49ers Clubhouse

San Francisco Examiner

Breaking down Erickson

February 15, 2003

BY ARTIE GIGANTINO
Special To The Examiner
I seriously thought New York Jets defensive coordinator Ted Cottrell would end up as the Niners' new coach. Obviously, like everyone else, I was dead wrong in my prediction. The problem was I had no idea of the deep involvement of Oregon State coach Dennis Erickson in this process.
Let me go over some facts regarding the Erickson hiring:
- It is not a requirement that an NFL team, like the Niners, make public who it is interviewing. In this day and age, it is very difficult to keep a secret because somewhere, somehow, word slips out. However, the Niners, for whatever reason, were very open about who their final three NFL assistants were, but quite secretive about who the college candidates were. When the ground rules are not the same for each person in the process, the organization leaves itself wide open for a ton of second-guessing.
- Much has been made of the baggage that comes along with Erickson. Before you make any judgments on him, take a long, hard look in the mirror and see how much baggage YOU have. And I don't mean just under your eyes. We all have some degree of luggage on our resume. The higher your status in life, the more this luggage gets exposed. That's just the way it is.
A guy by the name of William Jefferson Clinton ran this great country for eight years with a whole lot more baggage than Erickson. So let's chill out on that part of him and wait and see how many games the guy wins. A few years back, a dude named Chucky, who at the time was the coach of the Raiders, got a DUI. The last time I looked, that incident, although embarrassing to him and the Raiders, did not affect his coaching. Presently, he is a millionaire getting measured for a Super Bowl ring.
- Erickson fits the "ball coach" description that general manager Terry Donahue was looking for. He has won everywhere he has been, except in Seattle. He is a proven coach that has had jobs in the NFL and in all spectrums of the college game. The hayseed jobs like Idaho and Wyoming, the lower-echelon places in the Pac-10 Conference like Washington State and Oregon State and the high-profile, big-city job at Miami (Fla.) have been his stops. While in South Beach, he lost only nine games in five years while winning 63. Talent is one thing, but some quality coaching must take place when you win that many games in a five-year span. The bottom line: Erickson is a good coach that adjusts to his environment and figures out how to get the job done.
- The coaching staff, to a large degree, is pretty much in limbo. Look for Erickson, along with the help of Donahue, to bring in basically a completely new staff. Almost always, a new coach wants his guys. This is just the way it is in the coaching world. The most important hire will be who is going to run the defense. Jim Mora should leave The City and take the Detroit Lions' offer to be their defensive chief and go on about his coaching life. It is always difficult for an assistant like Mora who interviewed for the head job to return to that team in his previous role. Erickson cannot bring his Oregon State staff with him, but look for a mixture of college and NFL coaches to make up his new group.
- Erickson is not the politician and media schmoozer that Steve Mariucci was. However, he seemed fairly relaxed when meeting with the media Wednesday.
- This hire now concludes the NFL coaching change season. Erickson is one of five new coaches to be hired this off-season. Cincinnati and Jacksonville hired defensive coaches that will be getting their first shot at being the head man. Detroit and Dallas hired former NFL head coaches in Mooch and Bill Parcells and the Niners hired a guy with NFL experience that comes from the college ranks. Point here is there is no blueprint as to whom or how to hire. Just hire the right coach, no matter what side of the ball he coaches on. No one will care about this whole process or how long it took if the Niners get off to a 5-0 start. On the other hand, if they start off 1-4, watch out.

Tell us what you think on the new 49ers Clubhouse message board.

BY ARTIE GIGANTINO
Special To The Examiner

I seriously thought New York Jets defensive coordinator Ted Cottrell would end up as the Niners' new coach. Obviously, like everyone else, I was dead wrong in my prediction. The problem was I had no idea of the deep involvement of Oregon State coach Dennis Erickson in this process.

Let me go over some facts regarding the Erickson hiring:

- It is not a requirement that an NFL team, like the Niners, make public who it is interviewing. In this day and age, it is very difficult to keep a secret because somewhere, somehow, word slips out. However, the Niners, for whatever reason, were very open about who their final three NFL assistants were, but quite secretive about who the college candidates were. When the ground rules are not the same for each person in the process, the organization leaves itself wide open for a ton of second-guessing.

- Much has been made of the baggage that comes along with Erickson. Before you make any judgments on him, take a long, hard look in the mirror and see how much baggage YOU have. And I don't mean just under your eyes. We all have some degree of luggage on our resume. The higher your status in life, the more this luggage gets exposed. That's just the way it is.

A guy by the name of William Jefferson Clinton ran this great country for eight years with a whole lot more baggage than Erickson. So let's chill out on that part of him and wait and see how many games the guy wins. A few years back, a dude named Chucky, who at the time was the coach of the Raiders, got a DUI. The last time I looked, that incident, although embarrassing to him and the Raiders, did not affect his coaching. Presently, he is a millionaire getting measured for a Super Bowl ring.

- Erickson fits the "ball coach" description that general manager Terry Donahue was looking for. He has won everywhere he has been, except in Seattle. He is a proven coach that has had jobs in the NFL and in all spectrums of the college game. The hayseed jobs like Idaho and Wyoming, the lower-echelon places in the Pac-10 Conference like Washington State and Oregon State and the high-profile, big-city job at Miami (Fla.) have been his stops. While in South Beach, he lost only nine games in five years while winning 63. Talent is one thing, but some quality coaching must take place when you win that many games in a five-year span. The bottom line: Erickson is a good coach that adjusts to his environment and figures out how to get the job done.

- The coaching staff, to a large degree, is pretty much in limbo. Look for Erickson, along with the help of Donahue, to bring in basically a completely new staff. Almost always, a new coach wants his guys. This is just the way it is in the coaching world. The most important hire will be who is going to run the defense. Jim Mora should leave The City and take the Detroit Lions' offer to be their defensive chief and go on about his coaching life. It is always difficult for an assistant like Mora who interviewed for the head job to return to that team in his previous role. Erickson cannot bring his Oregon State staff with him, but look for a mixture of college and NFL coaches to make up his new group.

- Erickson is not the politician and media schmoozer that Steve Mariucci was. However, he seemed fairly relaxed when meeting with the media Wednesday.

- This hire now concludes the NFL coaching change season. Erickson is one of five new coaches to be hired this off-season. Cincinnati and Jacksonville hired defensive coaches that will be getting their first shot at being the head man. Detroit and Dallas hired former NFL head coaches in Mooch and Bill Parcells and the Niners hired a guy with NFL experience that comes from the college ranks. Point here is there is no blueprint as to whom or how to hire. Just hire the right coach, no matter what side of the ball he coaches on. No one will care about this whole process or how long it took if the Niners get off to a 5-0 start. On the other hand, if they start off 1-4, watch out.

Tell us what you think on the new 49ers Clubhouse message board.