College Football Media: Schedule Strength Vs Blow Outs
There is a bit of a feud going on down in Baton Rouge between Brian Kelly and some of the beat writers. There was some back and forth after LSU’s 20-10 win over Florida Saturday night. On the surface it seems like just a reporter trying to find the most controversial thing to report on. However; here at FirstDown PlayBook we think it is 100% a football discussion that the college football media needs to understand.
Right off the get go, let me tell you, I have no dog in this fight. I’m not a Brian Kelly fan or hater. I did coach at LSU a long time ago but here at FirstDown PlayBook, we are the Switzerland of college football fans. We observe and mostly cheer for good coaching.
My point today is that what Brian Kelly said in the LSU press conference was spot on accurate. Was it aggressive? Yes, but the aggressiveness came from defending his football team. The accuracy of what he said should and better be noticed by everyone, including the college football media.
Like it or not, non football experts are at times determining who gets to play in the college football playoffs these days. It can be a “damed if you do, damed if you don’t” situation for teams like LSU and Notre Dame.
FirstDown PlayBook Has No Dog In This Fight But Brian Kelly Is 100% Correct On This One
Play too many FCS schools in your first two or three games and the college football media will be sure to point that out in December, as the college football playoffs draw near. The media won’t care if the early games were blowouts. Play Clemson and then have Florida on your schedule early and you run the risk of a bad start. Just ask the folks in South Bend right now.
I had coached in college football 20 some years when I finally got an opportunity to coach in the NFL. It did not take me long to learn that the job of the offense is not always to score points. Yes, the offense must understand the big picture and be able to close out games with a three or four point win. It’s called a four minute offense.
Over the past years some have bucked this trend and have had some success. Going for it on fourth down is often glorified as a gutsy decision by the college football media. Not kicking field goals is also praised, as announcers declare “This game will not be won today with field goals! Now to a word from our sponsors over at FanDuel!”
Just Call South Bend This Morning If You Don’t Like A 20-10 SEC Win…
When that very same team loses by two an hour later, you never hear the announcers say “If they would have just kicked that field goal or not gone for it from there own 35, they would have won this game.” Good head coaches look at the big picture or as Kelly said “We were trying to win the game.”
Kelly understands that some games just go how they go and many a coach has lost a game trying to win it by thirty points before they win it by one. He also understands that offenses tend to click or jell later than defenses. Particularly in the era of the transfer portal and changing depth charts.
So if you are a fan who wants your team to cover the spread, consider this. The head coach of your team and Brian Kelly understand the game of football and their football team better than you or I do. Yes, that means even you college sports media. Take a look here.
