The distinction between "team" and "program"

If I had a dollar for every time a coach — and yes, yours truly — used the term
“culture,” I could retire anywhere by choice tomorrow.

So on a whim, I looked up the term in an online dictionary and the closest I could
find to it pertaining to sports is, “the set of values, conventions, or social practices
associated with a particular field, activity, or societal characteristic.”

Think about that for a moment — successful sports programs are created and establish
a set of values and practices they hope to have staying power.

Throughout my 18 years of sports journalism, which was my previous career and remains
my current hobby, most successful coaches would concur that much of the emphasis is
about establishing a culture in order to have long-term, sustained success. I have always
espoused the philosophy that there is a difference between a “team” versus a “program.”

I could think of any number of examples but among the ones I covered regularly or
witnessed infrequently included but are not limited to, with sport in parenthesis, are:
Napa (football, girls basketball), Justin-Siena (baseball, football, girls basketball),
American Canyon (football), Vacaville (football, wrestling), Middletown (football),
Calistoga (soccer, softball), Rincon Valley Christian (basketball) St. Helena (wrestling,
volleyball, football, soccer), Ferndale (football), Tomales (football) Benicia (baseball)
Clear Lake (softball) and Cloverdale (basketball, softball). Some of the aforementioned
programs are still going strong while others have faded. I could include De La Salle
(Concord, CA) Cardinal Newman (Santa Rosa, CA) or Marin Catholic (Kentfield, CA)
in more than a few sports as well. We can probably think of several other schools or
sports around the entire United States but in the interest of space I’ll limit to my own
observations.

Those programs I mentioned have (or had if success is past tense) one common denominator.
The focus was never about which seniors were graduating or how much each was losing.
The preseason narrative was “I don’t give a damn who they just lost, that program will find
ways to win.” At the smaller school level like St. Helena, Middletown, Ferndale Cloverdale
or Tomales, those schools would not win regularly because their athletes were so much better
than their league foes. They won because the program had an identity and was a well-oiled
machine from top to bottom. As a result, the team was already a step ahead of its competition.

To further divide the distinction between “team” and “program,” with the former, the emphasis
is to build for a season. With the latter, it’s about success that has staying power.

Granted, some years the roster will have more talent than other seasons, and occasionally there
will be a down year. However, one down year is not going to become, say, two or three.

So what are the keys to having a good program versus a good team?

Everyone has their theories, but just to name a few, administrative and community support,
coaching, talent and continuity of a system certainly help, too, because so much of winning
is centered around making fewer mistakes.

Developing leadership has to become a factor as well. As in, leadership from players as well
as coaches.

Why is that important? Isn’t that why you have coaches?

True. Leadership comes from coaches, because they are the adults in the situation, but having
leadership from players is also vital.

Everyone has their own idea of what type of leader is better — one that leads vocally or by
example? Both are important but the former is really crucial. However, in order to balance
the scale, you need a few players that can step in to become leaders because it’s human nature
to turn someone’s message off if it is coming from the same person all the time.

Whereas, if a few players that are team leaders preach the same message that the coach
emphasizes, then the coach’s message carries that much more weight.

So how does a young man or young lady become a team leader? There is no hard and fast
answer other than the person evolves into that role over time.

It is also important that someone stays true to their personality. If a youngster is not a vocal
person in the first place, you are probably setting them up to fail if you try to make them
become a vocal leader.

It’s also important to be a leader, and sports, once again, teaches people good leadership skills.
No matter the title, everyone who participates in sports will eventually get to the leadership
spot, or, if nothing else, they will observe, admire, and hopefully learn from the leaders that
came before them.

It’s a crucial quality to be able to lead people in a positive, supportive way without losing
respect along the way.

Leadership skills benefit everyone throughout their life, because there will always be a
situation, where someone needs to take charge and lead others to victory.

