How can this be?
How can George O’Leary, the old-school coach with the gruff demeanor, be arguably the most fan-friendly, media-accessible coach in the State of Florida?
I wrote a column last week about how college coaches throughout the nation, including Will Muschamp of the Gators and seem bound and determined to shut out fans and media from access to their programs. O’Leary is just the opposite. He opens practices to fans before the season starts and talks to the media after every practice. And, yes, he wonders why some of his college coaching brethren don’t do the same.
“This is a time when people are getting up (excited) about football and I think it’s good to let the people come out and watch practice,” O’Leary says. ”… There’s no secrets in football. The way I look at is that you have good players and bad players.”
I asked O’Leary, who has coached in the NFL, why pro teams open up training camp to fans and media but many college teams don’t.
“College teams can, but they just choose not to,” O’Leary replied. ”The pros do it because of the interest. The NFL probably has the best model of any league in sports about how to run things and their public relations. It’s outstanding.”
It’s no wonder the NFL dwarfs college football when it comes to TV ratings and fan interest.
The NFL is continually trying to build fan and media enthusiasm in its product; college football is doing its best to try and kill it.
