Urban Legend

http://www.fanblogs.com/ncaa/004197.php
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A31894-2004Dec3.html
http://proxy.espn.go.com/ncf/columns/story?columnist=forde_pat&id=1935210 (Insider)

Before I address the game last night I want to remind Notre Dame fans of three short years ago. As you know, I am a Notre Dame hater. While I have my own views on their firing of Ty Willingham, I do admit that part of the reason they did it was because of what was out there. The bottom line is that they were infatuated with Urban Meyer (then in the middle of an undefeated season at Utah) and they wanted him to be their coach. He had served as an assistant coach at Notre Dame during the mid-1990s and he had said publicly that he was always interested in returning to South Bend.

I remember the scene very clearly. After firing Ty Willingham, Notre Dame went on a full court press for Meyer. Their biggest administrators and boosters flew the private Notre Dame jet down to Utah to meet with Meyer. They wanted him to agree to a deal that day. Unfortunately for them that did not happen. Not only that, but within a week he had publicly declined Notre Dame and decided to leave for University of Florida and a seven year $14 million contract. Publicly, Meyer said that he felt he had a better chance to win at Florida and it was a better decision for his family. Who knows if there are reasons beyond that which he did not say publicly. One thing is clear though. He had the chance to coach at Notre Dame and he turned it down. The job which he said was his dream job was offered to him and he declined. Now he is a National Champion at Florida.

At this point Notre Dame fans are probably not that bothered by this. They ended up getting a guy who they love (even though he was not on their radar when they fired Willingham, as referenced in the articles above). Charlie Weiss has invigorated the program, but has not won a big game yet. To be fair, Weiss came in following two recruiting classes that were rated in the top 30 but not in the top 20. Meyer meanwhile inherited two straight recruiting classes in the top 15. In the same respect though, Florida was coming off of three straight five loss seasons even with those good recruiting classes. Both Notre Dame and Florida have top five recruiting classes this year and last. I am sure that Notre Dame fans/boosters are a bit envious of Meyer and his win last night, but still have high expectations of their own for next season. If the same thing happens next year though, they might start getting a bit restless, as might their coach.

As for the National Title game last night, it was a slaughter. You can look at it in two ways. First of all, and most evident is the tremendous speed of the Florida team. They were a step ahead of Ohio St. the entire game both on offense and defense. They were constantly pressuring Troy Smith, while their QB (Chris Leak) had time to pick apart the Ohio St. defense. The other way to look at it was a superior coaching job by Florida. Early in the game they seemed to just be a step ahead with their misdirections, screens, and double moves. While speed obviously helped in this, the plays were consistently getting the Florida receivers/backs in space to use their superior speed and athletic ability.

In my mind this game was an example of Ohio St. coming into the game with a specific gameplan and not adjusting. You got the feeling that Ohio St. was confident that they could just line up and physically dominate Florida. They did not appear to blitz much and they stayed true to their conservative Big 10 offense. Florida on the other hand, was running all over the place. Ohio St. needed to adjust because it was clear early on that their gameplan was seriously flawed and it was not hindering the Florida in any way. In addition, going for it on 4th and 1 from your own 30 yard line is a sign of clear desperation. Ohio St might as well of thrown in the towel after not converting that.

Active College Coaches with Titles

Urban Meyer
Bob (don't call me Poops) Stoops
Nick Gayban Saban
Pete Carroll
Steve Spurrier
Bobby Bowden
Joe Paterno (when he is not falling over on the sidelines and running to the bathroom)
Mack Brown
Phil Fulmer
Jim Tressel
Lloyd Carr

In my mind the best in order is...

Pete Carroll
Urban Meyer
Nick Saban
Jim Tressel
Bob Stoops

If they don't have a National Title, they are not making the list.

Last thing....Has there ever been a worse Bowl performance by a reigning Heisman Trophy winner???

STKAFI