FORT COLLINS — No matter which game Sonny Lubick watches these days, he looks at the defense first and, in doing so, works from back to front.
Naturally. With more than 30 years of coaching experience, the former Colorado State football coach developed a reputation as an excellent educator of defensive backs.
“I did that watching Urban Meyer’s (Ohio State) team (Monday night),” Lubick said. “How they’re lining up, what they’re doing. That’s easier for me, because that’s all I’ve ever done for 30 years. I always start from the back.”
When CSU hosts Minnesota at Hughes Stadium on Saturday, he might see something he recognizes, because in the past two years, he has spent time talking defense with both coaching staffs.
When Lubick was let go at CSU, Jerry Kill was rumored to be a replacement. Kill, who left Southern Illinois and went to Northern Illinois, then to Minnesota in 2010, said he was never offered the CSU job. But he did make an offer to Lubick.
“Sonny came out and visited with us — I don’t know what it was, you’d have to ask Sonny — a couple of years ago,” Kill said this week. “He met with the defensive side of the ball and spent some time with us, so I hope he doesn’t remember too much.”
This summer, after Mike Bobo and his staff became settled at CSU, Lubick talked defense with Rams defensive coordinator Tyson Summers. When it comes to Lubick, Bobo said an open-door policy always exists.
“He’s been great. He was one of the first guys I reached out to when I got the job here,” Bobo said. “I didn’t want to put a lot of pressure on him; just say, ‘Hey, open door, I want you around.’ He’s going to be an honorary captain for us this year and speak to the team. I’m excited about that.”
Those offers are appreciated, no matter where the request comes from.
“It’s always an honor and a humbling experience when a coach flies you out for two days to talk football with them, and I love doing that,” Lubick said.
At Minnesota, Lubick said he met with the Gophers defensive coordinator Tracy Claeys and his staff and talked football for nine hours a day for two consecutive days.
“We just talked to them about what we did here, the entire thing,” said Lubick, whose CSU teams were 108-74 and won or shared six conference championships. “We talked about every position. You get in a room there for nine hours, it’s ‘Here’s our basic thoughts and our basic schemes, here’s what we did and how we evolved over several years.’
“I always tell anybody when I go out and talk, my expertise is not the front. I know the overall picture, but I do get into detail with the secondary, because I coached that for over 30 years, so we go over more detail with that.”
But as for giving away the specific team secrets Kill joked about, well, those stay put, Lubick said.
“I don’t tell anybody,” Lubick said. “That’s one thing, you don’t ever want to be considered a double agent. (Kill) was nice enough to ask me up there two years ago, and I enjoyed it. Like all coaches, they follow people, and if you see something, they want to find out what they’re doing. Coaches try to turn every stone. You know how that goes.”
This weekend, Lubick will get to see whether the teams are using any of his ideas.
