An epilogue for the Jaw

'I'm part of you. You can take the people out of Pittsburgh, but you can't take the Pittsburgh out of me. I'm one of you.'

Saturday, January 06, 2007
By Gerry Dulac, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Bill Cowher did not go out the way he came in. Instead of wearing a three-piece suit as he did in 1992, he wore a multi-colored sweater to his final appearance as Steelers coach. Instead of sounding arrogant like he said he did when he was introduced as Chuck Noll's replacement, he was contrite, relaxed, appreciative, when he walked away.

In the end, though, there was one similarity to the way Mr. Cowher began his career as a National Football League head coach and the way he ended his 15-year reign yesterday.

He was eager and excited. This time, though, to spend more time with his family.

"I'll be honest," Mr. Cowher said. "I'm looking forward to it."

Looking relaxed and sounding like a man comfortable with his decision, Mr. Cowher made official yesterday what has been speculated for weeks, even months: He resigned from the only head-coach position he has ever held and walked into a life of "retirement" in Raleigh, N.C., a lifestyle that is not expected to last much past a year or two.

Mr. Cowher, 49, made the announcement at a news conference at the team's UPMC South Side facility, joined by his wife, Kaye, and flanked by team chairman Dan Rooney and president Art Rooney II. While it signalled the end of the second-most successful coaching stint in franchise history, it also officially began the search to find his replacement.

"I've given this a lot of thought and it's in the best interest of my family and myself at this time," said Mr. Cowher, who was the NFL's longest tenured head coach with one team.

Standing in the room where he held his weekly televised news conference and facing more than 70 members of the media, Mr. Cowher said he will not coach in the National Football League in 2007 and said there was no timetable when, or even if, he will return to the sidelines as a head coach.

"There is no timetable or plan for that," Mr. Cowher said. "The only thing I'm looking forward to is spending time with my family."

But even San Diego Chargers Coach Marty Schottenheimer, Mr. Cowher's mentor and the person who gave him his coaching start in Cleveland, said yesterday in a phone interview, "Considering his competitiveness, we haven't see the last of The Jaw."

Mr. Cowher went through a checklist of people he wanted to thank, starting with Mr. Schottenheimer and ending with the team's director of football operations, Kevin Colbert, about whom he said, "He gave me my second wind."

But Mr. Cowher, a Crafton native who attended Carlynton High School, saved his most heart-felt thanks for the people in Pittsburgh and Steelers fans across the country.

"You are second to none," Mr. Cowher said, looking into the phalanx of television cameras that rimmed the back of the conference room. "I'm part of you. You can take the people out of Pittsburgh, but you can't take the Pittsburgh out of me. I'm one of you." Then, with a smile, he added, "Y'unz know what I mean."

Mr. Cowher had one year remaining on a contract that paid him between $4.5 million and $4.7 million this season. He leaves behind a legacy that includes 10 playoff appearances, eight division titles, six appearances in the AFC Championship game and -- his biggest prize of all -- a fifth Super Bowl title in franchise history.

"I want to thank Bill for 15 great years," said Art Rooney II. "It's been a great ride. I want to thank Bill and Kaye for having their family be a part of ours."

After Dan Rooney spoke about the coach he hired in 1992 to replace Chuck Noll, who had won four Super Bowls in the 1970s, he turned and presented Mr. Cowher with a miniature replica of the Super Bowl trophy.

"After the Super Bowl you gave me the trophy," the elder Mr. Rooney said. "I wish you will accept this trophy from us for the great contribution you have given us."
Mr. Cowher then hugged Mr. Rooney.

"Coaching in the NFL and winning the Super Bowl have been a lifelong dream for me," Mr. Cowher said. "To realize that in the city where I was born and raised, this Crafton boy lived a dream. You don't know how special that was to me."

The dream, though, took a strange turn during the offseason when Mr. Cowher turned down a contract extension that would have paid him between $6 million and $6.5 million annually in the final years of the deal. After winning the Super Bowl, Mr. Cowher felt he deserved to be among the top, if not the top, paid coaches in the league, a distinction that belongs to Seattle's Mike Holmgren, who will make an estimated $7 million this season and $8 million in 2007.

It became a matter of principle with Mr. Cowher, and the two sides stopped negotiating in August. Yesterday, a close associate of Mr. Cowher said "it didn't have to end this way," referring to his resignation.

Meantime, Art Rooney II said the Steelers have notified offensive coordinator Ken Whisenhunt and offensive line coach/assistant head coach Russ Grimm they are candidates to replace Mr. Cowher. Mr. Rooney said they are the only members of Mr. Cowher's staff who will be considered possible replacements. That means defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau, a former head coach with the Cincinnati Bengals, is not a candidate.

"Our only goal is to find the best person for the job," Mr. Rooney said. "Our timetable will simply relate to when we feel we have reached that goal."

Only seven coaches in NFL history, including Mr. Noll at 23 years, have had longer coaching stints with one team than Mr. Cowher. But his legacy will extend well beyond his longevity.

Figuratively, and perhaps literally, Mr. Cowher was the face of the Steelers, an animated, passionate coach who once stuffed a photo in an official's shirt and nearly swung at an opposing player when he ran with a blocked field goal past the Steelers bench. His jaw-jutting expressions often included a wrinkled mouth and flying spittle, and his sideline histrionics made him a constant subject of television cameras.

Through it all, he was known as a player's coach, a man who could motivate with his energy but was often softer on the players than the maniacal image he portrayed. He was also a good communicator, priding himself on listening to every complaint but also making sure a player understood his role, even if he didn't like it.

"There is a lot of wear and tear in coaching and finding new ways to teach and motivate becomes harder every season," Baltimore Ravens Coach Brian Billick said. "The fact Bill did it for 15 years is amazing."

Then Mr. Billick added, "His teams played with great physicality and energy. If your team couldn't match that, and most couldn't, his teams would beat you. He's a Hall of Fame coach in my mind."

"He was a great communicator," Mr. Schottenheimer said. "You may not like what he told you, but you knew it came from the heart. That's a key in any meaningful relationship. You need that quality, and that's Bill's strong suit. He's a terrific teacher."

Mr. Cowher, though, was more than a coach who got the most out of his players. One of his greatest strengths was his ability to build a coaching staff, hiring seven assistants who would later go on to become head coaches either in the NFL or college.

The list includes Mr. LeBeau, former Carolina and Houston Coach Dom Capers, Cincinnati Bengals Coach Marvin Lewis, former New Orleans Saints Coach Jim Haslett, former Buffalo Bills Coach Mike Mularkey, and former Dallas Cowboys Coach Chan Gailey, who is now head coach at Georgia Tech. Former special teams coach Ron Zook is the head coach at Illinois after formerly being the head coach at the University of Florida.

"I want to thank Bill for all he's done for me," Mr. Lewis said, five days after the Steelers ended the Bengals' season and playoff hopes with a 23-17 overtime victory in Cincinnati. "It has been a privilege to coach with him and against him. I wish all the best for him and his family with whatever the future holds."

The past held plenty of success for Mr. Cowher. When he led the Steelers to six consecutive playoff appearances to start his career, he joined Paul Brown as the only coaches in NFL history to accomplish that feat. His career record of 161-99-1 ranked second only to Mr. Noll's (209-156-1) in franchise history, though his winning percentage of .623 in the regular season, .619 in postseason, are the highest in club history.

"I don't think I'm going to miss it as much as some people think I am going to," Mr. Cowher said. "The only thing I am looking forward to is spending time with my family, and I am really looking forward to that."

(Gerry Dulac can be reached at gdulac@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1466. )

Transcript: Bill Cowher's Opening Statement

The following is a transcript of Bill Cowher's opening statement during the Friday press conference called to announce his resignation as coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers:

"Art (Rooney II) and Dan (Rooney), thank you. Thank you for having this. I want to thank you guys for being here.

"After careful and deliberate consideration, I've decided to resign today. I've given it a lot of thought, and I believe it's in the best interests of our family and myself at this time. I'm proud of all we've accomplished here in the 15 years I've been the coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers. I was born and raised here. My parents live here. My brothers live here. And more importantly, my parents have been able to watch our three children grow up. That's special. That's special.

"Coaching in the National Football League and winning a Super Bowl are the lifelong dreams of mine, and to be able to do that and realize that in the city that I was born and raised in, this Crafton boy lived a dream. You know how special that is to me.

"There are a lot of people I need to thank, and I'm going to do that:

"First, to Marty Schottenheimer. I played for Marty, and he's the only guy I ever was an assistant coach under. He opened the door for me. For that, I will always be grateful. Who's to say when you see a player whether he can coach. There are no guarantees. Marty believed in me, and for that I will always remember and be grateful.

"And to Dan Rooney, for taking the chance on me 15 years ago. The gratitude and respect and complete admiration, I cannot express in words. He's a very special man. Thank you.

