[81alum]

Most of you know I follow Ca.l and Stanford very closely and root for both teams.  I have hesitated to say this until now, but because so many Stanford fans are looking for answers - and because past history often allows us to foresee and hopefully learn from past mistakes - I'm going to say it.  David Shaw is going down a very similar path as Jeff Tedford.  And it really should be no surprise, because neither Ca.l or Stanford has historically demanded high performance from their football programs.

I appreciate your comments and perspective and hope others here don't give you too hard a time.  I have thoroughly enjoyed having you and some other outsiders posting here from time to time.  A changed perspective is good for us.

I do think that Tedford and Shaw are fundamentally different people and worked for different kinds of institutions.  Stanford would never have permitted Shaw to recruit and play academically sub standard players the way C.al permitted Tedford, but even more important is that Tedford was willing to do so, and Shaw would never do so even if permitted.  Their values systems are just fundamentally different.  So you could say that C.al and its coach were both willing to sell out academics to improve the team--but even that failed.  Neither Stanford nor its coach would be willing to do that.

And that gives David Shaw a different motivation than Tedford ever had--Shaw has the chip on his shoulder to prove that a high level of football performance is in fact compatible with a high level of academic performance.  This is in his DNA and since he was a student athlete at Stanford under Walsh he has wanted to establish that basic compatibility in the face of the naysayers and doubters.  Walsh could never quite do it, and Shaw wants to save the old fashioned student-athlete from the cesspool of semi-pro athletics.  The only way he can accomplish that is to build Stanford into a perennial power house school.  If he did it anywhere but at Stanford, he would not be able to prove his point.  He can't accomplish this goal in the pros or at any other school--a national championship at a place with extremely high academic standards would be the classic David vs. Goliath story, complete with the moral and ethical implications.  It has nothing to do with his salary or comfort level, but with his pride and his ideology. 

No, Shaw's problem is not that he has become soft or complacent.  He continues to attract top talent--both students and some of his assistant coaches.  He has everything he needs to fulfill his mission except he lacks the offensive mind necessary to do so.  He needs to find a young Bill Walsh somewhere to become his offensive coordinator. 

[81alum]

Most of you know I follow Ca.l and Stanford very closely and root for both teams.  I have hesitated to say this until now, but because so many Stanford fans are looking for answers - and because past history often allows us to foresee and hopefully learn from past mistakes - I'm going to say it.  David Shaw is going down a very similar path as Jeff Tedford.  And it really should be no surprise, because neither Ca.l or Stanford has historically demanded high performance from their football programs.

I appreciate your comments and perspective and hope others here don't give you too hard a time.  I have thoroughly enjoyed having you and some other outsiders posting here from time to time.  A changed perspective is good for us.

I do think that Tedford and Shaw are fundamentally different people and worked for different kinds of institutions.  Stanford would never have permitted Shaw to recruit and play academically sub standard players the way C.al permitted Tedford, but even more important is that Tedford was willing to do so, and Shaw would never do so even if permitted.  Their values systems are just fundamentally different.  So you could say that C.al and its coach were both willing to sell out academics to improve the team--but even that failed.  Neither Stanford nor its coach would be willing to do that.

And that gives David Shaw a different motivation than Tedford ever had--Shaw has the chip on his shoulder to prove that a high level of football performance is in fact compatible with a high level of academic performance.  This is in his DNA and since he was a student athlete at Stanford under Walsh he has wanted to establish that basic compatibility in the face of the naysayers and doubters.  Walsh could never quite do it, and Shaw wants to save the old fashioned student-athlete from the cesspool of semi-pro athletics.  The only way he can accomplish that is to build Stanford into a perennial power house school.  If he did it anywhere but at Stanford, he would not be able to prove his point.  He can't accomplish this goal in the pros or at any other school--a national championship at a place with extremely high academic standards would be the classic David vs. Goliath story, complete with the moral and ethical implications.  It has nothing to do with his salary or comfort level, but with his pride and his ideology. 

No, Shaw's problem is not that he has become soft or complacent.  He continues to attract top talent--both students and some of his assistant coaches.  He has everything he needs to fulfill his mission except he lacks the offensive mind necessary to do so.  He needs to find a young Bill Walsh somewhere to become his offensive coordinator.