Gruden's return adds intrigue to Bay Area football in 2018

With Jon Gruden’s return as the head coach of the Oakland Raiders, the NFL in the
San Francisco Bay Area became very compelling for the 2018 season.

It just so happens that the Raiders and San Francisco 49ers meet at Levi’s Stadium
in Santa Clara at a date to be determined. Please, spare me the Santa Clara 49ers
line, will you. There are a few teams in professional sports not playing in the city
that identifies the team. Throwing shade like that is pretty amateurish and weak.

Since the two teams are in opposite conferences, they only play each other every
four seasons. That reason is one why I will never call 49ers/Raiders a rivalry but I
would say it is a rivalry between the fans more so than on the field.

I had a chance to listen to Gruden’s press conference today while driving my route
truck for Alhambra Water. My goodness, it was captivating. Gruden’s charisma whether
as a coach, broadcaster or speaker is very E. F. Hutton like. When he talks, people
listen. For the thumbnail sketch of Gruden’s return to coaching, read this entry:

http://vincedadamo.blogspot.com/2018/01/grudens-return-ensures-raider-relevance.html

The 49ers and Raiders each went 6-10 last season but watching the seasons unfold in
real time, the two seasons could not have felt more different. San Francisco went a combined
7-25 in 2015 and 2016 under Jim Tomsula and Chip Kelly respectively after the organization
euphemistically fired Jim Harbaugh after the 2014 campaign. They called it a “mutual parting”
but that’s a euphemism for “they fired him” if you ask me.  

Very few expected the 49ers to win more than four games under first-year head coach Kyle
Shanahan, who along with general manager John Lynch received a six-year contract. San
Francisco lost its first nine games, five by three points or less. The 49ers then sent a
second-round draft pick to the New England Patriots for quarterback Jimmy Garappolo.

Upon inserting Garappolo into the starting lineup, San Francisco finished the season with
five straight wins. You would be hard-pressed to find a better in-season turnaround than
the 2017 49ers going from 0-9 to winning six of their last seven to go 6-10.

After going 12-4 in 2016, reaching the playoffs for the first time since 2002, the Raiders
entered 2017 with aspirations of being a Super Bowl contender. The hopes appeared
warranted thanks to the return of quarterback Derek Carr, a solid offensive line and skill
position players. Oakland started the season 2-0 before losing 27-10 at Washington.
The Raiders, despite their struggles, still had postseason aspirations at 6-6. Instead,
Oakland did its best Greg Louganis impersonation in that the team took a dive losing four
straight to close the season.

The Raiders dismissed head coach Jack Del Rio moments after the season-ending 30-10
loss to the Los Angeles Chargers.

I cannot readily recall two teams in the same region both recording 6-10 seasons, yet there
is so much excitement pertaining to the following campaign. The teams will be picking No. 9
and 10 in the NFL Draft, decided by a coin flip at a date to be determined.

While it is far too soon to predict win-loss records, you start by looking at each team’s division
landscape. For the Raiders, in the AFC West, Kansas City continually finds ways to cough up
a furball in the playoffs but you know they will be a tough out in the regular season. The
Chargers have an intriguing nucleus on defense led by Joey Bosa and an aging but still
effective Philip Rivers at quarterback. The Broncos are a mess and have no quarterback.

For the 49ers, in the NFC West, Arizona is circling the drain, both head coach Bruce Arians
and quarterback Carson Palmer are retiring. Seattle has one of the best quarterbacks in the
business in Russell Wilson but an aging defense. The Rams, meanwhile, have the most
solid nucleus.

The biggest question for San Francisco is “how will the team handle having expectations?”
The biggest question for the Raiders is “are they the 12-4 team from 2016 or the 6-10 team
from 2017?” I would split the difference since the 12-4 mark of 2016 involved Fool's Gold.
The team was 8-1 in games decided by seven points or less. However, I don't see next season
going off the rails like 2017 either.

I could see the 49ers going 10-6 but with a coach/GM tandem of Shanahan and Lynch, I
don’t see this team flaming out. I see 8-8 if they disappoint.

