by J. Brooks Terry
Staff Writer
At 35, Bill Musgrave is the youngest offensive coordinator in the Jacksonville Jaguars brief history. Perhaps it is the former fourth round draft pick’s relative youth that most lends itself to his enthusiasm and unabashed optimism for the team’s future.
Musgrave comes to Jacksonville following two seasons at the University of Virginia, where he served in a similar capacity.
Friends describe Musgrave as having “one of the best young offensive minds in the game” and at Monday’s Meninak Club meeting at the Radisson, club members anxiously waited for him to take the podium to prove it.
“I’ve been lucky enough in my career to have a history of being at the right place at the right time,” said Musgrave. “I’ve been with some great teams and have had the opportunity to watch them practice for some great games and, also, some not so great games. I’ve been able to see what makes a great quarterback.”
Musgrave recalled the 1996 playoffs when the Jaguars upset the Denver Broncos — a favorite at the time with a 13-1 record — and stressed he “hoped to get the team back to that level,” despite a “very young offensive line.”
“We’re confident we can see them mature quickly,” he said. “They’ll have to.”
And when defining his offensive strategy, Musgrave said it was simple.
“We’re going to try to be all over the place,” he said. “We’re trying to stay away from having structured rules so we can counteract an increasingly unpredictable defense.”
Musgrave said to expect “lots of movement, plenty of reverses and double reverses” and a bolstered commitment to “ball handling drills” during practices.
“We’re creating chaos with our defense, too,” he said. “Instead of constantly worrying about gaining or losing yards we’re going to be concentrating on slowing the opposing team down.”
Expect a change in player motivation, too.
“It’s a lot more difficult to motivate players than it was 20 years ago,” said Musgrave. “Back then, it took little more than challenging their manhood. Across all locations and demographics, that doesn’t work anymore.”
Rather, Musgrave said Jaguars head coach Jack Del Rio has adopted a more liberal approach to player management and plans to “treat the players like men.”
That means more individual autonomy, increased player leadership and no bed checks after 11 p.m.
“It will only take one guy to screw it up,” said Musgrave, “but they’re committed and they understand there is no offseason.”