JimBob
11-12-2008, 08:01 AM
TV needs to drop 'Mike Gundy Show'
By DAVE SITTLER World Sports Columnist
11/12/2008
Last Modified: 11/12/2008 2:24 AM
STILLWATER — Here's an idea: How about Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy sitting on Ralphie's back while he is working on his offensive schemes during Saturday's game at Colorado?
A little far-fetched? Trust me, if the network suits at ABC sports in Gotham City thought they could convince Gundy to hop on CU's real-life buffalo mascot, they'd do it in a New York minute.
Of all the story lines that have developed during the 2008 college football season, one of the strangest is the over-the-top infatuation TV's talking heads have with Gundy's method of backing away from the sideline to work on his offensive game plan when OSU's defense is on the field.
It was cute the first time they showed it, or even the first 100 times the cameras focused on Gundy, who calls OSU's offensive plays, sitting on a trunk play-scheming for the Cowboys' next possession during their stunning 28-23 upset of then No. 3 Missouri.
"I guess it was the first time they had seen it," Gundy said. "I'd been doing it every game, but at (OSU) the boundary is so close to the sideline that you blend in."
Other stadiums' configurations don't allow Gundy to blend in, so the TV executives tune him in.
But as "Dancing with the Stars," "Survivor" and many other overexposed programs have demonstrated, TV refuses to let go of a good thing long after its expiration date.
So it goes with Gundy. When OSU played at then-No. 1 Texas and No. 2 Texas Tech in two of its past three games, the cameras followed the OSU coach's every move as he found a spot away from the madding crowd to do his work.
Perhaps Gundy needs to pull a Woody Hayes on those camera jockeys. The legendary Ohio State coach used to help the camera operators take a picture of themselves by shoving their intrusive equipment back in their faces.
Well, OK, the Hayes plan might be a bit over the top. But somebody needs to tell these boob tube boobs enough, already.
Here's the deal: When OSU won at Missouri, Gundy was hailed as being an innovator. But when the Cowboys lost to Texas and Texas Tech, a whole bunch of people who should know better got their knickers in a knot.
All of a sudden it was Gundy's fault that OSU's defense surrendered eight touchdowns in a 56-20 loss to the Red Raiders. Why, screamed the clueless, if Gundy had been stomping up and down the sideline and going bonkers instead of studying his playbook on the bench, there's no way Tech's offense could have rolled up 629 total yards.
Bull-feathers. Piffle. And a few other words not allowed in a family newspaper.
If you want to criticize Gundy, blame him for not recruiting players who had the same size, speed and quickness as Tech's defense. But before you go there, understand that OSU's recruiting efforts have improved with each class signed since Gundy took over four seasons ago.
Gundy isn't the first head coach to turn a game over to his coordinators. Hello. Arkansas coach Frank Broyles had stopped wearing a headset on the sideline before Gundy was born.
"I was out of the Coach Broyles school," said former OSU head coach Pat Jones. "Basically, I tried to stay out of their (coordinators) way, stay out of their ear.
"If you don't, you can do just enough to be dangerous. You say things when you don't exactly know what's going on, and you confuse the guys who do."
While it's only halfway, Gundy is doing the same thing as Broyles, Jones and hundreds of other head coaches. When Jones was OSU's defensive coordinator under Jimmy Johnson, the demanding Johnson never opened his mouth unless Jones, "asked him a question. You have to be careful about breaking a (coordinator's) train of thought."
When Gundy decided this season to be one of the few head coaches to call his own plays, he turned the defense totally over to second-year coordinator Tim Beckman. Until last Saturday's meltdown in Lubbock, Beckman's undermanned unit was making steady progress.
All in all, the approach has performed beautifully. OSU is 8-2 overall, 4-2 in the Big 12, ranked No. 11 in the nation and still on track to post the most wins in school history if the Cowboys win at CU (5-5, 2-4), upend No. 6 Oklahoma (9-1, 5-1) on Nov. 29 and win their third straight bowl game under Gundy.
Yet, despite all this success, the worry worts among the OSU fan base and other gadfly critics think Gundy is doing his team a disservice by not showing he is more into the game defensively as he was in the past.
Gundy insists that he is aware of what's going on at all times. If the crowd noise doesn't inform, the gigantic video boards that hover in every stadium help him keep track. He also tunes in on his headset when he needs to discuss strategy like onside kicks, fake punts, etc.
"I don't specialize in defense; I don't spend the time in there (meeting room); I don't study it," he said. "I like (play calling) as much as anything I do. I like being involved in the scheme part of it.
"It makes my job fun, and I also feel like I'm contributing."
