Michigan Panthers Head Coach Mike Nolan Interview with Meltdown on WRIF
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00:00Coach, good to see you. How's things?
00:02Things are good. Very good.
00:03Yeah, it's nice to be here in Detroit as well, so things are great.
00:06Yeah, getting ramped up.
00:07We'll talk more about Detroit here coming up.
00:09But the Michigan Panthers, now, I tried to look for the schedule.
00:13Has the schedule been released yet as far as the games this year?
00:15It has not been released, no.
00:17I think it'll be another week or so, a week or two that that'll happen,
00:20but no, it has not.
00:21Yeah, how exciting is this with this whole merger?
00:24I'm very excited about it. I really am.
00:25You know, we've taken 16 teams, reduced it down to eight,
00:28so the talent pool is greater than it was a year ago,
00:31and I thought we had pretty good talent, to be honest with you.
00:33We had about 20 of our, what, 50 players that actually got tryouts in the NFL,
00:38and 10 guys went to camp and another five stuck throughout the season.
00:42So you double that now when you take the 16 down to eight teams.
00:46Obviously, every team is going to be that much more talented than they were a year ago.
00:50So it's a pretty exciting time for it, and I think it's really going to go.
00:53I think they're starting the right way and kind of build it, as Daryl Johnson has said,
00:57you know, kind of start crawling, then get to walking, then get to jogging and running.
01:01And I think that's about right. That's what we're doing this time.
01:03Because when it's failed in the past, they haven't gone about it that way.
01:07I think they try to jump out too fast.
01:09Yeah, and you got him running it, and the rock as well doesn't hurt things either, I suppose.
01:13That's right. Yeah. No, the rock's been good.
01:16And so that's a nice part of it, though.
01:20You know, he gives it some instant credibility.
01:22The fact that he was one of those players, he often tells the story about how he was the 54th man
01:26trying to make a 53-man roster.
01:29And that's what our league kind of begins with, is the guys that are the 54th man
01:32but just need more developing.
01:34And so I think he's got the right idea in saying that, because that is very true.
01:40And a lot of our guys, you know, a lot of the guys will go on and play in the NFL,
01:44and some of them will go back and forth a little bit.
01:46But ultimately, it will make the NFL a better game, too.
01:49They have something to gain.
01:51Now, this might be a stupid question, but are they, like, kind of refining the rules for the league now?
01:58That's a really good question, because within this week, I believe next week,
02:02we're supposed to get some of the rules, because the XFL had a set of rules
02:05that were a little different than the NFL.
02:08USFL had a few rules that were different from the NFL as well.
02:11When they come together, I'm not sure what they're going to decide on,
02:14but I think we're supposed to get that in the next week or two.
02:17And I'll be honest with you, I loved all of our rules.
02:20There was a couple that could be adjusted, but they're aiming at the right target.
02:24And I say that, for example, we might have had one that I think needs to be changed by the NFL,
02:30and we had an idea about it, but yet I think there's probably going to be a better way
02:34than the way even we did it.
02:35But at least we've identified the fact that that rule is not a good rule.
02:38But there are several other rules, about a half a dozen of them I thought were great
02:42that we utilized.
02:44I didn't follow the XFL close enough from a rule standpoint to know what rules
02:47that they had adjusted.
02:49But, you know, like I said, I thought ours were hitting the target for sure
02:54as far as what needed to be adjusted.
02:57So we'll see where that goes.
02:58We'll know in another week or two.
03:00Yeah, one thing I thought I think that the NFL should really look at is the kickoff thing.
03:04It's like I just don't like how the guys just don't return the ball anymore.
03:08Yeah, I would agree with you.
03:09Yeah, because in our league, the nice thing about our league is now we're promoting the return.
03:14You know, last year the USFL, we kicked off from the 20-yard line,
03:17so everything was a return ball.
03:21Yeah, and as a matter of fact, you know, it was worthy last year
03:24to just have a guy that could strictly kick the ball through the end zone
03:27so that every ball wasn't at the 40, 45-yard line against you
03:31because you'd score a touchdown, and you'd say, hey, that's great,
03:33but guys, get ready.
