Can the OODA Loop be Used in College Sports?

Today I came across a concept called the “OODA Loop” in this lecture (a fascinating listen if you have a half hour and like technology). Apparently it’s used in the military with good result. You can read about it in detail here. But the key takeaway for me was this:

The approach explains how agility can overcome raw power in dealing with human opponents.

I interpret “agility” as mental agility, although physical agility can be applied. The Beavs tend to get 2 and 3 star recruits who are slower and weaker than opponents’. So, is “agility” the way to go? Players who are bright, mentally resilient, quick thinkers, action oriented.

One thing that’s for sure is we need to try something different. It seems Smith is recruiting intelligent players, so maybe he is instinctively taking this approach. Instead of players putting out film with their 4.4 time and bench reps, maybe there should be metrics developed for how fast a player can process information, comprehend it fully, and react, etc. The NFL does this to some degree, but I don’t know of any colleges doing it. Seems like a good business opportunity that will help both Universities and recruits. To my knowledge, there is no Billy Beane of football. Seems odd.

On a more general note, the more you look around, the more you see this in say world affairs as China is bringing down the U.S. not with might but by encouraging and funding our debt/currency debasement, and Russia via misinformation and division. These are weak opponents who are making inroads because of “agility”. So, I think it’s an interesting concept. We think of speed and power when it comes to sports or winning any battle, but mental agility might be where it’s at.

Anyway, I like trying to view sports in an alternative light, so I thought this model was interesting enough to share. If not, just ignore it and move on with your day.