Stubbs accomplishing mission as Colonels’ coach

This month was my second visit to the office of Nicholls State head football coach Charlie Stubbs.

After the first, a year ago, I thought, this guy has no idea what he is getting himself into. Charlie Stubbs had never been a head coach. And, he was now the head coach at a small school in south Louisiana that had been through tough football times.

Interest was low; facilities were worse. Stubbs, a devout Mormon, father of four and grandfather of five, had banned foul language from the Nicholls State football team. I thought, the first violator might be Stubbs himself.

One year later, I admit that I misjudged a book by its cover.

Stubbs does not look like a college football coach. With his slim build, glasses and reserved demeanor, Stubbs looks more like the guy who comes to your house to spray for roaches.

If he were the bug spray man, Stubbs would do it like he does everything else. Meticulously.

A year ago, Stubbs wondered if he had the numbers just to field a team. The 2010 season started with a 47-0 loss at San Diego State. The Colonels then lost at Western Michigan 49-14. That was followed by a 39-21 loss to South Alabama. But he refused to panic or change his offense.

The day before that September game at Western Michigan, Stubbs sent a message to his club. One of the team’s starting defensive ends didn’t have his necessary study hall hours for the week. As players boarded the team bus for the airport, Stubbs informed the young man that he would not be making the trip.

The Colonels went on to win four games, including three against conference opponents. Nicholls State closed the season with a 37-7 win at Northwestern State, and a 27-25 win in Thibodaux over archrival Southeastern Louisiana.

Now, the Colonels will have 95 players out for the start of fall practice. Another 15 will report when classes start in late August. Stubbs has 110 lockers and a waiting list for walk-ons.

In his book, “Developing an Explosive Offense,” Stubbs says that “concentrating in meetings, doing extra film study and practicing with rhythm, as well as effort and detail, is part of the price that must be paid to win.”

That happens on every day but Sunday.

Stubbs said he doesn’t work on Sunday. That is the time for family and church. On Sundays, he attends a Mormon church in Houma with his wife and then calls all four of his children who live in other parts of the country.

Stubbs said he learned from former BYU coach LaVell Edwards that you can be “a good father and husband and still be a good coach.”

In his totally organized office, Stubbs jots a few notes and listens to ’60s music. He says he could have left to be an NFL assistant after last season. He notes that only one assistant left after last season (Bobby April Jr.), and that was for the NFL.

Stubbs said the parents of recruits love his rules, and those rules, of course, are all detailed in a Power Point presentation when parents and

recruits visit campus.

Could Charlie Stubbs be on the verge of winning big at Nicholls State?

On my second visit to his office, my skepticism is fading, fast.

Ed Daniels is sports director of ABC26 WGNO. He can be reached at edaniels@clarion  herald.org.