"And I want to thank all the players and coaches who have contributed to all the success we've enjoyed over the 15 years. There have been so many of them. I had an opportunity this year to sit with the players and talk with the coaches, and there have been so many down through the years that I want to thank.

"To the support staff, my secretary Mia has been with me for 12 years, like a right-hand man; to the doctors, to Jim Bradley and Tony Yates; to the trainers, John Norwig and his staff. This truly is not accomplished – what we've done – without the work of a lot of people pulling in the same direction. I've been so fortunate and blessed to have those types of people as a part of this team.

"And to Kevin Colbert, who officially today assumes the No. 1 ranking in racquetball, even though the class has gone down … Kevin, you gave me a second wind, and your support and friendship will always mean a lot to me.

"And to the fans. To the Steelers fans in Pittsburgh and the fans around the country – second to none. I want to thank you for your passion and your support. I've said this before: I'm a part of you. You can take the people out of Pittsburgh, but you will never take the Pittsburgh out of people. I'm one of you. Yinz know what I mean.

"And last, to my wife and three daughters. I was asked a long time ago how I have lasted in this business for so long. And there's no doubt that it's the balance I've been able to live. My three daughters, to be a part of their lives will always be my main objective in life. If there's a legacy I'd like to leave, it's my daughters saying, "My dad was a good dad." That's important to me.

"To my wife, my soul-mate and my friend, the sacrifices she has made, the love and support she has given me through the years, she's been my backbone. Today I sit here and say to you, while I wish the Pittsburgh Steelers nothing but the best, I've given a lot of thought to this decision, and it is right now the best thing for me and my family at this time.

"And I have to be honest with you: I'm looking forward to it. My wife may not be able to say the same thing to that after being around me for a couple of weeks, but I really am looking forward to spending time with the family."

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.

Cowher makes it official: He's gone

Cowher makes it official: He's gone
Friday, January 05, 2007
By Gerry Dulac, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Bill Cowher stood before the cameras one final time as the Steelers head coach to announce today that he is resigning the job he has held for 15 years.

"After careful and deliberate consideration I've decided to resign today," Cowher said. "I've given it a lot of thought and believe it's in the best interests of my family and myself at this time."

Cowher, who grew up in Crafton, said coaching in the NFL and winning the Super Bowl had always been a dream.

"To be able to do that and realize that in the city I was born and raised in -- this Crafton boy lived a dream."

He also thanked the Steelers fans for their their passion and support.

"You can take the people out of Pittsburgh, but you can't take Pittsburgh out of people."

He said he had no immediate plans, including no immediate plans to work for TV, and looked forward to spending time with his family at their new home in Raleigh, N.C.

"I don't have any preconcived thoughts and there's something refreshing about that," Cowher said.

He noted that his parents and brothers still live in the Pittsburgh area and that he plans to maintain ties, including his and his wife's work with the Family Resources, a non-profit group that provides child abuse prevention and treatment services.

Cowher, 49, was the longest-tenured coach in the NFL and had led the Steelers to 10 playoff appearances, eight division titles and the fifth Super Bowl title in franchise history.

Cowher and his wife, Kaye, flew to Pittsburgh this morning to attend the 1 p.m. news conference at the team's South Side facility and announce the decision that has been expected for several weeks, if not longer.

Cowher had planned to return to town and make the announcement Monday. But he called team chairman Dan Rooney -- the man who hired him to replace Chuck Noll in 1992 -- yesterday afternoon to tell him he wasn't going to change his mind and there was no point in delaying the announcement any longer.

Cowher has one year remaining on a contract that paid him between $4.5 million and $4.7 million this season. He said last week he still loves to coach and is not "burned out" from being the longest tenured head coach in the National Football League. He wants to take at least a one-year break from coaching and is not thinking about joining any other team in 2007, whether in the NFL or college football, sources said.

Those same sources also have said Cowher's decision to retire has nothing to do with money and that he is committed to spending the next year with his wife, Kaye, and youngest daughter, Lindsay, in Raleigh.

But those who know Cowher wonder how long he will stay in "retirement" because he is an intense competitor who loves to coach. When his contract with the Steelers expires after 2007, he will be free to sign with another team, without compensation to the Steelers, and likely will attract offers that make him the highest-paid coach in the NFL.

Seattle's Mike Holmgren is believed to be the league's highest-paid coach, making $7 million this season and $8 million in 2007.

The Steelers immediately will begin the search to find his successor. Offensive coordinator Ken Whisenhunt, one of the leading candidates to replace Cowher, interviewed yesterday with the Atlanta Falcons and owner Arthur Blank. Offensive line coach Russ Grimm, who is also the team's assistant head coach, is scheduled to interview with the Falcons next week.

The Atlanta job is attractive to Whisenhunt because he is from Augusta, Ga., played at Georgia Tech and spent four seasons as a tight end with the Falcons. Whisenhunt is also scheduled to interview with the Arizona Cardinals.

Cowher's decision does not come as a surprise because speculation about his future has existed since it was learned in March that he and his wife had purchased a $2.5 million home in Raleigh. The speculation was fueled more when the Steelers announced during training camp they would discontinue negotiations and would not discuss a contract extension with Cowher until after the season -- a discussion that never had to take place.

Cowher's wife and youngest daughter, Lindsay, have been living in Raleigh since late summer because their daughter wanted to play basketball in North Carolina this year. Like he did with his other two daughters, Meagan and Lauren, who are enrolled at Princeton, Cowher has a desire to spend as much time as possible with Lindsay, 15, while she is in high school.

Sometime after the Steelers won Super Bowl XL, Cowher revealed to some in the organization he was entertaining thoughts of retiring. But those sentiments were heightened when he turned down a contract extension he was offered by team president Art Rooney II, a deal that apparently would have paid Cowher between $6 million and $6.5 million annually in the final years of the contract, according to several people with knowledge of the situation.

Nearly three years ago, Cowher talked about coaching nearly forever. He said he didn't even want to think about stepping down at least until Lindsay graduated from high school. But, he changed his mind quickly in the past year or two.

Cowher, perhaps let on more of his growing feeling about resigning at the NFL meetings in Orlando, Fla., in March.

Asked how long he might coach, Cowher said he wasn't sure. "We tried to just take it one year at a time, and I think at the end of each year you have to sit back and reassess where you are and just make sure you still have the passion for doing it. That's the most important thing.

"You want to be fair to the football team to make sure I can make the fullest commitment to giving everything I have."

Lemieux 'optimistic' on keeping Penguins in Pittsburgh

After meeting with team owners, city, county and state officials say their arena offer is competitive with Kansas City's

Friday, January 05, 2007
By Mark Belko, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette


With an enticing offer from Kansas City before him, Penguins owner Mario Lemieux emerged from a closed-door meeting with local and state officials optimistic about the prospects for keeping the team in Pittsburgh.

In brief remarks afterward, Mr. Lemieux described yesterday's 75-minute session with Gov. Ed Rendell, Mayor Luke Ravenstahl and county Chief Executive Dan Onorato at the State Office Building as "very positive."

When asked whether he was optimistic about keeping the team in Pittsburgh, he replied, "I've always been very optimistic. I've been here for 20-some years. But we have to evaluate all of our options, obviously. That's why we went to Kansas City ... to look at what they had to offer.

"But I'm optimistic with the meeting that we had today with the politicians here in town that they're willing to step up and talk about some issues that were a big concern for us going back seven years."

At the same time, Mr. Lemieux did not rule out a potential move, saying the team would take the next week or so to "really evaluate from our side where we're going."

Perhaps the most important faceoff of Mr. Lemieux's career, with the franchise's Pittsburgh future hanging in the balance, came on the heels of a visit to Kansas City during which the team was offered use of the new $276 million Sprint Center rent-free and a share of the profits from management of the venue.

State and local officials have countered with Plan B, the Rendell-crafted arena funding formula built around gambling revenues and contributions from the team. The team share was $8.5 million upfront, plus payments of $2.9 million a year for 30 years and $1.1 million a year from naming rights.

However, it is believed that Mr. Rendell, Mr. Ravenstahl and Mr. Onorato offered a somewhat sweetened version in their initial meeting with Mr. Lemieux, co-owner Ron Burkle, team President Ken Sawyer and other representatives yesterday.

None of the participants would discuss the details afterward. But Mr. Ravenstahl insisted the latest offer is "competitive with Kansas City."

"We're confident that we have a very competitive deal," he said.

Like Mr. Lemieux, the public officials described the session as a positive one, though it appeared there was still much work to do.

"It was very productive today," Mr. Onorato said.

No additional meetings have been scheduled so far, but Mr. Ravenstahl said the two sides expect to continue discussions and "get down to specifics" to try to craft a new arena deal and lease that would keep the team in Pittsburgh for years to come.

