The Beast : Nice to meet U, sorry to see U go

I spent more than an hour Tuesday morning listening to Miami interim head coach Jeff Stoutland talking Canes in the Edgerrin James Team Meeting Room, and talk he did.

I’ll let the other sites post the quotes but we’ve got the video below, so I encourage you to take the time to watch.

I went through the entire gamut of emotions as I listened to the Canes’ offensive line coach speak. He had the room laughing as well as on the verge of tears. He also had many of us shaking our heads, wondering why we were just now hearing from the man.

For all intents and purposes, Stoutland is on his way out (though if there truly were any member of this staff to keep on board, he’d be it) and that in itself pretty much sums up why UM is is looking for a new head coach.

At the end of the day, Randy Shannon was fired for how this team performed on the field and the overall win/loss record. That said, the ball was dropped in so many other areas, it’s downright depressing.

Coach Stoutland is close to fifty years old and has been a part of this staff for four years, yet wasn’t allowed to speak with the media. Randy stated out his tenure by allowing assistants to talk, but with the caveat that they were only allowed to discuss players they coached.

Pre-Shannon, if we wanted to talk with an Art Kehoe about the Canes, the Noles, about life, about anything – no problem. Then it went from limited access to no access at all. Randy employed the “one voice” mantra, similar to the NFL (and thanks to my boy Bill Belichick). It’s one thing for a NFL franchise to be run that way, as it’s a league more about business and less about the growth of its players. But in college, where we the media focus a lot of our time (or try to, at least) telling players’ stories, we need to get insight from more than just the head coach. Especially an anti-media head coach who has a hard time communicating.

So finally, here’s Coach Stoutland sitting in front of us – in charge of a program in flux – and he’s opening up like his mouth has been sealed for years. I’m sure it was part cathartic, part therapeutic and is came off like something he’s been wanting to do for a while.

To me, Stoutland looks like he’s out of that mold of offensive line coaches. You think of the Kehoes or Tony Wise-type and you get an image of the stocky, tough-guy whose voice bellows full volume and can be heard a mile away. Guys that put the fear of God into you one minute and make you laugh so hard the next, you swear a part of your body is going to fall off.

Offensive line coaches even have their own secret group; The COOL Mushroom Society:

“The Mushroom Society was established several years ago by a group of professional offensive line coaches. The mushroom logo signifies the similarity between the ‘O-Line’ coach and the fungus. Both are kept in the dark and fed garbage yet continue to flourish! C.O.O.L. (Coaches of Offensive Linemen) are proud to be mushrooms.”

Not only is Stoutland a ‘mushroom’; he’s also an amazing guy. Question is, why are we just figuring that out now? All of us heard about his heart issues this past spring, as well as stories that he was a hard-ass regarding his players. However, who knew his dad was a catcher in the Yankees organization? Who knew one of his former players was fighting in Afghanistan?

Hell, who knew he had a street named after him in El Paso, TX – where UM will most likely be bowling this off-season with Stoutland at the helm?

None of us knew and it’s a freakin’ shame because a little over a month from now, the man who worked his tail off for UM the past four years will be looking for a new job. We’ll all have to say ‘goodbye’ just as quickly as we finally said ‘hello’.

I passed wide receivers coach Aubrey Hill in the hall en route to today’s press conference and I held the door for offensive coordinator Mark Whipple while exiting Hecht. Both proving to be awkward moments, though each has happened countless times in the past.

In the past, I’d sit in coaches’ offices and if I passed them by, there’d be some small talk. If I was out at practice, I’d joke with running backs coach Mike Cassano about Pats football or Red Sox baseball with former offensive coordinator Dan Werner.

Then suddenly it all ended and with it went the feel for this team and the ability to figure out why they weren’t winning.

Head coaches do a lot, as do generals and admirals in the armed forced. But if you really want a good feel for how things are going on the front line, you talk to the non-commissioned officers; the sergeants – grunts with a different patch on their sleeve – and for the past few years, those guys have been off limits. They look at us, we look at them and other than the casual “hey coach”, not a word is exchanged and I never got that. Why aren’t a bunch of grown men and professionals ‘allowed’ to talk?

If Coach Whipple didn’t want to deal with the media, so be it. Let him do what he wants. But I can tell you first hand that the majority of the guys on this staff wouldn’t have a problem saying good things about their guys.

Think about it, maybe a Leonard Hankerson would’ve been in the mix for more post-season awards if Coach Hill was allowed to get out there and build his case. Maybe a Brandon Harris would’ve been a first team All ACC player if defensive backs coach Wesley McGriff could’ve provided some PR and sold his star corner a bit.

Rumor is when the new head coach is hired, the entire Hecht Athletic Center is going to get turned upside down, which is good. However, I hope that the administration understands that they can’t do things based on what an Alabama or Ohio State does.

You have to ‘do’ according to your town, your fan base and school – and both the University of Miami and this city are completely different from any other place on earth. Remember, however you want to look at it, this really is the customer service industry. Your customers want to feel like they know as much about their team as humanly possible and in order for that to happen, you need to make your program accessible.

Players can’t be sheltered when they don’t get the job done, nor should they be hidden when they do something great. Assistant coaches and coordinators should also be out there taking some of the media heat off the head coach, as well as sharing in the successes.

Bottom line, it comes down to wins and losses, but why make the process harder than it needs to be?

As an alum, I thank Coach Stoutland for having the cojones to accept the challenge and willingness to be thrust into this situation. As of Saturday he was a muzzled offensive line coach that just lost another football game and Tuesday morning he’s the temporary face of UM football. Pretty impressive.

Equally as impressive, the radar of athletic director Kirby Hocutt and his ability to spot talented and special people. Many of you questions why Coach Stoutland was promoted to interim head coach and after watching today’s presser, you’ll see why.

I hope Coach Stoutland stays on board as I think he’s an asset to this program. I’d also love some back and forth next baseball season, letting him know his Yanks overpaid for an old Derek Jeter, while reminding him that my Sox are gonna kicked their pinstriped asses.

In sixty-seven minutes today I learned more about Jeff Stoutland than I’d picked up the past four years and it’s a shame it had to be that way.

Regardless of how disenchanted I personally am about Miami playing in some fourth-tier bowl game, I’m gonna be rooting like hell for the guy with a street named after him to bring home the win.

Go get ’em you Mushroom.

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