We know what we like in our coaches

The recent turnover of several head coaches among the major pro and college teams in this market has given us a great study in what Minnesota sports fans like (and don't like) in a coach.

August 5, 2011 at 6:19AM
Vikings coach Leslie Frazier will be putting the team through situational drills at camp in Mankato tonight.
Vikings coach Leslie Frazier probably scored points with Minnesotans when he sent tackle Bryant McKinnie packing for showing up out of shape. (Star Tribune/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

The recent turnover of several head coaches among the major pro and college teams in this market -- the Wild, Wolves, Vikings and Gophers football have all made changes in the past year -- has given us a great study in what Minnesota sports fans like (and don't like) in a coach. Here, then, is a list of the 10 attributes that tend to play well here:

Straight talk: Minnesota fans love a coach who "tells it like it is." We have pretty good internal bull detectors in these parts. A well-scripted crock can only last so long. Truth can last a lot longer. This is where Jerry Kill is winning big early.

Information: We want the coach to tell us enough that we know what is going on with the team. This is where Mike Tice earned major points (even if he lost them elsewhere). This is where Brad Childress lost fans early on, and he never got some of them back even as he got better.

Bold moves: Whether it is on-field innovation/risk-taking or a roster shake-up, Minnesota fans generally enjoy seeing a few eggs broken in the name of making an omelet.

Enforcement of accountability: Nothing drives a Minnesota fan crazier than the thought that a coach has lost control of his team (see: last year's Vikings and Timberwolves along with fan grumbles early in 2011 about the Twins). Nothing thrills them more than seeing someone who has clearly strayed from the line get benched or cut. See: Leslie Frazier vs. Bryant McKinnie.

Clear authority: This goes hand-in-hand with the enforcement of accountability but extends beyond just crisis situations. Two minutes left in a game. Do you look at the coach and have confidence that everything is under control and the players are sure they are in the best position to win?

Humility: We want coaches who have all the answers. We just don't want them to tell us they have all the answers.

Midwest values: If he (or she) is "one of us," all the better.

Intensity: Either quiet or expressed, this is a big one. Bud Grant's stoicism worked because fans could sense what was beneath the exterior based on how his teams played.

Work ethic: This goes along with intensity. This is no market in which to mail it in. If you give the appearance that you are doing everything possible to win or at least improve, you will gain major traction.

Winning: To quote Charlie Sheen, "Duh."

MICHAEL RAND

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