The Oregon Coaching Family: Oregon’s True Legacy Is In Its Family of Coaches, Not Uniforms

The Oregon Coaching Family: Oregon’s True Legacy Is In Its Family of Coaches, Not Uniforms

Originally posted on CampusAttic.com on January 2nd, 2014

    It’s easy to recite the perception of Oregon’s legacy on athletics — flashy uniforms, modern facilities, speedy style of play, Nike connections…but is this really the biggest impact on sports that the University of Oregon has had? It seems strange to think, but sleepy little Eugene has been a crossroads of coaching knowledge for a century, a must-stop on the path to success either as a player or coach; call Oregon the Harvard of X’s and O’s.

    At the heart of Oregon’s coaching tree is a pledge of continuity, a place where a coach if they want to can come and remain for many years. The life of a coach can pay well, but also be very nomadic, moving repeatedly wherever the work beckons. Oregon is the contradiction to this, a place where stability in the staff is highly sought after, in a community with a relatively low cost of living and great place to raise a family, with a football program that is beloved and supported, making for a winning and desirable combination for any coach. Above all, the coaches at Oregon exemplify teaching skills the right way, with integrity, as a family, helping to mold young men and women into positive members of society.

Mark Helfrich just completed his first year as head coach at Oregon,
but has been groomed of ryears for the job. (courtesy: USAToday)

    Mark Helfrich is the 35th University of Oregon head football coach, having just completed his first year at the helm after serving four years as offensive coordinator, but half of those 35 that have held the highest job were prior to 1913.

     In college football today, where it is rare for a coaching staff to stay fully intact from one year to the next, that stability is a reflection of doing things the Oregon way, trusting in the coaching knowledge, and considering long-term plans to achieve. When fans overreact and call for blood if something doesn’t go perfect, the administration shows loyalty, a rare trait in modern college athletics, and the results speak for themselves. Len Casanova was once hung in effigy on the UO campus by angry students in the 1950s, but the university didn’t cave to the demands…he stayed at Oregon for decades thereafter, and led Oregon to a Rose Bowl in 1958.

    There is perhaps no healthier athletic program in the country at a public university than Oregon, fiscally solvent, highly successful in competition in every sport, and a stable of top-level talented coaches with the rarest of promises — job stability. As a result, Oregon sports across the board are competing among the highest levels in the country.

     Acrobatics & tumbling are three-time national champions, men’s and women’s track & field are perennial title contenders, baseball and softball are likely to reach the college world series, men’s and women’s basketball teams both lead the nation in scoring per game, football every year is in the national title discussion, and Oregon club sports even won a national championship in ultimate frisbee.

     Sports are alive and well at Oregon, because of a dedicated effort on the part of the university to find and maintain the best coaches, while also molding the brightest sports minds in-house.

Hugo Bezdek left Oregon in 1918 for the Pittsburgh Pirates
after Shy Huntington was set to take over the program.

    It began in 1913, when Hugo Bezdek was welcomed back to Eugene after one year in 1906 as the football, basketball, and baseball coach. Bezdek remained in Eugene through the 1918 season, establishing Oregon as one of the premier teams on the west coast, culminating in victory in the East-West Tournament game, later known as the Rose Bowl, in 1917. When Bezdek left for a job as manager of the Pittsburgh Pirates, to maintain coaching staff continuity and continue the good times Oregon hired Charles “Shy” Huntington as new head coach, Oregon’s quarterback during Bezdek’s coaching tenure. The good times did continue, Oregon returning to the East-West Tournament game in 1920…until the university’s attempts to bring Bezdek back resulted in Huntington resigning in 1924, ending an era and sending Oregon into a rather dark time for UO athletics.

    For decades Oregon went through numerous coaching changes, until Len Casanova was hired from Santa Clara before the 1951 season. Following the Bezdek/Huntington continuity mold, Casanova established a coaching tree that has become one of the greatest in football history. Whether during the 16 years Casanova remained Oregon’s head coach, or the many decades that followed with “Cas” as athletic director and senior administrator at Oregon. When Casanova left his post as head coach, he appointed his successor to be Jerry Frei, the offensive coordinator, maintaining much of the same coaching staff.

