Jankovich Builds His Own Pyramid of Success

The history of big-time college football, since its beginnings in the 1880s, offers no phenomenon to compare with the recent rise of the University of Miami Hurricanes.

Not much more than a decade ago, the Hurricanes, draining the university of more than $1 million each fall, were on the verge of petitioning the NCAA to drop them out of top-division football.

This winter, with an 11-0 team, they’re on the verge of winning an unprecedented fourth national championship in 10 years.

How has Miami achieved this unique consistency--under three coaching staffs--in an era when USC, Texas, Ohio State and others are faltering, and when Notre Dame, Oklahoma and others have been up and down?

“It depends, above all, on constantly maintaining the same philosophy and enthusiasm, and on basically using the same offensive and defensive system from year to year,” Sam Jankovich said.

Jankovich, the chief executive officer of the NFL’s New England Patriots, spent most of the 1980s at Miami as the nation’s most successful athletic director.

Most university administrators who really want a winning football program can have it, Jankovich reasons, by observing the provisions of his six-part formula. The quotations in the following paragraphs are also his.

1. STRESS DEFENSE.

“In college football, with 17 points every Saturday, you should win 90% of the time.”

2. A SUPERIOR PASS OFFENSE IS ESSENTIAL.

“The approach should be something like that of (an NFL) team. Every coach knows you’ve got to run the ball effectively. Passing is harder--but you have to pass effectively to win them all.

“Nothing a coach does is more important than making sure he will always have a talented passer at quarterback. And if you have an interesting offense, some of the best high school receivers in America will want to play for you.”

The Hurricane offense was installed in 1979 by Howard Schnellenberger, who coached Miami’s first national championship team in 1983, the year Jankovich moved to Miami from WashingtonState.

Schnellenberger, now at Louisville, brought the system across town from an NFL team, the Miami Dolphins, after serving as Don Shula’s offensive coordinator in the Super Bowl years.

“Jimmy Johnson and Dennis Erickson made a few little changes, of course, but never wavered in (Schnellenberger’s) commitment to the pass,” Jankovich said, identifying the two coaches he hired to win Miami’s national championships in 1987 and ’89.

“Jimmy strengthened the defense, and Dennis took the offense a step further with the one-back formation, but the program has been basically the same since the first championship season.”

3. PLAY IN A JAN. 1 BOWL GAME EVERY YEAR.

“Not for the honor, primarily, but to (extend) football practice. A team in a Jan. 1 bowl game gets one more month of practice than most of its opponents on next year’s schedule.

“That’s one reason you need a strong academic program. The players are in school to get an education, and if they have to practice more, the athletic office must make sure that they study more, too.

“Once you’re in a Jan. 1 game, you should always be in a Jan. 1 game. In college football, the more successful you are, the more success you should have.”

4. SCHEDULE FOUR TOUGH GAMES EACH SEASON.

“It is the nature of college football that a good team seldom faces more than four good teams in any one season.

“That gives you seven games you should win. And the reason they’re important is that youcan use more players in those games.

“Inexperience is a yearly problem in college football. You have to fight it all the time, and the way to beat it is to plan ahead to give your youngest players some experience in the six or seven games you know you can win.”

5. PLAY GAMES ALL OVER AMERICA.

“It isn’t always easy to do, but you should try to schedule games every year or so in California, Arizona, Texas, Florida and the East or Midwest. Recruiting isn’t just going out and recruiting. It’s also bringing your team where the (prospects) are, or might be.

“The kids and their coaches will come out to see a good team that comes into their area. They’re also more likely to see you on TV if you’re in their area.

“The good skill players are mostly all in Florida, of course. At Miami, we didn’t have to worry about getting their attention. But you never know where you might find your next offensive lineman or linebacker or cornerback. It could be in Texas or Pennsylvania.”

6. HIRE WINNERS.

“That’s a subjective thing. Some people can evaluate people, some can’t. But obviously, hiring the right people is the key to everything.

“Here are (three) things I’ve (found useful):

--”Everything else being roughly equal, the guy who has the most genuine enthusiasm for his work will do the best job.

--”Don’t pay much attention to a guy’s chronological age. Some people are 60 going on 40 and some are 20 going on 70. A mature person is a person of any age who has learned from his experiences. A young person is a person of any age who is driven to be successful.

--”Don’t run any on-the-job training programs. Never give a guy (his first) job as a head coach. (Evaluate) them elsewhere first. There are plenty of places where they can get some experience before they come to you.”

The last four coaches Jankovich has worked with--Schnellenberger, Johnson, Erickson and the Patriots’ Dick MacPherson--are all winners.

Schnellenberger remembers: “In 1983, I was on the (Miami search) committee for (Jankovich). We had to talk him into coming. In the (preceding) 12 years, Miami had seven athletic directors. Nobody wanted the job.”

The subsequent record:

--Schnellenberger’s 1983 Miami team, en route to the national championship, upset Nebraska in the Orange Bowl, 31-30. Last year at Louisville, Schnellenberger finished 10-1-1 when the Cardinals routed Alabama in the Fiesta Bowl, 34-7. This year, losing their quarterback in September, they finished down the track.

--After Jankovich hired Johnson to replace Schnellenberger when he thought he was going back to the pros, the 1987 Hurricanes won the championship by beating Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl, 20-14. Johnson, having since moved to the Dallas Cowboys, has become one of the NFL’s most respected coaches.

--Jankovich hired Erickson to replace Johnson, and the 1989 Hurricanes won the championship after outscoring Alabama in the Sugar Bowl, 35-25. Erickson’s top-ranked 1991 team can finish No. 1 again by beating Nebraska in the Orange Bowl and holding off Washington in the voting.

--At New England, MacPherson (6-9) has won six times as many games as the Patriots won last year.

“These guys all have two things in common,” Jankovich said. “Energy and enthusiasm.”