I think Brewster lacked two qualities that every head coach has to have: patience and "football worldview." Those are pretty big deficits that can't be made up simply by working hard. He simply didn't know who he was as a coach and was too much in a hurry to take the team in any direction as opposed to laying out a consistent plan and moving in that direction. No wonder there was assistant coach attrition.
This is the essence of Brewster's undoing. Also why I think Kill is laying good groundwork to a succesful program. Patience and thoughtfulness was sacrificed for the potential of sparking a snowball effect to success.
I think I have the Brewster strategy for success figured out, he came up short on several key parts, but I have a good idea of what he was trying to do here.
Everything was based on talent and recruiting more talent.
He went for short term recruiting in 08 with an eye on fast success and rolling it into even better recruiting in 09, 10, 11, etc.
In hindsight he should have redshirted quite a few 08' recruits, targeted lower risk types and built up depth with an eye to a specific system, he didn't because he expected fast success in 08' and new, better recruits to replace his high risk, JUCO, and unredshirted players very quickly.
A few snags IMO:
-Decker getting hurt cost him at least 1 win in 08', probably against wisky which would have been a pretty successful season, and maybe gotten him some better kids for the 09 class.
-Hayo carpenter obviously tricked many staffs around the country, he was a gamebreaker in his JUCO league, a dud anywhere else. Alot was riding on him being next to Decker in 09' and being an epic deep threat
-Obviously he trusted Jedd Fisch too much in 09', big mistake. I thought our bowl game offense against Kansas was pretty solid under Tim Davis and a disgruntled Dunbar, he thought he'd be able to get his Texas friend Applewhite to come here.
-Decker hurt in 09' probably cost him 2-3 games, probably IL, and Iowa, and would have been an easier victory against SDSU, (saving me personally from one of the drunkest evenings of my life culminating in tipping over in a wheelchair and putting a hole in drywall with my head
). Decker was that good in 09', simply could have dominated/been toss up partner to an overwhelmed Weber and had success. We were punchless against SDSU and Iowa, but also had Iowa flustered on O.
-Underestimated defensive depth issues in 2010, should have reloaded with JUCOs since he was in deep already with short term types. Gameplan against SD was built on green safeties knowing what they were doing, should have run the ball more to eat up clock, protect D like they did against MTSU. Ultimately he lost his job over this one.
If one or two of these don't happen, he's still here. It was all based on short term success building momentum in recruiting and getting more and more talented players in here.
Unsustainable? Probably, but I think if Decker is healthy he's coming off of 2 8-5 seasons, a win against wisky in 08' and iowee in 09', 55-0 is closer, SDSU is further, and there are probably a few more athletes to throw around this year as we could have snagged some better recruits.
Now, all aboard the Kill express, let sleeping dogs lay.
