This Date in College Football Belt History – October 8

Casey — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 14:16:59 +0000

The top-ranked, 4-0 Southern Cal Trojans of coach John Robinson hosted Bear Bryant’s 7^th ranked, 3-1 Alabama Crimson Tide. Alabama had lost at Nebraska earlier & this game would go a long way in determining how their season would play out. Led by All-American TE Ozzie Newsome, QB Jeff Rutledge, & RB Tony Nathan the Crimson Tide’s offense was ready to claim their first Belt reign but the young defense would have to mature quickly to make the dream a reality. Nathan scored 2 touchdowns in the 4^th quarter but it was Alabama’s LB Barry Krauss interception of a 2-point conversion pass that sealed the Crimson Tide’s 21-20 win & The Belt had a new champion. Southern Cal scored the only points of the 1^st half when PK Frank Jordan hit a 32-yard field goal. Alabama took the lead in the 3^rd quarter when All-SEC RB Johnny Davis carried in from 2 yards giving the Crimson Tide a 7-3 advantage. Jordan’s 23-yard field goal came before Nathan’s touchdowns runs of 1 & 13 yards as Alabama had a 21-6 lead early in the final quarter. Nathan’s second touchdown run was set-up by an interception of Southern Cal’s QB Rob Hertel when Crimson Tide’s DE Wayne Hamilton tipped a pass to DT Curtis McGriff giving Alabama the ball at the Trojans’ 8-yard line. Hertel connected with WR Calvin Sweeney on a 10-yard touchdown pass with 6:46 left to play. The 2-point conversion pass to RB Mosi Tatupu got the Trojans within 7 points at 21-14. After forcing an Alabama punt, Southern Cal went 79 yards with RB Lynn Cain scoring the touchdown on a 1-yard run with 0:39 left. Instead of settling for the tie, Coach Robinson chose to try for the win with a 2-point conversion. Hertel was pressured & his desperation pass, after being pressured by Hamilton, was intercepted by Krauss to secure the victory for the Crimson Tide. Rutledge threw for just 8 yards completing 2 of 4 pass attempts while Nathan rushed for 76 yards with his 2 scores. Hertel threw for 239 yards with a touchdown but 2 interceptions & WR Randy Simmrin had 6 catches for 120 yards in the loss. The Trojans dominated statistically but 10 penalties for 124 yards helped to stall several drives. Southern Cal finished the season 8-4 while the Crimson Tide finished 11-1, SEC Champions & ranked 2^nd nationally. Southern Cal would play for The Belt again in 1978.

The College Football Belt

Sporting News’ 50 Greatest Coaches

Chas — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 15:35:18 +0000

The Sporting News recently released a list of the 50 greatest coaches of all-time, as selected by a panel of Hall of Famers, championship coaches and other experts.

You can read the entire article on their web site, but here is the complete list:

1. John Wooden, college basketball
2. Vince Lombardi, NFL
3. Bear Bryant, college football
4. Phil Jackson, NBA
5. Don Shula, NFL
6. Red Auerbach, NBA
7. Scotty Bowman, NHL
8. Dean Smith, college basketball
9. Casey Stengel, MLB
10. Knute Rockne, college football
11. Pat Summitt, women’s college basketball
12. Paul Brown, NFL
13. Joe Paterno, college football
14. George Halas, NFL
15. Chuck Noll, NFL
16. Bob Knight, college basketball
17. Joe Gibbs, NFL
18. Tom Landry, NFL
19. Mike Krzyzewski, college basketball
20. Bill Belichick, NFL
21. Adolph Rupp, college basketball
22. Joe McCarthy, MLB
23. Eddie Robinson, college football
24. Bobby Bowden, college football
25. John McGraw, MLB
26. Bill Walsh, NFL
27. Woody Hayes, college football
28. Connie Mack, MLB
29. Bud Wilkinson, college football
30. Pat Riley, NBA
31. Pete Newell, college basketball
32. Joe Torre, MLB
33. Bill Parcells, NFL
34. Tom Osborne, college football
35. Walter Alston, MLB
36. Bo Schembechler, college football
37. Toe Blake, NHL
38. Sparky Anderson, MLB
39. Al Arbour, NHL
40. Amos Alonzo Stagg, college football
41. Tony La Russa, MLB
42. Geno Auriemma, women’s college basketball
43. Dick Irvin, NHL
44. Ara Parseghian, college football
45. Chuck Daly, NBA
46. Bobby Cox, MLB
47. Hank Iba, college basketball
48. Tommy Lasorda, MLB
49. Gregg Popovich, NBA
50. Herb Brooks, NHL

I figured that, for the most part, I would let the list speak for itself and just ask the rest of the bench to share your thoughts. The one thing that strikes me about the list, though, is how much more obvious the greatest coaches of all-time are for basketball and football than they are for baseball.

I’m pretty certain no one will argue that John Wooden is the greatest college basketball coach of all-time, or that the #1 spot in pro basketball comes down to either Phil Jackson or Red Auerbach. I also think that most people would pick Vince Lombardi for pro football, although I’m not entirely certain that Bear Bryant would be the consensus choice for college football. That is, I’m pretty sure one regular contributor here will disagree.

However, my point is that I’m a little surprised that Casey Stengel (#9) tops the baseball list over Joe McCarthy, who is all the way down at #22. But, more interesting is the fact that there are seven pro football coaches in the top 20 and only one baseball manager. My first inclination would be to think this is because football coaches are considered much more important to the success of their teams than are baseball managers, but could it possibly be that success with the New York Yankees, arguably the most dominating sports franchise of all-time, is discounted a little?

What are your thoughts on the list? We’d love to hear what you have to say.

Pickin' Splinters » Bear Bryant

This Date in College Football Belt History – October 8

Sporting News’ 50 Greatest Coaches