I wonder what the difference really is between Mike Ditka, coach of the world champion 1985 Chicago Bears and Lovie Smith; coach of the Super Bowl XLI bound 2006 Chicago Bears?
Both men are incredible motivators no doubt... each has excelled in their profession and have the hardware to prove it. As I have heard people wondering aloud about the differences and pointing out distinctive characteristics I have also wondered to myself which I'd rather be a player for.
I remember Mike Ditka and his incredibly animated, passionate and sometimes over the line behavior on the Bears' sidelines! The one thing you always felt when watching Da' Coach in action was that the game was literally a matter of life and death. The way he would yell at players, the referees, the opposing team, the other coach... the fans... it was awesome! I loved it! It made absolute sense to have this amazingly fiery guy as the head coach of the Monsters of the Midway!
In sharp contrast is Lovie Smith who is as laid back as Ditka was insane! When watching Lovie with the Bears there is a quiet resoluteness. Great game or not Lovie always seems to have his own emotional state completely under control. I think in the years that I have seen Lovie as head coach of the Bears; I have never seen him yell at or berate a player or an assistant coach in public. Even under the glaring lights of the press who repeatedly asked him why in the world the erratic Rex Grossman remained the starting quarterback, he never once lost his cool. Instead he repeatedly stated that "Rex Grossman is our starting quarterback...”
So here is the deal, is it possible that in the rough and tumble world of professional football there is a turning of the tide (and I don't mean Crimson Tide either...)? Have the days of the screaming, foul-tempered, sometimes ill-mannered, win-at-all-cost coach gone the way of the wooly Mammoth? Has the era of the quiet, even-keeled, polite, chivalrous, winning-is-great-but-a-loss-is-not-the-end-of-the-world coach emerged? Who knows for sure but the difference between the two is nothing short of incredible to lifelong Bears fans!
Truth be known... I'd play for either one... as long as he was coaching... da' Bears!
1 comment:
Both are great coaches, but I start to get the feeling the Ditkas and Knights of the world are becoming less and less prevalent. I am not sure if it is the athletes, the evolution of sports or even political correctness. I am agnostic about whether it is a good or bad thing on the whole. I don't think I ever played for a Tony Dungy or Lovie Smith type guy, though - that certainly would have been interesting and probably rewarding given how both teams feel about their coaches.
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