Yale coach's task is creating a new football tradition

Jack Siedlecki has never had to follow an act like legendary coach Carm Cozza in his football career. It's not easy being the man that replaces the legend. Former Yale football coach Carm Cozza patrolled the Elis' sideline with class for 32 years, earning 179 victories and nine Ivy League championship rings. Neophyte Yale coach Jack Siedlecki, who spent the past four seasons coaching at Amherst, can't boast the same past as Cozza. Siedlecki has never spent more than five seasons coaching at any one place, and he only possesses a championship ring -- from the Division III level in 1990. "Amherst is a great place," Siedlecki said. "But Yale is Amherst times five. It's five times bigger, and they play a higher level of football." Even more difficult than replacing Cozza, Siedlecki joins a program where the players themselves need replacing. Since Yale's 1987 Ivy League championship season, the Elis have been in steady decline. Yale possesses the worst record in the Ivies over the past five years (10-25) and has not has not had a five-win season since 1990. Recently, things have gotten so bad in New Haven, Conn., that social security couldn't have sounded better to Cozza. Siedlecki, the two-time American Football Coaches Association District I Coach of the Year, has already turned around the Worcester Polytechnic Institute and Amherst football programs. Who's to say that he can't pull the same miracles at Yale? "I think we've already done a lot to establish a new identity," Siedlecki said. "We know that they finished in last place, but one of the things in the league -- and Penn is a good example -- is that even if you are on the bottom, you're not that far out, just three or four recruits." The first step that Siedlecki, 45, took to improve the Elis was surrounding himself with a new coaching staff, hiring Columbia offensive line coach Keith Clark as offensive coordinator and Penn secondary coach Rick Flanders to run the defense. Siedlecki also brought 1993 Harvard graduate Joel Lamb with him from Amherst to coach the quarterbacks and hired Penn coordinator of football operations Duane Brooks to coach defensive line. "It was very important to surround myself with guys that have lots of experience in this league," Siedlecki said. "We've already made changes. They were 4-3 [on defense]. We are 3-4. They are passing. We are traditional run. The X's and O's are very different." Even if Siedlecki doesn't have experience on his side, he has intellect in his favor. The Yale coach understands that he can't turn the program around overnight and has the Elis taking things one game at a time. After every contest -- win or lose -- Siedlecki meets with his team on the field and discusses the game. Despite the Elis' continued struggles, Siedlecki demands both he and his players face the music, so they can appreciate winning all the more when it comes. "I walked into [a press conference] last Saturday as disappointed as I've ever been," Siedlecki said. "But I'm going to be there -- for the press and for my players. I meet with my team on the field after every game to keep things in perspective, analyzing the game and moving on." The cerebral coach doesn't need immediate victories. He knows that a team must build from the top down. Once the coaching staff is in place, players are recruited that can turn things around. But it takes time, as Siedlecki's 7-9 combined first-season records at Worcester and Amherst shows. To build a winning program, Siedlecki -- like Cozza -- must be in it for the long haul.

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