    In the 1970s the university strayed, firing Casanova’s successor Jerry Frei and starting over with two underwhelming short tenures under coach Dick Enright (1973-1974) and Don Read (1975-1976). Replacing Read in 1977, an Oregon State alumnus was hired, Rich Brooks. Ever since, the Casanova long-tenure mold has been followed, the university becoming the prime example of maintaining coaching continuity and stability, the envy of the college football world.

    It is the patience shown by the university and long-term forward thinking that allowed the University of Oregon football program to prosper and grow into the perennial national contender it is today, something that would not have been possible had the quick trigger in changing coaches in the post Huntington 1920s or post-Frei 1970s had continued.

     Just as Casanova had supported his guys through good times and bad trusting in coaches to develop their plans without a “win now or else” mentality, so too did Rich Brooks show immense loyalty to coaches, making Oregon a welcomed place for coaches to come to ply their trade and learn. This has continued today, as Rich Brooks’ successor was his offensive coordinator Mike Bellotti, who after a 13-year tenure turned over the job to his offensive coordinator Chip Kelly, who turned it over to his offensive coordinator Mark Helfrich, and so the cycle of success continues.

Legendary track coach Bill Bowerman is one of many Oregon alumni who returned
to their alma mater to coach. (courtesy: UO Knight LIbrary and Special Collections)

    The Oregon way of long-term coaching support expanded beyond just football. Bill Hayward (1903-1947) spent over 40 years at the UO training athletes as track & field coach and football trainer, his successor being a former UO football player, Bill Bowerman. Bowerman revolutionized the sport of track & field in numerous ways, brought Eugene its first T&F national championship in 1962, and co-founded Nike with one of his former runners–Phil Knight.

     Bowerman’s successor was Bill Dellinger, one of Bowerman’s greatest athletes. On the women’s side, Tom Heinonen coached track & field for 28 years (1975-2002), bringing numerous titles to Eugene further establishing the “Track Town USA” reputation.

   Other sports have benefited from Oregon’s long-term loyalty. Howard Hobson (1935-1947) brought a basketball national championship to the UO in 1939. Dick Harter’s “Kamikaze Kids” were the second best team on the west coast in the 1970s during his stretch as coach (1971-1978), and it was one of Harter’s former players in Ernie Kent that returned Oregon to prominence twice reaching the Elite Eight in the NCAA Tournament during his time as coach (1997-2010).

Don Kirsch surrounded by some of his players after Oregon clinched a spot
in the college world series in 1954.
(courtesy: UO Knight Library and Special Collections)

 

     In baseball, Howard Hobson had coached on the diamond as well as on the basketball court for years, so when he left it was one of his former players in Don Kirsch who took over and led Oregon from 1948-1970, taking the Ducks to their only college world series appearance in 1954, before handing the team over to one of his former players, Mel Krause, who lead the program until it was cut due to budget cuts in 1981.

     Becky Sisley coached multiple sports at Oregon, and became its first women’s athletics director, during her extensive time at the university (1965-1979). Jim Radcliffe, the best strength & conditioning coach hands down in the entire country, has been working with every sport at the University of Oregon since he came to Eugene in 1985, following in the tenured trainer tradition of Bill Hayward (1903-1947) and Bob Officer (1935-1967).

    Recognizing a theme here? The University of Oregon knows a good thing when it has one, and looks to maintain the success through long-term support of its coaches and support staff. When a coach isn’t worried if they have to move after every off-season, they can look big picture at ways to maintain and improve on success, and establish an identity for the sport. The result, Oregon has its own #NationalBrand, not just in appearance, but style of play. Find the brightest minds in a sport, then hold onto them. It seems a simple concept, but easier said than done.

