New Faces in Big Places

Rockne, Leahy, Parseghian, Holtz ... Bob Davie?

Wade, Thomas, Bryant, Stallings ... Mike DuBose?

Who are these guys anyway? How did Davie and DuBose wind up with two of the most prestigious coaching jobs in the country? Why would Notre Dame and Alabama entrust their programs to a couple of rookies when they could have had their pick of established head coaches?

Actually, the Fighting Irish and Crimson Tide aren’t alone. Schools around the country have grown weary of recycling the same ol’ coaches. Instead, they’ve shifted their focus to more obscure outposts when it’s time for a new man.

Many of this season’s first-year coaches cut their teeth as assistants at major universities, or in the NFL. Others came through the small-college pipeline, where they gained experience at the top without suffering major-college headaches.

“I’m pretty confident of what I’m getting into,” said Davie, who moved up from defensive coordinator to succeed Lou Holtz at Notre Dame. “I’ve got a pretty firm handle on what they expect.”

A new generation of coaches has emerged, so we can bid adieu to well-known figures like Gene Stallings and Johnny Majors, Bill Mallory and Bill Curry, Jim Wacker and Jim Sweeney.

Let’s welcome aboard such nondescript names as Tom Holmoe (California), Cam Cameron (Indiana), Hal Mumme (Kentucky), Walt Harris (Pittsburgh) and Tom O’Brien (Boston College).

But even at a time when the door to the head coaching fraternity appears wide open, it manages to slam shut whenever a black comes calling. Of all the new coaches, only one, Tony Samuel at downtrodden New Mexico State, is a minority.

“There was a lot of optimism when all the jobs opened up,” said Samuel, who spent 11 seasons on Tom Osborne’s staff at Nebraska. “Here was an opportunity for someone in power to take a chance. Just from a numbers standpoint, you would think there would be five or six black coaches that would get an opportunity.

“Not only did they not get hired, a lot of them weren’t even interviewed.”

As for Mumme, he believes he’s ready to match wits with the likes of Steve Spurrier after spending the last eight seasons as coach at Iowa Wesleyan, an NAIA school, and at NCAA Division II Valdosta State.

“Valdosta is unique,” Mumme insisted, referring to the south Georgia town renowned for its high school football. “They don’t think you’re successful unless you win in double digits. I remember when I first went down there, (longtime Valdosta prep coach) Nick Hyder told me not to unpack for a couple years because I wouldn’t around if we didn’t win a whole bunch. He told me he didn’t unpack for three years.”

Mumme won plenty of games at Valdosta State, leading the university to its first Gulf South Conference title last season. Of course, it figures to be a bit different when he looks to the opposite sideline and sees Florida standing there rather than West Georgia.

“I’m really anxious to see them in person,” Mumme said of the Gators.

There were 24 coaching changes among NCAA Division I-A schools, the most since 1987. Of the new coaches, only four have been at the head of another major-college program.

Glen Mason moved to Minnesota after stints at Kansas and Kent. Joe Tiller shifted from Wyoming to Purdue. Woody Widenhofer, who coached at Missouri from 1985-88, gets a second chance with Vanderbilt. And Gary Darnell, the interim coach at Florida for a few games in 1988, was hired by Western Michigan.

Then there are coaches like O’Brien. He was an assistant for 22 years under George Welsh before he got the call from Boston College, which was looking for a fresh start after three mediocre seasons and a betting scandal during the Dan Henning regime.

“I think he’s ready for it and he deserves it,” said Welsh, who began working with O’Brien at Navy and brought him to Virginia in 1982. “He’s better qualified at this point than I was when I became the coach.”

Likewise, Davie speaks confidently about taking over the most high-pressure job in college football, even with Rockne’s ghost and Touchdown Jesus looking over his shoulder.

“I felt more pressure three years ago prior to being the defensive coordinator my first season here than I do now,” said Davie, who filled in as head coach two years ago during Holtz’s neck surgery. “There’s almost less unknown going into this now, even though I’m the head coach, than there was three years ago because I’ve been able to build the foundation the way I want it built.”

DuBose should know the burden that goes along with the Alabama job. He grew up in the state, played for Bear Bryant and served as defensive coordinator under Gene Stallings.

Still, when the houndstooth cap was tossed his way at age 44, DuBose quickly realized that the weight was heavier than he could have envisioned.

“As I travel around the state, I realize what this program means to people,” he said. “It’s more overwhelming than I first thought.

“There are expectations, but it’s not really about Mike DuBose. It’s about the tremendous respect people here have for football. That’s because of the people who came before us and built the tradition over the years.”

For all of its tradition, the Big Ten will have a much different look this season because of the revolving door among coaches. Four of 11 schools changed course after last season, with three choosing to give their head coaching job to men with backgrounds in pro football.

Indiana’s Cam Cameron was the quarterback coach for the Washington Redskins for three seasons, while Ron Turner of Illinois served as offensive coordinator of the Chicago Bears. Tiller promises a pass-happy offense at Purdue after coaching at Wyoming and with the Calgary Stampeders of the Canadian Football League.

“With NFL backgrounds, the field is going to be spread,” said Michigan’s third-year coach, Lloyd Carr. “It’s not that we’re going to see a lot of new things. It’s just that we’re going to see a lot more of it.”