Coaches Spotlight: Joel Collier, Miami Dolphins

By Mike Scandura, NFLHS.com

If the name Joel Collier sounds familiar, it should.

The Miami Dolphins' new offensive coordinator is the son of former Buffalo Bills head coach and long-time Denver Broncos defensive coordinator Joe Collier.

Since Collier the younger was more proficient in music than football while attending Heritage High School in Littleton, Colo., how much did it help having a well-respected coach as a father? Collier virtually learned about football through osmosis. And he's still learning from his father.

"He's been a big influence in how I go about things," said Joel Collier. "We still discuss a lot of philosophical issues. How do you handle a problem player? How do you set up meetings? It's not all Xs and Os.

"You have a million people listen to us for Xs and Os. But the inner workings of the daily ritual ... conducting meetings, handling people on a one-on-one basis ... that's where he had all his experience."

Collier's learning experience began when the Bills trained at the University of Buffalo and he spent his summers watching his father run the show.

"You learn so much in your youth around your dad," he said. "In vacation time, I was even watching film. As time went on, I saw he was good at what he did ... that he'd learned the trade."

Ironically, Joel Collier learned his ticket to college would be through a music scholarship, which he received from Loretta Heights College in Denver. But Collier also learned from the school of hard knocks.

"(Loretta Heights) was an elite school and I learned quickly that I was mediocre (Collier was a vocalist)," he said. "But that first year, I worked as a volunteer (football) coach at my high school."

Goodbye music, hello coaching. That one year of coaching led Collier to transfer to Northern Colorado, where he joined the football team as a walk-on.

"I went to Northern Colorado because I knew I wanted to get into coaching, and I needed to play college ball in order to get that experience," he said. "It was perfect ... it was Division II football, and I got a chance to get on the field and play as opposed to what might have happened at a Division I program."

Collier's coaching odyssey first took him to Syracuse University, then Tampa Bay, New England and, in 1994, to the Dolphins. During this span, he's coached in a variety of capacities: linebackers, quarterbacks, wide receivers. He even took a turn at scouting.

His proficiency at coaching linebackers was exemplified in 1997 when Miami's Derrick Rodgers (a third-round draft pick) was voted Sports Illustrated's Defensive Rookie of the Year. But even though Collier's responsibilities have changed in his current position with the Dolphins, he's quick to offer what it takes for a high school player to become successful at playing linebacker.

"One thing you must improve on is strength," he said. "The more you can handle an opponent physically, the better. But footwork is where you put your hat because feet put you in the right spot.

"You want to work at it constantly. (Denver's) Steve Foley and Louis Wright could be in the worst possible position and recover because they had great speed."

But teaching "foot quickness" is only one aspect of being a high school linebackers coach.

"You must stress keying and reading the backfield," said Collier. "However you develop a key-and-read system -- guards, backs, triangles through the backs -- it's important that you drill on the first two steps.

"You also need to work on leverage, the ability to handle blockers and shedding them, because you don't want to be on the ground."

Did Collier ever think he'd be where is now, which is to say not only being a coordinator but also being a step closer to becoming a head coach?

Initially, no. But that changed after working four years with Dick MacPherson (two at Syracuse as a graduate assistant and two with the Patriots).

"The first time I thought I would aspire to be where I am now was when I was finishing with 'coach Mac' at Syracuse," said Collier. "He told me 'Define your goals. Where do you want to be? Believe you want to get there.'

"(MacPherson) also has an amazing ability to read people, to understand their strengths and weaknesses ... and to try to diminish problem areas. It's a quality that's rare. I was completely sold, but I wanted to make sure I learned things along the way and still enjoyed the ride."

Story courtesy Red Line Editorial, Inc.