By Anthony Caruso III | Publisher
Clint Dolezel would like to be in Jay Gruden’s shoes one day. Dolezel, who is currently the Philadelphia Soul head coach, said that he would like to coach in the NFL one day.
Yet, moving from the Arena Football League to the National Football League, as a coach, is one that not many have made.
Jay Gruden is the only lucky one to have made that move. He is currently the Cincinnati Bengals offensive coordinator.
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When Dolezel was on Jim Rome’s radio show, talking about Tim Tebow and other topics, Rome asked him if Dolezel would like to coach in the NFL. He said that he would like for that to happen in the future, but not, right now.
“It’s back there (in my mind) but it’s way back there honestly,” said Dolezel. “It is – for my family – I would love to get the NFL and be financially able to take care of them better than I am now. But it is not always about the money.”
Dolezel is in his first season as the Soul head coach with the team currently 4-4. The Soul leads the American Conference-East Division with a .500 record.
The Pittsburgh Power and the Cleveland Gladiators are also in the East Division with the Soul, but they are 2-6 overall. Yet, both teams have beaten the Soul this season at home.
Yet, the Soul has the third-best record in the American Conference. The Soul trail the Tampa Bay Storm and the Jacksonville Sharks, who are both 6-3 overall.
While Dolezel is in his second season as a head coach in the Arena Football League, Gruden was a head coach in the league for nearly a decade.
Dolezel is 15-11 overall as an AFL head coach with the Soul and the Dallas Vigilantes in the 2011 season. On the other hand, Gruden served two stints as the Orlando Predators head coach.
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Gruden was 35 and 21 in his first four years as the Predators head coach from 1998 through 2001. Then after a three-year hiatus, he returned in 2004, where he coached for five more years through the 2008 season. In that stint, he was 47 and 33.
That’s where the similarities end, as Gruden also had NFL coaching experience. Dolezel has never coached in the NFL.
Gruden was the Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive assistant from 2002 through 2008. He even held the Orlando Predators job while serving as the offensive assistant for his brother Jon when he was the Bucs head coach.
After that, he was hired by the Florida Tuskers in 2009, as their offensive coordinator. He was then promoted to head coach and general manager in 2010.
He then was hired by the Bengals in February 2011. Gruden helped guide the Bengals to back-to-back playoff appearances.
For now, Dolezel has to stay in the Arena Football League, as a head coach, and build up his experience, before potentially moving on. After his resume is adequate, he could get new opportunities that could potentially lead to a job in the NFL and more money.
“I’m very happy at what I do,” said Dolezel. “I’m fortunate to work for a great organization with Ron Jaworski and the rest of the owners here. I can’t complain, as there is nothing better than this.”
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