Some thoughts on Penn State's Joe Paterno and how he approaches his assistant coaches from the book, "No Ordinary Joe" by Michael O'Brien.Business-like, purposeful, and organized, the coaches have wasted little time on small talk or extraneous issues. If the discussion has drifted, Joe had quickly brought it back on track.
Even after Penn State has enjoyed a successful season, Joe has insisted upon an ongoing process of re-examination. He might alter his approach to the next spring practice. His constant drive for improvement has forced his assistants to seek innovations. “He guards so much against complacency,” and Sandusky. “He is constantly trying to get better and wants to do things differently.”
“An assistant coach who is allowed to present an idea and have it accepted will work twice as hard to make that idea work on the practice field than if he walks out of a meeting turned down all the time,” Joe said. “Your assistant coaches will only grow if you allow them to try new things.”
Joe has handed out compliments, but not often and not lavishly. He has said, “Nice job,” “I appreciate what you have done,” “I like that way you analyzed this.” If Joe didn’t like the way assistant Tome Bradley handled a drill, he told him, “Tom, I didn’t like the drill you did with those guys. It could be done better.”
There have been some drawbacks to working for Joe. He was “too impatient,” Sandusky thought. “He is impatient,” agreed Booker Brooks, “and that is tough on an assistant coach. He would want a player to develop faster than is humanly possible.”
