Growing pains

Last Thursday, Jeff Quinn hit obstacles on his way back to Buffalo from a recruiting visit in State College, Penn.
An army of snowflakes attacked the new football head coach's windshield during the 200-mile trip, resulting in limited visibility throughout the drive.
But Quinn could not let the limited view prevent him from hauling back to the home base. He was scheduled to meet with the faculty athletic representative on campus and was to meet with the football team's equipment staff afterwards.
After the two meetings, Quinn met with every one of the team's 21 seniors, one-on-one. It was the first time that Quinn had the opportunity to meet with his upperclassmen for personal conversations.
Quinn's exhausting Thursday was indicative of his first month on the job. A flurry of bad news, like quarterback Zach Maynard's departure, has made the future of the program unclear, but Quinn has surged forward with a heavy foot to strengthen the program.
After 26 years of serving as an assistant, Quinn finally has earned the opportunity to run his own program and hasn't let bad news stop him from venturing out to strengthen the future of Buffalo football. He's living the dream and will work to succeed.
'When the opportunity presented itself to come to Buffalo and run my own team and be a head football coach, I had to take it,' Quinn said. 'There's only 120 of those jobs in the country. This has been my lifelong dream and goal, so this is what I was looking for, and Buffalo is a perfect fit for a guy like myself.'
The new head coach, who was Cincinnati's offensive coordinator for the last three seasons, has been on the road nonstop since taking office in early January. With National Signing Day just days away, he's been racking up many frequent flyer miles by traveling to promote his system and philosophy to recruits.
He failed to reel in some prospects, but he gained the confidence of many others.
'I've traveled thousands of miles on the air and thousands of miles on the ground, going in and out of homes,' Quinn said. 'It's been an unbelievable experience, but we've been well received and we're much further along than most people expected. Recruits wanted to know what I was about, and a majority of them loved everything they heard.'
But Quinn couldn't convince one key player to be a part of his program. Maynard, who started 11 games at quarterback last season, left Buffalo and has created a huge void that Quinn must now fill.
Maynard's decision didn't catch the 47-year-old coach by surprise, but Quinn's disappointment in Maynard was clear.
'Kids make decisions that they feel they think are best, whereas coaches feel differently sometimes,' Quinn said. 'He left without really knowing who I was, what our coaching staff was about and what we brought to the table.'
The coach's travels have resulted in very little communication between him and his roster of players. Aside from a few group meetings and recent one-on-ones, the two parties haven't had many opportunities to discuss philosophies and express feelings to each other.
When the players and coach met, Quinn sent strong messages. He told the group that every player has a chance to compete for a starting job.
According to Quinn, whoever works the hardest and best fits the system will be on the field.
'The efficiency and effectiveness of what happens out [on the field] is dictated by those players,' Quinn said. 'I want each of them to understand that it's a competitive situation and they all have an opportunity.'
The constant traveling has also left Quinn with little time to connect with his immediate family. Since coming to Buffalo, Quinn has only seen his family once and has been focused on strengthening his football family. His wife, a teacher, and their two children will relocate to Western New York at the end of the school year.
For now, the split has affected both parties.
'It takes a big strain on my immediate family,' Quinn said. 'I always talked about two families, my Buffalo family and my immediate family, and a lot of the time, as a coach, your immediate family suffers. It's been tough on them and it'll continue to be tough on them and me.'
When Athletic Director Warde Manuel introduced Quinn as Buffalo's new head coach on Dec. 22, Quinn knew his free time would be limited.
This was especially true when Quinn had to pull quadruple-duty as Buffalo's head coach and Cincinnati's interim head coach, offensive coordinator and offensive line coach for 11 days.
Quinn stayed at Cincinnati until Jan. 1 to coach Cincinnati against the Florida Gators in the Sugar Bowl. This duty put Quinn even further behind in his Buffalo transition, but to him, leaving the Bearcats without a head coach was not an option.
'I had an opportunity to say I'm the head coach at Buffalo… but I felt [staying in Cincinnati was] the right thing to do,' Quinn said. 'I asked [Buffalo], and we had an agreement that I'd stay there through the Sugar Bowl.'
Manuel understood and respected Quinn's decision.
'He has a deep concern for student-athletes as people, and that was in full display when we talked about the transition here from Cincinnati,' Manuel said when he introduced Quinn. 'He was worried about those kids in Cincinnati, given all the things they have been through.'
Quinn's decision to stay at Cincinnati meant more work for him once he arrived in Western New York, but it showed his true character.
'I'm about these young men; it was proven over the course of my career of 26 years, and to be able to stay at Cincinnati at the Sugar Bowl showed the kind of football coach and person I am. I want these young men to understand that's why I'm here.'
Once Feb. 3 hits and recruits make their final decisions, Quinn can finally take a deep breath and get settled in Buffalo, where his office is still being organized and boxes still need to be unpacked. He may also begin to instill his spread offense, assess the talent, meet players on a more consistent basis and make changes where he sees fit.
But the work never stops, and Quinn's first month on the job introduced him to the stresses that come with being a Division I head coach.

E-mail: david.sanchirico@ubspectrum.com