Durden out as playcaller, Mickey taking over
Not your father's Newman Lake
For those of you who follow the program closely and our more than a little fanatical about our beloved 1-AA Dukes (ok, maybe that’s just us), there was enormous news on the football front yesterday as Head Coach Mickey Matthews announced on the eve of spring practice that he had stripped Offensive Coordinator Jeff Durden of playcalling responsibility. Like most OC’s when a team is struggling (think Stinespring at VT), Durden was reviled by fans as the cause of JMU’s lackluster production, tepid playcalling, and polio. We are greeting this news with a hallelujah chorus after two seasons of incessant whining. Possibly just as stunning, MM announced he’ll be taking over the playcalling duties himself in 2011. We are greeting this news with an intoxicating mix of anxiety, goosebumps, and sheer panic. And quite a few buring questions we’ll list below. MM said Durden will remain with the program as Tight Ends Coach and will be up in the sweet, new press box for assistance. This is also good news as that means Durden will physically be a country mile from the QB’s head as evidenced by the photo we couldn’t resist running again.
Also, before we forget – and don’t worry Landeta, we won’t – the women’s hoops team’s run came to a close in the NCAA tourney in Charlottesville over the weekend at the hands of Oklahoma. Incredible purple turnout for the game and a valiant comeback attempt in the second half, but the Dukes just couldn’t match the Sooners speed and quickness. With openings at VT and UVa and rumors circulating in places like the Wash Post (and my co-worker’s office whose jersey hangs in the rafters for the Wahoos) about Kenny Brooks being on the short list, we’ll be back soon for more coverage, but this Durden thing is too big to put off.
Top Five Questions related to Durden’s emasculation:
1) Timing?! The eve of spring practice seemed an odd time for this news. MM had all winter to make this decision and I’ve got to think he already had the convo with Durden a while ago. That said, Spring ball just got more exciting leading up to the April 16 spring game which will take place in Richmond. Should be cool for RIC/Hampton Roads Dukes.
2) Will the Dukes EVER throw? Even with Durden, we had to wonder if the Dukes knew the forward pass had been approved for use (you know, eight decades ago). With “hit ’em in the mouth” MM, is this progression or regression.
3) With Billy Cosh coming onboard, does MM know something we don’t? We love this possibility. Cosh is the transfer QB from Kansas St. and conspiring minds like ours would love to think MM knows his presence will make him look like a genius (can you say Justin Rascati?!)
4) Will the Dukes go for EVERY fourth down? As a Gregg Easterbrook TMQ devotee and a notorious contrarian on fourth down philosophy, I sure as hell hope so. Ever responsible and risk-averse(read “parent”) Rob will surely disagree with me here, but MM is already famous for past fourth-down decisions that some considered reckless.
5) Will this new responsibility keep MM’s worst instincts and sideline antics in check? As we’ve noted over and over, officiating in the CAA is a debacle but MM seems to make it even harder on the Dukes with his outrageous sideline behavior (not to mention infusing the team with that same sense of disease). I’m hoping the play-by-play responsibility to fight the play clock and calmly signal his troops next move will put an end to some of this nonsense. But I wouldn’t bet on it, especially against Delaware.
Look, I know that none of you realize this, but MM has been calling the plays since 2006.
I feel the need to point out, in light of your mention of Justin Rascati, that DURDEN was calling the plays in 2004.
I can assure you that the absence of the forward pass in the last 5 years has nothing to do with Durden or his playcalling (I still own my copy of his playbook).
You guys must have a short memory. Do you not see the obvious similarities between the last few years (this past one most especially) and the pre-Durden years? Have you forgotten pre-2004 JMU football? What do they have in common?
I bleed purple, but let’s give (dis)credit where it is due rather than throw a “yes-man” under the bus.
Thanks ’04 for straightening us out and I definitely don’t mean to take a cheap shot at someone I’m sure has been a valuable part of the staff, we’re just commenting on what we’ve sensed is the feeling of the unwashed masses (us included and however naive that feeling may be). That said, with all the visor throwing and vein-bursting over calls, there’s just no way MM was calling all the plays, at least not solo, last year. Would be nice to think this move from MM that is really “protecting Durden and putting MM on the hook if things go wrong” but I fear that it’s either a) a last-ditch effort to save a flailing team (almost like hiring a bingo caller) or b) a coach who knows the talent is in place to make him look good, and yes, potentially make someone else look bad, in this case Durden. In either case, smells bad.
And yes, we definitely remember the Alex Wood and Rip shitshow. But we’re blindly hanging our hopes on DJ Bryant’s consistent belief in 15-0!
Not really sure why I’m pegged as the ultra risk averse one. I’m in favor of smart decisions and taking the appropriate calculated risks. Some of Matthews’ past decisions haven’t appeared to be driven by anything more than emotional impulses. Maybe I’m wrong and he’s running the numbers in his head or something, but it really seems as if his decision making process is more of the river-boat gambler variety than the calculating hedge-fund manager variety.
And as far as this particular change goes, I’m in favor it 100%. Not because I think JMU’s offensive shortcomings were Durden’s fault though, but because it puts the accountability for the offense squarely on Matthews’ shoulders. I agree with 2004 that Matthews influence was all over the offense the past few years, regardless of who officially had play-calling duties. Durden’s system has proven to work in the past. No reason to think it can’t work again.
I watched to womens game streaming on ESPN 3. They played hard. NCAA seems to always screw the JMU women on the seedings.
FYI, Mickey does not know the difference between a hedge-fund and and hedgehog…