Someone mentioned how Eddie usually outcoached teams and willed our teams to victory in close games with less than 5 minutes left. I learned a lot listening to why Eddie did things, and watching his teams play. Feel free to add what you learned about Eddie that made him successful.
Everything Coach Eddie Sutton did was to have his team prepared to win in those last 5 minutes.
Conditioning - His jokes about running a team until their ankles smoked, especially the Christmas break practices. It was no joke. Eddie looked for excuses to get the team in shape. Remember how they would drop guys off 5 miles outside of Stillwater and make they run back to town being followed by a car for breaking some rule? He was going to run those guys one way or another, abiding by team rules or not. You can't win late in the last 5 minutes of a game consistently unless you are better conditioned than your opponent.
Defensive install - Eddie concentrated on the defensive install first. It was sacred. He said he would not turn to fine tuning the offense until the team had the man to man defense installed properly. It was why OSU struggled early in the season, anyone remember how bad OSU looked in Hawaii with Country & Co the year they made it to the final four? Offense looked pathetic, defensive install was not completed yet.
Offensive install - If the defensive install was completed and looked good after the first game after the Christmas break, focus would turn to the offense. The sooner the focus turned, usually the better our team was. It was always a process, you don't move on to the next subject matter until you master the current subject matter. Eddie said the offensive install was best learned in live play, the game pressure could not be simulated in practice. OSU intentionally did not run much under Eddie early in the season. The reason why was because he wanted to get our half court sets installed and working well first. Eddie always said the most important part of a game was the first and last 5 minutes of each half. He said those were the momentum minutes, and the possessions in those minutes was the most valued and determined outcomes of games, those minutes determined who gets to play from being ahead, and who closes with momentum. The way to value those minutes the most was excellent half court execution of the offense. No TO's. Work and get really good shots. Eddie put a coaching emphasis on managing those 20 minutes of a game, they were high stress valued parts of the game no different than the last 5 minutes. Our team was use to playing "5 minute ball", it became a learned behavior. Eddie said most NCAA games come down to the last 2 minutes of each game and just a few possessions, he said the team that would win NCAA games, would be the team that best executed their half-court defense and offense during those few precious possessions. This was an emphasis. I believe Coach had a rule he wanted at least 3 passes in a half court set before a shot was taken. Coach had no problem with anyone shooting, but it needed to be a quality open shot, and he taught his team what a quality shot was. Take a piss poor shot and you get to ride the pine.
Toughness - If you can't set a proper pick, or take a charge, or afraid you might take an elbow getting a rebound, you could not play for Coach Sutton. One year he felt the team was extremely soft, they dressed in helmets and shoulder pads for a practice and he remedied that.
Other points of emphasis - Coach Sutton provided immediate feedback most of the time for absent minded and poor play. The Coach Sutton hook. Most prevalent during the Defensive and Offensive installations. But always lurking, with a scowl, and a seat next to the HC or an assistant for a do better talk. I believe the only player this held back was Stevie Graham, it just got in his head. But it worked 98% of the time. Coach Sutton recruited to try to find a defensive specialist that he could put on the opposing team's best scorer. This was a player we did not count on for points, and this player was also expected to rebound, get steals, take a charge, set picks, and get assists. If you can take the best player away from a team, you force someone on the opposing team to become the go to scorer that night, that takes the entire team out of their comfort zone. He wanted hidden points, if he could hold the leading scorer from the opposing team 6 points or more below their average, that is a big deal. If an opposing team knew their top scorer was possibly not a good option late in the game because we had a stopper, that was a problem for them. Players knew their role, they were given roles that played to their strengths and avoided their weakness, violate your role you get the bench. Coach usually had one or 2 really skilled 3 point shooters. Usually had someone that could come in off the bench and could build momentum. Most teams played man to man back then, and our designated starting 3 point shooting guard was always in excellent condition, and would run constantly all game long, many times off double picks, just wearing out defenders. Steph Curry does this, he runs all game long and just wears down a defense. Usually by the 8 min mark or so in the 2nd half, open looks became much easier to find. And Coach knew how to use those picks. I loved the double pick he would set near the baseline outside of the lane by the basket, to get a shooter wide open for the corner 3, the best percentage 3 point shot. I can still see Randy R running that play, getting wide open, and nailing it. We set good picks at the top of the key, we could pick and roll well. Great picks turn to wide open shots, higher percentage made, hidden points thru better execution. You knew when OSU was firing on all cylinders defensively when they were anticipating movement, getting in position, and getting several charges. Crowd knew it too and let the team know the work was appreciated. Coach was a master at teaching hedging in man to man defense and the ability of the defense to hedge on their own and create easy trap situations that led to TO's and easy buckets. More hidden points. It was obvious that Sutton teams placed an emphasis on out of bound plays, both on defense and offense. Coming out of most timeouts the team was prepared in those situations, including drawn up regular half court offensive sets. Coach used his TO's well to stop opposing teams momentum before it escalated quickly. Picking up hidden points at each stop and not giving them away.
