FLORIDA STATE 13-0 AUBURN 12-1
CHANGING OF THE GUARD
OSU vs Alabama…?? Mentors are out!


Auburn vs FSU – Proteges are in!
Maybe it shouldn’t be a surprise that we are about to watch Auburn vs Florida State in the Championship Game Monday night. The Power Spread is spreading fast (no pun). So is the excellent proteges of former master coaches. In the next 10-20 years we are looking at a new Football World – college and pro alike – where every scheme and set ever used will be seen on a weekly basis. All under an evolved set of concepts and philosophies this game has never seen. It is happening under the nose of every Coach, Player, Telecaster and Fan. Love replaces Fear, Mind replaces Fist, Strength replaces Weakness, Open replaces Closed, and on and on.

CLASH OF IDEOLOGY – New School vs Old School / PS vs Pro / The Future vs The Past
Mistake Free Violent Perfection vs. Free Aggressive Creation
Either one works, but the Power Spread way is just a lot easier as there is much more room for error. The Old School way or long time “Pro” Style needs high levels of Talent, Leadership, Brains, and Toughness. And, of course, near Perfect Execution. PS=fun. Like we have all had in the backyard. Pro=military. Like some of us have experienced in organized sports or to the extreme in military war like conditions. PS is passion based. Pro is fear based. PS rules with the heart and mind. Pro rules with the iron fist. Now, none of this is so black and white as it’s an evolution in progress. Not only in Football, but in all Sport. Through all Life. The murky waters are what make this matchup possibly more interesting than the OSU/Alabama matchup. With Meyer and Saban you know what you are getting. They are at the top of their profession. Saban was just more traditional about it, but no less brilliant than Meyer. Innovations happened on both sides, but Meyer’s Offenses helped to transform the landscape of modern football.The Malzahn / Fisher matchup isn’t so Black and White
Malzahn’s PS ideas are reaching far beyond the PS originators, including Meyer. His concepts are even further ahead than the other gurus of today such as Chad Morris, Art Briles and possibly even Chip Kelly. Meyer, for all his innovation, is still rooted very much in some old school concepts that occasionaly hold him back. Malzahn doesn’t seem to be – even when he professes so. He may preach God and Family, but this guy is as progressive in his thinking as I have ever seen in a football coach. We are talking Pop Warner, Francis Schmidt, Sid Gillman “Outside the Box” stuff. Fisher is rooted in the Pro Offense and old school fundamental football like Saban, but remember, he’s an Offensive coach. Saban is not. And that’s not the only difference. Fisher may not care for all the talk of scheme and spread, but he’s a master schemer on offense, whether he admits it or not. His game plan against Clemson was intricate and his play calling masterful. A lot of work went into it – just like Saban’s obsessive planning – but definitely with a greater emphasis on passing game variety and balance. Fisher loves to throw the ball. Nick would be happy to pound it all day if he could. There’s more. Fisher uses a tremendous amount of substitution on both sides of the ball. Saban believes in Depth, but doesn’t situational substitute like Fisher. Off the field his TEAM is dictated by love and passion, not fear. This is the talk among all the players, including their star QB, James Winston. Saban has this philosophy as well (where do you think Jimbo got it from?), but just not to the extent of Fisher. Fisher also learned the skill of hiring great assistants from Saban, but even his assistants take it a step further as noted below.Jeremy Pruitt
