It used to be little more than a generation ago coaches were just teachers of the game and motivators of young men and that was pretty much it. That’s because recruiting was a one-on-one pursuit, almost wholly unaffected by media. There were no 24-hour sports cable channels, no satellite radio. The only route to reach a recruit was the one-on-one communication allowed between the coaching staff and high school players during the NCAA-mandated contact calendar. But now, the message is nonstop. The image of a school and how it’s consumed and perceived by not only potential recruits but free-spending fans is ongoing and malleable by the minute. Not only cable and broadcast sports outlets but social media have made Power Five head coaches constant conduits for their program’s perception among both fans and the 16- and 17-year-olds who will shape their destinies. The most savvy communicators among the coaching fraternity understood this all along. Joe Paterno was one of the best at slipping in the messages he wanted as he casually discussed various issues. Steve Spurrier has been a master at sending signals through what seems on the surface to be unrelated rhetoric. And Nick Saban is the best at the craft today. …
Continue Reading: Nick Saban cites NFL distraction as factor in Ohio State loss while sending messages to players, fans