Intangible - Coach had a style of leadership that although at times seemed very harsh, his teams loved playing for him and they had fun with each other on the court and they enjoyed taking the energy from our crowd and giving back on the court. Coach created a relationship between his players and the fans, he created an identity that represented our roots, which was toughness and a defense that you really did not want to be in a grinder with for 40 minutes. He obviously invested in his players in a way they knew he cared about them as individuals, that can't be faked and it takes more than lip service. Coach Sutton and Coach Ward were somewhat similar in this area IMO. Both were intimidating in their own way, both IMO could intimidate opposing teams and coaches by their presence and the toughness their teams played with. Our next HC needs to be that type of coach the can walk that fine line of being extremely tough and building a team in their image, but never crosses the line with their behavior with a player and they are still respected and loved.
Post your thoughts, I am sure others may have a viewpoint or something they picked up on or learned from Coach Sutton. Or something we no longer see from our HC or the team. The conversation is somewhat applicable for the times, because we need a coach that is very intentional and detailed in how and why they build a team and what is the exact identity and performance you are trying to achieve in those last 2 - 5 mins of games in which victory hangs in the balance. It was no accident the team was prepared for those closing possessions, it was very intentional.
Kudos to all of you still watching games, it rips my heart out and I can't watch what is being rolled out on to that court currently. Coach Sutton spoiled me, made it look easy for sure, it sounds simple, but evidently really hard to coach.
Everything Coach Eddie Sutton did was to have his team prepared to win in those last 5 minutes.
Conditioning - His jokes about running a team until their ankles smoked, especially the Christmas break practices. It was no joke. Eddie looked for excuses to get the team in shape. Remember how they would drop guys off 5 miles outside of Stillwater and make they run back to town being followed by a car for breaking some rule? He was going to run those guys one way or another, abiding by team rules or not. You can't win late in the last 5 minutes of a game consistently unless you are better conditioned than your opponent.
Defensive install - Eddie concentrated on the defensive install first. It was sacred. He said he would not turn to fine tuning the offense until the team had the man to man defense installed properly. It was why OSU struggled early in the season, anyone remember how bad OSU looked in Hawaii with Country & Co the year they made it to the final four? Offense looked pathetic, defensive install was not completed yet.
Offensive install - If the defensive install was completed and looked good after the first game after the Christmas break, focus would turn to the offense. The sooner the focus turned, usually the better our team was. It was always a process, you don't move on to the next subject matter until you master the current subject matter. Eddie said the offensive install was best learned in live play, the game pressure could not be simulated in practice. OSU intentionally did not run much under Eddie early in the season. The reason why was because he wanted to get our half court sets installed and working well first. Eddie always said the most important part of a game was the first and last 5 minutes of each half. He said those were the momentum minutes, and the possessions in those minutes was the most valued and determined outcomes of games, those minutes determined who gets to play from being ahead, and who closes with momentum. The way to value those minutes the most was excellent half court execution of the offense. No TO's. Work and get really good shots. Eddie put a coaching emphasis on managing those 20 minutes of a game, they were high stress valued parts of the game no different than the last 5 minutes. Our team was use to playing "5 minute ball", it became a learned behavior. Eddie said most NCAA games come down to the last 2 minutes of each game and just a few possessions, he said the team that would win NCAA games, would be the team that best executed their half-court defense and offense during those few precious possessions. This was an emphasis. I believe Coach had a rule he wanted at least 3 passes in a half court set before a shot was taken. Coach had no problem with anyone shooting, but it needed to be a quality open shot, and he taught his team what a quality shot was. Take a piss poor shot and you get to ride the pine.
