Re: Lane Kiffin a candidate for 49ers OC job
Ol
certainly not trying to be a smarty pants or anything like that and i know i'm nit-picking your post but what constitutes a good 'cultural fit'? i can think of 3 guys that were good cultural fits in the last 20 or so years that were head coaches at the University.....coaches stallings, dubose and shula. 2 of those 3 were really not that good. i would argue that coach saban isn't necessarily a 'cultural fit' at Alabama......he has no southern accent, had no ties to Alabama, didn't play here, didn't grow up in the state, etc. i personally think that coach kiffin would do pretty well as head coach (here or anywhere else) AFTER a couple or 3 more years spending time as OC. jmo.
Hmmmm....guess I should have been more specific. When I referred to "a cultural fit," I wasn't referring to Southern culture at all. I was referring to the demands of the Alabama Head Football Coach job. Point being, we agree that Stallings was a cultural fit. But I would contend that that had nothing to do with his Southern-ness. And I disagree that either DuBose or Shula were fits.
The Alabama HFC has to be tough but fair. Shula was neither. Knowledgeable TF posters have repeatedly noted that players called him "Sheila." He was also notorious for playing favorites. He was neither tough nor fair.
The Alabama HFC has to command respect. DuBose failed that on several fronts. Aside from the affair with an Athletic Department employee, he retreated into religious zealotry (the last refuge of the scoundrel, as Dr. Johnson said), pitted staff members against one another, completely overhauled game plans the day before kickoff. He totally failed to command respect or to lead in a manner that makes others want to follow.
The HFC at Alabama has to balance a lot of contradictions. He has to come off as a lovable grandfather when appropriate, but have that air that says, "I'm nice now, but cross me and I'll knock your ?&)&; in the dirt so fast you won't know where that truck came from."
He has to handle the print and broadcast media well. Not make the ink-stained wretches and talking heads like him, but rather handle them to get a message out.
Where I think Kiffin lacks is the respect factor. Not as to his knowledge. That's unquestioned. It's his ability to be the public face of the most prominent institution in the state. He's 40 years old, and while he has matured some, every time he gets in front of a microphone, he still has a wide streak of smug smartass fraternity BMOC.
At this age, I just think it's hardwired, and isn't going to change. That's acceptable, maybe even desirable, in the HC at some schools. It's acceptable in an assistant at Alabama. It's not acceptable in the HFC at Alabama.
So when I say he's not a cultural fit, I'm talking about for the demands of this unique job, not that he needs to come across as a good ol' boy. Saban is a perfect cultural fit, and he's about as far away from a GOB as you can get.