Mr. Rendell said before the meeting that the state, city and county would not offer a "free" arena to the Penguins. He said that all professional sports teams that have built new facilities in Pennsylvania contributed "significant" dollars to the projects.

"We just don't have the capacity to do that," he said, adding he was skeptical of the reports coming from Kansas City that the Penguins had a free arena waiting for them.

Nonetheless, Mr. Rendell, who did not meet with reporters afterward, said he was prepared to modify Plan B based on statements by the Penguins that they had significant losses since offering to provide $2.9 million a year and $8.5 million upfront as part of an arena funding plan several years ago.

"If that is true, and the [city-county Sports & Exhibition Authority] believes it is, we will restructure our offer and make it better and make it an aggressive one," he said.

The session was the first face-to-face meeting between Mr. Lemieux and local and state officials since Isle of Capri, in partnership with the Penguins, lost its bid for the Pittsburgh casino license. The Isle had pledged $290 million for an arena in its proposal.

Mr. Lemieux said after the loss that he would entertain offers from other cities about a possible relocation, and also talk to local and state officials about a new arena deal under Plan B. The team's lease at Mellon Arena, the oldest building in the NHL, expires at the end of June.

The visit to Kansas City Wednesday and yesterday was the first since his announcement, and team officials came away impressed with what they saw. Mr. Lemieux said he had two "great" meetings yesterday, one here and the other in Kansas City.

The Sprint Center won't open until October, but already all 72 suites in the arena have been sold. At a news conference yesterday, Tim Leiweke, president of Anschutz Entertainment Group, said the offer to the Penguins includes no rent and a portion of the profits from management of the center. The team would serve as partner with Anschutz, which invested $54 million in the Sprint Center, in overseeing the facility.

Initial reports indicated that the Penguins would have to pay $27 million to buy into the building, but that apparently changed overnight. Mr. Leiweke said yesterday there would be no buy-in. The Penguins also would get to keep at least some building revenue, although it was unclear how much.

"We are not here to steal the Penguins from Pittsburgh and have been very respectful of their process," Mr. Leiweke said. "We understand this is Pittsburgh's team to lose, and we respect that right. Should Pittsburgh and the state of Pennsylvania not be able to work out what is deemed to be a proper arrangement in the eyes of the Penguins and the NHL, we believe the best opportunity for the Penguins is Kansas City."

Mr. Onorato has said that local and state officials have a key advantage under Plan B in that none of the revenues from the arena would be used to finance construction. That presumably would leave most if not all of that money, millions of dollars a year, for the Penguins.

He said after the meeting with the team that he doesn't feel pressured by the Kansas City offer.
"I don't think that changes anything. Again, this was the first chance to sit down and the fact it was a productive meeting, I think, is a positive sign," he said.

Mr. Onorato has said that no Allegheny Regional Asset District money, the funding stream used to pay a large part of Heinz Field and PNC Park, would be earmarked for a new arena. Mr. Rendell said "very little public tax dollars" would be part of a deal.

Besides team contributions under Plan B, another $7.5 million a year for 30 years would come from Pittsburgh casino winner Don Barden and $7 million a year from a slots-financed state economic development fund.

Mr. Lemieux has expressed frustration at failing to secure a new arena over the past seven years, but none of the team owners and none of the political powers were in place when funding proposals were first bandied about in 1998.

"I know he's upset," said Mr. Onorato, who publicly reached out to Mr. Lemieux when the Isle of Capri deal fell through. "We have to get beyond that. Let's forget about the past."

(Staff writer Robert Dvorchak contributed. Mark Belko can be reached at mbelko@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1262. )

Curtain Call

Family, money among factors in Cowher's decision
by Michael Silver
SI.com

Posted: Thursday January 4, 2007 11:07PM;
Updated: Thursday January 4, 2007 11:07PM

Eight Reasons Bill Cowher Is Leaving the Steelers

Frustration with hard-headed quarterback Ben Roethlisberger may be one reason Bill Cowher is stepping down as Steelers coach.

1. The Rooneys don't pay. Sure, Cowher could have gotten a nice extension in Pittsburgh, but he wants to be paid like one of the best coaches in the business and it wasn't going to happen in Pittsburgh.

2. His daughters can ball. Two of Bill's daughters play basketball for Princeton and the third is a high school star in North Carolina. As someone who obsesses over his 10-year-old daughter's soccer games, I can understand why Bill wants to see as many of his kids' games as possible.

3. He's tired. When I saw Cowher this summer riding around St. Vincent College in Latrobe, Pa., on a bike with a built-in motor, I knew his energy level wasn't what it should be.

4. It don't mean a thing if you ain't got that ring. Cowher finally has his, which means no one can ever question his credentials. He can take a step back, reassess and plot his next move.

5. His quarterback was driving him crazy. This may be somewhat of an overstatement, but think about it. Cowher told Ben Roethlisberger to wear a helmet. Ben didn't listen. Think that was the only time that happened?

6. Whiz is leaving. Few coaches have hired such impressive assistants year after year, but Cowher, who knows brainy offensive coordinator Ken Whisenhunt is about to get a head-coaching job, wouldn't so easily have replaced his gutsy play-caller.

7. The Steelers are done. Well, maybe not done, but this team will have to revamp to compete for another title. Like Tampa Bay in 2002, the '05 Steelers were so drained after years of trying to reach the top, they didn't have another run in them.

8. The Brink's Truck is on his way. All Cowher has to do is sit back, chill, maybe do a little TV, and his value goes up ... and up ... and up ... and up. Meanwhile, owners like Dan Snyder and Jerry Jones will become more and more desperate for a proven winner and master motivator who can take their franchises to the top. Can you say bidding war?

Pride of Pittsburgh: Cowher leaves a legacy of stability

Updated: Jan. 3, 2007

By John Clayton
ESPN.com
Archive

The Steelers are entering a strange, new era, but the knowledge gained during the tenures of Chuck Noll and Bill Cowher put them in a pretty strong position.

Noll turned the Steelers' fortunes in 1969. Before then, they were perennial losers. Art Rooney was a benevolent owner, but the team endured losing season after losing season. They played tough defense but suffered on the scoreboard. With Art's son Dan getting more involved in the late 1960s, he took a chance on one of Don Shula's best and brightest assistants: Chuck Noll. Noll won four Super Bowls and 209 games and made the Steelers a franchise to admire.

Finding someone to follow Noll was tough, but the Rooneys knew what worked. They hired a 35-year-old Bill Cowher in 1992 and watched him grow into the job. It helped that he was a Pittsburgh native. He knew the town. He knew the type of football that would go over with fans and generate excitement.

Most crucially, Cowher bridged a gap for the Steelers which will help the team's new coach. Steelers fans compared the early Cowher teams to the Steel Curtain, which was an impossible comparison. Four-time Super Bowl champions are the exception, not the rule. By establishing an identity of on-the-field success combined with a physical personality, the Steelers have a persona that can translate to the next coach.

Cowher turned unreal expectations of the past into realistic expectations for each season. He taught Steelers fans to accept contending teams instead of believing every year was going to be legendary.

That's why assistant head coach Russ Grimm and offensive coordinator Ken Whisenhunt are two of the most viable candidates to be Cowher's replacement. Like Cowher and Noll, they were assistant coaches with great résumés who understand what it takes to be a winner in Pittsburgh.

Grimm is all Pittsburgh. He went to Pitt and was a star blocker. He went to the Redskins and was the leader of the Hogs, one of the most memorable offensive lines in NFL history. For years, he's been considered one of the top offensive line coaches in football. When Steelers fans worried whether Jeff Hartings could make the conversion from guard to center, Grimm settled him down after a slow start, then watched him develop into a Pro Bowler.

Grimm is the lunchpail type of coach who is no-nonsense. The Bears considered him for a head coaching job. Grimm showed up for his interview wearing a sweater instead of a suit. If a job opens in Cleveland in the next couple of years, he'll be a candidate there if he's not a head coach. If the Steelers hire Grimm, expect them to be a power running team that plays hard on defense. That's Steelers football.

Whisenhunt can be a good sell as Steelers coach because he brings the updated offensive mind. He knows how to call 30 to 40 running plays, but what makes him so attractive is his relationship with Ben Roethlisberger. Roethlisberger is the most talented Steelers quarterback since Terry Bradshaw. He has the arm and he has the toughness to be a great one for a long time.

The Steelers' offense took a little bit of a hit this year because of the retirement of power back Jerome Bettis and the turnovers by Roethlisberger. Roethlisberger convinced Whisenhunt he was ready to carry more passing offense on his shoulders. Together, Whisenhunt and Roethlisberger will probably iron out some of the flaws and become one of more dangerous deep passing teams in the NFL.

