doesn’t thwart the defensive strategy to the extent he may not fully appreciate the impact of a star and leader at the position.
Yet, we are getting Belichick in college football now. Not a son or downstream disciple either, the real thing. He’s going to North Carolina and they seem to have given him the scepter to command Tar Heel football.
Why in the world is this happening?