Arbet Credits Hall of Fame Career to Players

In any sport, the measuring barometer that defines a Head Coach is wins. Coaches like Bill Belichik, Vince Lombardi, John Wooden and Phil Jackson are considered the best in their respective leagues because of their ability to win and more importantly, do it consistently.
In many leagues, the ability to win at a constant level is a daunting task due to the high amount of changing parts within a team. However, certain coaches have the ability to produce a winning formula in different ways and options. These coaches are gifted and understand the game so well, that each season, no matter who is on the field, are successful.
In the AFL, only a handful of Head Coaches are able to boast about this winning ability. Only five Head Coaches have won more than 100 games in the AFL’s 24 year history. One of those Head Coaches is San Jose SaberCats Head Coach Darren Arbet. Arbet has dominated in the AFL as a Head Coach and focused on certain characteristics that make up a successful winning coach.
“You have to have dedication, hard work and being able to work and motivate people. Getting players to play as one is extremely important,” SaberCats Head Coach Darren Arbet said.
Arbet was recently selected to the 2011 Hall of Fame Class after notching 114 regular season wins in only 11 seasons in the AFL. In 2007, Arbet recorded his 100^th win, in only 145 games.  During his tenure as the Head Coach in San Jose, Arbet won double digit games in eight out of his 11 seasons, and nine straight (2000-2008) with a playoff appearance. Even with all of the success, Arbet accredits his accomplishments to the SaberCats, and more importantly the players.
“My success starts with the organization, ownership and the coaching staff. They give me everything I need to win here. We have had some tremendous players, with a couple of them going into the Hall of Fame. I am sure that there are a lot more that are going to get in. Players are the ones who win the football games and I have been fortunate to have some great players,” Arbet explained.
A major piece to a team’s success in the AFL is the strong need for a reliable quarterback. During his tenure in San Jose, Arbet was privileged to possess quarterbacks, like Mark Grieb, who were more than reliable for the SaberCats and made it smoother to find a winning mentality.
“Grieb is a tremendous human being. He is a great quarterback and one of the best to ever play in this League. I’ve been honored to also coach John Dutton, who played quarterback here and helped us a lot. We’ve been very lucky to have these guys,” Arbet said.
Along with all of his regular season success, Arbet has also been able to triumph when it matters most. Arbet owns the AFL’s best postseason winning percentage (.714) and led the SaberCats to three ArenaBowl championships in 2002, 2004 and 2007. After reaching these milestones, Arbet understands the difficult passage it takes to winning an ArenaBowl.
“You never get tired of standing up on that podium. That’s for sure. But it takes a lot of hard work. I think when you are standing up there, you look back at camp and all of those bumps in the road that you went through and see how the players overcame and stuck together throughout the season. There is no feeling like it,” Arbet said.
In 2011, Arbet and the SaberCats returned to the AFL after a two year hiatus. Unlike the previous nine seasons, San Jose struggled and did not reach the playoffs with a 7-11 record. The team battled to find consistency due to the high amount of injury and roster changes. Even with all of his past success, Arbet still feels the need to improve as a coach every season.
“I am going to have to get better going into next year. Any time that you coach, you have to look in the mirror. You have to find where you can get better and look back on the things that you did. Once you do that, you have to look at the things that you can correct and make better with some changes. It’s all about correcting on mistakes and seeing how we can make this organization better each year.”
Even with the struggles in 2011, Arbet is still regarded as one of the greatest coaches in AFL history. His constant success and remarkable team records throughout his coaching career is one of the most impressive AFL feats that may never happen again. Arbet is well deserving of his AFL Hall of Fame induction and will surely go down as one of the most successful coaches the League has ever seen.