College Football Coaching Question: Do Players Prefer Youth or Wisdom?

Head football coaches at Division I-A (FBS) universities have it rough.

Recruiting is competitive and exhausting. Knowing where to look for top talent is the first step, but then having to persuade highly touted players that you are their best alternative? Yeah, good luck with that.

Coaches deal with young adults, who have "real world" problems like marriage/children, challenging academics and off-the-field temptations.

Many players—upperclassmen and even some red-shirted sophomores—can legally drink alcohol to their hearts' desire (and their livers' capacity). Honestly, all college kids have access to booze, so moderation is a topic that coaches need to address.

Furthermore, the NCAA is always watching. The association has been more determined to enforce its oh-so-sacred rules in recent years, and penalties can vary from fines to suspensions to the vacating of past wins and conference/national titles.

Such things are terribly embarrassing for the incriminated universities.

Even in cases where head coaches aren't directly involved, they may be held responsible by their respective athletic departments and dismissed! After all—although somewhat matured—college football players are still impressionable. Their actions reflect the authority figures in their lives.

Now for my coaching question: what is the ideal age for a person in this invaluable position?

My three general classifications are

1. young with limited experience - 30s or early 40s, no more than seven years as college head coach,
2. seasoned yet still lively - late 40s or 50s, 8-15 seasons as head coach and
3. old-timers - 60+ years old, at least 15 years as head honcho.

Examples of each would be

1. Al Golden (Miami),
2. Bob Stoops (Oklahoma) and
3. Joe Paterno (Penn State).

Although not an outstanding athlete, I am a college student, and I can tell you that age differential affects how relationships are formed at this stage in life.

Being a part of the same generation (even barely, which would be the only possibility in a player-coach case) helps any pair of people relate to one another. Shared familiarity with anything fosters a more comfortable environment. That is great for recruiting as well as during practices.

Additionally, the fact that a coach has matured from his own adolescents to his current position over the past couple decades guarantees that his philosophies aren't completely outdated.

If there is an extreme age gap between the two subjects, the younger individual must be respectful of the elder's accomplishments.

A player that values his coach's experience will be receptive at crucial junctures in a game. He'll understand that every play call and strategy is based on many years of trial and error.

My in-between category has the best of both worlds. Such persons in "father" roles are rarely accused of naivety, and likewise not thought of as senile figure heads.

I realize that factors aside from coaching tenure and total birthdays contribute to success. However, the answer I seek is a general one.

Is it the "older brother," "father" or "grandfather" that gets college players up to peek performance? Feel free to share.