Jim Mora responded to media criticism of his treatment of true freshman quarterback Josh Rosen by acknowledging that he is a jerk when coaching, however, he says it is all part of his tactics.
As the LA Times reported, Mora lit into Rosen Wednesday during a Hail Mary drill. We said at the time that we believed Mora was just playing head games with Rosen in an effort to draw the best out of his freshman. On Thursday, Mora essentially confirmed that was the case.
“This is football. I’m not going to change the way I coach just because there’s fans and media out here,” Mora said from practice at Cal State San Bernardino. “You’re trying to put these guys in stressful situations, you’re trying to test them. You’re sometimes setting things up to see how they handle it. This is where we do all of that.
“On game day what you see me do is support those guys, be there for them. Out here it’s about toughening them physically, mentally and emotionally.”
Mora says he also reassured his players that this is just what he does during practice.
“It’s just part of the deal. Like I told them after practice: ‘Am I an a–hole? I’m an a–hole. Out here I’m an a–hole.’ I’m an a–hole because it’s my job to make sure they get the most out of what god gave them. I’m not going to let anyone go through the motions at any time. It starts with me.”
Mora also said that what he does on the practice field is different from how he acts during games when they’re facing opponents. For now, he’s trying to toughen up his players so they will be prepared for those times. Given how well his teams have done in the second halves of games, I don’t doubt that Mora knows what he is doing as a coach. And this further confirms my suspicion that Rosen will be the team’s starter but that Mora has held off on the announcement because he is playing head games.
