Greg Schiano’s time as head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers didn’t last long, but he definitely left his mark.
Known for his, um, unique style of coaching, Schiano went 11-21 over his two seasons leading the Bucs.
One of the most memorable moments of his tenure was telling his defensive linemen to dive at the ball when Eli Manning attempted to kneel down at the end of a game against the New York Giants. Manning was bowled over, and Giants head coach Tom Coughlin wasn’t exactly thrilled with Schiano’s tactics.
Well, Schiano’s back at his old haunt, coaching the Scarlet Knights at Rutgers, and he’s still up to the same tricks.
Rutgers tried unsuccessfully to pull the same thing Saturday against Michigan State, and Schiano once again found himself having to defend a strategy that seems to rub most in the football world the wrong way (via Rutgers Wire):
“If you followed us, if it’s a competitive game, and there’s an opportunity to create a fumble, it’s not — you know, there’s always been a huge area of contention with people,” Schiano told reporters on Monday.
“I think it’s ridiculous, personally. It’s not where we are diving at — contrary to what the experts say, we are not diving at people’s legs. It’s a coached play. We are trying to coach a fumble. We have caused a fumble three times, our doing it. If there’s a chance to win the game, that’s what we do. And if it’s not, then we don’t. You let the game end with a snap and a kneel.”
“I thought it was interesting, though. Over the course of my career, I’ve watched teams do it enough. It’s pretty interesting that you ask that question on the heels of the pro game yesterday where Buffalo, that could be a huge loss in their season, and I think everybody kept playing there,” Schiano said.
“I harken back to the Super Bowl where the Patriots beat the Seahawks, very similar situation and Seahawks were firing out and Brady was taking a knee and nobody had a word. It’s a competitive play when the game is competitive. When it’s not competitive, you’ll never see us do that but I don’t think it’s any secret that we’re going to do that. I don’t see an issue with it whatsoever.”
Toes on the line, folks.
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