When you do this job for a while, you meet a lot of coaches. You also learn where you can, and more importantly, where you shouldn’t, ask questions. Every journalist prefers to talk to coaches who don’t hesitate to ask tough questions. After all, it’s part of their job to deal with the media in all its forms. But the big questions can be a challenge.
Selective by subject
Some coaches would rather talk about their third center’s sprained ankle than share their thoughts on the NCAA’s latest proposed changes.
There was a famous coach at a Power Five school who had a habit of rolling his eyes whenever a question about a major topic was asked. “We’re just here to try to have a good Tuesday, and you want to ask questions about the big picture,” he would tell the two reporters in question, who couldn’t help but do their job.
And then there are the few people on the other side. Some are casual and quickly post on social media. Others think about it and come up with real responses. Former Stanford coach David Shaw He was always a media favorite. No topic was too big or too small. Sit down with him for 15 minutes and he was just as likely to cite a 2012 Princeton study on how much sleep athletes need as the latest football rankings.
Clawson
Which brings us to Wake Forest head coach Dave Clawson. He’s not one to shy away far from the subjects. In two and a half years of covering Demon Deacons football, we’ve talked to him about topics as diverse as athlete rights, the pay scale, whether or not NCAA rules should be enforced, the economics of college sports and more. He’s been at the forefront of the issue of college football’s withdrawal from the NCAA. He was even willing, years ago, to get into the details of the how and why.
Sure, we discuss his roster, his team’s depth, the pain of going 4-8 after seven years of bowl games, assistant coaches and every upcoming opponent. But Clawson will get to the big stuff. He may have a little twinge at first, but give him about 30 seconds and he’ll dig deep into the trenches of the subject with you. And never in all that time has he responded with the coach’s “This is above my pay grade” speech.
A big vision for a big future
So it came naturally to us to ask Clawson a general question this week at ACC kickoff. In recent weeks, a well-respected ACC athletic director told us in an off-the-record conversation that a group of administrators considered Clawson to be “one of the smartest guys in college sports.” The athletic director went on to say that Clawson could do just about any job in college sports when he decides to retire from coaching.
We proposed this to Clawson this week. Would he be interested in an undertaking of this magnitude?
“Right now, I’m just trying to have a winning season to make sure they allow me to continue to do the job that I’m doing,” he said with a laugh. “At some point, I’d like to stay involved in the game in a different capacity, adding value to college football.”
For him, Clawson said it was a way to give back. “I owe a lot to this sport.” He added that any move to the “next level” would be years away because he feels he still has a long way to go as a coach.
He already sits on the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA), representing the ACC.
Earning the right to be heard
Many coaches tend to speak out much later in their careers. They feel they’ve earned that platform by that point. Clawson is entering his 11th season.th year at Wake. He has 25 years of experience as a college football head coach. The photo of him that the athletic department uses for promotional items and events betrays his experience. There are very few gray hairs in the photo. It hardly resembles the reality of today. It doesn’t look true to reality after his years of answering those annoying questions from the media. But at least he answers them. There are likely big milestones ahead for Clawson when he’s done with coaching.
