For me, there was just one memorable line from the otherwise forgettable 1996 presidential race between incumbent Bill Clinton and his opponent, the 73-year-old Sen. Bob Dole. Clinton would say, almost sadly, that it was not Dole’s age that was the problem but the age of his ideas. (Clinton, it must be said, could have used a little age on a few of his ideas.) That line came to mind Wednesday, a historic day in sports. That afternoon, the Seattle Seahawks announced that Super Bowl-winning coach Pete Carroll was out after 14 years. Then, seven-time college football champion Nick Saban of Alabama announced his retirement. And lastly, news leaked that Bill Belichick, the six-time Super Bowl-winning head coach of the New England Patriots, would be leaving his team as well.
As these titanic partings of ways were reported, many throughout the sports media made the case that it was time for the three septuagenarians to find a village and golf cart in South Florida. But it is not the age of the three men that is the problem. It is the age of their ideas.
No one is doddering here. But the sport is changing every season, mostly in ways that make it easier for offenses to score.
The 72-year-old Carroll has been described as the epitome of “youthful energy.” Constantly chomping gum, his fervent freneticism could wear out assistants half his age. Saban, also 72, just coached his team to the SEC title and the semifinals of the College Football Playoff, where it lost in overtime to eventual champions Michigan. After a disastrous early-season loss to Texas, the turnaround he led was among his finest work. And while New England’s offense was awful this year, Belichick actually led a top-flight defense. But week after week of losing 10-6 in the freezing cold made all of New England embittered enough to want a divorce before things got nasty, and all of Belichick’s obnoxious charm just looked obnoxious.
All three have the capacity to coach. No one is doddering here. But…
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