04-15-2013, 11:53 AM
Briles is the only coach who really stands out to me on that list. Hoke and Golden haven't really proven all that much, except that they can win at places like San Diego State and Temple, though Hoke has proven he can recruit. Fitzgerald is OK, and it has to be tough recruiting against other private schools in your footprint, like ND and Purdue. James Franklin deserves some credit for making Vandy competitive, but I don't remember them cracking the Top 10 yet under his watch.
David Shaw is discounted a bit because so many people think he's simply the beneficiary of riding EUTM's coattails. What is becoming more apparent to me though is that David Shaw and Jim Harbaugh both played significant roles in building Stanford's football program. In fact, just looking at Stanford's offense and seeing Shaw's comments after the game Saturday, Shaw has as much to do with the style of offense Stanford and the Niners play as Harbaugh. Because the OCs are changing at Stanford and the style remains the same. The only constant is David Shaw.
David Shaw is discounted a bit because so many people think he's simply the beneficiary of riding EUTM's coattails. What is becoming more apparent to me though is that David Shaw and Jim Harbaugh both played significant roles in building Stanford's football program. In fact, just looking at Stanford's offense and seeing Shaw's comments after the game Saturday, Shaw has as much to do with the style of offense Stanford and the Niners play as Harbaugh. Because the OCs are changing at Stanford and the style remains the same. The only constant is David Shaw.