Now, to really have some fun, Gundy needs to have the cameras get out of his face and the busybody critics off his back.
By DAVE SITTLER World Sports Columnist
11/12/2008
Last Modified: 11/12/2008 2:24 AM
STILLWATER — Here's an idea: How about Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy sitting on Ralphie's back while he is working on his offensive schemes during Saturday's game at Colorado?
A little far-fetched? Trust me, if the network suits at ABC sports in Gotham City thought they could convince Gundy to hop on CU's real-life buffalo mascot, they'd do it in a New York minute.
Of all the story lines that have developed during the 2008 college football season, one of the strangest is the over-the-top infatuation TV's talking heads have with Gundy's method of backing away from the sideline to work on his offensive game plan when OSU's defense is on the field.
It was cute the first time they showed it, or even the first 100 times the cameras focused on Gundy, who calls OSU's offensive plays, sitting on a trunk play-scheming for the Cowboys' next possession during their stunning 28-23 upset of then No. 3 Missouri.
"I guess it was the first time they had seen it," Gundy said. "I'd been doing it every game, but at (OSU) the boundary is so close to the sideline that you blend in."
Other stadiums' configurations don't allow Gundy to blend in, so the TV executives tune him in.
But as "Dancing with the Stars," "Survivor" and many other overexposed programs have demonstrated, TV refuses to let go of a good thing long after its expiration date.
So it goes with Gundy. When OSU played at then-No. 1 Texas and No. 2 Texas Tech in two of its past three games, the cameras followed the OSU coach's every move as he found a spot away from the madding crowd to do his work.
Perhaps Gundy needs to pull a Woody Hayes on those camera jockeys. The legendary Ohio State coach used to help the camera operators take a picture of themselves by shoving their intrusive equipment back in their faces.
Well, OK, the Hayes plan might be a bit over the top. But somebody needs to tell these boob tube boobs enough, already.
Here's the deal: When OSU won at Missouri, Gundy was hailed as being an innovator. But when the Cowboys lost to Texas and Texas Tech, a whole bunch of people who should know better got their knickers in a knot.
All of a sudden it was Gundy's fault that OSU's defense surrendered eight touchdowns in a 56-20 loss to the Red Raiders. Why, screamed the clueless, if Gundy had been stomping up and down the sideline and going bonkers instead of studying his playbook on the bench, there's no way Tech's offense could have rolled up 629 total yards.
Bull-feathers. Piffle. And a few other words not allowed in a family newspaper.
If you want to criticize Gundy, blame him for not recruiting players who had the same size, speed and quickness as Tech's defense. But before you go there, understand that OSU's recruiting efforts have improved with each class signed since Gundy took over four seasons ago.
Gundy isn't the first head coach to turn a game over to his coordinators. Hello. Arkansas coach Frank Broyles had stopped wearing a headset on the sideline before Gundy was born.
"I was out of the Coach Broyles school," said former OSU head coach Pat Jones. "Basically, I tried to stay out of their (coordinators) way, stay out of their ear.
"If you don't, you can do just enough to be dangerous. You say things when you don't exactly know what's going on, and you confuse the guys who do."
While it's only halfway, Gundy is doing the same thing as Broyles, Jones and hundreds of other head coaches. When Jones was OSU's defensive coordinator under Jimmy Johnson, the demanding Johnson never opened his mouth unless Jones, "asked him a question. You have to be careful about breaking a (coordinator's) train of thought."
When Gundy decided this season to be one of the few head coaches to call his own plays, he turned the defense totally over to second-year coordinator Tim Beckman. Until last Saturday's meltdown in Lubbock, Beckman's undermanned unit was making steady progress.
All in all, the approach has performed beautifully. OSU is 8-2 overall, 4-2 in the Big 12, ranked No. 11 in the nation and still on track to post the most wins in school history if the Cowboys win at CU (5-5, 2-4), upend No. 6 Oklahoma (9-1, 5-1) on Nov. 29 and win their third straight bowl game under Gundy.
Yet, despite all this success, the worry worts among the OSU fan base and other gadfly critics think Gundy is doing his team a disservice by not showing he is more into the game defensively as he was in the past.
Gundy insists that he is aware of what's going on at all times. If the crowd noise doesn't inform, the gigantic video boards that hover in every stadium help him keep track. He also tunes in on his headset when he needs to discuss strategy like onside kicks, fake punts, etc.
"I don't specialize in defense; I don't spend the time in there (meeting room); I don't study it," he said. "I like (play calling) as much as anything I do. I like being involved in the scheme part of it.
"It makes my job fun, and I also feel like I'm contributing."
Now, to really have some fun, Gundy needs to have the cameras get out of his face and the busybody critics off his back.