Like Cowher, though, Grimm and Whisenhunt offer the perspective of former players who have risen to the top of the coaching circles. Grimm is 47. Whisenhunt is 44. They are young enough to relate to the players and understand the feel of the lockerroom. Cowher had that feel.

Steelers ownership will have to worry about competition. Whisenhunt figures to be one of the main candidates for the Falcons. He's an Atlanta native and his plans for Michael Vick could net him an offer. Grimm is on the lists of a few other teams looking for coaches.

By having Cowher's announcement Friday, the Steelers can try to scramble to talk to a couple of the playoff coaches, maybe Ron Rivera of the Bears, Cam Cameron of the Chargers or others. The Steelers found a bright young coach in Cowher. They might find another in the playoffs. They could also look at Mike Mularkey, the former Bills coach who was Whisenhunt's predecessor as the Steelers offensive coordinator.

The Steelers tradition has great appeal. Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz has been one of the secret dream candidates of most of the teams looking for coaches in the past few years. Ferentz has made it clear to most: he will only come into the NFL for the right job. Word has gotten back to the Steelers he might be interested, but don't expect him to be a candidate. Still, the former Pittsburgh native might be an option because the chance to be the Steelers coach is one of things that could get him into the NFL.

It's more than likely the Steelers will hire a current NFL assistant. It worked with Noll. It worked with Cowher.

Why mess with more than three decades of success?

John Clayton is a senior writer for ESPN.com.

Mike Prisuta: Cowher Power comes to an end

Mike Prisuta
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Friday, January 5, 2007

Bill Cowher is expected to end his 15-year run as head coach of the Steelers this afternoon.

The Steelers have scheduled a 1 p.m. news conference on the South Side, and the team said it is "Coach Cowher related."

Cowher's assistants were informed Thursday night he will not coach the team in 2007, the final year of his contract.

A source in Pittsburgh said the Steelers have scheduled interviews next week with their top two assistants, offensive coordinator Ken Whisenhunt and assistant head coach/offensive line coach Russ Grimm.

NFL sources speculated the Steelers would interview a minority candidate during the weekend, possibly Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator Mike Tomlin, in accordance with NFL policy governing the hiring of head coaches.

It is anticipated leaguewide that the Steelers will work quickly to secure Cowher's replacement.
Whisenhunt, 44, interviewed with the Falcons on Thursday in Atlanta. He will interview with the Cardinals today in Arizona and the Miami Dolphins on Saturday in Pittsburgh.

Grimm, 47, is scheduled to interview with the Cardinals on Monday and will interview with the Dolphins.

Whisenhunt could have one to three offers by Sunday night.

Steelers players said they had not received confirmation of Cowher's departure but had been anticipating it since their season-ending interviews with him Monday.

Guard Alan Faneca, one of the Steelers' captains, said Cowher would be missed if the players' suspicions were realized.

"He's been the heart and soul of the team for so long," Faneca said. "We've gone as he's gone.
"We'll have to find a way to keep on going."

Cowher's decision to end his Steelers' tenure ends months of speculation fueled initially when he cryptically characterized his status as "year to year" after the conclusion of the Steelers' offseason program in June.

It was reported in February that Cowher and his wife, Kaye, had purchased a $2.5 million home in Raleigh.

The Cowher saga was heightened when he and the team failed to agree on a contract extension for the first time prior to the opening of training camp in July.

The Steelers had traditionally extended Cowher's contract whenever it had two years remaining.

At the opening of camp in July, Cowher refused to address how his wife and youngest daughter, Lindsay, living in North Carolina might affect his coaching.

Contract negotiations between Cowher and the Steelers broke off in mid-August.

"I guess it's unsettling," Faneca said. "We've been so stable for so long.
"I think there are going to be some new faces here. That's just the way I think this is going."

Cowher, 49, succeeded Chuck Noll as the Steelers head coach on Jan. 21, 1992.

He compiled a regular-season record of 149-90-1 and led the Steelers to the playoffs 10 times in 15 seasons.

The Steelers concluded the 2005 season by beating the Seattle Seahawks, 21-10, in Super Bowl XL.

They finished 8-8 in 2006, the fourth nonwinning season of the Cowher era.

The Crafton native and former linebacker/special teams player with the Cleveland Browns and Philadelphia Eagles coached his hometown team with a bombastic style and an emotional edge and was embraced almost instantly by fans singing the praises of "Cowher Power."

Cowher was 34 when the Steelers hired him -- two years younger than Noll had been upon taking over in 1969. Cowher inherited a 7-9 team and turned it into an 11-5 division winner in 1992 while earning NFL Coach of the Year honors from The Associated Press.

Cowher's teams captured eight division championships, appeared in six conference championship games and played in two Super Bowls.

Cowher joined Paul Brown as the only coaches in NFL history to lead their teams into the postseason in each of their first six years in the league.

He became the youngest coach to take a team to the Super Bowl when, at 38, he guided the Steelers to Super Bowl XXX at the conclusion of the 1995 season. They lost to the Dallas Cowboys, 27-17.

Cowher's 15 seasons with the Steelers rank ninth in NFL history for continuous service with one team.

He is the NFL's longest-tenured head coach with his current team. Tennessee's Jeff Fisher is second at 13 seasons.

Cowher's career regular-season winning percentage of .632 ranks third among NFL head coaches since 1992 (minimum 50 games), behind the Indianapolis Colts' Tony Dungy (.647) and former Dallas Cowboys' Jimmy Johnson (.635),

Cowher is 13th on the NFL's all-time wins list overall at 161-99-1, one victory behind Washington's Joe Gibbs.

"He'll coach somewhere else," cornerback Ike Taylor said. "No, he ain't done. That's my opinion. The man needs some time. He's been coaching 15 years.

"He's leaving his options open. It don't take a genius to figure it out."

Mike Prisuta can be reached at mprisuta@tribweb.com.

Cowher is due to resign today, take 1-year off

Steelers will begin search for successor immediately

Friday, January 05, 2007
By Gerry Dulac, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Bill Cowher, who led the Steelers to 10 playoff appearances, eight division titles and the fifth Super Bowl title in franchise history, will announce his resignation today after 15 seasons as head coach, sources have told the Post-Gazette.

Cowher and his wife, Kaye, are scheduled to fly to Pittsburgh this morning to attend a 1 p.m. news conference at the team's South Side facility and announce the decision that has been expected for several weeks, if not longer -- that he will resign, at age 49, to spend more time with his family.

"You'll be hearing from me soon enough," Cowher said last night from his home in Raleigh, N.C., where he has spent the past three days. He declined any further comment.

Cowher had planned to return to town and make the announcement Monday. But he called team chairman Dan Rooney -- the man who hired him to replace Chuck Noll in 1992 -- yesterday afternoon to tell him he wasn't going to change his mind and there was no point in delaying the announcement any longer.

Cowher has one year remaining on a contract that paid him between $4.5 million and $4.7 million this season. He said last week he still loves to coach and is not "burned out" from being the longest tenured head coach in the National Football League. He wants to take at least a one-year break from coaching and is not thinking about joining any other team in 2007, whether in the NFL or college football, sources said.

Those same sources also have said Cowher's decision to retire has nothing to do with money and that he is committed to spending the next year with his wife, Kaye, and youngest daughter, Lindsay, in Raleigh.

But those who know Cowher wonder how long he will stay in "retirement" because he is an intense competitor who loves to coach. When his contract with the Steelers expires after 2007, he will be free to sign with another team, without compensation to the Steelers, and likely will attract offers that make him the highest-paid coach in the NFL.

Seattle's Mike Holmgren is believed to be the league's highest-paid coach, making $7 million this season and $8 million in 2007.

The Steelers immediately will begin the search to find his successor. Offensive coordinator Ken Whisenhunt, one of the leading candidates to replace Cowher, interviewed yesterday with the Atlanta Falcons and owner Arthur Blank. Offensive line coach Russ Grimm, who is also the team's assistant head coach, is scheduled to interview with the Falcons next week.

The job is attractive to Whisenhunt because he is from Augusta, Ga., played at Georgia Tech and spent four seasons as a tight end with the Falcons. Whisenhunt is also scheduled to interview with the Arizona Cardinals.

Cowher's decision does not come as a surprise because speculation about his future has existed since it was learned in March that he and his wife had purchased a $2.5 million home in Raleigh.
The speculation was fueled more when the Steelers announced during training camp they would discontinue negotiations and would not discuss a contract extension with Cowher until after the season -- a discussion that never had to take place.

Cowher's wife and youngest daughter, Lindsay, have been living in Raleigh since late summer because their daughter wanted to play basketball in North Carolina this year. Like he did with his other two daughters, Meagan and Lauren, who are enrolled at Princeton, Cowher has a desire to spend as much time as possible with Lindsay, 15, while she is in high school.

