Time To Applaud Bob Bostad
November 5th, 2012
Joe can just guess when readers noticed the headline, a few asked themselves, possibly out loud, “Who?”
Bob Bostad would be your Bucs offensive line coach and it’s time to start giving him props. Let’s look at what the Bucs offensive line has gone through since August.
1) Right guard David Joseph goes down with a knee injury ending his season.
2) Right tackle Jeremy Trueblood gets hurt and is Wally Pipped, losing his starting gig to Demar Dotson.
3) Ted Larsen, who started at right guard after Joseph went down, is benched and replaced by Jamon Meredith.
4) Left guard Carl Nicks does down for the season with an ugly toe injury, and is replaced by Jeremy Zuttah, who moves from starting center to left guard.
5) With a center position open, Larsen, who played some center at North Carolina State, moves in to fill the void left by Zuttah at center.
This is just nuts and normally, just Joseph’s injury could collapse an offensive line. The other elements would normally cripple any other line.
But somehow, some way, Bostad has found a way to get the Bucs to play effectively up front, enough to have Doug Martin go all Gayle Sayers on the Raiders yesterday, a defensive front with some damn tough hombres.
Now college football geeks like Joe know that traditionally, Wisconsin year in and year out had one of the nation’s top offensive lines, and produced studs like Browns left tackle Joe Thomas and Bears right tackle Gabe Carimi.
It’s no coincidence that Wisconsin, to be polite, has struggled with their offensive line in the first year after Bostad left, and already fired Bostad’s immediate successor.
Right now if someone can inform Joe of an NFL offensive line coach who is doing a better job than Bostad under the worst of possible conditions, Joe is all ears.
November 5th, 2012 at 8:38 am
Wally Pipped… nice. When I first read it I thought it was Wally Piped, as in getting beat down by Wally with a lead pipe. 🙂
Then I saw the Lou Gehrig reference. Although, to actually be Wally Pipped, Meideth has to transform into a Hall of Fame super star… or make the pro bowl… or maybe at the very least, beat out Davin for the job.
Alli in all, I think Merideth and Larsen can develop into some nice, solid depth for 2013.
November 5th, 2012 at 8:57 am
thanks for hearing my cries Joe, this guy deserves credit with the job he has done!!!
November 5th, 2012 at 9:18 am
@bucfan238
The reference was to Dotson and trueblood not Meredith and Joseph. But right on brother! I don’t think my brain has interpreted what the Oline accomplished yesterday just yet. Way to step up!
November 5th, 2012 at 9:20 am
lol @ going all Gayle Sayers…
I liked that hire when it happened..the man can coach that OL…he deserves a medal…
November 5th, 2012 at 9:20 am
Great insight Joe…His doing a great Job
November 5th, 2012 at 9:27 am
Great O-Line coach. Maybe Ricky Wagner in the 3rd next year!
November 5th, 2012 at 9:47 am
More proof that the reports that nobody wanted to work for/with Schiano were bs…
November 5th, 2012 at 9:52 am
Whole staff is developing well, it’s amazing what solid coaching can do for a team. Agree with most that the Bostad hiring was spot on. Wisconsin has annually been an OL factory. Besides Carimi & Thomas, Bostad has Urbik & Zeitler starting at G for the Bills and Bengals as well as Konz & Moffitt as backups for the Falcons and Seahawks.
November 5th, 2012 at 10:08 am
It took him four weeks to see larsen was getting bullrushed into the back field. Give lorig clark and byham some credit for staying on there blocks..Luke too! Meredith need to get a helmet on somebody when he pulls.. Larsen isn’t the best pass blocker but get him pulling on a linbacker he excels. Zuttah’s a beast on the linebacker pull also!
November 5th, 2012 at 10:18 am
Was worried about getting into the Coaching pool late during the offseason. Coach has put together a great group of teachers and it’s manifesting itself now. The games are very exciting this year!
November 5th, 2012 at 10:31 am
100% Agreed. Bostad deserves the props. Next on the list to get singled out on the coaching staff for doing an outstanding job… Byner. He’s got Lorig playing solid FB and although Martin started a bit slow, has come on so strong now that he’s a legitimate ROY candidate. Maybe after that we look at the LB coach??? or talk about devastation to a unit, the DB group is decimated… and although not playing exceptional, they’re still getting turnovers, production from undrafted rookie Leonard Johnson, Ahmad Black is becoming solid… Even though the DBs have been the weakest group, I still have to give their coach props, just for being able to field a team there. I’ll give him a pass on MyLew, as he really has no other option on the roster (though I’d rather see McDonald back out there)
November 5th, 2012 at 11:50 am
Bostad has done an excellent job with our Oline.
And how about Sully… His playcalling has made us 1st in scoring in the past four plus games.
When have we ever been a top 5, let–alone, number one in scoring!!!
I think our teams is getting a hang on the playbook!
November 5th, 2012 at 11:51 am
^ this is not to take away anything from the great Oline coach who is Bostad!!
November 5th, 2012 at 12:40 pm
Really, it is a remarkable job when you think about all the curves he’s been thrown. Great job!
November 5th, 2012 at 12:42 pm
Definitely a great job yesterday by the O-line and Coach Bostad.
David Joseph?!
November 5th, 2012 at 2:35 pm
Joe,… you are the best writer in Tampa Bay! I get the shivers when I think about reading BUC news from the other writers, but can always count on you for good insight and interesting content! Keep it up, this was spot on! GO BUCS!
November 5th, 2012 at 4:52 pm
i think if you take a look at the last 16 games of raheem morris’ staff and the first 16 (eventually) of greg schiano’s staff, it will be about as stark an example of the importance of coaching in the NFL as you can find. this is a group of coaches holding their players accountable in meeting rooms and on the practice field and filling their players with knowledge and, consequently, confidence. the last coaching staff seemed to count on pros acting like pros, and there seemed to be this bizarre assumption that swagger trumped preparation. god forbid you dent a player’s confidence by implying they had plenty to learn