Shiel Wood has a dry sense of humor. In fact, so dry that his players didn’t know if they could laugh or not during their first position group meetings.
A few times during the defensive coordinator’s first month at Texas Tech, Wood made a monotone quip only to be met with silence. Linebacker Jacob Rodriguez looked back and forth amongst his teammates as Wood stared blankly back at them.
The players wanted to laugh, but Wood’s serious nature and the unfamiliarity within the newfound relationship made them hesitate.
“We would kind of look around like wondering if we should laugh or not, because we just didn’t know,” Rodriguez said.
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Wood doesn’t tell jokes or start up a bit. He calls things bluntly and responds sarcastically to questions, while maintaining the same facial expression as if he were about to drill into a player for low effort.
Slowly, Rodriguez and the defense learned Wood’s mannerisms and when a response was sarcastic or serious. It took a handful of awkward silences, but Rodriguez said he can no longer be found in the same room as Wood without the senior linebacker laughing hysterically.
“He is the funniest guy I think I’ve ever been around,” Rodriguez said. “It’s hilarious to be in those meetings.”
Rodriguez and the rest of the Texas Tech defense knew the type of coach Wood was before he got to Lubbock. He turned Army, Troy, Tulane and Houston into top-35 defenses within the first year of being at each. So it’s no surprise to them that Wood successfully turned Texas Tech into the No. 1 rush defense and No. 3 scoring defense in the country. That defense has the Red Raiders facing BYU on Saturday in their first-ever Big 12 Championship appearance.
Wood coached Rodriguez to his best season and put the fifth-year linebacker on pace for a plethora of hardware. Rodriguez is a finalist for the Butkus Award, Bednarik Award, Lott IMPACT Trophy, the Nagurski Trophy and the Lombardi Award, as well as a semifinalist for the Walter Camp National Player of the Year award.
He doesn’t pay too much attention to it, though. His focus is on winning the Big 12 Championship and encouraging his successors to take full advantage of the opportunity they’re in with Wood.
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“I wish I could learn under Coach Wood for the next five years,” Rodriguez said. “I tell our freshmen Brock [Golwas] all the time, ‘Dude, I envy you so much, because you get to be here and be with Coach McGuire and be with Coach Wood.’”
Rodriguez is not commonly vocal about his emotions or off-field relationships, but with the clock winding down on his college career, he has not hesitated to publicly appreciate Wood.
“It’s always hard to tell another grown man that you love him,” Rodriguez said. “It just kind of is what it is, but there’s so many times on the field or off the field where you know, you show your appreciation, whether it’s a look or a nod, or whatever it is.
“I appreciate every single one of those guys in the locker room, and these coaches, too. It means so much to me, and I hope that they can see that, but I hope that they can more so feel that their energy and all that inspiration that comes off means something.”
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