I think the Raiders have a higher ceiling than the 49ers but also a lower floor.

Count me among those hoping the 49er-Raider game is a primetime contest.

Gruden's return ensures Raider relevance

Sometimes news breaks and it reminds you of a different point of your life. It could be
good. It could be bad. It could be indifferent. It could be compelling.

Jon Gruden’s return to coach the Oakland Raiders conjures up a good and compelling
time in my 18-year career as a sports reporter.

The Raiders announced on Saturday that they will introduce Gruden at a press conference
on Tuesday as their new head coach. The organization made the announcement 90 minutes
after Gruden and Sean McDonough finished broadcasting the AFC Wild Card matchup
between the Tennessee Titans and Kansas City Chiefs, which the Titans rallied to win 22-21,
for ESPN.

Gruden coached in the NFL from 1998-2008 (Raiders 1998-2001; Tampa Bay 2002-2008)
and carries a star-crossed legacy. Gruden replaces Jack Del Rio, who went 25-23 in three
seasons. The Raiders fired Del Rio moments after the team’s 30-10 loss to the Los Angeles
Chargers to finish a 6-10 season. Gruden possesses a career record of 100-85 (40-28 with
the Raiders; 60-57 with the Buccaneers). After his dismissal from Tampa Bay, Gruden served
as an ESPN commentator for nine seasons.

The Raiders signed Gruden to a 10-year contract for $100 million dollars, according to ESPN.
The franchise is slated to move to Las Vegas beginning the 2020 season. I have heard the
pros and cons to Gruden’s return. The pluses are the aura that he brings. From the scowls
to the personality, Gruden commands your attention. Say what you will about Gruden’s
contract but the cost of that pact does not rival that of the franchise becoming irrelevant.
Win or lose, Gruden makes the Raider relevant.

Gruden knows how to coach offense, where the Raiders (notably quarterback Derek Carr),
woefully underperformed last season. Getting Carr to resemble the MVP candidate of
2016 as opposed to the beleaguered version of 2017 is paramount.

With the Raiders being a lame duck franchise moving to a new city, they needed a sellable
asset. Gruden brings exactly that because Del Rio is essentially a poor man’s Jeff Fisher.
Del Rio has been a head coach for 12 seasons with only three playoff appearances. He
has also coached more games in NFL history without winning a division. Fisher was a head
coach for 22 seasons with a 178-171-2 mark with only five going North of .500 with three
division titles.

The downside is that Gruden has not coached in ten years but I don’t necessarily see that
as a negative. Gruden has stayed connected to the NFL as a commentator, which was a
role he prepared as if he were coaching,

Some of the shine wore off Gruden’s star after the Bucs won the Super Bowl in 2002,
going 45-53 thereafter. This is a high risk, high reward move. If it works, it could be great.
If it does not, the franchise will be hard-pressed to rebound.

For me personally, Gruden’s return to Oakland means something. The Raiders training
camp home is Napa, CA, which is my hometown. When the Raiders hired Gruden at this
time in 1998, I was living in a different state -- Lincoln, NE, to be specific. I graduated
from the University of Nebraska in August 1997. Long story short, I stayed there for a
year after I graduated before moving back home. Shortly thereafter, I landed a sports
reporter job at the Napa Valley Register, which is my hometown newspaper.

I grew up as a 49er fan. I hated the Raiders when they moved to Los Angeles, which
was their home from 1982-1994, because in these parts of California, I was conditioned
to hate LA teams. Except 1998 happened. One of my first assignments at the Register
was going to Raiders training camp. Watching Gruden charismatically lead practice
heightened my interest. In 1999, Michael Wagaman, who remains the senior reporter
for Silver & Black Illustrated (which is a Raider fan magazine), approached me about
doing freelance work for the publication. It was a no brainer for me to say yes.

