For the most part, I like Mark Richt as a person, but there were times when he’d come out with some comment or observation that would get my back up. The most famous example of that was his “in the arena” brush off from a few years ago. Here’s another:
“When you turn over the play-calling as a head coach, you become more of just a CEO-type of coach,” Richt told SiriusXM College Sports Nation. “Obviously a lot of coaches had success doing it that way, and we did at Georgia, but it’s just not as much fun. You’re just not as involved. I think the players, over time, see you as the grandfather figure, just keeping an eye on everybody.”
At Miami, Richt is calling plays and coaching quarterbacks, and he says it’s mutually beneficial.
“Now, I’m in the heat of every meeting, the heat of every battle on the field, installing stuff, calling stuff, competing on a daily basis against a defense,” he said. “They see my energy, they see my competitive spirit that is more reserved if I’m not in the heat of it. I think it’s healthy for me. I’m enjoying it tremendously, and I think it’s healthy for the players to see me get down and dirty with everybody else.”
Jeez, you’re the head coach. If you don’t like the effect the program structure has on the way you run it, that’s on you, gramps.
And just to repeat the obvious, nobody made Mark Richt hire Schottenheimer when Bobo left. If it were best for Richt and the football program for him to be in the heat, that was the perfect opportunity to put himself back in the fire.