Hey guys, I had a good convo with a buddy of mine who has been on the Canes coaching staff and has worked with Harbaugh but he had a lot of interesting stuff to say about our situation, Michigan's situation, and how they compare.
Some of the things he said we've heard already or are kind of obvious but thought I'd pass along from a direct source. If there's anything else you guys want me to ask him, let me know. Cheers.
1. The University of Miami "would not exist" if it weren't for geography and proximity to high school talent. Says the Michigan Facilities are night and day from the UM facilities and there is no way we can compete with their gameday atmosphere. With it's average facilities, lack of fan support, and lack of financial backing, UM is an anomaly.
2. Says Kehoe is a good coach whom players really like. Couldn't really pinpoint the problem this year but said it could very well be recruiting. (surprising I know)
3. Larry Scott is awesome and well liked and was the best pick for interim. Great TE coach.
4. Dorito is arrogant, stubborn, won't adjust or listen to players. Good coordinators allow some room for input from players to adapt to their strengths. Dude can't take critiques. (That was obvious)
5. Coley is well liked by players and considered by others in the "coaching world" a good developer of QBs. When asked about play calling he pointed more towards Golden than Coley as the issue. Also our o-line being awful doesn't help.
6. Golden was more outgoing than Randy and was a better PR guy who looked good. BUT, Golden was a huge micromanager of his assistant coaches. Coaches like Fisch and Barrow couldn't stand it, hence why they left. Says Harbaugh is more NFL style in that he gives his assistants autonomy. Shannon, he said he didn't have that "it" factor to make him a good head coach.
7A. In terms of recruiting, the stereotype is that South Florida high school players tend to be a little more "self-centered" than in other regions of the country. Says it can be a double edged sword-- they have a certain arrogance/confidence/swagger or w/e you call it that translates to on-field success-- but can also yield bad results as we saw when the team split apart and quit last year. You can sort of see that when Kaaya mentioned during a passing camp that all the Miami kids "wanted to run go-routes" while kids back home in Cali were much more focused on the whole route tree etc. Not an inditement against south florida boys but says you definitely need a coach that can handle the difference in attitude.
7B. One story he told me about Ray Ray Armstrong sums up this attitude. On the bus to the stadium before the Ohio State game, coach Shannon asked Ray Ray, "When they test you over the top, are you going to A. Go for the Pick B. Wrap up and make the tackle if he catches it, or C. Lay Him Out if he catches it."...... Ray Ray responds with "Lay Him Out." Well as expected in that game they tested him over the top, he goes for the kill shot, whiffs and they score a touchdown. I think the the point of this story is that you need a mix between "lay them out" types and "wrap up and make the tackle" types. Being that SoFla kids are more "lay them out" types, you need the right guy to channel that for the best team results.
8. Harbaugh is nuts but really knows how to motivate his players. He was there when Brady Hoke was at Michigan and says the NUMBER ONE difference from last year to this year is confidence. Actually says Hoke's teams had decent talent, more so than this year's team. If I had told him they'd be playing as well as they are now, he'd say I was insane.
9. Kaaya is the real deal. (Obvious I know, but nice to hear from the outside)
10. Our receivers are awesome and stand out around the country, kudos to KB and our recruiting.
11. Our NFL pipeline is the number 1 selling point in recruiting. Proximity to home to SoFla players is a second. Talented kids will always want to go to UM to get that shot at the NFL more so than other programs. Therefore, having our former players around is really effing important.
12. Defensive Line play is probably the most overlooked but most important part of winning college football games, especially in this era of spread. Elite DTs take a longer time to develop than other positions because their physical development needs to catch up compared to other positions. Says that's the only way you can compete with the big boys like Ohio State.
Some of the things he said we've heard already or are kind of obvious but thought I'd pass along from a direct source. If there's anything else you guys want me to ask him, let me know. Cheers.
1. The University of Miami "would not exist" if it weren't for geography and proximity to high school talent. Says the Michigan Facilities are night and day from the UM facilities and there is no way we can compete with their gameday atmosphere. With it's average facilities, lack of fan support, and lack of financial backing, UM is an anomaly.
2. Says Kehoe is a good coach whom players really like. Couldn't really pinpoint the problem this year but said it could very well be recruiting. (surprising I know)
3. Larry Scott is awesome and well liked and was the best pick for interim. Great TE coach.
4. Dorito is arrogant, stubborn, won't adjust or listen to players. Good coordinators allow some room for input from players to adapt to their strengths. Dude can't take critiques. (That was obvious)
5. Coley is well liked by players and considered by others in the "coaching world" a good developer of QBs. When asked about play calling he pointed more towards Golden than Coley as the issue. Also our o-line being awful doesn't help.
6. Golden was more outgoing than Randy and was a better PR guy who looked good. BUT, Golden was a huge micromanager of his assistant coaches. Coaches like Fisch and Barrow couldn't stand it, hence why they left. Says Harbaugh is more NFL style in that he gives his assistants autonomy. Shannon, he said he didn't have that "it" factor to make him a good head coach.
7A. In terms of recruiting, the stereotype is that South Florida high school players tend to be a little more "self-centered" than in other regions of the country. Says it can be a double edged sword-- they have a certain arrogance/confidence/swagger or w/e you call it that translates to on-field success-- but can also yield bad results as we saw when the team split apart and quit last year. You can sort of see that when Kaaya mentioned during a passing camp that all the Miami kids "wanted to run go-routes" while kids back home in Cali were much more focused on the whole route tree etc. Not an inditement against south florida boys but says you definitely need a coach that can handle the difference in attitude.
7B. One story he told me about Ray Ray Armstrong sums up this attitude. On the bus to the stadium before the Ohio State game, coach Shannon asked Ray Ray, "When they test you over the top, are you going to A. Go for the Pick B. Wrap up and make the tackle if he catches it, or C. Lay Him Out if he catches it."...... Ray Ray responds with "Lay Him Out." Well as expected in that game they tested him over the top, he goes for the kill shot, whiffs and they score a touchdown. I think the the point of this story is that you need a mix between "lay them out" types and "wrap up and make the tackle" types. Being that SoFla kids are more "lay them out" types, you need the right guy to channel that for the best team results.
8. Harbaugh is nuts but really knows how to motivate his players. He was there when Brady Hoke was at Michigan and says the NUMBER ONE difference from last year to this year is confidence. Actually says Hoke's teams had decent talent, more so than this year's team. If I had told him they'd be playing as well as they are now, he'd say I was insane.
9. Kaaya is the real deal. (Obvious I know, but nice to hear from the outside)
10. Our receivers are awesome and stand out around the country, kudos to KB and our recruiting.
11. Our NFL pipeline is the number 1 selling point in recruiting. Proximity to home to SoFla players is a second. Talented kids will always want to go to UM to get that shot at the NFL more so than other programs. Therefore, having our former players around is really effing important.
12. Defensive Line play is probably the most overlooked but most important part of winning college football games, especially in this era of spread. Elite DTs take a longer time to develop than other positions because their physical development needs to catch up compared to other positions. Says that's the only way you can compete with the big boys like Ohio State.
