Defense staff finished - Mike Ekeler Def/ST

[Warrior6]

 

[Carson11]

This could be a great hire for the players. I am sure he understands what the players have been accustomed to the past few years. As some have implicated that CJP is very difficult to please and makes others miserable. He could be a guy that really helps the transition. This is all assuming he doesn’t have the same mindset as CJP.

 

[ThreatLevelOrange]

The guy has coached special teams, linebackers, and even been a defensive coordinator. So 4 of our 5 coaches have DC experience. That can’t hurt.

 

[knox73]

An exit interview with former UGA assistant Mike Ekeler

This is an interesting interview. Ekeler was on Richt's final staff at Georgia and worked for Jeremy Pruitt. His views on player development are insightful also.

 

[N.ohio vol]

The guy has coached special teams, linebackers, and even been a defensive coordinator. So 4 of our 5 coaches have DC experience. That can’t hurt.

Im impressed with our defensive staff hopefully we can get this thing back on the tracks. Gonna take a little time and a few playmakers.

 

[joevol33]

I kinda get the feeling Heupel may let the coaches do their job, and I hope so. Maybe it's just me hoping.

 

[Tursiops]

He was an inside lb’r coach and co special teams coach at UGA...all players loved him and he had high energy. I remember one time a player made a big play and he ran off to the sideline Eckler met him mid air about damn near knocked out the player. Good coach to get.

 

[Tursiops]

He was an inside lb’r coach and co special teams coach at UGA...all players loved him and he had high energy. I remember one time a player made a big play and he ran off to the sideline Eckler met him mid air about damn near knocked out the player. Good coach to get.

UGA mic’d of him..that play where he jumped was against #30
[VIDEO=]https://youtu.be/RmbhSF-p_mE[VIDEO=]

 

[Roustabout]

Overall, I have to say I’m pretty pleased with this staff. Martinez is the only one where I’m thinking we might should have gone a different route.

 

[IndianaVol]

Very stoked about Ekeler.
Spent on time on staff with Tom Allen at Indiana and carries that LEO philosophy to all his players.

 

[Rocky Volboa]

Overall, I have to say I’m pretty pleased with this staff. Martinez is the only one where I’m thinking we might should have gone a different route.

Have to agree with you but im hoping Martinez's style goes well with these other coaches. I feel like this staff has tons of potential. Is Ekeler known as a good recruiter?

 

[Roustabout]

Have to agree with you but im hoping Martinez's style goes well with these other coaches. I feel like this staff has tons of potential. Is Ekeler known as a good recruiter?

Not sure. Seems like there are plenty of good recruiters on the staff though.

 

[JonGrudensAgent]

Overall, I have to say I’m pretty pleased with this staff. Martinez is the only one where I’m thinking we might should have gone a different route.

Same here.

 

[allvol17]

Have to agree with you but im hoping Martinez's style goes well with these other coaches. I feel like this staff has tons of potential. Is Ekeler known as a good recruiter?

Here is the man's own words...

"People talk about hiring great recruiters; I think that’s an absolute joke. If you’re labeled that, 99 percent of the time that means you can’t coach a lick. That’s a fact. <snip> It’s not about recruiting, it’s about evaluating. "

I like him...

 

[Mose Phillip's Watch]

Not sure. Seems like there are plenty of good recruiters on the staff though.

"But there’s only about five players in the country that are totally different than everybody else. Everybody else can fall into a similar category. At that point it’s about developing and teaching. It’s about evaluating and developing your talent. And that’s a fact.”

 

[Mose Phillip's Watch]

 

[ThreatLevelOrange]

Have to agree with you but im hoping Martinez's style goes well with these other coaches. I feel like this staff has tons of potential. Is Ekeler known as a good recruiter?

Not sure. But he has tons of energy. Look at our staff last year. Did our guys play with any intensity or want to?

 

[NighthawkVol]

"But there’s only about five players in the country that are totally different than everybody else. Everybody else can fall into a similar category. At that point it’s about developing and teaching. It’s about evaluating and developing your talent. And that’s a fact.”

I like this mentality and agree with it. If you can get a Trevor Lawrence or Leonard Fournette type talent, that’s a program-changing talent and you do what you can to get him. But outside of those types, it does seem like it’s more about developing individual players to max out their talent and molding them into a team. I think Tennessee is a good example over the last decade of a program that has gotten a bunch of 4*s and 5*s who went undeveloped and has consequently been an inferior program to a lot of others who recruited less talent, but developed them.

 

[BondJamesBond]

"But there’s only about five players in the country that are totally different than everybody else. Everybody else can fall into a similar category. At that point it’s about developing and teaching. It’s about evaluating and developing your talent. And that’s a fact.”

I really like this philosophy. It flies in the face of the 5* 4* 3* class ranking philosophy that keeps the recruiting services paid, but it ties the performance if the team to the aspects of coaching that the staff can control... evaluation and development. We can't make the 5* QB come to UT but we can find one with skills and teach them to be great at what we do. I hope it works for us. I hope the star gazers will allow it to play out without too much teeth gnashing. I don't think there is a workable alternative at this point. Enjoy the ride!

 

[b_gann]

Not sure. But he has tons of energy. Look at our staff last year. Did our guys play with any intensity or want to?

This is one area to hang some hope for this year. Last year's team acted like they were just forced out there and waiting for it to be over sometimes. Playing with some passion and fire can go a long way/

 

[RDU VOL#14]

 

[901 Orange]

Here is the man's own words...

"People talk about hiring great recruiters; I think that’s an absolute joke. If you’re labeled that, 99 percent of the time that means you can’t coach a lick. That’s a fact. <snip> It’s not about recruiting, it’s about evaluating. "

I like him...

Sounds like my kinda coach

 

[Orange defense]

He punched Pruitt?? Didn’t know that! Hahaha

 

[RDU VOL#14]

He punched Pruitt?? Didn’t know that! Hahaha

If that’s true, that‘s awesome.

 

[VolBricks]

He was an inside lb’r coach and co special teams coach at UGA...all players loved him and he had high energy. I remember one time a player made a big play and he ran off to the sideline Eckler met him mid air about damn near knocked out the player. Good coach to get.

"High Energy" was missing for the team the whole time Pruitt was coach. I mentioned this to my wife several times during his tenure, it just looked like the players did not want to be there.