Jon Gruden

Left out: Southpaw quarterbacks nearly extinct

This is my December feature. Provo, Utah. Fall of 1980. BYU offensive coordinator Doug Scovil calls 18-year-old Steve Young into his office and breaks the bad news. “You’re not going to play quarterback here,” Scovil explains to the future Hall of Fame quarterback. “I don’t coach lefties. It ain’t happening.” Scovil suggests Young play safety instead. Scovil believes Eric Krzmarzick, a right-hander, is BYU’s quarterback of the future. Scovil becomes…

December 25, 2014
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Raiders fixed a symptom, not the source

This is my Tuesday column on the firing of Dennis Allen. WARNING: This is a Raiders column. 49ers fans — feel free to skip this. ALAMEDA — Unfortunately, Dennis Allen was not the Raiders’ biggest problem. Yes, he is a bad head coach. And, yes, he deserved to get fired. But he didn’t deserve to get hired in the first place. Allen had been an NFL defensive coordinator for one…

September 30, 2014
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Ron Caragher Q&A

I interviewed San Jose State head coach Ron Caragher over the phone last week. Here is the transcript. Q: Most of the top QBs in the upcoming draft went to non-major-conference colleges. Is that a coincidence, or is college football evolving? CARAGHER: Quarterbacks can come from all different types of colleges. Even a backup like the guy from USC – Matt Cassell – made it with the Patriots. At USD,…

April 28, 2014
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Josh Johnson explains why he likes Harbaugh’s coaching style

SANTA CLARA – The Niners newest quarterback, Josh Johnson, spoke today about his comfort level in the offense, his history with Colin Kaepernick, and why he likes Jim Harbaugh’s coaching style so much. Here’s a transcript. Q: How has it been going for you getting into the playbook? JOSH JOHNSON: It’s been going great. I’ve been fortunate for the last few years to play for a variety of different offensive…

July 25, 2012
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Ron Jaworski and Jon Gruden break down Alex Smith

Somehow I didn’t know about the conference call with Ron Jaworski and Jon Gruden yesterday. Thanks to Cam Inman, here’s what they said. Q: Ron, you’ve talked on previous broadcasts, even a Monday Night broadcast, about Alex Smith’s mechanical problems early in his career. What kind of improvements has he made early this year and how do you explain his emergence? JAWORSKI: “Well, I’ve once again studied and am studying…

December 15, 2011
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Jed York on KNBR

York had a chance to be a bit more expansive on topics such as the relationship he wants the future general manager and head coach to possess, the need to address the problems at the quarterback position, the 49ers current lack of an identity and whether it’s important to hire an offensive-minded coach.

December 28, 2010
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