Chip Kelly doesn’t coach doctors, and he’s not going to find a cure for cancer or discover a new fuel cell technology. But he does have particular gift for coaching football, evidenced by a Rose Bowl Championship, three conference titles in his first three seasons, and a 34-6 record. That’s 85% wins if you’re scoring at home, far better than Bo, Woody, Bill Walsh or Amos Alonzo Stagg.
Photo left: When Chip Kelly leads them out of the tunnel, he’s leading a group that knows he believes in them. The confidence and preparation his teams exude has produced some scintillating results (katu.com photo).
Already his accomplishments mark him as the best coach in Oregon history, Hugo Bezdek be damned. Sure, you can argue Len Casonova didn’t have this kind of talent, but Mike Bellotti did, and the Bellotti era includes some clunker seasons, seasons where Oregon missed a bowl or missed the mark completely, going down in grello flames in minor bowls, packing it in four weeks early after magnificent starts. Kelly’s teams respond remarkably after a loss. They’ve never tanked a game. Already there’s talk of him taking a pro job, and rest assured, NFL GMs will come calling after their latest round of firings, due to start after their season ends this weekend. It’s tough to say no to a 30 million dollar deal. Sadly, eventually he’ll go. The hope is he waits another three or four years, seeing this run through.
Some say Kelly’s offense wouldn’t work in the pros, but that’s nonsense. Kelly’s smart. Not doctor smart, but smart enough to know a coach adapts his scheme to the personnel. If CK had three fullbacks and David DeCastro on the line, he’d run the Power I. At other stops he’s coached other systems; he’s even coached defense in the past. He’s not wedded to a scheme or a tempo. Like most good coaches, he coaches what works. The up-tempo spread is a perfect fit at Oregon and in the PAC-12. Elsewhere, he’d adapt.
The heart of what makes Kelly successful is this: he understands the value of time. Truly successful people recognize on a deep level that time is more precious than money or talent or hardware, because everyone has a finite supply. The “Win the Day” schtick is succinct: everybody, every opponent, every opposing coach, has just 24 hours to use every single day. Kelly has mastered the art of caring deeply about every detail of what matters, and being relentlessly indifferent to what doesn’t. He has little time for boosters, fans and the media, works quickly through press conferences and meet-and-greets, but he’s tireless in coaching, teaching, game-planning and running a football team. Like most successful CEOs he has a built-in clock that is set unfailingly to “does this help us win?” Everything else is discarded or talked through quickly.
That internal efficiency, that fiercely selective filter, would make him a success at any level of football, running a beer distributorship or managing De’Angelo’s Restaurant. You hope he would stay at Oregon, however. He can build a dynasty here, and his personality, drive and skills at relating to and teaching players are perfectly suited to the college game. In college football, more than any other major sport, the coach shapes the identity and personality of a team, and coaching makes a bigger difference in the outcome of games and seasons. In the NFL he’d be just another coach sleeping in his office, looking for a way to convince jaded gladiators to care about something other than their expensive cars and multiple mistresses.
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