In college athletics, the term "coaching fraternity" is thrown around about as much as Mark Mangino's 2nd chin. Fraternity typically means a brotherhood of people in the same class, or in this case, profession. Well, with the college football season winding down the college basketball season ramping up, it occurred to me there is a glaring difference in these two 'frat houses.'
The fraternity that makes up the college football coaches feels about as warm as a Charlie Weiss Christmas card to Pete Carroll. There is so much angst and tension amongst college football coaches starting day one at conference media days and it runs right on through the bowl season. No one likes each other and hand shakes at midfield after games are quicker than you can say B-C-S. Think about the 'fraternity' of coaches in the S.E.C. First of all, it's clear NOBODY is inviting Lane Kiffin at Tennessee over for a July 4th picnic next summer. Kiffin, in just one season, has figured out how annoy his fellow S.E.C. coaches about as much as 'Rocky Top' aggrevates visiting fans at Neyland Stadium. How about Nick Saban and Les Miles? You think those two are hitting the links after the bowl season? Urban Meyer and Mark Richt? I don't see any trips to the Bahamas with the wives anytime soon. How about Pete Carroll and Jim Harbaugh? Or Pete Carroll and Rick Neuwiesel? Charlie Weiss? You get my point...
College football coaches don't like each other. Recruiting is big business and every recruit they don't get means one of their 'fraternity brothers' did. That's so not cool bro! The pressure to win is unbearable and for many of these guys there just isn't any benefit or value-add in making friends within their fraternity.
Conversely, in college basketball, you won't find a more tight knit group of guys, that can often be seen dining together at their annual "family reunion" known as the Final Four. Guys like Jim Boeheim and Mike Krzyzewski have been very close friends for decades. Jim Calhoun and Roy Williams have both won a couple national titles and you get the sense that both guys have probably told war stories at a hotel bar many-a-summers on the AAU tournament trail. Even the youngsters...the Jamie Dixon's, Jay Wright's and Tom Creen's of the basketball fraternity were welcomed in with open arms by the "senior class" of coaches. When Jay Wright landed at Villanova back in 2001, he found his bunk in the BigEast 'frat house' and quietly went about his business. Coaches in college basketball are seemingly happier people and handle the pressures of winning in stride.
Perhaps it's no coincidence college basketball coaches end their season with the "big dance." A dance? Well that sounds fun. Sounds like a bunch of friends getting together for good times. Conversely, college football coaches end their season praying that the statistical data entered into a computer will allow them to compete for a national title. No dancing, just computing.
So let's see....dancing or computers? Which frat house would you chose?
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