Originally Posted by
Acymetric
I feel like I probably talk out of both sides of my mouth on this (or at least come across this way), because it is tricky. On the one hand, yes the players have to play well and execute. The coaches can't go out on the field and play for them. On the other hand, it is the coaches' responsibility to recruit, develop players, and implement schemes to mitigate player weaknesses, so "the problem is player execution or lack of quality players" still parses as a coaching problem to me (especially at the college level, I probably tend to shift more responsibility towards the players in the pros whether that is reasonable or not).
Yup. I don't blame the players for turning it over on 1st and two, I blame the moronic coaching that called the trick play in the first place.
Do they both share some of the blame? Of course, but it's the coaches that put the players in that position in the first place. Had Jackson run and fumbled, that's different. (And of course that's the play that should have been called...just one of many.)
Q "Why do you like Duke, you didn't even go there." A "Because my art school didn't have a basketball team."