I was never very good at choosing schools, so maybe I shouldn’t be writing this piece. In second grade, I got in a huge fight with my best friend Matt Kamen (now one of the top swimmers in the Ivy League, by the way) about something or the other. That same day, I got accepted to Saint David’s, an elite elementary school three blocks from my house. I decided right there that I would go. I don’t talk to anyone from there anymore.
At the same time, I don’t think schools have ever been very good at choosing me, as evidenced by my academic track record here on the hilltop, where I just cleared the 3.0 hurdle last semester for the first time in five tries.
I tell you this because the essential questions in the recent hire of Tyrone Willingham as the first black coach in the history of Notre Dame football revolve around these basic issues: Did ND choose the right man? Did Willingham choose the right school?
There is no argument that Tyrone Willingham’s hire by the Fighting Irish will advance the cause of black head coaches throughout football. Of the 117 Division I college football programs, only four have black head men after the hire of Willingham. With the recent buyout of Dennis Green of the NFL’s Minnesota Vikings, only two NFL teams?the Bucs and the Jets?have black head coaches, and the Bucs’ Tony Dungy is widely expected to be fired if he doesn’t guide the Bucs to at least the NFC title game.
These numbers have struck many as odd, especially considering the wide-scale diversification of football since the 1980s, when many top players, on both sides of the ball, are now black. It would seem that black head coaches would have an edge in recruiting and relating to talent, shown in the NFL by Green’s nine straight playoff appearances and the fact that the only two black coaches in the NFL will both be active this weekend, the first of the postseason.
As has been shown at the highest level of football, black coaches can succeed. A new civil rights movement is burgeoning in the coaching ranks, where statements need to be made to advance the cause of those worthy of a head coaching position who continually get overlooked. Willingham is the poster boy for this movement. He becomes Notre Dame’s first black coach in any sport, and assumes control of the most famous college football program in history. If Willingham can succeed in his new role, it will almost assuredly lead to more black hires. In this way, Willingham is a quiet, determined and disciplined leader of this new movement among the coaching ranks.
The question now is: Can he succeed?
Willingham inherits the most storied program in college football, but a program nearly decimated by Athletic Director Kevin White’s blunders over the past month. He grabbed George O’ Leary without even checking on his resume, which will make the program appear bush league to recruits. Willingham must attempt to mold a national championship contender at a school with extremely rigorous academic standards?at Stanford, he amassed only a 44-36 record in a similar situation. His predecessor at N.D., Bob Davie, had a 45-34 record, good enough to get him canned.
Building a dynamic team at a school like Notre Dame will only be one of Willingham’s challenges: he also faces a rough schedule, where every game is nationally televised. All his moves will be under the media’s microscope as “symbolic of all black coaches everywhere.”
In addition, Willingham runs a west coast, short-pass oriented offense, taught to him by Stanford legends Bill Walsh and Dennis Green. Pac-10 coaches do not generally recruit based on defensive ability, but rather offensive firepower, which explains why common Pac-10 final scores are in the 56-53 region. Willingham’s short game works because of this lack of defensive talent, and linebackers not getting to the ball quickly enough. When he begins to coach ND, however, linebackers will be much faster, defensive schemes will be much more advanced, and Willingham must install several new wrinkles in his base offense in order to succeed regularly.
Supporters praise Willingham for his discipline and determination, which are two attributes he will need over the next year. In 1986, Lou Holtz assumed control of the Fighting Irish. According to college football legend, at his first team meeting, he told a returning starter to get his feet down from a chair or risk losing his scholarship, launching Holtz as a respected leader. Few argue that Willingham will have similar fabled moments and command respect from his team.
The true issue here is not a matter of black and white. Willingham’s color is simply one side note to his eventual success or failure. However, the argument should be: Can Willingham handle the pressure sure to result from the most notable coaching position in collegiate football? And, is Willingham good enough as a coach to produce a winning record?
