Football legend has big things Bruin

Paul Clinton

NEWPORT BEACH -- Terry Donahue knows what it’s like to follow a

legend.

When the Balboa Island resident was elevated to the general manager’s

job of the San Francisco 49ers on May 2, he replaced football great Bill

Walsh, the mastermind of the NFL’s team of ‘80s.

The situation reminded him of 1976, when he was named head football

coach of UCLA to replace Dick Vermeil.

And Donahue, who built a home here on the island almost four years

ago, isn’t the first to replace Walsh. George Seifert took over the head

coaching duties from Walsh after the 1988 season.

“At the 49ers, that’s just what happens,” Donahue said during a Friday

phone interview. “It’s not an intimidating type of situation. You just

take it in stride.”

Donahue, 56, can afford to be relaxed. He has spent the last three

years working closely with Walsh as his handpicked successor as director

of player personnel and assistant GM.

The former UCLA coach, whose 151 wins make him the winningest coach in

Pac-10 history, has taken a hands-on role in 49er player moves.

Donahue said he worked closely with Walsh during the April 21-22 NFL

draft. The 49ers gave up a first and third round pick so they could use

the seventh overall pick on defensive end Andre Carter from Cal Berkeley,

right in their back yard.

“He was a player we had marked as someone to watch,” Donahue said. “We

just really felt that he brought an awful lot to the table.”

Donahue will face some tough challenges in the years ahead, as the

organization struggles to recapture its former glory of five Super Bowl

wins in 14 seasons.

Last season, the 49ers finished fourth in their five-team division

with a 6-10 record, beating out only the lowly Atlanta Falcons.

Yet a group of young offensive players, led by quarterback Jeff

Garcia, emerged to give the team a potent offense.

“We’re getting better,” Donahue said. “Before you win a championship,

you have to be a contender.”

Over the past few years, Donahue has kept a home in Balboa Island

along with one closer to the office in Los Gatos. Donahue has been a

resident or frequent visitor to Newport Beach since he was boy.

For him, the city provides a needed respite to the rigors of an NFL

front office job.

“This is where we plan to retire,” Donahue said. “I’ve been coming

down to Newport Beach and Balboa since I was a child.”

Donahue’s wife, Andrea, lives with him in the Balboa home.

After Donahue left UCLA in 1995, compiling a 151-74-8 record, he took

a break from the sideline. He joined CBS for three years as a college

football analyst.

But he craved a more hands-on role in the game, jumping at the

opportunity to join Walsh’s 49er staff in 1999.

He hasn’t ruled out a return to coaching. It’s in his blood, he said.

“You never say never,” Donahue said. “Coaching will always be a

temptation.”