John Robinson may be a hall of fame coach for his time
at USC, but he started as a player and coach at Oregon.
(courtesy: UO Knight Library and Special Collections)

    14 college/NFL hall of famers have roamed the Oregon sidelines, and the pantheon of individuals who have at one time donned an Oregon jersey or taught the X’s and O’s is as impressive as any school or pro franchise. The list of coaches with Oregon roots that spent time in the NFL include Norm Van Brocklin, George Seifert, Mike Nolan, Bill Musgrave, John Madden, John McKay, John Robinson, Hugo Bezdek, Gunther Cunningham, Rich Brooks, Charlie Waters, John Ramsdell, Bruce Snyder, and Chip Kelly among others.

     Homegrown coaches at Oregon who went on to great success in the coaching ranks include Chris Peterson, Dirk Koetter, Jeff Tedford, Bob Toledo, and Al Borges among others. Norv Turner and Justin Wilcox played at Oregon before going on to become successful coaches elsewhere.

    Part of the Oregon legacy in coaching is the result of University of Oregon student-athletes choosing to cut their coaching chops at their alma mater. John Robinson and John McKay may have become legends at USC, but it was at Oregon where they played and first coached under Len Casanova’s tutelage. Denny Schuler, Brad Ecklund, and Joe Schaffeld also played at Oregon, then returned as coaches involved in college football for decades. Prink Callison, Norm Chapman, Bev Smith, Bill Bowerman, Bill Dellinger, Don Kirsch, Mel Krause, Sally Harmon, Don Pellum, Joe Reitzug, Nate Costa, Steve Greatwood and others have stayed as Duck coaches after their competition days were done. Norm Van Brocklin famously wanted to return to revitalize the program in the 1970s after his NFL coaching career ended, but Rich Brooks was chosen for the head football coach position instead.

    In fact, the Oregon coaching factory has been so successful in developing sports minds, that it prompted the football program to completely change its philosophy. By the early 2000s, the Pac-10 was swamped with former Oregon coaches at other schools implementing “the Oregon way” into other schools.

    By 2003 in some games Oregon played, both teams were using the same playbook and hand signals, everyone knew the Oregon system so well that a change was needed. In one game, Oregon quarterbacks Kellen Clemens and Jason Fife actually had to sprint to the sideline after every play to hear the play call knowing that the team couldn’t use any hand signals without the opponents knowing what Oregon was about to run next.

Becky Sisley personified Oregon’s coaching family legacy and versatility
coaching basketball, field hockey, softball, and becoming the first
UO women’s athletic director.
(courtesy: UO Knight Library and Special Collections)

 

    Hence it was that in 2005 head coach Mike Bellotti decided it was time to switch from a pro style offense to a spread system, in part to evolve with the changes in football but also a means to avoid other schools from mimicking Oregon to the tiniest of detail. With Jeff Tedford at Cal (Oregon offensive coordinator 1998-2001), Dirk Koetter at ASU (Oregon offensive coordinator 1996-1997), Tom Osborne at ASU (Oregon special teams coach 1995-2000), and other assistants with Oregon roots scattered throughout the west, there was too much familiarity in Oregon to keep any opponents surprised.

    Since the 1980s, the Oregon football staff has remained relatively unchanged, at least compared to other programs. The longevity of running backs coach Gary Campbell (1983-present), offensive line/tight end coach Steve Greatwood (1980-1994, 2000-present), linebackers coach Don Pellum (1985-1986, 1993-present), and strength & conditioning coach Jim Radcliffe (1985-present) are true rarities in the quick trigger win-now-or-else high stakes world of college football. Mike Bellotti came to Oregon in 1989 as Rich Brooks’ new offensive coordinator, and stayed in multiple roles until 2009. The staff today has its roots tracing back to Rich Brooks’ hire in 1977, during which time facilities development have completely altered Oregon football.

    It was during Rich Brooks’ time as coach (1977-1994) when he and then athletic director Bill Byrne implemented plans to upgrade the facilities at Oregon to make the program competitive, something that would not have been possible if not for a dedication to Brooks’ big picture vision for the program. Fundraising by Byrne in the early 80s led to the construction of the Autzen Stadium Sky Suites in 1986, which then funded much of the Casanova Center construction in 1989-90. From there the athletic department is almost completely unrecognizable from what it was in the 1980s, every sport’s facility either being replaced or getting massive upgrades to coincide with the multiple image and marketing campaigns. With the shiny new facilities has come success in athletics and national attention for the university, providing student-athletes with the tools they need to achieve at their absolute best.