Sometime after the Steelers won Super Bowl XL, Cowher revealed to some in the organization he was entertaining thoughts of retiring. But those sentiments were heightened when he turned down a contract extension he was offered by team president Art Rooney II, a deal that apparently would have paid Cowher between $6 million and $6.5 million annually in the final years of the contract, according to several people with knowledge of the situation.

Nearly three years ago, Cowher talked about coaching nearly forever. He said he didn't even want to think about stepping down at least until Lindsay graduated from high school. But, he changed his mind quickly in the past year or two.

Cowher, perhaps let on more of his growing feeling about resigning at the NFL meetings in Orlando, Fla., in March.

Asked how long he might coach, Cowher said he wasn't sure. "We tried to just take it one year at a time, and I think at the end of each year you have to sit back and reassess where you are and just make sure you still have the passion for doing it. That's the most important thing.

"You want to be fair to the football team to make sure I can make the fullest commitment to giving everything I have."

(Post-Gazette sports writer Ed Bouchette contributed to this report. )

Penguins shut out Carolina

Fleury stops 31 shots, Crosby scores two goals in 3-0 victory

Wednesday, January 03, 2007
By Dave Molinari, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

More Coverage:
Lemieux meeting today with K.C. officials
Penguins Notebook: Jordan Staal has become the 'big' brother

Marc-Andre Fleury never really made a signature save last night, one of those stops that guarantees a guy five or 10 seconds of quality exposure on the national highlights shows.

There even were a few times when Fleury glanced behind him, half-afraid of what he might see in his net.

But, even when he didn't realize it, Fleury managed to stop everything Carolina launched at him during the Penguins' 3-0 victory at Mellon Arena, as he made 31 saves while his teammates put together 60 of the most solid minutes of hockey they've turned in this season.

"It's one of the best games we've played," center Sidney Crosby said. "It was complete. We didn't have any lapses."

Fleury's shutout was his second of the season and fourth in the NHL. And possibly one of his most impressive, because good positioning all but eliminated the need for him to make any spectacular stops.

"He was solid," Crosby said. "The [defensemen] were doing a good job of clearing the rebounds, but he was making some big saves."

Fleury didn't have much choice, because Carolina goalie Cam Ward was playing at a rarefied level himself. He finished with 34 saves, and single-handedly kept the Penguins from putting the game out of reach early.

"Their goalie was phenomenal to keep his team in the game," Penguins coach Michel Therrien said.

But he couldn't win it alone, and the Penguins had a pronounced edge in almost every facet of play. They also had the decidedly unfair advantage of having Crosby in their lineup, as he scored two goals and set up a third for another marvelously routine three-point night.

"I was saying on the bench, it seems like two [points per game], you're expecting," defenseman Ryan Whitney said. "Anything after that is ... it's ridiculous."

Which, coincidentally enough, seems to be the way Hurricanes coach Peter Laviolette was inclined to describe his team's performance.

"We played the game like the points didn't matter," Laviolette said. "The effort was lousy."
The victory was the Penguins' second in a row and raised their record to 17-15-6. It also ended a run of three consecutive home-ice losses to the Hurricanes.

The Penguins ran up an early 7-1 advantage in shots and got the only goal of the first period at 5:36, when Crosby beat Ward on the far side with a shot from below the right dot.

Michel Ouellet had a chance to pad the Penguins' lead when Erik Christensen set him up alone in front of Ward at 7:15 of the second, but failed to convert. Ward, though, might have saved his best stop for later in the period, as he denied Evgeni Malkin from point-blank range on a Brooks Orpik rebound with 24 seconds to go before the intermission.

"He did great," Fleury said. "He kept the game tight for a long time."

The Penguins finally got a second puck behind Ward during a power play 23 seconds into the third, when Whitney went to the net from the left point and deflected in a pass Mark Recchi gave him from near the top of the right circle.

The catch was, Whitney did it with his left skate, not his stick blade, so the play was subjected to a video review that determined Whitney had not deliberately kicked the puck.

"Like Pele," Whitney said. "It just kind of hit my skate. Luckily, I didn't have a kicking motion or anything."

Ryan Malone had a chance to add to the Penguins' advantage when he got a short-handed breakaway at 10:40, but he opted to try to beat Ward with a slap shot and ended up hammering the puck wide of the net.

That reprieve was short-lived for the Hurricanes, though, because Crosby put the game out of reach with his second of the evening at 11:19.

He rushed the puck up the right side then, as he was closing in on the net, tried to fire a cross-ice pass. The puck caromed back to Crosby, however, and he tossed it past Ward to make it 3-0.

Twenty-three seconds later, the Hurricanes got their final opportunity with the extra man, but were thwarted as effectively as their had been on the previous five chances.

"Our penalty-kill made some huge kills, Marc was solid, the [defensemen] were solid and we got a big power-play goal when we needed it," Crosby said. "I think it's fair to say it was one of our more complete games."

(Dave Molinari can be reached at DWMolinari@Yahoo.com. )

Bob Smizik: Cowher owes Steelers a quick answer

Wednesday, January 03, 2007
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

By his own words, Bill Cowher has been considering resigning as Steelers coach since, at the latest, some point in the 2005 season. It's about time he came up with a decision on his future.

In his last public statement on the matter, Cowher said Sunday he needed time away from the emotional season-ending victory against the Cincinnati Bengals to reflect on his decision, which was understandable. On Monday and early yesterday, Cowher finished his exit interviews with the players. Presumably, he did those without the emotion of the final game clouding his thinking. Which means, by now, probably at home in North Carolina, his mind should be clear. He should have an answer.

Cowher originally had suggested he might take weeks after the season to come to a decision. That timeline was outrageous and he later amended it and indicated the process would be done in a more timely fashion. He owes it to the Steelers to provide that answer by the end of this week. That's more than fair. That's not asking too much.

If he has been thinking about this for more than a year and if he were leaning in one direction, as he said Sunday, five days after the game is more than enough time to come to a decision.

If Cowher is resigning, and there's a large body of evidence to indicate that after 15 seasons on the job he will, the Steelers need to get busy in finding his successor. That's not to suggest anything about the search process should be rushed. That would be the worst possible strategy.
At the same time, the process should be accomplished as quickly as possible for two reasons.

The sooner a new coach comes aboard, the sooner the franchise returns to normal. The new coach can begin the process of hiring a staff, implementing his program and becoming involved with his role in the draft and offseason conditioning. If a coach from outside the organization is hired, it's even more important that it be done with deliberate speed.

Two other teams, Arizona and Atlanta, have fired their coaches and are in the process of looking for replacements. It's possible, if not probable, that both of those teams will be looking at some of the same people as the Steelers. It's also possible that other teams will be looking for a new coach. Again, while not wanting to rush the process, the Steelers want the best man, not the best man still available.

If Cowher's decision is to resign, the interviewing process can begin next week. It's not something that can be rushed. It would require several weeks with possibly as many as 10 candidates being interviewed. Once finalists are selected, another round of interviews will be needed. Hopefully, the process can be done and a new coach hired before the Super Bowl on Feb. 4.

It will be easy enough to schedule interviews with coaches on the staff who might be candidates. Two certain ones, and the leading candidates, are assistant head coach and offensive line coach Russ Grimm and offensive coordinator Ken Whisenhunt. The Steelers also might interview highly respected defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau, who is the only assistant coach with previous head coaching experience in the NFL.

It is an NFL rule that at least one minority candidate be interviewed. Considering there are so many highly qualified such candidates, this is not a formality but a necessary step in securing the best possible man. When Cowher was hired in 1992, Joe Greene was one of the finalists. Ron Rivera, the defensive coordinator of the Chicago Bears, and Mike Singletary, the Hall of Fame linebacker who is the assistant head coach of the San Francisco 49ers, are two minority candidates worthy of a look.

There is a plethora of college coaches who might be interested but it's not likely the Rooney family will move in that direction. If they do, Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz might be one. Ferentz, a graduate of Upper St. Clair High School, spent six years in the NFL as an assistant coach.

Dozens of names will be floated in the days to come. Some are familiar, like Pitt coach Dave Wannstedt. Some are unknowns. Lack of public reputation should not be considered a drawback.
There are many excellent and unknown assistant coaches in the NFL. Whisenhunt, for example, is well known in this region, but when he was a candidate for the Oakland job last season, he was probably unknown to most fans in the Bay area.

Grimm and Whisenhunt, because of their credentials and because of the continuity they would provide, are the leading candidates. But there's a wide swath of unknowns and barely knowns who also will be considered.

The whole process is ready to roll. All that's lacking is a decision from Cowher.

Dick Hoak retires after 45 years with Steelers

Wednesday, January 03, 2007
By Gerry Dulac, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette


Change was never a big part of Dick Hoak's life.

