We’ve all heard Bronco, former and current players tell us all that the coaches are not to blame for BYU’s current problems on the field. "Coaches don’t win games, that isn’t their job. Players win games." That is the mantra.

That’s all well and good, but it ignores something important and it has to do with the very thing Bronco is often credited for changing when he got to BYU, (actually, Bronco was at BYU for a couple of years with Crowton as DC, but I digress) and that is rescuing the program from the mistakes of Crowton. You see, few can look at What Crowton did or failed to do and not hold him accountable for what his players did… off the field… off campus… in their personal lives, deliberately hidden from the coach’s eye.

What happened was despicable, caused the program, the school, and the Church great embarrassment and damage for sure, but nonetheless, Crowton was held accountable as the head coach when it all went down. He was partly to blame for bringing these players to BYU at great risk to the program. He played fast and loose with the honor code and got burned.

And I completely agree. Firing Crowton had to happen. Even though what happened had little if anything at all to do with football, execution, assignment sound, consistent performance, x’s and o’s, Gary Crowton had to be held accountable.

So, in light of this, how can it be said that Bronco and his staff are any less accountable when their primary job is to create success on the field for BYU?

Yes, I will go out on a limb and say that it’s Bronco’s job to create wins in football games. That’s his primary job. There are other roles he must fill but that is role number one. Injuries, recruiting challenges notwithstanding, it’s their job to prepare the team for success. Period.

Saying anything less is making excuses.