Todd Bowles, who started his coaching career at Morehouse, was promoted from defensive coordinator to head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Wednesday.
Bruce Arians, the former head coach, will become a senior football consultant with the Bucs. He informed the players and the staff of the moves.
Bowles thanked Tampa Bay’s owners and administration for the opportunity. He is an additional Black coach named since the league’s hiring practices have been called into question in a lawsuit filed by former Miami coach Brian Flores. Houston’s Lovie Smith and Pittsburgh’s Mike Tomlin are Black, while Miami’s Mike McDaniel identifies as multiracial.
“As an organization, we have all the pieces in place to continue the winning standard that has been established here in recent years,” Bowles said. “I am eager to get started with our players, coaching staff and front office in preparation for the 2022 season.”
The Bucs are the defending NFC South champions and play the Falcons twice a season.
“As an organization, we have all the pieces in place to continue the winning standard that has been established here in recent years. I am eager to get started with our players, coaching staff and front office in preparation for the 2022 season."
In 1997, after playing eight seasons in the NFL and being out of the game for four seasons, Bowles started his coaching career at Morehouse.
Bowles, who played at Temple under Arians before playing in the NFL for Washington (1986-90 and 1992-93) and San Francisco (1991), remembered his humble coaching start at Morehouse as its defensive coordinator/secondary coach.
“It was a great experience because it was my first coaching job and my first job as a defensive coordinator,” Bowles said before Super Bowl LV in 2021. “I had very intelligent players that helped me out a great deal. Although we didn’t have a great team, we had very smart guys, and they made coaching very enjoyable for me to want to continue my career in coaching.”
After a season at Morehouse, Bowles went to Grambling for two seasons before catching on with the New York Jets as an assistant coach in 2000.
“It’s a long way, believe me,” Bowles said. “Being at a Black college was one of the greatest experiences that I have ever had. … I’ve come a long way, long life, and I’m getting very old. I’d like to thank Morehouse for that because Morehouse and Grambling is where I cut my teeth at, and I’ll never forget it.”
“He certainly plays to the strengths of his defense. It's a good defense. He's a great defensive coach."
Bowles interviewed for Falcons head-coach openings in 2015 and 2020. The Falcons hired Dan Quinn in 2015, and Bowles ended up with the Jets as their head coach. The Falcons selected former Titans offensive coordinator Arthur Smith last year.
Bowles went 10-6 in his first season with the Jets but was fired after going 14-34 over the next three seasons. Several coaches have been unsuccessful in their first NFL head-coaching stint, such as Bill Belichick (Cleveland) and Pete Carroll (New England).
“He’s certainly evolved from when I first started studying him when we played him when he was in Arizona,” Smith said about Bowles on Tuesday. “Obviously, with the Jets. He certainly plays to the strengths of his defense. It’s a good defense. He’s a great defensive coach.”
The Bucs defeated the Falcons twice last season on their way to the division title and a 13-4 record. The Bucs were eliminated in the divisional round of the playoffs by the Rams, who went on to win the Super Bowl.
The Bucs defeated the Falcons 48-25 on Sept. 19 in Tampa and 30-17 on Dec. 5 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
“It’s a challenge week to week,” Smith said. “It’s a chess match, especially when you’re in your division because you get to know each other so well. (They know) your tendencies. The way they try to stop you and the way we try to attack. He’s a hell of a coach.”
In three seasons with the Bucs, Arians led them to a 31-18 record and a Super Bowl LV title.
They won three road games, with Bowles calling the defense, and became the first team in NFL history to play a Super Bowl in their own stadium.
The Bucs beat the Chiefs 31-9 at Raymond James Stadium on Feb. 7, 2021.
Arians started coaching at Virginia Tech in 1975, beginning as a grad assistant.
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