Offseason wish: learn more about the O-Staff's dynamics

LuCane

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Don't know if those closer to the team or a journalist would be willing to take on this in-depth look, but I wish we'd hear more about how the offensive staff is constructed, their roles and their overall mission.

What's Jon Richt's role as QB coach? Is it technical in nature, gameplanning or both?
What's the day-to-day like for Thomas Brown? How much input does he have into playcalling?
Does Searels stick to his unit or chip in to overall strategy?
What are Dugans' strengths and where does he seek to improve?
How much does Hartley work with Dugans?
Who helps with gameplanning?
Who are Mark Richt's eyes in the booth on gameday?
Richt is clearly the leader for the offense and we have a glimpse of his philosophies based on prior stints and last year, but what are the philosophical tendencies of some of the other guys?

If some of you just have opinions and want to kickoff a discussion about this topic, would be helpful to learn.
 
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Great questions Lu!
But good luck with the lazy local media asking these type of questions.
Especially Mamary Navarro, Susan Miller Dingbat and Matt Portapotty.
 
Jon Richt doesn't need to be one on our 9 (soon to be 10) assistant coaches


He can be an analyst. We need an OC, or at least a passing game coordinator
 
Somehow the first post wasn't about Jon Richt, what restraint!

I would also like to know these things about the O, but the rest as well. I get what guys do on paper, but I'd find it interesting to hear more about what they actually do in a day and what they're real responsibilities are.
 
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Jon Richt doesn't need to be one on our 9 (soon to be 10) assistant coaches


He can be an analyst. We need an OC, or at least a passing game coordinator

You don't know anything about Jon Richts abilities or job duties yet you take such a hard line.

He literally does nothing that Richt doesn't directly manage. Jon offers nothing.
 
Jon Richt doesn't need to be one on our 9 (soon to be 10) assistant coaches


He can be an analyst. We need an OC, or at least a passing game coordinator

You don't know anything about Jon Richts abilities or job duties yet you take such a hard line.

He literally does nothing that Richt doesn't directly manage. Jon offers nothing.

Curious to how you know this to be fact, or are your thoughts derived from assumptions that are purely speculatory at its core?
 
It would be nice if Pete could get some Q&A with some of the staff to find these answers.
 
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I don't want to take a hard line about the dynamic between Richt, Jon, and Thomas Brown without knowing everything but I think it's fair to be skeptical of it. I respect Mark Richt's credentials quite a bit but know he's far from perfect. And Brown and Jon are both disciples of Richt with limited experience in their respective roles and very limited experience under coaches not named Mark Richt.

So are there any experienced offensive minds on this staff that will challenge Richt on his playcalling and QB evaluations or at least offer somewhat of a different perspective? If not, how can that be a good thing?
 
The Offensive Staff has a lot to prove this season. The only guy who has objectively done an above average job to this point is Dugans, both in coaching and recruiting.

Jon Right seems useless. I would hope we use our 10th coaching spot on an offensive passing guy.
 
Brown is a disaster. Let's not even bother arguing it. Searels rode with the same underperforming OL until injuries dictated a change. Harley has done pretty well but I'm not sold on Polendey being at Miami. Jon Richt should be apprenticing somewhere. Not sure he's ready for a major gig like this. It all falls on CMR though. There's a lot of youth so mistakes will be made but there's a bunch of talent/speed to tinker with. Make it happen or hire someone to run the offense.
 
According to another ongoing thread, so far we have some feedback on this question:

Who are Mark Richt's eyes in the booth on gameday?

- On gameday (this one's for @
LuCane):
I asked him who his eyes and ears in the box where. "Jon is in the room with me coaching quarterbacks with me everyday. He knows what we are looking for and what we are trying to do. He'll yell out a Rat call from a Cover 1 or something pre-snap. He's talking about the coverages pre-snap everytime. Also post-snap. What they did differently or what he sees. I wish I was up there. You can really see everything, so I rely on that. I guess I would miss stuff I see on the field too though. Like sometimes I'll just look over and say 'that boy ain't keeping up with Ahmmon Rich" in a way I couldn't see from the box. And Searles has a grad assistant up there, they are like blood brothers, that's his guy, and he's talking all about the front 7 and the line while Jon's talking coverages."
https://www.canesinsight.com/thread/recruiting/119383
 
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Yeah Lu, I need somebody to justify paying some kid $400K to be a "coverage reader"...or to say "GOOD BALL!" all practice.
 
Yeah Lu, I need somebody to justify paying some kid $400K to be a "coverage reader"...or to say "GOOD BALL!" all practice.
As I said in response to the other thread, I genuinely have no idea what Jon's credentials are or where his expertise lies. Rather than focus on Jon entirely, there's an element here begging the question of "what's Thomas Brown's role?" Is it game planning? If Richt is calling plays and Jon is acting as his eyes on coverage, where does the co-OC come into play?

I won't make conclusions without solid information and I just don't know enough to really say much. Going to use this thread as a reference point mostly for fact-finding this offseason. No real opinion other than broad-based concern because, on offense, everything seems to bottleneck at Richt and obviously we, as fans, want the offense to reach its potential.
 
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Trashing Jon Richt is unproductive.. He's Marks son who he would like to mentor. That's his credential period. I'm not sure about the 400,000 but if true that should probably be less. We can only make a sound judgement about weather his being here is a net plus or a net minus after some time has passed. Bobby did the same thing with Jeff but he fast tracked which in my opinion not only hurt the program but hurt his son as well. Being in the booth is tremendous experience. As I understand it he is already a plus in recruiting. Let it play out.
 
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Trashing Jon Richt is unproductive.. He's Marks son who he would like to mentor. That's his credential period. I'm not sure about the 400,000 but if true that should probably be less. We can only make a sound judgement about weather his being here is a net plus or a net minus after some time has passed. Bobby did the same thing with Jeff but he fast tracked which in my option not only hurt the program but hurt his son as well. Being in the booth is tremendous experience. As I understand it he is already a plus in recruiting. Let it play out.
Not sure if this is to me, but to be clear, I'm not trashing Jon. There isn't enough info. Period. The whole dynamic of the offensive staff is a bit of a mystery. Hence, the thread. From an outsider's perspective, it just looks like Richt with guys helping him. If that's the case, it's a fair concern because of "bottlenecking." Not so much during the week but in critical in-game moments.

As a positive data point, Richt changed his approach later in the season re: quicker drops and, in the WVU game, went to pass-first.
 
You'll never get a confirmed number for any of our coaches. We can make highly educated guesses but the fact of the matter is UM doesn't release those numbers and they don't have to.
 
Not directed at you Lu; but I dont get why some of you guys are so shocked by nepotism. I feel like every winning coach has a son, nephew, cousin, brother, etc on the team they coach.

I would be way worried if a loser like Al Golden or Randy Shannon had family in an important role. Proven coaches family should get the benefit of the doubt , imo. They have been around one of the best to do it their entire life. I trust that until definitively proven otherwise. I'm sure Richt is getting a good value out of his sons abilities. There is no reason for Richt to risk his job to give his son a cushy salary.

I could see Richt lowballing his son on salary to pay the other coaches more while he grooms him for future success. I doubt Jon would complain; Especially when he gets to build his Resume and hone his craft.

I'm sure Richt knows exactly what he needs to run a successful offense. It isn't like Richt has shown an inability to change or try something different. He did that in almost every game.

With that said, i would still like to know the specific roles and responsibilities of each coach in relation to the offensive game plan from week to week, just like Lu.

That way i can know whose leaving us for another Job or not!!!
 
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