They encounter a season where the magic just isn’t there and everything that can go wrong, does – a season in which the harder the coach works, the further his team gets behind.

 

Who knows why that is, only that it is.

 

Maybe, quite simply, it’s just the way the football gods have deemed it to be – a way of keeping everybody humble, and on their toes.

 

And no matter how many complaints they get, the gods aren’t reviewing their decisions. Just deal with it, pal.

 

When we say all coaches go through these speed-bump years, we mean all coaches. That includes coaches in the NFL – yes, we’re even talking about Don Shula, Paul Brown and Vince Lombardi  – at the college level and the likes of Bobby Bowden, Joe Paterno and Eddie Robinson, and finally all the way down to the high schools.

 

This game is way too c...