03:34We'll be at midfield on the next play.
03:36It was horrible.
03:37So we knew to adjust something, too.
03:39I think the 20 is a little too excessive in what we did,
03:42but everything was a return ball for us, and I agree with you.
03:45It's a play that why does it even happen?
03:47Why are you kicking off if the ball's not coming out?
03:49Or when it does, it's very rare.
03:52Yeah, I would like to know what the percentage is of balls that are actually returned.
03:55I'll bet you it's under 25%, it seems like.
03:58Yeah, it might be.
04:00You know, one of the replacement things, or one of the ideas to replace the kickoff
04:04that I heard that was really a pretty darn good idea was, you know,
04:07if you pump the ball rather than kick it off, you get a better hang time,
04:12you get better coverage.
04:14So as opposed to, like right now in a kickoff, guys have high-speed collisions
04:18because the separation between the guy catching the ball
04:22and the team trying to get down there, you've got to keep running fast
04:25to close that gap.
04:26Otherwise, he's going to have the ball at the 30-35 against you.
04:29Well, when you punt the ball, you get on top of the guy much quicker.
04:33So therefore, he might be catching it, let's say, at the 10-15-yard line.
04:38You're still, the impact of collisions is going to be far less.
04:42You know, because like I said, because you're going to be on top of the guy.
04:45So you're going to have a breakdown, come into a football position
04:47and try to make a tackle as opposed to just running full speed,
04:51trying to outrun the blocker and therefore, you know,
04:53collide with the ball carrier at a high speed.
04:55The punt is a much safer way to go.
04:58And I'll say this, nobody's talking about eliminating the punt from a play
05:03because it's a safe play.
05:05Just incorporate that into the kickoff.
05:07And it would make perfect sense.
05:09You know, that's all you've got to do.
05:11But maybe, you know, it's the purists, as they call them, or whatever.
05:15You know, they, no, we've got to do it like this.
05:17And you're thinking, well, it's a boring play.
05:19People are going to stop watching kickoffs.
05:21They're going to say, hey, forget the commercial.
05:23I'm going to watch the commercial.
05:23But when that's over, I'll leave because the kickoff's coming up.
05:26Right.
05:26Of course, now they kick off and nobody returns it.
05:29Then they play 12 minutes worth of commercials, you know,
05:30and come back and the whole thing.
05:32But anyways, I'm looking forward to the rules to see how that's going to play out.
05:35How much fun is this for you at this stage of your career?
05:38It's a lot of fun.
05:39I'm kind of semi-retired, I guess you could say, after the 2020 season.
05:44And then this opportunity came about.
05:47And so I was just given the opportunity.
05:49I decided to do it.
05:50But it's a lot of fun.
05:52I tell people all the time, but it's fun because it's not about me anymore,
06:00if that makes perfect sense.
06:01The ego is kind of gone.
06:02I mean, what you do in this thing is we're all about trying to help the other guys
06:05get back to the NFL.
06:06You know, like Drock said, it's the 54th man.
06:09So the motive for doing it is just a, it's a nice, it's a nice motive.
06:14It's a good motive.
06:14It's one where you can coach hard and help guys and do the right thing
06:18and not be caught up in distracting things that really should never have mattered
06:21to begin with.
06:22But they do kind of creep in because, you know, everybody's trying to make a living
06:26and, you know, and the NFL is all about money.
06:29So if you're going to coach or play in it, let's try to do the same.
06:36I think that people tend to forget sometimes that coaches aren't really bosses.
06:39They're more like mentors.
06:40They're more like trying to shape these guys, right?
06:42Very much so.
06:43Yeah, very much so.
06:44And that's kind of the neat thing.
06:45When you first get into coaching, that's a lot of guys, you know,
06:48that's what your motive is, is you're a teacher.
06:50So whether you're teaching high school kids to play or college or professional football,
06:55you're a teacher and you're obviously trying to teach a craft
06:58that's football as opposed to some other things.
07:01But anyhow, that is what it's about.
07:03So you get a lot of pleasure and just out of the guys that you work with doing well.