He has lived in the same split-level house in Hempfield since 1972, driven the same route to work for 34 years, received a paycheck from the same ownership group for 45 years.

In a profession where assistant coaches bounce from one team to another and rarely survive a coaching change, he has remained with the same organization for five decades, both as a player and position coach.

Beginning today, though, life will change.

For the first time since he took a call from Chuck Noll's secretary in 1972, Hoak will no longer have to make the 30-mile drive to work in Pittsburgh.

Hoak, 67, announced his retirement yesterday as the Steelers running backs coach, ending a professional relationship with the team that began as a player in 1961 and evolved into a familial bond with the Rooney family that has lasted almost as long as Bill Cowher has been living.

"I just think it's time," Hoak said. "Some day you guys will feel that way, too. You'll just feel it. You'll know."

Hoak thanked the Rooney family, including the late founder and owner, Art Sr., for letting him stay so long with the organization. After 10 years as a running back with the Steelers, he spent the past 34 years as the team's running backs coach, making him the National Football League's longest-tenured assistant coach.

"I'm really sorry he is going to retire, but I have to say he deserves it," said team chairman Dan Rooney, the only person in the Steelers organization with more seniority than Hoak. "He earned it. His contribution to the Steelers was second to none."

He turned down more lucrative coaching offers from other teams, even other leagues, to remain in Western Pennsylvania and stay with the Steelers. And, despite his constant input and understanding of the offense, he even turned down an opportunity to become an offensive coordinator with the Steelers, preferring to stay out of the limelight and remain in the more anonymous position as running backs coach.

"He was very happy just doing a good job and helping to build a winning team," said Indianapolis Colts coach Tony Dungy, who tried to hire Hoak as offensive coordinator when Dungy became head coach in Tampa Bay in 1996.

"He's really blessed to be able to stay in one place, number one, but to have the desire to do it and not feel he has to go someplace else."

Mike Wagner, a former safety from the Super Bowl teams of the 1970s, showed up at Hoak's news conference on the South Side because "I wanted him to know he's important to us old players, even our defensive players."

Hoak began coaching the running backs in 1972, the same year the Steelers drafted Franco Harris in the first round and beat the Oakland Raiders in the famous "Immaculate Reception" playoff game. His final game -- No. 742 as a player and coach -- was Sunday in Cincinnati.

"He's like a perfect coach," Wagner said. "He knew what he wanted to do. He knew what his contributions would be and he was dedicated to it. He found an ideal situation here. It's great the Rooneys recognized that."

Hoak played with Bobby Layne and Ernie Stautner, Terry Bradshaw and Joe Greene, all Hall of Famers. He coached Franco Harris and Jerome Bettis. And he has five Super Bowl rings to show for being the only assistant coach to work under Noll and Bill Cowher.

"It just goes to show there are different ways of getting things done," Hoak said, when asked about the coaching styles of his former bosses. "Bill's more of a motivator, a player's coach. Chuck wasn't as open. He believed that if you were here, you should be able to motivate yourself."

Hoak was a high school star in Jeannette, played running back and quarterback at Penn State and was drafted in the seventh round in 1961 by the Steelers.

The only time he had to leave the state was in 1971, the year after he retired as a player with the Steelers, when he was a coach and gym teacher at Wheeling (W.Va.) Catholic High School. But even that stint was short-lived.
In 1972, he got a call from former Pitt coach Carl DePasqua to work as an assistant coach with the Panthers. A week later, he got a call from Noll's secretary, asking if he was interested in becoming an assistant with the Steelers.

"I set up an interview for Pitt with Carl and for coach Noll the same day," Hoak said. "The first interview was with coach Noll and after I walked out of there, I called Coach DePasqua and told him I was going to take the job with the Steelers and he said I was crazy if I didn't."
He was right.

Pitt went 1-10 in 1972 and DePasqua and his coaching staff were fired.

"So I guess I made the right choice," Hoak said.

Hoak's retirement won't be much different than his professional life because he doesn't plan to venture far from his roots.

"People ask me what are you going to do when you retire and I say, I'm retiring, I'm not going to do anything," Hoak said. "I'm going to take it easy. My wife [Lynn] and I will take a vacation. People say, where you going to move to, and I say, I'm not going to move anywhere. If I want to go somewhere, I'll go there for a week and come back home."

As a player, Hoak led the Steelers in rushing three times (1965, 1968, 1969) and finished as the team's fifth-leading rusher all time with 3,965 yards. He is also seventh all time with 25 rushing touchdowns.

As a coach, he had opportunities to jump to other organizations, even without leaving the city. He was offered the head coach position with the Pittsburgh Maulers of the old United States Football League in 1985, but declined out of loyalty to the Rooneys.

"I just couldn't see myself going across the street to a rival football league in Pittsburgh," Hoak said. "There was no way I could have done that."

In 1996, after the Steelers lost to the Cowboys in Super Bowl XXX, Hoak was the first person Dungy called when he became head coach in Tampa Bay. Like Hoak, Dungy was a former player and assistant coach with the Steelers. Hoak, though, declined the offer to run the Buccaneers' offense.

"There's a saying in football among the assistant coaches: You are hired to be fired," Hoak said. "I've actually beaten the system. I've been hired, but I haven't been fired. That was important to me. That's why I stayed here.

"I had offers. That wasn't important to me. My family was more important to me than that stuff. My kids [daughters Kelly and Katie and son, Rich] all went through the same school system, first through 12th grade. They all went to Penn State, of course. If I needed a doctor, a dentist, a roofer, a new furnace, I knew who to call. ... That was important to me."

(Gerry Dulac can be reached at gdulac@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1466. )

Porter angling to stay with Steelers

By John Harris
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Tuesday, January 2, 2007

Bill Cowher and outside linebacker Joey Porter are closer than your typical coach and player.

When Porter addressed the possibility of holding out prior to the season because he wanted to renegotiate his contract, Cowher begged him to report to training camp because he needed his fiery leadership.

Against his better wishes, Porter complied because of his tremendous respect for Cowher.
In the opener against Miami, Porter kissed Cowher on the sideline after returning an interception for a touchdown.

Following Sunday's 23-17 overtime win over Cincinnati, Porter put his relationship with Cowher to the test when he asked Cowher in the locker room if he was leaving.

Even if Cowher leaves after 15 seasons, Porter, 29, insists he wants to finish his career with the team that drafted him. He said it's wrong to assume he doesn't want to remain with the Steelers if Cowher isn't around.

"No matter who the coach is, I play for the Steelers. I'm the type of player I want to start what I finish," Porter said immediately after the game. "I started here, I want to finish here. Give me the opportunity to be a lifelong Steeler."

Following Monday's exit interview with Cowher, Porter re-emphasized his loyalty to the Steelers. He said he doesn't know whether Cowher is coming back, but that Cowher's decision won't impact what he does.

Porter feels like he's done his part. His sack total dipped from 10 1/2 a year ago, when he led all NFL linebackers, to seven, which led the Steelers during a season in which they missed the playoffs after winning Super Bowl XL.

Porter recorded two more tackles this season (63-61) and continued his role as the team's emotional leader.

"At the end of the day, it's going to be up to the organization. I'm here," said Porter, who ranks fourth on the Steelers' all-time list with 60 career sacks. "At the beginning of the season, everyone wants to know, 'Oh, why does he have such a bad attitude?'

"I've never had an attitude toward the Steelers. This is home for me. I knew how it was going to be when I got back, I was going to resume my position as a leader and try to win football games."

Said safety Ryan Clark: "Joey's going to run the team. We're fine with that. He has muscles."

But if Cowher leaves, will the new coach want Porter to assume the same role he had under Cowher? And, if the new coach goes in a different direction, will Porter's role be diminished?

Also, coming off an 8-8 season, will the fiscally conservative Steelers be willing to pay Porter more than $6.1 million in 2007 in the final year of his contract -- making him one of the team's highest-paid players -- or will he be asked to renegotiate his contract, or even be forced to take a pay cut if he wants to remain with the Steelers?

"It is a business, and just like everybody else I've got to make the right business move for my family," Porter said. "It's something that comes with the business, and if you have an opportunity which I feel like you should have, what's the difference of making me wait another year? If I mean that much to you, like I think I should, go ahead and take care of me, make it happen."

Porter's contract situation could develop into one of the biggest stories in the offseason.

Offensive tackle Max Starks, a restricted free agent, is the only player whom the Steelers have to tender an offer or risk losing without receiving compensation.

Remember, the Steelers aren't obligated to address Porter's contract until after next season.
Unless redoing Porter's deal is beneficial to everyone.

After speaking with Cowher yesterday, Porter compared his contract situation with that of his coach. Porter didn't say whether he discussed his contract with Cowher.

