John Smathers: Chin up, Pittsburgh

By John Smathers
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review Online Sports Editor
Friday, January 5, 2007

Chin up, Pittsburgh. The man known as The Chin, William Laird Cowher, is off to Raleigh.

Actually it's a day of mixed emotion for Steelers fans and Pittsburghers in general. While many fans didn't want to see Bill Cowher's 15-year stint as Pittsburgh Steelers head coach come to an end, there are also many who wanted him to go long ago but allowed him a reprieve after he coached the team to its fifth Super Bowl win. But it was short-lived. You might say it was shorter than a Steelers' winning streak this season.

And then there are those who blame Cowher for the Steelers not winning that fifth Lombardi Trophy -- and maybe four others -- by 2005.

They might have tired of how he sometimes treated the media, or how he handled quarterbacks (one of my personal Cowher pet peeves, especially in his first 10 years), or how he seemed to have Teflon job security while more than 100 head coaching changes took place around the NFL during his tenure, or his perceived lack of enthusiasm in his final season as coach.

Whatever it was, and despite his many accomplishments, those fans are truly glad to finally see Cowher go.

But Cowher's shortcomings, perceived or otherwise, are just one reason to celebrate his departure. I can think of three other fans that are glad to see Bill Cowher leave Pittsburgh behind, but for an entirely different reason.

It came to me recently as I browsed through Cowher photographs taken over the years. As I looked at photo after photo, I realized there was no shortage of Cowher sideline shots. Take your pick. Here a chin, there a chin, everywhere a chin. Smiling, laughing, growling, barking, cheering, or pensive -- the chin was always omnipresent. But there was one notable exception in which the chin just doesn't, well, stick out.

Just because of the chin, Bill Cowher usually dominates a photo, but not this time. This time his daughters, Meagan Lyn, Lauren Marie, and Lindsay Morgan, grabbed my attention. The Chin was still there, but he was surrounded by his daughters as they embraced him after one of those tough AFC Championship losses to New England.

Cowher was surely the object of much derision and scorn that day, but not in the eyes of these three girls. It was easy to see who their hero was and even easier to see who was most important in this man's life.

I've never met Cowher. I asked him questions once as a reporter when Jim Haslett, who played at Indiana University of Pennsylvania near my home, was hired as the Steelers defensive coordinator in 1997. Beyond that, I haven't had much more contact with Cowher than the average fan.

But I share one very special thing in common with the now-former coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers: We both have three beautiful daughters who mean the world to us and who want only the best for their fathers. It was easy to see myself and my three girls in that photo.

The Cowher daughters want their father to be happy and, I suspect, they want to see more of their father, too. I certainly can't blame them for that, or him for wanting to see more of them, if that is in fact one of his main reasons for leaving the Steelers. It's the same with my daughters and me.

Coaching at even the high school level is almost a year-round job. I can only imagine the toll it takes on the NFL coach. Sure, Cowher's been handsomely compensated, but that's all the more reason for him to leave Pittsburgh. Money is not an issue and he can relax now. He catch up with his daughters. And he could be back in the NFL faster than a Willie Parker touchdown run.

So I wish Cowher well. Sure I have reservations. I am among those that fault him, at least partially, for those missed Super Bowl opportunities. I didn't care for his one-word answers and melodramatic stare-downs over legitimate questions at his weekly press conferences. And I believe he has to take a fair share of blame for a disappointing 2006. I think he was an unnecessary off-field distraction, even if he and the players denied it.

But Cowher gave the Steelers and the fans 15 fine years. Now maybe he'd like to give his daughters a few. And I completely understand.

John Smathers can be reached at jsmathers@tribweb.com or (412) 380-5682.