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.
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| 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.
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| 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.
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| 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.
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|
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)
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