Some of the top college football head coaches had some things to say from Week 10.
Teams’ College Football Playoff dreams were elevated and crushed after Week 10’s action.
For teams like the Notre Dame Fighting Irish who upset the Clemson Tigers in South Bend, they can feel fantastic about their chances of getting in. As for teams like the Georgia Bulldogs who lost to the Florida Gators in Jacksonville, next year will absolutely 100 percent be the year the Dawgs get back on top under Kirby Smart. All four coaches involved in those games had things to say.
Extracting important information from college football coachspeak is hard
Jim Harbaugh on any positive takeaways from Michigan’s 1-2 start to the season.
“They’re learning,” said Harbaugh. “They’re learning how to do it, they’re learning how to make those plays. Our guys are guys are strong guys, talented guys. They’re guys who play really hard. Just being able to trust the fundamentals and the techniques. That’s where we need to take the next step.”
Coachspeak Translator: Learning will be a positive spin on the word losing, which is something the Michigan Wolverines are doing a great job of under Jim Harbaugh. This is year six for Harbaugh back at his alma mater, yet the Wolverines continue to be the most consistently underwhelming team in the Big Ten. Michigan needs to actually learn from its losses and start winning games.
Dan Mullen on Florida getting its first win over Georgia since 2016.
“It feels great, obviously, winning this big-time game,” said Mullen. “It’s put us in a good and decent position. It’s put us in a position to get ready to go beat Arkansas. We have Arkansas in seven days. That’s what it’s put us in a position to do. We’re at the midpoint of the season, we’re in first place in the East. Big win. I’m really proud of how our guys played and responded against one of the top defense’s and one of the top overall teams in the country.”
Coachspeak Translator: Dan Mullen has already booked his plane tickets to the 2020 SEC Championship game in Atlanta in a few weeks. There is no way his Florida team loses two more times in the regular season. The Gators will win the SEC East, and Mullen knows it. However, he understands his team is not ready to take on the juggernaut Alabama Crimson Tide in December.
Kirby Smart on where Georgia goes from here after losing to Florida.
“What good does frustration do right now? I want these young men to grow up and be great husbands and fathers,” said Smart. “If we’re going to live in the past and worry about missed opportunities, you can’t do that. It is what it is. Florida beat us. Florida out-executed us. They did a really good job. I’m not making it about injuries, I’m not making it about anything. I’m making it about they beat us. We’ve got to get better and that starts with me. I’ve got to do a better job and we’re going to do a better job but I’m not frustrated with the plight we’re in. We made our bed.”
Coachspeak Translator: Going with the “great husbands and fathers” cliche is not going to magically make Dawg Nation feel any better about this loss. Kirby Smart is better than that. Could his team have executed better vs. the Gators? Absolutely, but Smart must look in the mirror and accept blame that he and his staff did not put his players in the best positions to succeed.
Dabo Swinney on Clemson falling to Notre Dame why it happened.
“I will say this: I’ve been doing this a long time, and I know we made a lot of mistakes and have a lot to improve on, but I have never been more proud of a team,” said Swinney. “You can’t ask for more. They fought with every ounce they had. Overcame a lot. Obviously got in a big hole. Back-to-back turnovers, scoop-and-score. We’ve had some really, really tough breaks with that as of late. Three games in a row where we’ve scored for them on offense. We have been able to overcome that, and tonight we weren’t. That was the difference in the game at halftime.
Coachspeak Translator: Dabo Swinney understands not being mentally sharp in the first half is what cost the Tigers vs. the Irish. While he should be proud of the job his team did to fight back, you cannot expect to beat a top-four team in their country with a backup quarterback when your star running back gift wraps six points to the opposition because he cannot hold onto the football.
Brian Kelly on Notre Dame’s keys to success to beating top-ranked Clemson.
“We ran the ball for over 200 yards,” said Kelly. “I don’t know when last time that team has given up 200 yards rushing. We threw the ball effectively. We threw it for 300. When you rush for 200 and you throw for 300, you’re doing some pretty good things offensively. Yeah, we’d like to play a little bit better defensively in certain situations. When you look at it, college football puts so much pressure on defenses that I think it’s the ability to really be who you are. As I’ve said, we’re not going to shy away from the fact that we have to stop the run and run the football if we’re going to win these kinds of games. And that’s what we did today.”
Coachspeak Translator: Brian Kelly proved to himself and his team the Irish’s keys to winning big this season: Running the football with conviction, playing great defense and not turning the football over. If the Irish can execute like that the rest of the way, Notre Dame will make the College Football Playoff for the second time in three years, possibly being able to win it all.
So what ties what all five head coaches of note had to say together from the weekend that was in college football? It all comes down to execution. Did your players do what they were supposed to do on the field? If the answer is yes, then your team probably one. If the answer is no, then you are talking about “learning”, “great husbands and fathers” and how you’ve “never been more proud.”
As expected, high-stakes games always bring out the best coachspeak, especially from the losers.
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