Toughness - If you can't set a proper pick, or take a charge, or afraid you might take an elbow getting a rebound, you could not play for Coach Sutton. One year he felt the team was extremely soft, they dressed in helmets and shoulder pads for a practice and he remedied that.
Other points of emphasis - Coach Sutton provided immediate feedback most of the time for absent minded and poor play. The Coach Sutton hook. Most prevalent during the Defensive and Offensive installations. But always lurking, with a scowl, and a seat next to the HC or an assistant for a do better talk. I believe the only player this held back was Stevie Graham, it just got in his head. But it worked 98% of the time. Coach Sutton recruited to try to find a defensive specialist that he could put on the opposing team's best scorer. This was a player we did not count on for points, and this player was also expected to rebound, get steals, take a charge, set picks, and get assists. If you can take the best player away from a team, you force someone on the opposing team to become the go to scorer that night, that takes the entire team out of their comfort zone. He wanted hidden points, if he could hold the leading scorer from the opposing team 6 points or more below their average, that is a big deal. If an opposing team knew their top scorer was possibly not a good option late in the game because we had a stopper, that was a problem for them. Players knew their role, they were given roles that played to their strengths and avoided their weakness, violate your role you get the bench. Coach usually had one or 2 really skilled 3 point shooters. Usually had someone that could come in off the bench and could build momentum. Most teams played man to man back then, and our designated starting 3 point shooting guard was always in excellent condition, and would run constantly all game long, many times off double picks, just wearing out defenders. Steph Curry does this, he runs all game long and just wears down a defense. Usually by the 8 min mark or so in the 2nd half, open looks became much easier to find. And Coach knew how to use those picks. I loved the double pick he would set near the baseline outside of the lane by the basket, to get a shooter wide open for the corner 3, the best percentage 3 point shot. I can still see Randy R running that play, getting wide open, and nailing it. We set good picks at the top of the key, we could pick and roll well. Great picks turn to wide open shots, higher percentage made, hidden points thru better execution. You knew when OSU was firing on all cylinders defensively when they were anticipating movement, getting in position, and getting several charges. Crowd knew it too and let the team know the work was appreciated. Coach was a master at teaching hedging in man to man defense and the ability of the defense to hedge on their own and create easy trap situations that led to TO's and easy buckets. More hidden points. It was obvious that Sutton teams placed an emphasis on out of bound plays, both on defense and offense. Coming out of most timeouts the team was prepared in those situations, including drawn up regular half court offensive sets. Coach used his TO's well to stop opposing teams momentum before it escalated quickly. Picking up hidden points at each stop and not giving them away.
Intangible - Coach had a style of leadership that although at times seemed very harsh, his teams loved playing for him and they had fun with each other on the court and they enjoyed taking the energy from our crowd and giving back on the court. Coach created a relationship between his players and the fans, he created an identity that represented our roots, which was toughness and a defense that you really did not want to be in a grinder with for 40 minutes. He obviously invested in his players in a way they knew he cared about them as individuals, that can't be faked and it takes more than lip service. Coach Sutton and Coach Ward were somewhat similar in this area IMO. Both were intimidating in their own way, both IMO could intimidate opposing teams and coaches by their presence and the toughness their teams played with. Our next HC needs to be that type of coach the can walk that fine line of being extremely tough and building a team in their image, but never crosses the line with their behavior with a player and they are still respected and loved.
Post your thoughts, I am sure others may have a viewpoint or something they picked up on or learned from Coach Sutton. Or something we no longer see from our HC or the team. The conversation is somewhat applicable for the times, because we need a coach that is very intentional and detailed in how and why they build a team and what is the exact identity and performance you are trying to achieve in those last 2 - 5 mins of games in which victory hangs in the balance. It was no accident the team was prepared for those closing possessions, it was very intentional.
Kudos to all of you still watching games, it rips my heart out and I can't watch what is being rolled out on to that court currently. Coach Sutton spoiled me, made it look easy for sure, it sounds simple, but evidently really hard to coach.
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