"That's like coach Cowher's decision," Porter said. "I can't give you that answer right now. I don't know when, but that time will come. Until it comes, my address isn't going to change. I'm going to be where I'm supposed to be. I'm not going nowhere."

Given what happened last year prior to training camp -- especially if Cowher doesn't return for a 16th season with Porter as his team leader -- Porter's uncertain contract future with the Steelers could test his loyalty and management's patience.

John Harris is a sports writer for the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. He can be reached at jharris@tribweb.com

Steelers' Hoak to step down today

By Scott Brown
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Tuesday, January 2, 2007

A Steelers coach will hold a news conference today to talk about his retirement.

Not that coach, but one who has been with the organization since the 1960s and became an anomaly in the itinerant world of assistant coaches.

Dick Hoak will leave the Steelers after 45 years of distinguished service with the team, including the last 35 as an offensive backfield or running backs coach.

He is the only assistant coach to serve under Chuck Noll and Bill Cowher, who also is contemplating retirement.

Hoak, who turned 67 in December, was the longest-tenured assistant coach in the NFL.

Hoak grew up in Jeannette, starred at Penn State from 1958-60 and did well enough during a 10-year playing career with the Steelers that he still ranks fifth on the franchise's all-time rushing list (3,965 yards).

A seventh-round draft choice in 1961, Hoak led the Steelers in rushing three times and made the Pro Bowl once.

During Hoak's early years as an assistant, Franco Harris became one of the top running backs in the NFL and helped the Steelers win four Super Bowls in the 1970s.

Jerome Bettis later rejuvenated his career in Pittsburgh and will likely join Harris one day in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Willie Parker, the Pro Bowler and team MVP, may be the unlikeliest of Steelers success stories.

The undrafted free agent just completed a season in which he rushed for 1,494 yards and set a Steelers single-season record for touchdowns (16).

Hoak coached just one season of high school football before Noll hired him in 1972. Cowher made the Greensburg resident the only coach from Noll's staff that he retained when he took over in 1992.

From '92-2005, the Steelers' 30,311 rushing yards ranked first in the NFL.

Scott Brown can be reached at sbrown@tribweb.com or 412-481-5432.

Players now believe Cowher is quitting

Tuesday, January 02, 2007
By Ed Bouchette, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Some Steelers players came from yesterday's meeting with coach Bill Cowher believing even more firmly that he will quit as their coach.

Cowher met with his players and assistant coaches as a group yesterday morning and then spent the rest of the day meeting with each of them individually. The feeling in the organization -- from management to the players -- is that Cowher will step down after 15 seasons and with one year left on his contract.

At least one prominent Steelers veteran said publicly he believes Cowher will soon quit, based on what he told his team the past two days.

"I think he's definitely leaning toward calling it a day, but you never know," All-Pro guard Alan Faneca said after meeting with Cowher yesterday. "He said he's going to step away and let the emotions set and get back with his family and make a decision."

Cowher talked to the whole team at 10 a.m. yesterday, then began meeting individually with players, starting with the team's oldest veterans. It's a daylong process he has followed during his 15 years as Steelers coach.

Players said while he did not reveal his plans, it was emotional and carried the feeling that it could be the final meeting with their coach. Others too in the organization say they believe he will soon step down.

"I didn't cry," said linebacker Joey Porter, like Faneca a team co-captain. "That was a good thing. I almost did, but I didn't.

"It was emotional because that is my guy there. Whatever decision he makes, he has been in it for so long. What people don't understand is when you are a head coach you deal with all of the stress. You come to a point where do you let football be your whole life. If he does retire, I can understand it."

Talks to extend his contract broke off in August. Cowher plans to leave today to join his wife and youngest daughter in his new home in Raleigh, N.C.

"He's going to give some thought about it," said Porter. "But I think if he comes to a point where he's at ease with himself and he feels good about it, a week from today or something like that, it'll be clear-cut on his decision he has for us."

Porter and Faneca both hugged Cowher in their meetings. Faneca said he felt it would be the last time they see him as their coach.

"The team meeting was handled in a manner, I think, anybody who's not sure of [him] coming back, this could be the last one," Faneca said. "It definitely had that feeling and tone to it ...
"Yesterday was handled as if it could have been his last game. Today was handled as if it could have been his last meeting. It adds to it, but I think it's the same feeling I've had."

Those players who spoke publicly after yesterday's meetings said they do not feel abandoned by their coach less than a year after they won a Super Bowl.

"No, he's going to be missed," Faneca said. "Everybody has his time, whether they're playing or coaching. There are decisions in life and other things in football, if that's what it is. I think you have to respect everyone's decision."

The Steelers do not expect Cowher to reveal his plans this week, but Cowher said it won't be long after that. They'd like a quick decision because they'd like to begin the search for his successor as soon as possible.

Offensive line coach Russ Grimm, also the assistant head coach, and offensive coordinator Ken Whisenhunt are considered prime candidates to replace Cowher. One or both also could be attractive candidates elsewhere, particularly in Atlanta and Arizona, teams that fired their coaches yesterday. Whisenhunt is a Georgia native who played at Georgia Tech and was a tight end for the Falcons. He also started his pro coaching career with them.

However, team president Art Rooney II and his father, team chairman Dan Rooney, might not want to be pressured to move quickly to look for a new coach. They would prefer to go through a more thorough process than to react to what another NFL team might do.

"The Rooneys know how to find good coaches," defensive end Brett Keisel said. "If he does go, they know how to pick winners. I'm not worried about that at all."

Said safety Ryan Clark, "I just want it to be somebody from here."

(Ed Bouchette can be reached at ebouchette@post-gazette.com. )

Once again, Holmes has a big game in the Buckeye state

Plays the hero role in a Steelers victory
Monday, January 01, 2007
By Gerry Dulac
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

CINCINNATI -- North Carolina was on the mind of just about everyone at Paul Brown Stadium, including Bill Cowher, who was getting buzzed with questions about his future on a day when the future of the Steelers rescued his apparent farewell.

But North Carolina was not the state on the mind of Santonio Holmes. Not when he enjoys playing so much in Ohio.

"I was thinking about that the whole time on the plane trip here," Holmes said.

Understandably, so.

Holmes played his college football at Ohio State, which is less than two hours north on Interstate 71 from where he broke the hearts of the Cincinnati Bengals yesterday. Last time he played in Ohio, Holmes had five catches for 75 yards and caught his first NFL touchdown in a 24-20 comeback victory in Cleveland.

Yesterday, Holmes had two of the game's biggest plays in a 23-17 overtime victory against the Bengals, a game that allowed the Steelers to finish at 8-8 and end Cincinnati's playoff hopes. First, he allowed the Steelers to reach overtime with a 34-yard catch that set up a Jeff Reed field goal with 1:03 remaining.

And he brought an end to the drama with a 67-yard touchdown on a slant pass from Ben Roethlisberger three plays into overtime.

"The way Santonio ended the game, you can't call it any better for a wide receiver," said Hines Ward. "You couldn't call a better way to finish than catch a game-winning touchdown in overtime."

To be sure, it was the finishing touch on a season in which Holmes finished with 49 catches and 824 yards, second only to Ward and the second-best rookie total in team history. Of that, though, Holmes had nine catches for 199 yards and two touchdowns in two games in Ohio, the state where he produced many big plays with the Buckeyes.

None, perhaps, as dramatic and meaningful as the one that gave the Steelers their sixth consecutive victory in Paul Brown Stadium.

"I was thinking I get the opportunity to come back to the state where I played my college ball and I have to really make some plays because I know I have a lot of fans here," Holmes said. "I figure if I come back here and make a few plays those guys will continue to love me."

The Steelers have loved Holmes' ability since they moved up seven spots to make him the 25th overall selection and the first receiver selected in the NFL draft.

And Holmes got to reward the man who drafted him by taking a quick slant pass from Roethlisberger in the middle of the field and outracing several Bengals defenders to the end zone -- the same end zone where Cedrick Wilson's flea-flicker touchdown catch ended the Bengals' 2005 season.

Holmes said Cowher did not tell the players if this was his last game as Steelers coach. If it is, he was able to give him a memorable sendoff. It was Cowher's 21st career victory against the Bengals, more than any other NFL team.

"He said it hurts, that he needs to take a little time to decide, take a week or so off to really find out what he wants to do," Holmes said. "He told us he loves us guys but that he's really going to take his time right now."

Holmes didn't waste any time finishing off the Bengals, who lost their final three games -- all to 2005 AFC playoff teams -- to miss the playoffs. And he did it with a play very similar to the slant he caught for 34 yards in the fourth quarter, setting up Reed's 35-yard field goal that tied the score, 17-17, with 63 seconds remaining.

This time, though, the play wasn't designed; it was a sight adjustment in which Holmes' route is determined by how free safety Madieu Williams is positioned. When Williams blitzed on the play, Holmes ran a slant route from the left side toward the area vacated by the free safety.

