Q&A With Sentinels Coach Ted Cottrell

HASBROUCK HEIGHTS, N.J. -- Ted Cottrell hasn't gotten off to a good start with the New York Sentinels, who have lost their first four games to start the UFL's inaugural campaign.

Cottrell, though, is relishing the opportunity to be a head coach, a position that he had been passed over for numerous times despite his lengthy resume. He has been a defensive assistant in college, the USFL and the NFL since breaking in as a defensive line coach at Rutgers in 1973.

Last Wednesday, Cottrell's club suffered a 41-10 defeat at the hands of the Las Vegas Locomotives. It was the second home game for the Sentinels, who hosted the Locos at Hofstra's James M. Shuart Stadium, where the game was moved after it was originally scheduled for Citi Field, the home of the New York Mets.

The game at Hofstra provided a more intimate setting, a departure from the team's first home contest at 80,000-seat Giants Stadium on Oct. 29. The Sentinels will play their final home game Thursday, when they host the undefeated Florida Tuskers at Rentschler Field in Hartford, Conn.

The day before the Sentinels' loss to the Locos, Cottrell spoke to FanHouse at length at the team hotel, where -- despite his team's early season struggles and its impending loss -- the coach was in a good mood. He was open, honest and optimistic about the future of the Sentinels and the UFL, in general.

FANHOUSE: How has your UFL experience been so far?

TED COTTRELL: It's been one that's very interesting. The goal of the league is to give guys a chance, maybe some that have been overlooked in the draft or not signed as free agents. Other guys that were practice-squad eligible, give them the chance to play and enhance their skills. In that vein, it has been very good, very interesting and very rewarding. When you put together a team with guys that haven't even seen each other much less know each other ... if you watch, you'll be amazed that these guys were on the practice field for not even a full month (before the start of the season).

FANHOUSE: You spent many years as a defensive assistant. How has the transition to head coach been for you?

TC: Now, you have to take care of both sides of the team. It's different. You're taking care of the offense, and you have to take care of all of it. It's nothing that I haven't anticipated. I've been a coordinator for a while, but there is nothing that I'd rather be doing. There's more responsibility. I relish it. I really like it.

FANHOUSE: Since you had been passed over many times for an NFL head coaching job, are you using this UFL experience as a stepping stone back to the NFL?

TC: Not even thinking about that. I'm trying to get this team to be the best that it can be. I'm looking forward to next year and hoping that we can keep the core of our team together. We're very young. We can be that much better and more experienced next year.

FANHOUSE: What does it mean to return to coaching in New York, where you had spent time previously in your career, including a stint as defensive coordinator with the Jets?

TC: I spent a lot of time over here in this area. I coached at Rutgers for nine years, the New Jersey Generals in the USFL. I've lived in Jersey for 13 years. I worked with the Jets and in the NFL office. I have a lot of relatives around. Feels like home to me. I love this area. I told the team, our Sentinel name carries a lot of meaning around here. It means the guardians of our ports. The fire department and police department, that's really who we are named after. I was here during 9/11. It's a totally different feeling for those who weren't here, those on the outside. What this represents, what our team represents. We are trying to make the area proud of us. A lot of people lost their lives. The lifestyle of the whole area changed. I'm very pleased to be back in the area. I really enjoy the area.

FANHOUSE: You mentioned your time in the USFL, so you would be a good person to ask -- obviously, the two leagues have their differences, but what would it take for the UFL to succeed where the USFL did not?

TC: The model of the USFL was different in that the big money was given out and the big bonuses and contracts were given out to get guys away from the NFL. For example, Herschel (Walker), Doug Flutie and Steve Young. The money itself, the structure was totally different. Plus, we played in the spring. (The UFL has) a totally different model in that there is a hard salary cap. You cannot circumvent it. Some agents try to find loopholes, but those things cannot occur. Everybody gets relatively the same amount of money. In the USFL, guys at the bottom of the roster were making minimum wage, not nearly as much as other guys because of the bonuses. That, in itself, causes problems. The environment (in the UFL) is different. We are not going after No. 1 picks. We have guys that were drafted in the fourth round, fifth round and down. Guys that have been on the practice squads, they have the chance to improve their rankings by playing and showing what they can do. Then, maybe, they can go back to the NFL and have a few more teams interested in them.

FANHOUSE: In talking to the commissioner earlier this year, it was expressed that he and the UFL were going to do it their way. He said he wasn't going to compete with the NFL ... but start small and give people more football, which they have proven they will watch whenever it's on. Do you agree with that, and how will it translate into fan response?

TC: Yes, we are going to expand to other cities that don't have football. There are a lot people looking for football in their lives. There are some markets out there where we can be successful. There also are some guys that are strong business-minded and very successful investors (who have invested in the UFL). Ticket prices are very affordable, too. In these hard economic times, there is a chance to purchase a ticket they can afford. Like I said, in markets where there is not professional football, these fans have a chance to see a football game and see guys that play hard and play with passion.

FANHOUSE: That being said, the league has already announced that it will add two more teams next year. Can the league continue to grow? If so, how much?

TC: I don't know. That's up to the commissioner. Next year, there are plans to add two more teams and play a 10-game schedule. I know that. There will be some good football. It will be spread around (the country). As far as future growth, they are doing it in bits and pieces. Past next year, they will talk about that later on.

FANHOUSE: On a separate topic, your son, T.J., is on the team. What is it like coaching him for the first time as a head man?

TC: You know what? Because he's on offense, I walk around and don't really notice it. He's been with me before -- with Minnesota and the Chargers -- so I'm kind of used to it. Initially, it was a little different when he first came to Minnesota. That's when it was really different. I would peep out the side to see how he's doing, especially when his turns came up to go out and run a route or something. But now, I don't even notice him.

FANHOUSE: Your first home game against the California Redwoods on Oct. 29 was played at a huge venue, Giants Stadium. Is it hard to play in such a big place when it's empty. Do you notice it and does it affect how your team plays?

TC: At first it feels a little different, but once the game starts, you don't think much about it. But you know, when we go to Hofstra, it will be intimate, and once the game starts, you just look at the guys out on the field.