That decision was the start of a five-year stint of covering the Raiders. The Gruden
years were fun. He brought a charisma that fit the Raider mystique, from the heavy
metal music played at home games to the rebel personality that eventually led to
Chucky Dolls to depict the main antagonist to the horror film “Child’s Play.”

After the 2001 season ended on a snowy night in Foxboro, Mass., in a game known
as the Tuck Bowl, Raiders owner Al Davis traded Gruden to Tampa Bay. One year
later, Gruden got the last laugh as his Bucs blasted the Raiders 48-21 in San Diego.

From that point on, neither Gruden nor the Raiders were the same. Gruden was able
to lead the Bucs to a Super Bowl title that had former coach Tony Dungy earn much
sweat equity. Save for Del Rio’s 12-4 season in 2016, the Raiders recorded nary a
winning season from 2003-2015 with 14 campaigns ending with double-digit losses.

Even long after Gruden being traded, I maintained a passing interest in the Raiders.
However, when the franchise revealed that it was moving to Las Vegas, I told myself
that I wouldn’t care about the Raiders.

Gruden’s return though has my interest. Just like he gained it 20 years ago.

Parcells' theory true but flawed

Hall of Fame NFL head coach Bill Parcells once coined the phrase, “You are what
your record says you are.”

That quote has made its way through locker rooms, press conferences and among
talking heads on TV.

Parcells mainly said that in reference to teams that did not post a good record but
believe they should have been much better.

On the opposite end of the coin, there are teams that had very good records but due
to catching many good breaks could have easily not had as good a win-loss record.
One could argue that type of success is Fool’s Gold.

Point being, there can be a small margin between winning and losing.

While Parcells is right in that you cannot factually change a team’s win-loss record,
I have never entirely agreed with his sentiment. Keep in mind, Parcells had no use
for anyone making excuses for not performing up to expectations.

Records are as much a matter of what a team does to achieve their record with what
the team had on its roster.

You also have to look at how the season plays out in real time. If an 18-2 team gets
away with making fundamental mistakes and several turnovers against inferior teams,
it just means you overcame your mistakes based on having better talent than your
opponents. On the other hand, if I see a team go 12-10 but maybe is not as talented and
got better at the end of the season, I will feel much better about that team.

I’m not going to sit here and say win-loss records do not matter. Of course, they matter.
If they don’t matter, why play the game in the first place?

I just don’t think they are the end all, be all.

Every now and then, we hear coach speak such as “take it one game at a time,” or “we
want to improve with every game as the season” or “we want to improve with every
practice.”

That scenario, however, might not be possible. Whether you are a kid or adult, you will
have good days and bad days. Some practices will be more productive than others. Still,
that point has validity.

We are creatures of habit in that we measure a team’s success based on its win-loss record,
but not all teams start from the same point. The better measuring stick is “are they a better
team at the end of the season than they were at the start?”

Some teams are more talented, more experienced, bigger and plain better than others. The
same could be said for individual players.

Numbers — rushing yards, points scored, hits — don’t tell how much a player has improved,
both athletically and as a person over the course of a season.

AC's Gramlick, Vintage's Robert examples of school and sports co-existing

Student-athlete. Athlete-student. Despite what the sports atheists might think, the two
terms co-exist just like socks and shoes -- or Vodka and Bloody Mary mix.

There are several examples nationwide but for now, I focus on two here in the Napa
Valley. On the field, Lucas Gramlick helped sustain a winning tradition American
Canyon High has established since opening its doors in 2010. Similarly but in a
different light, Vintage’s James Robert helped the Crushers to what their fans hope
is the start of re-establishing a winning tradition.

Gramlick and Robert will represent Napa County as the outstanding senior lineman
and back at the Northern California Chapter of the National Football Foundation and
College Hall of Fame Scholar Athlete awards banquet on Friday, March 2, the Napa Valley
Register reported Monday night.

