Being head coach and a main coordinator on a football team is a lot to carry.
So, when news got out that DeWayne Walker was going to relieve a lot of his defensive coordinator responsibilities to linebackers coach Dale Lindsey, I thought it was a step in the right direction.
There are a few things that concern me, however.
For one, making such a switch in the middle of the season isn’t preferred. Lindsey is much different than Walker in style and demeanor, and represents a new voice for the defensive unit to adhere to. Having an offseason to adjust would be one thing, but switching mid-week, when you have No. 3 Boise State coming to town this weekend no-less, is a tough order of business for any coaching staff and team to navigate through.
Lindsey brings a world of experience to the position as well, but is he the right man for the job? That’s something that will be answered in the coming weeks. But he has a mountain of work in front of him and will need to hit the ground running, with literally zero time to ease into the position.
Lindsey said he has a good grasp of the defensive personnel and will lean strongly on his assistants.
“I will put my two cents in where I think it will help,” he said. “But, we’ve got a good defensive line coach, we’ve got two good secondary coaches. I’m not a micro-manager. I’d like everybody’s input, I’d like to help. If I can help, fine, if I can’t, then step back and let the people do what they’re hired to do and let them produce. I’ve been accused of being too democratic. Not here, but I had been in the past when I was a coordinator. But....when I was a (coordinator), I had something to help the guy with, I had input. If it’s good, use it, great, if he didn’t, that’s great too.”
Both he and DeWayne Walker said slight adjustments will be made to the scheme.
“We’re looking at this (Boise State) game a little differently, yeah,” Lindsey said. “That’s all I’m gonna say.”
Again, I think as a head coach, delegating work and having your assistants do as much heavy lifting as possible is a good idea.
And I think Walker will make a fine head coach for NMSU. And that’s his title — head coach. He can try to be a hero and lift everything on his back, or he can delegate, rely on the people around him and put all his focuses and energy on running the program.
Lindsey was the best assistant on this current staff to take things over. Again, it may not be at the most opportune time — mid-season, with the team struggling badly on defense and with a top-flight Boise State team coming to town.
I do think it’s the right idea and will pay off in the long run.
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10 comments:
The timing is definately very curious. It is also unsettling that Walker's strength was as D-coordinator, and we were struggling so much in that area.
On the brighside I think it shows a lot of unselfishness and a good grasp of the big picture. The program has to make huge strides and the main focus needs to be on progress.
Not being afraid to step aside and make a change shows that Walker wants to do whatever it takes to win. The only issue is we want to win now......its gonna be a long road.
CDW want's to win and will relegate to his assistants so he can be involved in running the team as a whole. I like it!
The timing is good too, we need to get those bugs out before we SPANK the Hobos!!
Jefe
You can put lipstick on a pig...but it's still a pig!
At least he's trying different techniques to get things in the right direction.
Not like Hal Dumme who was too busy riding around in a golf cart and couldn't think out of the box.
The important thing for this team is progress and patience from the fans!
If Walker truly is Head Coach caliber, it is the right move. If he is a a Defensive Coordinator playing head coach, then it is not.
This is one of those that time will tell.
..He's another young and ambitious football coach who will soon become frustrated with the losing and anti-football mentality that has plagued this university for the last half-century.you could bring in someone like Joe Paterno,and HE wouldn't do any better.This program is broken from deep within,and that has to be fixed before ANY coach will experience any success...Frustrated Alum...
I know everybody gets frustrated with the way the university hasn't been able to seriously compete for a bowl game. My question to everybody here is what are you prepared to do to help the school succeed. At the big programs all have great traditions. We need to start our own. Having a parade for every home game. To maybe forming a big line and stare down your opponents as they get to the stadium. We as fans have a lot of power. We just don't use it in our favor. Take Boise for example, that nasty blue turf plays into the heads of opponents more than anything else. Maybe we should paint the Aggie Memorial's turf Crimson.
All of you forget that Dumme left him with nothing...No Chase, No Chris Williams, No AJ Harris, NOTHING!
You also forget that he only had ONE month to recruit, get a staff together and move his family to LC before national signing day 2009.
It is IMPOSSIBLE to do all the above without hitting any snags!
He's let a lot of kids go from that 2009 recruiting class.
If anything, the 2010 is his first class.
There are 70 kids on the roster and 55 of those are Freshmen and Sophmores.
And you expect him to work miracles?!!
C'mon people, get real.
Judge him on how we finish the season not in the first four games!
Vic
Vic,
I 1000% percent agree. This is still not Walkers team. give the guy 3 years to get a full team of his choice and recruiting in here and we WILL go to a bowl. I expected a bad season this year and a not so well season next year. But I promise you he will turn things around. This cannot be done over night, or in a year, or even 2 years. Give the man and the team some time and maybe stop writing posts on here and do something positive to help this team out like Phantom said. Everyone wants to win, but not everyone wants to make the sacrafices that are needed to be a champion.
I am a native Las Crucen and I want NM State to do well, but it's difficult not to laugh at them like the rest of the country does. ESPN was making fun of the Aggies big time while they showed highlights of the Boise game...I have to admit, it was funny. If I were a half-way decent player at NM State, I would transfer immediately....that program is just getting worse and worse. There really is no hope...the NM State admin should just admit they made a mistake hiring Walker and find someone else.
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