A glimpse at four new coaches and their hurdles

Sporting News, The, August 21, 1995 by Ivan Maisel

As two-a-days drone on and the clock refuses to budge, take a look at four snapshots of new coaches and the challenges they face:

1. An arm away. Howard Schnellenberger latched onto the idea after he got home from his statewide trip across Oklahoma. He went to towns Wal-Mart probably hasn't even heard of. It may have been in Broken Bow or Ponca City, Altus or Miami (say it "Miamah" or they'll know you're an outsider), but somewhere along the line Schnellenberger came up with the phrase, "Sooner Nation." If he's smart, he'll copyright it and ride it into retirement. It's catchy, local and perfect for T-shirts.

Now, if he can only come up with a quarterback. A quarterback may be all that stands between Schnellenberger and a return to the spotlight. Oh, Schnellenberger is never far from it. When the beam clicks on, moths dive out of the way to give him room.

He is 61 and for the first time in his head-coaching career, he's working for a "have." Schnellenberger thinks his work for Bear Bryant should count. Maybe so, but it ended nearly 30 years ago. He coached the Baltimore Colts in the mid-1970s, took over Miami when it had just come off the critical list in the late '70s and joined a moribund Louisville program in the '80s.

Gary Gibbs left him with plenty of talent. But until Schnellenberger finds a quarterback, it won't matter. Says who? Schnellenberger.

"I screwed up one quarterback, Bert Jones in Baltimore, by putting him in as a 'freshman' when the team wasn't ready to win," Schnellenberger says. "The guy that played the last game, Garrick McGee, got spinal meningitis and hadn't gotten well through spring practice. He hasn't taken a full-speed snap. It looks like I have to start Eric Moore, who has never started a game. If we had a (Jim) Kelly, we'd be a bitch."

2. Into the fire. Back at Miami, Schnellenberger's former home, Butch Davis has a youth problem, and not just at quarterback. The mighty Hurricanes, winner of three national championships in the last eight seasons, have only nine seniors on the entire squad. And two of them are kickers.

What's worse, the Hurricanes' schedule is top-heavy. Three of their four toughest opponents show up in the first games of the season. All three games are on the road: at UCLA, at Virginia Tech, at Florida State, broken up by a purchased victory over Florida A&M and a couple of off-weeks. That stretch concludes October 7, but Davis may not get a chance to catch his breath. Miami's case before the NCAA Committee on Infractions is likely to be heard that month.

All Davis has to do is instill his as-yet untested system into an immature team and have it working without bugs before Labor Day.

"We tried to focus them on learning," Davis says. "Put themselves in a position to support themselves in the fall. It's a physically gifted and talented team. We're going to have to grow up quick."

The older guys love the implications of youth for many reasons. One, more teaching means less hitting, especially during two-a-days. Two, doubting Miami hasn't been a prudent prediction for the last 10 seasons. "If we win our first four games, we'll be on our way," says center K.C. Jones, a team leader. "In the first couple of games, we'll have a good idea of where our team is."

3. Every player's coach. Rick Neuheisel is glib, wonderful with people, funny and incredibly open for a collegiate head coach. He's also 34 and has never been a head coach until now. Colorado won't give him a chance to get used to his job. The Buffaloes open at Wisconsin in prime time on ABC.

"Anytime you're 11-1 and you try to change things," Neuheisel says, "there's a chance to elicit a certain response from your players: 'Hey, what are we doing?'"

Neuheisel will bring a lot more complexity to what has been a two-tight-end, one-tail-back offense. The defense also has switched from a 3-4 to a 4-3, which seems to be the rage again. But he also has brought an enthusiasm and an ability to relate to players that former coach Bill McCartney didn't have. He loves his quarterback, Koy Detmer, to death. Loves him.

"When he and I started talking theory of offense, as we did on buses a year ago, long before I thought about being a head coach, we thought alike," Neuheisel says. He marveled at how Detmer could recount a high school game. "He said, 'We scored seven times in a row,' " Neuheisel says of Detmer. "I asked him what he called. He started telling me how he did it. Most high school kids couldn't tell you what defense (the opponents) were in."

Neuheisel will run the offense, but his facile scoring mind isn't what won him the job. He sold Colorado because of his ability to handle people.

"I'm uniquely qualified because I've been there," Neuheisel says. "I've been a walk-on (quarterback at UCLA). (Been) without a jersey. (Been) without a helmet. Last guy on the plane to the game. Fifth-string. Fourth-, third-, second-, first-string player. I've been a guy who came in to win a game. I've been a guy who was booed out of a game. Nobody walks into my office who I won't understand because I've been there."