I was tickled to hear the comments of FanFile reader recently from Cuyahoga County. Understandably a Browns fan with regional bias, he said, "...I liked the way the Marvin Lewis series read, at least for content...but I'm not going to be a Bengals fan!"

Yes, a lot of people have read the reprint of the Marvin Lewis feature that we first posted last winter. The coach of the Bengals was kind enough to sit with us and ostensibly talk about the merits of football, and in particular, high school football. His words revealed as much about Marvin Lewis, coach and man, as they did about high school football. There's nothing phony about him. There are no shortcuts...focus and hard work, dawn to dinner time. He's the real deal!

By count of e-mails received at FanFile in the past two weeks, there were more readers of the series re-run than with the original post. We're not surprised. With the emergence of the Bengals as one of the NFL's best teams in 2005 people are reading everything they can get their hands on relative to Marvin Lewis. Here's a sampling of what people have written:

"...I've always been a Bengals fan...and thought Marvin Lewis had done a nice job since getting the job as coach...but I never fully appreciated him until I read the FanFile story and realized how genuine he must be to take the time to share his time and thoughts about football with a high school sports (web)site."

We have to admit that we had the same reaction when we actually sat down with him in his office to talk. If you notice the background in the photos, the room is one big markerboard with plays drawn up on it from top to bottom. And even though Lewis was smiling and gracious to our introduction, he was just as focused on the matter at hand...of giving us what we wanted from him relative to his opinions on the virtues of high school football. Like preparation with the game plan for Sundays, he was equally prepared for any question we posed.

"...The photos make him look like a different personality from the one you see on TV. You rarely see him smile."

Perhaps! Lewis was understandably a little stiff with us at the outset, but very quickly got into a more relaxed persona when he understood that our motive was both genuine and worthy of his time. It was obvious that his recollection of his own high school experiences were positive and pleasant memories...obviously instrumental in his development as an adult and a coach at the highest level of football. He admitted to football actually being fun in the National Football League...and you could tell from his comparisons that, in his words, "...it's all relative. It's just bigger and faster here."

"...I can't help but think that if Paul Brown were alive how much he would like Marvin Lewis."

Bingo! That comment came from regular reader, Jim Massey, who believes that Brown was the most influential man in the history of football, for his success at the high school, college and profressional level. Brown's attitude toward professional conduct was legendary, and everytime we see Marvin correct a player for failure to do right on the field were reminded of former tight end Bob Trumpy telling the story of when he scored his first NFL touchdown and celebrated to excess...and how Brown came to him on the sideline and said, "...This is the NFL. Act like you've been in there (the end zone) before."

Finally, this comment from obiously over-zealous reader and fan. "...Marvin Lewis is to the Bengals what Tom Landry and Bill Walsh were to the Cowboys and 49ers. We could be talking dynasty!"

Maybe...maybe not! Remember that the game and the rules by which players come and go changed so radically around Landry that he could no longer stockpile the talent necessary to dominate the rest of the league. That and fact of advancing age had a lot to do with his demise as coach. That same fact got to Walsh, too, along with the fact of burning out while trying to stay ahead from a competitive standpoint. The game today is a much more complex thing to manage as a head coach, in terms of on-field strategy and personnel management, and you'll never again see people stay around as long as Paul Brown, George Halas and Tom Landry. A guy like Marvin Lewis will be smart enough to pick his challenge, manage it for the right length of time and then pick his opportunity to move on to the next challenge. You get the feeling from reading his comments that he's always had his eye on the opportunity he wants next. And, you know from his present success that he'll get it. As he said, "...You get the job you want on your terms, and they (the people with the job) have to meet your expectations. And if they don't meet your expectations, then you say...no, thank you. That way you feel good about everything you do...and that's part of the process."

Hopefully, for Bengals fans, Marvin Lewis is feeling good at his present job...and stays that way for a long, long time!

The FanFile

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