    Consider for a moment the Chip Kelly head coaching tenure (2009-2012). During those four years Oregon was the only program in the entire country that did not have a single change in its coaching staff. During that same four year stretch, Oregon was the only program in the country to play in a BCS game every year…coincidence?

    When Kelly left following the 2012 season, he did so only after assurances that his offensive coordinator Mark Helfrich would take over, and pledged not to completely gut the entire Oregon coaching staff in his departure, maintaining the core structure per tradition established under Bezdek and Casanova and Brooks. Helfrich has been groomed for the job, a native Oregonian who was recruited by the Ducks, played high school games at Autzen, knows the history and tradition of the program, and like so many others got his coaching start at the University of Oregon as an assistant.

    But as much stability as there can be amidst staff, when humans are involved eventually change must occur. The first cog fell last week, when Nick Aliotti retired, leaving a current vacancy in Oregon’s defensive coordinator position.

Sometimes goat, sometimes great, Nick Aliotti’s always honest and gruff approach
will be sorely missed. (courtesy: OregonLive.com)

    Nick Aliotti was a running back at UC-Davis in the 1970s when Mike Bellotti was an assistant coach at his UCD alma mater. Aliotti coached for a year alongside Bellotti at UCD in 1976, before joining the Oregon coaching staff in 1978 under Rich Brooks.

     In 1980 he joined Oregon State for four years as the running backs coach, but in 1988 he returned to Oregon, a year before Mike Bellotti would join the Ducks, playing an integral role in getting Bellotti to come to Eugene. There were stints for Aliotti in the NFL alongside Rich Brooks, who also took Steve Greatwood with him to the St. Louis Rams in 1995 when Mike Bellotti took over as head coach, but after a year at UCLA Nick Aliotti returned to where he was most comfortable in 1999 — the University of Oregon.

    For years Aliotti has been the stabilizing force behind Oregon’s defenses. Sometimes a scapegoat, sometimes a hero, always brutally honest, his character and personality helped to define the family atmosphere of the coaching staff that has drawn so many student-athletes to Eugene. His loss is huge, and it will be interesting to see if Oregon chooses to continue the continuity that has led to so much success in the past, by hiring from within, or do they go outside and bring in a fresh face?

    Behind Greatwood, Campbell, Pellum, and Radcliffe are the second generation of Oregon coaches. Tom Osborne has coached tight ends and special teams in two stints at Oregon (1995-2000, 2007-present), and secondary coach John Neal (2003-present). If there is to be an internal successor to Nick Aliotti at defensive coordinator, it is likely John Neal, the good money being on the announced “national search” for a new defensive coordinator actually being a hunt for a replacement secondary coach after Neal is promoted.

There is nobody more respected or appreciated in the UO
athletic program than strength & conditioning coach Jim Radcliffe.
(courtesy: OregonLive.com)

 

    There will come a point where sadly Steve Greatwood, Gary Campbell, Don Pellum, and (gasp) Jim Radcliffe will have to retire too, the final remnants of the Casanova/Brooks lineage.

    Yet the coaching tree will live on under Helfrich’s eye whenever the stalwarts of Oregon choose to call it quits on their terms, just as Aliotti did. The next wave of coaches that clamor to call Eugene home will come, knowing it is a place where if they so choose they can set up a home for many years to come.

    Oregon is special. It’s not because of the uniforms, or facilities, or fans, or community, but a combination of all of the above; but at its very core it is the people teaching the X’s and O’s who keep the Oregon coaching factory running at full steam. It is both a factory and a family, the humans who operate the machines that are the true value, not the structures popping up each year that define Oregon.

     As long as that policy is maintained, as long as the administration and fans show trust and loyalty in the long-term plans of coaches to compete, then Oregon will continue to be successful at the highest levels of amateur athletics.

Len Casanova (left) and Jerry Frei (center) were two of the major cogs in the lineage of coaching success at Oregon that has continued through to today. (courtesy: UO Knight Library and Special Collections)