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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Feb. 13, 1995)
Brooks faces challenge with Rams Trevor Kearney Otgon Umfy As Rich Brooks takes over ns hood coach of the Lot Angulos Rnms. hu faces more than the chal lenge of taking over a mediae re National Football league team that hasn't been to the playoffs in the 1990*. Mu fat.us having to move a mountain The team is moving to St Louis, Mo With that move. Brooks fat us not only coaching a new and unfamiliar team, hut coaching a team that is play ing in an unfamiliar city and on a strange field With a dismal 23-57 record over the last five sea sons in Los Angeles, the Rams scraped up a 4-12 record last year under coach Chuck Knox That record, however, is deceiving because the Rams i ouldn't uvun muster up a win in thuir own divi sion, the NFC West The Rams offense was led last season by former Oregon star quarterback Chris Miller, who has Iwen plagued with injuries throughout his NFL career. Brooks has two other former f)«< ks to work with, Emeet (one* and Anthony Now man. and also gets to utilize running back Jerome Betti* While a solid player would help the Rams' offense, the move and several financially disap pointing seasons will prevent the team from dip ping deeply into a free agency So Brooks is probably stuck — for the time lieing. at least — working with what he has "With five losing seasons in a row* — it is defi nitely a building proems that needs to be achieved here,' Brooks said. While Brooks fared much of the same thing when he look over a downtrodden Oregon team in 1077, he knows that with the Rams he doesn't have the tune that it took him to guide Oregon to the Rose Bowl. “I've been in the business long enough to know that you better get the job done. Brooks said, adding that time was n key factor "If 1 don't do it. they will have someone else there doing it. so I think it is important that I get it done quickly." METZ Continued from Page 7 A Hrooks bn* seen at Oregon speaks volume* of bis nbility to evaluate talent and make the most of what bo wai given As surprising as Friday's announcement was, though, it fits right in with one ol the wildest years that Oregon s]w>ri* has over seen Nothing that ■ ould possibly happen this year lould surprise mo After a disappointing \ 'i start to the football season, all hopes of another trip to n postseason bowl looked to be lost Hut. |ust like everything else in this strange year, things just foil Ore gon's way for once Thanks in large part to Kit h Brooks. I had something fun to do over Christ mas break It seem* like it was just yes terday that Hrooks stepped down ns the school's athletic director When the announce ment was made in Johnson Malt, the Rich f)rooks l saw was a quiet, almost nervous man who knew he had something to prove in his lHth season at Ore gon I'd be lying if l didn't say that skepticism was pretty high, that dropping the extra respon sibilities would make o differ ence on the Held Throughout the season. Brooks remained his quiet, reserved self The lackluster l-2 start made the press conferem es a hit uneasy, and uncomfortable for the 53-year-old As the wins started to mount. Brooks contin ued to he reserved, hut with every win the veteran coach exuded more and more confi dence We'll never know (list how satisfying it must have been for this man to finally achieve the unthinkable at Ore gon No matter what the Ducks did, it just wasn't good enough At the livginning of fall prac lice, member* of the media gath ered to qui* Brooks on the "tug senson fust like every year since he took over as head coach of the thicks. Brooks was.asked whet hi* goal* for the season were And I'm sure every year, the mild-mannered r oach hint ed that representing the Far 10 in the Rose Bowl would be the ultimate goal. This season, as rt appeared that tin- Dm ks were doomed to another ft-5 or 5-fi season, the question was almost never asked It was almost like nobody wanted to risk it. maybe for fear of an angry answer or maybe out of respect for the man that had put up with so mtiti) as the head coach. But out it tame. Brooks' answer' Now that f look hack at it. the way he put it was so perfect Brooks sat hark in his chair n little bit. look a deep breath and once again announced he would very much like to make it to a Rose Bowl So there it was The camera peo ple got their 10-second season goal clip, the reporters got their quote, but in the end, Brooks got his with. It was like he knew something the rest of us didn’t That sounds kind of easy to say in hindsight, hut there really was kind of a strange confidence in Brooks' voic e that day So now the <k hoot is officially Brooks-less It's going *° &*-' strange not seeing Brooks at bas ketball games and around the campus in general It’s going to Ih» strange reading Hon Bel lamy's columns on another head