On Friday, Georgia’s new offensive coordinator with the long NFL resume and the grad assistant looks met for the first time with the standing jury of the press box.
That interview went almost as well as the presumably giddy one days earlier with Mark Richt. The one that swept Brian Schottenheimer into his new job before almost anyone else had a chance to elbow his way onto the head coach’s day planner.
When needed, there was a touch of seriousness to this first news conference. Cancer, like the thyroid variety that cost Schottenheimer that gland as well as 17 lymph nodes 10 years ago, requires a somber touch.
When first informed of that diagnosis, naturally he was at a team training facility, this one belonging to the San Diego Chargers. Then a quarterback coach, Brian went directly to the team’s head man — his father, Marty — and they shared a good cry before moving on.
Looking back, Brian said, the cancer was initially scary, but has been beaten back, reduced to a managed afterthought. There are times, because the thyroid regulates metabolism, that a big meal may cause him some discomfort. That could be one reason, that at a young-looking 41, he appears to have the body fat of a flagpole. Otherwise:
“It kind of caused you to take pause a little bit,” he said, “but really, other than taking two pills a day (to substitute for the thyroid), it hasn’t really changed me at all.
“I’m very healthy now and blessed that it wasn’t that big of a deal.
On Friday, Schottenheimer also proved he could laugh on cue when his former Florida affiliation was called into question (he transferred there from Kansas, and served as a backup behind quarterback Danny Wuerffel).
Richt brought up some quick corrections he made in his new coordinator’s thinking. First, when in casual conversation Schottenheimer mentioned Gatorade (no, we are Powerade around here, Richt said). And then when the newbie off-handedly referred to the Florida-Georgia game (that’s Georgia-Florida in these parts, Richt informed him). Yes, even after a loss in Jacksonville as devastating as this season’s.
“That almost did me in (as far as getting the job), truth be known,” Schottenheimer joked. “I’ve been watching it really closely from that point on.”
And there was plenty of remedial X’s and O’s talk with the gathered media, much of it reduced to Schottenheimer’s and Richt’s commonly held offensive beliefs that every play doesn’t have to be run like a fire drill, and it’s really OK if a quarterback sets up in a pocket rather than skitter about like a hypertensive Jack Russell.
But, of course, the meetings that really matter are the ones to come between Schottenheimer and some highly courted teenagers who are deciding upon which institution to bestow their gifts. As well as those meetings with players already in the fold, who want to know how Schottenheimer is going to get them to whatever city that’s hosting the NFL draft.
With what can he dazzle these young minds? After all, the guy spent the past 14 years in the NFL, where recruiting is a non-factor.
If he wants, Schottenheimer can introduce a new generation to the work of his father, Marty. You kids may not know it, but his dad is the sixth-winningest coach in the NFL, after 21 seasons with four teams. Never got to a Super Bowl, but that is hardly polite to mention.
Since Marty never coached one day in college, what was his reaction to his son’s shift to the NCAA? “He trusts my instincts,” Brian said. “He’s always seen himself as a teacher. I do as well. I think starting to train 17-, 18-year-old young men, student-athletes, is an exciting challenge for me. He’s very excited for me, fired up.” (His father could not be reached for this article).
All things considered, Brian might sell himself practically as a coach in utero. Although honestly compelled him to mention Friday, “I really wanted to become a golfer, until I started playing football, (and) my hands started getting beaten on and I couldn’t really play quite as well.” Certainly by the time he transferred to Florida, largely to study then-coach Steve Spurrier’s offense, his career path was set.
Perhaps a curious parent will wonder what prompted Schottenheimer’s decision to go from pros to college? And, too, how long will he be a Bulldog, given that he is an ambitious fellow, who in 2010 interviewed with the Buffalo Bills for a head coaching job and again with Vanderbilt as recently as last year?
It’s simple math. There are only 32 head coaching jobs in the NFL, but 129 in this world of FBS that Schottenheimer has just opted into. All he really can do is to tell the world he’s happy to be at Georgia here and now.
He in the meantime has all that old NFL experience to dangle before the prospects. Yes, there were struggles at his last posting — three seasons in St. Louis, none of them producing a top 20-ranked scoring offense. In his defense, you try finding the end zone when Sam Bradford’s hurt and your past three quarterbacks have been Kellen Clemens, Shaun Hill and Austin Davis.
Schottenheimer has other endorsements. “He’s one of the best young coaches in the game,” said his old teammate Wuerffel, an Atlantan today. “As a Gator it does make me a little nervous knowing such a good coach will be playing against us in the fall.”
He has worked with Drew Brees during his beginnings with the Chargers. Schottenheimer’s affable personality, along with the long sessions spent doodling plays together on a grease board created a bond that lasts today.
He has worked with a young Philip Rivers. And with the pre-butt-fumble Mark Sanchez in New York and with Bradford in St. Louis.
“It seems like wherever I’ve gone there’s always been young quarterbacks,” Schottenheimer said. “With that comes a challenge, but at the same time it’s fun. That’s a passion of mine. I love working with quarterbacks. I love developing quarterbacks,” Schottenheimer said.
So it appears that Schottenheimer can appeal to all manner of constituencies — pro, college or media.
The only clearly disturbed community may be the new group of headline writers who now must squeeze a 14-letter surname into a 10-letter space.
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