Offensive coordinator Ken Whisenhunt said Roethlisberger had to make a quick throw on the slant because the blitzing Williams is not accounted for in pass protection on the play.

"They kept running that same blitz the whole time," Ward said. "It was their blitz of the day, I guess. And Ben saw it. He was on the same page with Santonio and gave him a chance to run after the catch. Santonio just took it to the house from there. He was just running scared."

Said Holmes: "He knows I was running scared, just for the simple fact I wanted us to get off the field. We gave those guys a lot of opportunities to beat us and they really didn't want it as bad as we did."

If nothing else, a nice sendoff for the coach.

"Santonio made a couple really big plays, particularly at the end of regulation," Cowher said.
Then, in a moment of reflection, he later added, "We have young guys like Anthony Smith and Santonio Holmes who have very good futures."

Even if he isn't around in the future to coach them.

(Gerry Dulac can be reached at gdulac@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1466. )

Ron Cook: Money is the root of Cowher's decision

Tuesday, January 02, 2007
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Can you blame Bill Cowher?

Can you blame him if he wants more money?

Isn't that the American way?

Money has to be the primary reason Cowher is on the verge of leaving the Steelers after 15 seasons. It's a bit hard to believe family concerns are the main issue. Cowher's wife and youngest daughter didn't have to move to the family's $2.5 million dream home in North Carolina last summer. He could have spent a lot more time with them this season if they had stayed in Fox Chapel.

But so what if it's about the money?

There's absolutely nothing wrong with that in Cowher's case.

Cowher said a couple of telling things after the Steelers' 23-17 overtime win Sunday against the Cincinnati Bengals that made it pretty clear his uncertain future here is the result of a money issue. He went out of his way to say he's not burned out after so many years in his high-profile, high-pressure job and that he didn't need to step away, even briefly, from the game. He also said he needed to talk to "some people" before making a final decision about quitting the Steelers.
Sure, he'll hash it out with his wife and daughter. Of course, he will. But he'll also talk this week with Steelers owner Dan Rooney and his son, Art II. You bet he'll talk to them.

Without coming out and saying it Sunday, Cowher made it seem obvious that he'll give the Rooneys one final chance to meet his price.

Hey, there's no harm in asking, is there?

Certainly, Cowher has the leverage to do it even if he's under contract to the Steelers for next season. He knows if he sits out the year that he can come back in 2008 as a much-coveted free agent. Considering his track record, more than one NFL team will rush to pay him the kind of money he wants, somewhere in the $8 million-a-year range that Seattle Seahawks coach Mike Holmgren makes, which is significantly more than the $6 million-to-$6.5 million-a-year deal the Steelers are believed to have offered.

Tell the truth.

You'd go for it, too.

Some, of course, will argue that Cowher owes the Steelers better than that.

I beg to differ.

Yes, the Rooneys are the best owners in sports. Any coach would love working for them. It's no accident they've had just two head coaches in 38 years.

It's also true the Steelers gave Cowher his big break, hiring him in 1992 when he was a young, little-known defensive coordinator with the Kansas City Chiefs. They were patient with him when he failed to win a Super Bowl for so long, losing four AFC championship games at home and Super Bowl XXX after the 1995 season. More significant, they stuck with him after his teams went 7-9, 6-10 and 9-7 and failed to make the playoffs from 1998-2000. A lot of other NFL owners -- maybe all of them -- would have fired him.

But Cowher also has been good for the Steelers. No, this season didn't go the way anyone would have liked -- 8-8 and no playoffs -- but Cowher is far from the No. 1 villain there. The Steelers turned the ball over 37 times. Cowher was responsible for one -- the Ricardo Colclough fumbled punt return in the first game against the Bengals. It's not as if he threw 23 interceptions the way Ben Roethlisberger did.

Even taking this disappointing season into account, Cowher's work was largely terrific. His teams averaged 10 wins a year for 15 seasons, the best winning percentage in the NFL during that period. They won eight division titles and two AFC championships. And there was that win in Super Bowl XL after the 2005 season.

I'm not entirely convinced Cowher would be playing the same contract hardball if he hadn't won that championship for Dan Rooney. When asked after the win in Denver in the AFC championship game last season what it would mean to him to give Rooney the Vince Lombardi Trophy, he gushed, "Nothing would make me more satisfied. Nothing drives me more."

In Cowher's mind, he has to believe he has repaid his debt to the Steelers.

That doesn't mean the Rooneys should be blamed if they don't give in and pay Cowher what he wants. They have a right to run their business the way they see fit. One of the big reasons they've been so successful is that they don't panic in any situation and overpay anyone. Beyond that, they have a right to be concerned about Cowher's focus with his family in Raleigh. The guess here is they'll find another good coach.

Cowher shouldn't be blamed if he leaves.

His debt to the Steelers, to the Rooneys and to Pittsburgh really has been paid in full.

Bob Smizik: Win doesn't erase nightmare season

Monday, January 01, 2007
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

CINCINNATI -- On Aug. 9, 1974, upon assuming the presidency from the disgraced Richard Nixon, who was brought down by the Watergate scandal, Gerald Ford said, "My fellow Americans, our long national nightmare is over."

We can find comfort in those words today.

To paraphrase President Ford, who died last week, "My fellow Pittsburghers, our long national nightmare is over."

This nightmare, which grievously affected the Steelers Nation, might be of far less importance than Watergate, but it has been no less horrific to those who so passionately follow the local football team. It has plunged many Steelers fans into the same kind of despair that the stonewalling and lying of the Nixon presidency did to patriots more than 30 years ago.

The nightmare President Ford spoke of ended with Nixon resigning. Our nightmare ended in less historic circumstances. It came at around 4:16 p.m. yesterday at Paul Brown Stadium with a meaningless 23-17 overtime win by the Steelers against the uninspired Cincinnati Bengals that mercifully closed out a miserable season.

The victory, created by a 67-yard pass from Ben Roethlisberger to Santonio Holmes, left the Steelers with a 8-8 record just one season after a Super Bowl championship that had inspired visions of a dynasty, not mediocrity. It also left memories of poor play, terrible coaching decisions and an undisciplined style that we seldom saw in the Bill Cowher era.

As if a reminder of all that went wrong, the Steelers were called for a taunting penalty, something Cowher vowed early in the season would not happen again. It has happened twice since. This time it was rookie offensive tackle Willie Colon who ran down the field after a 21-yard run by Hines Ward to taunt a Cincinnati player. When a rookie sees seasoned veterans acting without class, it's not surprising he would respond in kind.

The Steelers' players were jubilant in celebrating the winning score, and Cowher, who gave no hint of his coaching future, spoke in overly complimentary terms about his players.
"I thought today spoke volumes about the quality and character of this football team," he said.

Had the Steelers been playing a more worthy opponent there might have been some truth to Cowher's words. But the Bengals were a listless bunch despite having a slim chance of gaining a playoff berth. They looked as if they weren't over their emotional loss to Denver a week earlier, when a botched extra-point attempt sent them to defeat. Still, the Bengals could have won if kicker Shayne Graham had not missed a 39-yard field goal attempt with 12 seconds remaining.

This nightmare began the second week of the season when the Super Bowl champions were shut out by the Jacksonville Jaguars. It continued with losses to Cincinnati, when the cement-fingered Ricardo Colclough -- in the game for reasons clear only to Cowher -- fumbled a punt that spurred the Bengals to victory, and with a 10-point defeat at San Diego. Just when the Steelers seemed to find themselves after their 45-7 win against Kansas City, they came back with losses to Atlanta and to absolutely awful Oakland, which finished 2-14.
But the nightmare has been so much more than that.

This was expected to be the season when Roethlisberger would come of age and take his place among the elite of NFL quarterbacks and become the foundation for future success. His performance in the three playoff games leading to the Super Bowl had been so special -- seven touchdowns, one interception and a passer rating well over 100 -- that there was little doubt he would continue in such a mode. He did not. He has been erratic all season and not nearly as accurate as he showed last year. He struggled so mightily early in the game yesterday that the Steelers used Willie Parker like they never have in the past. Parker carried 37 times, by far the most of his career.

Roethlisberger threw his 23rd interception, the most by a Steelers quarterback since Terry Bradshaw threw 24 in 1970.

The defense never assumed for any length of time the dominant role it has in the past. The Steelers were ninth out of 16 in the AFC in the most crucial statistic -- points allowed.
Concerning his future, Cowher said: "I need to take some time to reflect. I don't want to make any decisions in the heat of the moment that are emotionally based."

That's always wise course and particularly so in the flush of victory. When the glow is off this clunker and when Cowher looks over the entire season, he will realize it for what it was: A nightmare that could easily drive any coach, especially one who had been considering such thoughts, into a temporary retirement.