coach at the University of Ore gon. lake him or not. Brooks has been around almost as long as most of us have been alive. His 91-109-4 record doesn't indicate the stuff of legends, but Brooks offered more to the school than just 91 wins on the football field On Friday. Brooks took time to reflect on his tareer and life at Oregon. He's right when he void he leave* an Qry gon (ingrain that i* much better than it was when he took over in 1977 Coming from a different part of the t ountrv. I can hon estly *oy that even hard-core football fans had probably never heard of Oregon football until the late 19HOs And now, the Ducks are known as a team to be reckoned with after an unbe lievable season and a resjM* table showing in the most tradition-filled post *««a ton IhjvvI in college football People tan complain all they want about supposed under achieving Oregon teams from the past and the Independence Howl appearances that went with them. But the plain and simple fat t is that those things didn't happen until Brooks came here It took a while, hut the late infills up to this year's trip to the Rose Bowl tan be considered a highly successful time in Oregon football history. And Brooks managed to do it ail at a school that, while it has had a modest amount of football success, really has a recruiting disadvantage to Pac-10 perenni als like Washington, UCLA and use What a year it ha* been for Rich Brooks If you would have been told at the Beginning of the season that the Ducks would win the Pac-10 Championship, play arguably the best team in the nation in the Rose Bowl and that Brooks would win three national coach of the year awards, you would have had the person that told you that com mitted Add to that a $2.5 mil lion deal that gives Brooks the chance to show his stuff at the highest level of coaching, and a guy that would normally be catching up on some sleep and doing a little fly-fishing finds himself right back at work, evi dently doing what he loves most — looking a challenge right in the eye and attacking it Gary Or*m. t m*r»£ Oregon dafanslv* coordinator Nick Allottl Is |ust ona of a list of coach** that axpraasad intarast In th# haad coaching position that was laft vacant attar Rich Brooks stappad down Friday. COACH Continued from Page 7 A A* for the current < oaching staff. Williams said a timely decision was essential for the sake of coaches "We have a very competent and loyal coaching staff, and their futures could hinge upon what kind of coach will he hired." Williams said. Schuler, currently Califor nia's offensive coordinator, was replaced by Aliotti ns Oregon’s defensive coordina tor two years ago. while Tole do was the Ducks' offensive coordinator before Bellotti and is currently the offensive coordinator at UCLA. Shea is a former Oregon football player who has worked as offensive coordinator at Stan ford and was going to be head coach at San Jose State. Brook* has expressed his desire for a i.oach from with in the Oregon staff to be named. When asked specifi cally about Bellotli during a press conference on Friday. Brooks said he thought the offensive coordinator would be a good coach, and has expressed to Williams per sonally that Bellotti would be his choice for the |ob. “1 think that Mike Bellotti. with five years of head coach ing experience, is obviously an outstanding choice." Brooks said. "I think there are a lot of people that would be general ly interested in coaching at // We have a very competent and loyal coaching sta ff, and their futures could hinge upon what kind of coach will be hired. - DAN WILLIAMS Oregon. Hit! young men play ing at Orttgon ore outstanding young men and great football players." Bellotti just finished up his sixth season with the Ducks. He was head coach at Califor nia State-Chico from 1984 through 1988. and earned the Northern California Athletic Conference coach of the year award in 198fi. Aliotti served as offensive coordinator at California State-Chico for four years with Bellotti. atfitetic director Zoumboukos is in his fifth season as assistant head coach, and has coached at the University of San Francisco as well as his alma matter. University of California Davis. The Rains’ hiring of Brooks was not a surprise to Williams, but how fast the Rams reacted to Brooks’ anticipation was "They acted pretty quick ly." Williams said. “They essentially hired a coach in 24 hours." Eric Englund Scholarship $2,(MX) to enable a University of Oregon graduate to pursue graduate studies at the U of O or elsewhere in American literature or history or a related subject. Apply to the Publish department by March i / Valentine T-Shirt Special SI t()S _ Customize your Volentine gift with any full color photo or original. kinko's the copy center ■ 1265 Willamette ; 344-3555 / Fa* 344-0870 Cash For Textbooks Mon.-Sat. Smith 1 amil\ Bookstore 768 E. 13th 1 Block from Campus 345-1651 \
