Coach Lynch, the ball is in your hands

Eddie Robinson, former Grambling State coach and 1997 College Football Hall of Fame inductee, put it best about leadership.

“Leadership, like coaching, is fighting for the hearts and souls of men and getting them to believe in you.”

Robinson is right: Leadership and coaching go hand-in-hand.
Within every coach lies a leader.

An efficient coach is a leader who responds to adversity without pushing the panic button. An efficient coach is a leader who tells his team winning is not enough, and losing is part of the learning process. An efficient coach is a leader who can overcome the insurmountable and defeat lop-sided odds.

So, who is this trendsetter, this spark plug on the IU football team?

Don’t point your finger at quarterback Kellen Lewis. No, not captains Will Patterson, Chris Phillips or Marcus Thigpen. It’s coach Bill Lynch.

And it’s Lynch’s duty as high man on the totem pole to rid his Hoosiers of Ball State’s pounding and get them to focus on the remainder of the season.

If you thought the loss to the Cardinals was painful for the IU players, it was just as afflictive for Lynch.

To see the team that fired him in 2002 emerge as victors in Bloomington must have been burdensome mentally. Even though it’s been six years since his removal, some things stick.

But as the leader, as the coach, Lynch must remind his squad that there’s a lot of season to be played – nine more tests to go, eight of which are against Big Ten teams – and it’s not about personal vengeance. 

Let me make myself clear: It would be preposterous if I said Lynch’s job was in jeopardy. Not the case here, folks.

All I’m implying is that Lynch needs to prove to the IU faithful and his players that he is an efficient leader.

Many say he’s not the best conductor for the Cream and Crimson. I think that’s bogus.

Don’t blame Lynch for the lack of talent and big-name recruits. It’s not his fault the program had been tarnished prior to his arrival.

Plus, the lack of amenities doesn’t help either. Take a look at the IU football facilities.

What is there? Three practice fields, one of which is indoors, weight rooms in Assembly Hall and in the IU football office. Not exactly what I would call attractive Big Ten training centers.

Despite the program’s inability to land top-notch athletes, let’s examine Lynch’s impact as an authentic leader. Lynch advanced with the Hoosiers to their first bowl game since 1993. Moreover, his charges boasted a winning record for the first time since 1994.

So there’s no reason to question his leadership capabilities.

But I’m not going to dwell on the past.

I think Lynch would even admit the defeat on Saturday might have knocked IU’s chances for another 13th game down a bit, but that’s why they play 12.
Lynch is key for a successful finish in 2008.

Obviously, with coaching comes a great deal of responsibility. And as the leader, Lynch has to accept the fact that Ball State was that much better. He fully understands that the onus is on him just as much as his players.

Now, Lynch needs the Hoosiers to turn the page and believe in him. He must instill the fact that IU can be a legitimate Big Ten team.

As the leader, he can’t dodge the tough bullets – he has to take them. If the IU players won’t sleep on Lynch, I hope you won’t, either.