The event will be held at the San Francisco Airport Marriott and honors 24 scholar athletes
from 12 counties. The honorees receive a $1,000 scholarship. The student-athletes are
nominated by coaches and selected by local media members. The award is based on a
mixture of academic achievement, athletic achievement along with leadership and
citizenship in school as well as the community.

Besides Napa County, other counties represented are Alameda, Contra Costa, Lake, Mendocino,
Marin, San Francisco, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz and Sonoma as part of the Northern California
Chapter of the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame, an organization of
more than 8,000 members who are active in 119 chapters across the country. The Northern
California Chapter, one of the largest and most active groups, has awarded over $816,000
in scholarships over the course of 50 years and change.

On the field, both players were instrumental to their team’s success and were Player of the
Year finalists on the all-Napa County football team. Gramlick was an offensive and defensive
lineman for a Wolves team that went 7-4, winning their sixth straight Solano County Athletic
Conference title. Gramlick was the SCAC Lineman of the Year and was first-team all-league.
The Wolves recovered from an 0-3 start that included a 28-14 loss to Vintage and reached
the second round of the CIF Sac Joaquin Section Div. III playoffs.  

Gramlick also competes in wrestling and baseball and possesses a 3.307 unweighted GPA
and also takes advanced placement courses. Off the field, Gramlick has been a volunteer
the last five years at a Relay of Life event in Vallejo. Gramlick has also been a Link Crew
leader, which is a leadership position and plays the cello in the school’s string band.

Robert’s contributions as a running back and linebacker led Vintage to a 7-3 season, best
since 2000. Besides the aforementioned win over American Canyon, the Crushers defeated
crosstown rival Napa 14-7 for their first Big Game win since 2005. In that contest, Robert
was named NVR’s MVP. The Crushers reached the SJS Div. II playoffs before losing to
Inderkum 35-22. Robert was second-team all Monticello Empire League. Robert is also
a captain on Vintage’s wrestling team.   

On the academic front, Robert carries a 3.64 unweighted GPA and leads an active volunteer
life. On the latter front, Robert has been to Napa elementary schools several times as the
leader of the team’s Field Day that involves players going to the schools and teaching physical
activities during recess. He also volunteers time in the Crushers’ “Read to the Kids” program
where players also visit schools and read to students.  

Robert also played a role in helping Napa residents during the dastardly wildfires in October.
Robert led the way to organize teams help residents evacuate their possessions and at a local
farm that had animals that were evacuated.

In my 18 years as a sports reporter with Napa Valley Publishing, I had the chance to attend
this event on numerous occasions. My most memorable time came in 2008 when Calistoga’s
B.J. Schlieder and Napa’s John Boyett were Napa County’s representatives. The former was
the keynote speaker. That evening, I had the pleasure of riding with Calistoga coaches Mike
Ervin and Scott LeStrange.

It is a treat because for openers, the food is really good. Every time I attended this event, I
came away thinking, “Those that are caught up in the ‘dumb jock’ narrative are clueless.”
If your interest does not lie in sports, that’s fine, I respect your wishes.

Those people simply show their true colors in that they are so insecure that they feel the
need to denigrate others to feel better about themselves.

Are there athletes that are not academically inclined? Sure there are. It’s just that stereotyping
all of them in that category is ignorance.

I have also found that there are two kinds of people. There are those who say, “Who cares
about sports? School is more important” and there are those who say, “We’ve got to have
a strong sports program.”

The truth of the matter is that athletics and academics can indeed co-exist.

There’s no reason they cannot or should not. I know grade-point averages do not tell the
full story, because you can argue by saying, “Does this kid or that kid have hard classes?”

That’s a subjective and somewhat elitist question. Granted, I’ll give more credence to a
student whose GPA is 3.5 with an AP biology and a calculus class thrown in than the
one without. However, if a youngster is getting a 3.0 GPA or above, he or she is at least
demonstrating that they understand the importance of mixing academics and athletics.

Point being, athletics and academics belong together.

It’s just a matter of getting them to work in concert with each other.