Zac Alley believes in Rich Rodriguez's way to win
It didn’t take long for Zac Alley to realize how Rich Rodriguez runs his football program.
One of the first things he noticed is the standard that Rodriguez holds his players to on a daily basis.
“There’s only one way to do things if you want to win. And if you don’t do that every single day, then it’s not O.K,” Alley said.
It’s a characteristic that has rubbed off on Alley as he too takes the same approach in how he teaches on the defensive side of the ball. And on top of Alley’s success, it’s likely a major reason why he was the primary target of Rodriguez to reunite with him as his defensive coordinator in Morgantown.
“I’m like that high freaking energy. I’m running all over the place, screaming, yelling, doing everything. And I think that similar coaching styles probably matches up,” Alley said.
Alley has been around intense, competitive head coaches at every stop of his career and believes that is a trait that is necessary in order to have success at this level of football.
On top of maintaining the standard, Rodriguez also is masterful in his balance between intensity and giving his players the necessary attention.
“Everybody gets coached a little bit individually, you would say, to what helps them learn, helps them get developed,” Alley said.
The defensive coordinator has taken the same approach with his unit and holds his group to a daily standard. The players either achieve that, or they don’t and it’s important to criticize when it’s done poorly and elevate when it’s done well.
“I believe in telling them the truth. If it’s bad, I’m going to tell you it’s bad. And I’m going to call you out in front of everybody. If it’s good, I’m going to tell you it’s good, and everybody’s going to know it. Because there’s only one way to win,” Alley said.
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