This time next year, Larry Coker will be less than three months away from leading UTSA against Northeastern (Okla.) State in the Roadrunners’ first football game in school history.
That may seem like a relatively long way off to some,
But Coker knows his program will need every day from now until Sept. 3, 2011, when UTSA opens its inaugural season against his alma mater at the Alamodome, to prepare for a day that will usher in a new era for San Antonio sports.
“I can’t believe I’ve already been here for over a year,” Coker said Friday at his football camp on the UTSA campus. “Sept. 3, 2011 will be here before we know it.”
The Roadrunners will compete as an independent in the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision before stepping up to the Football Bowl Subdivision in 2014.
As he made the rounds on the final day of his first youth camp of the summer, Coker talked about his fledgling program, his anticipation for the start of workouts in August and the changing landscape of major college football.
“I’m shocked by what’s been happening. I really am,” Coker said, when asked about the defections of Big 12 schools Nebraska and Colorado, which are moving to the Big Ten and Pacific-10, respectively. “You hate to see the Big 12 dissolve because it’s been a very good conference, but money drives college football. I know that’s hardly a secret.”
With UTSA aiming to become an FBS independent by 2014, it will be interesting to see what conference the Roadrunners land in someday.
“All we can do is work hard to be ready,” Coker said.
Coker, who came out of retirement in March 2009 to take the UTSA job, led Miami to the 2001 BCS national championship in his first season as head coach. The Hurricanes advanced to the BCS title game again after the 2002 season, losing 31-24 to Ohio State in double overtime.
Coker, who turns 62 on June 23, worked as an ESPN college football analyst for two years after getting fired at Miami in 2006.
He looked happy to be in his element again Friday morning, even if it was “coaching” kids in grades 3-9.
“First of all, it’s just a great feeling to be on the grass again,” Coker said. “This is awesome, coaching and working with kids and teaching them things about football. I’ve really enjoyed being out here.”
Nearly 150 boys participated in Coker’s three-day camp. UTSA’s assistant coaches and graduate assistants, and a handful of Pop Warner coaches served as instructors.
Coker had a good time talking with kids and coaches as he bounced from group to group on the field.
He chuckled as he recognized a kid who had told him what he liked best about the camp.
“Tell this man what your favorite part of the camp is,” Coker said.
Without hesitation, the kid yelled, “The buffet.”
He was referring to the lunch buffet campers were treated to on the first two days of the camp.
Turning to more serious things, Coker said some of the players in the Roadrunners’ first signing class already are enrolled at UTSA and going to summer school. The others will arrive for the fall semester in August, when the Roadrunners start workouts.
“Everything is pretty much on schedule,” Coker said. “We’re really looking forward to getting all our players on campus and getting started. We’ve gotten our offensive playbook together and we’re working on our defensive playbook now.”
If you’re wondering what kind of offense the Roadrunners will run, think multiple sets.
UTSA signed 27 players, including 14 from Greater San Antonio, in February. Coker said he expects about 60 players to report for the first day of practice. If you do the math, you can easily figure that more than half of the Roadrunners’ opening-day roster will consist of walk-ons. That’s par for the course for a start-up program.
I asked Coker about the Southland Conference’s recent vote requiring that member schools compete in the SLC in all of their sports. The adoption of the rule effectively prevents UTSA from doing what it had planned, pursuing membership as an FBS independent in football while continuing to compete in the SLC in its 16 other sports.
Although the SLC’s move complicates matters a bit for the Roadrunners, UTSA athletic director Lynn Hickey has said the school’s goal to become an independent in the FBS as quickly as possible remains unchanged.
“Do you wish it had happened that way? No,” Coker said, referring to the SLC’s new rule. “You wish it hadn’t changed, but we knew going in that there would be obstacles. The important thing is that our athletic director and president (Ricardo Romo) have come out and said that our goal remains the same.”
That said, Coker excused himself so he could sign certificates that he personally handed to each kid who participated in his camp.
It’s all part of being a college football coach.
