The former three-time college football national champion coach is taking a survival-of-the-fittest approach to cutting down his roster from 90 to 53 players.
Meyer is pitting his players against each other in one-on-one drills to help his staff determine who should make the Jaguars’ final roster this year. They are calling it “Winners and Losers Day,” and the first one took place last Wednesday.
Urban Meyer believes in one-on-one competiton
Meyer spoke with ESPN’s Michael DiRocco last week about the idea behind the one-on-one battles in training camp.
The rookie NFL head coach won’t decide roster spots solely on “Winners and Losers Day” activities but it will be a factor in choosing between closely matched players.
Will this practice technique work in the pros?
Urban Meyer started using the one-on-one contest in his second year at Florida in 2007. That season ended with the Gators winning the national title.
He used the same practice idea at Ohio State, where he again won a national championship. Meyer’s “survival of the fittest” mantra has a clear track record of success in college, but will it transfer to the NFL?
Jaguars players don’t seem to have a problem with the new training method.
Defensive end Dawuane Smoot and wide receiver Laviska Shenault both told ESPN they didn’t mind hearing the coaches announce the winners after each rep. Smoot even went so far as to say that it’s motivating the players.
Only time will tell if Urban Meyer’s one-on-one training camp battles transfer to NFL victories during the regular season. As things stand, the rookie head coach has his work cut out for him in the big leagues.
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