Jump to content
  • Welcome!

    Register and log in easily with Twitter or Google accounts!

    Or simply create a new Huddle account. 

    Members receive fewer ads , access our dark theme, and the ability to join the discussion!

     

My first football coach...now gone


Mr. Scot

Recommended Posts

My first football coach has passed away.

To be honest, since he was also the father of my best friend growing up, he was a lot like a second father to me. And sometimes, almost more of a dad than my own was, if I'm being completely honest.

It was almost 40 years ago that he first coached me on how to play the game that I'd only been watching for the past few years. I still remember being an eight-year-old sitting in a classroom seeing him draw a formation on the board, learning the explanation of holes and gap numbering and etc. Indeed, he taught me everything I needed to know to play the game of football.

(he also taught me a number of words that my Mom preferred I not repeat) :lol:

His name was Virgil, but as you might expect, none of us addressed him by his name or even as "Mister". It was always "Coach". Thinking about that, it's funny for me to realize I'm at the other end of things now, with little fellas running up to me and saying "Hey Coach". Things really do go in circles, don't they?

I'd be remiss not to mention that besides being a good coach, he was also a good man. Extremely devoted to his family, a bit of a hellraiser when he was young but mellowed when it came time to grow up. And in his later years when he was no longer coaching, became a literacy volunteer teaching adults to read.

Got the word of his passing just a little while back. Technically, I've been an orphan for a while now. But today, I feel even more like one than I did before.

So long, Coach...and thanks.

For those who played, how do you remember your first coach? Is he still around?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yeah, he is.

He was my Pop Warner coach & became the varsity DC a few years later. When I was a freshman, there were a rash of injuries & I got bumped up to varsity. Found out later that it was pretty much all him convincing the HC to give me a shot.

I'm not one of those guys who think that football taught me teamwork, brotherhood, yadda yadda, but being a 5'5"119lb & having your coaches not worrying about the guy you're covering does build confidence...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

My high school coach was the only one that mattered. Now I work with him and it's weird. I always feel if I say something wrong or do something wrong it's going to be "100 UP DOWNS RIGHT NOW DAMNIT! COWBOY UP!"

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.


  • PMH4OWPW7JD2TDGWZKTOYL2T3E.jpg

  • Topics

  • Posts

    • I can't get behind a purely subjective re-draft as a method of defining "top-10 QB" status. That invites bias based on vibes/hypotheticals and can ignore actual on-field performance. You and others have said that Bryce has to be a top-10 QB to justify the pick. That's a high bar, which I'm not against, but we need a clear, consistent way to measure it. When I bring up metrics that Bryce has registered in the top-10 in like BTT%, P2S ratio, catchable deep ball rate, etc... they're waved off as either irrelevant or the expected baseline performance. Meanwhile, volume stats like passing yards or win-loss records, both of which depend heavily on roster talent, health, and coaching, are treated as definitive. That's where the inconsistency kicks in. If no performance metric ever counts in his favor and the answer is always going to be "he should be doing that," then we're not evaluating him... we're just holding him to a curve he can't win against. If this is really about performance standards, then let's define them. But if it's just about confirming prior takes based on height and weight, then let's call it what is it and stop pretending that this is a football analysis discussion.
    • Just to be clear: I'm not "downplaying" the talent around Bryce... I'm qualifying it. There's a big difference between saying, "we finally have building blocks that we're actually developing" and "we've done enough to say this is a finished product, NO EXCUSES!" It's possible to believe that the 2023 situation was bad and to believe that the current state, while improved, is still incomplete. That's not inconsistency; that's nuance. As for the footwork stuff, again, I've seen the same clips as others. The claim that Bryce is hopping to see over the line just isn't one I've seen corroborated by analysts or tape breakdown. "Both feet off of the ground to throw" happens a ton for QBs (ex: Mahomes, Rodgers, Purdy, etc.), especially when improvising. You're right that there were some encouraging flashes from Bryce last season, and it's nice to finally hear that after so much time was spent pretending otherwise. I'm not arguing that Bryce is elite, I'm just asking that we evaluate him using consistent, measurable criteria to determine his status as a top-10 QB... whether it's via 3rd down %, red zone efficiency, turnover-worthy plays, or yes, big-time throws (which, by the way, has been a valid part of QB evaluation across the league for years even if it wasn't used here during Kyle Allen or Teddy Bridgewater's years. For reference: Allen had 20 BTT at a 3.9% rate. Teddy had 17 BTT at 3.3%). Like you, I'm hoping to see a competent, entertaining offense this season. That's a baseline we can all root for, even if we don't have the same baseline for what makes a QB top-10 (which, to be fair, is what this conversation has been about... though I respect the attempt to reframe it).
    • I am optimistic that we might be on the verge of fielding a sustainable offense finally. The Bryce stats listed above are definitely encouraging. I don’t want to overly inflate this and disregard the previous 1 and a half seasons of production from Bryce and “cherry pick” stats but do hope the benching turns into an inflection point in his trajectory.      Lots of excitement heading into this season. 
×
×
  • Create New...