07:09But it does it does fade away from that a little bit when they start throwing that big check
07:13in front of you.
07:14And and it is it's just it's a teaser.
07:19But but that's what's really nice about this.
07:21It's that's not what this is about.
07:22This is strictly about making guys achieve their own goals.
07:26And and it really is a lot of fun.
07:28So obviously, you play at the home of the of the Detroit Lions,
07:32who have just like in the last few years have just come out of nowhere.
07:34Talk about your thoughts about not only Dan Campbell leading this team,
07:37but how far they've come.
07:39Well, I'll share this with you because I think it's kind of neat to know.
07:43But for me, anyhow, as I coached with Dan twice,
07:46we were together at the Miami Dolphins for two years.
07:48And then we're together three years at New Orleans Saints in 17, 18 and 19.
07:52And so I know Dan very well.
07:55So I'm really pulling for him, really root for him.
07:57And to watch his success is no surprise because Dan's a really good people person.
08:02And to be a head coach in the NFL, you've got to have good people skills.
08:05If you don't, you have to have a really good quarterback to overcome your lack of people skills.
08:08And that exists in some different teams.
08:11But for the most part, Dan's got both.
08:13He's got a good quarterback.
08:14He's got great people skills.
08:15His team plays extremely hard for him.
08:18And again, knowing him personally, you know, I pull for him because he's really a good guy.
08:23He's a great guy.
08:24There's nothing secretive about him.
08:25You know, what you see is exactly the way he is.
08:27He's not somebody different.
08:28You know, he's not a guy that smiles on camera and then, you know, and then doesn't off camera.
08:32You know, he's the same guy all the time.
08:33But a really good football coach, good motivator, and I think he's a perfect fit for them.
08:40And there's no surprise that he's doing well.
08:44And they've done a great job, by the way, of adding players.
08:46So GM's another guy that deserves a lot of credit.
08:49And this weekend, of course, they're playing San Francisco.
08:52And you've got a little bit of your heart in San Francisco as well, too, don't you?
08:55Well, I did until they told me to leave town.
08:57But anyhow, no, I often root for the 49ers.
09:04But in this case, you know, it's like family and friends are over what I might have won once, you know, once the job I had.
09:10So I'm really rooting for Dan in this one.
09:13I really hope they play well.
09:14And I think they got every right to, like, his team's on a high playing well, the Detroit Lions.
09:19And the 49ers are not playing all that well, in my opinion, anyhow.
09:23I mean, they got by Green Bay.
09:24But that was just because they're the much better team than Green Bay, in my opinion.
09:29And so they pulled it off.
09:30But they're going to have to play.
09:3249ers are going to have to play a good game to beat Detroit this week.
09:34And, naturally, Detroit will have to play well, too.
09:37But it should be a really good game.
09:39I know the best two NFC teams are playing this week.
09:41So nobody can argue with that.
09:43It wasn't like somebody else deserved this spot over either one of those teams.
09:47And so it's going to be a good game.
09:49Yeah, that was one of the things that really struck me with his post-game comments to the team.
09:55He's like, we earned a chance to play another game.
09:57And, I mean, that's pretty typical, I suppose, as sports and as football.
10:01But that is the truth.
10:02They've earned it.
10:03Yeah, they have.
10:04You know, and some of that's combating what's being said outside.
10:08And coaches know what's being said on the outside because they're informed at times.
10:12And maybe that was a little bit on Dan's mind, too, letting them know.
10:14You know, because people over the years have said, well, you know, if they make it, they really don't deserve it or earn it, blah, blah, blah.
10:20In their case, they earned it.
10:21They deserve it.
10:22They got a good football team.
10:24And everybody recognizes them as having a good football team.
10:27So, like I said, I think a lot of people are, I am, I'm anxious to watch the game.
10:32It's going to be a good game.
10:33Yeah.
10:33Well, we're looking forward to watching the Michigan Panthers, of course, take the field at Ford Field this year.
10:38Can't wait for the rules to come out.
10:40That should be interesting.
10:41And thank you so much for your time.
10:42Have a great season this year.
10:45I appreciate it.
10:45Always a pleasure.