By Jimmy Smothers
Sports Editor Emeritus

Football 101 with Jack Crowe
Jack Crowe, head football coach at Jacksonville State University, spoke Tuesday at the group’s luncheon at the Senior Activity Center in downtown Gadsden. His topic was “Football 101,” and the women were engrossed in what he explained in words and PowerPoint presentations.

“Next time you are watching a game with your husband,” Crowe said, “tell him it looks like your team is in an 11-personnel offense trying to get a stunt on a 4-3 defense. Tell him they need to switch to the 4-2 nickel against that offense.”

Crowe said, “Do that, and he’ll certainly be shocked, even if he should happen to know what you are talking about.”

The coach explained the 11-personnel and 10-personnel offensive alignments, and the 4-2 (four defensive backs) and 4-2 nickel defenses. He talked about game situations, explaining that keeping an eye on the scoreboard and being alert of the time, score, field position, down and distance play an important role in what plays to call.

Crowe said a lot of people sit up in the stands and criticize the coaches’ play calling without ever keeping abreast of the game situation or the opponent’s defensive alignment.

Because many of the women in the audience were either Alabama or Auburn fans, he talked some about the head coaches of those two schools, both past (Paul Bryant and Pat Dye) and present (Nick Saban and Gene Chizik).

“The kicking game and turnovers are a most important aspect, and Coach Bryant was a master of that,” Crowe said.

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