Rick Neuheisel

Rick Neuheisel
Neuheisel in August 2009
Sport(s)	Football
Current position
Title	Head coach
Team	UCLA
Conference	Pac-12
Record	19–26
Annual salary	$1,250,000[1]
Biographical details
Born	February 7, 1961 (1961-02-07) (age 50)
Place of birth	Madison, Wisconsin
Playing career
1980–1983 1984–1985 1987 1987	UCLA San Antonio Gunslingers (USFL) San Diego Chargers Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Position(s)	Quarterback
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1986 1988–1993 1994 1995–1998 1999–2002 2003–2004 2005–2006 2007 2008–present	UCLA (volunteer) UCLA (assistant) Colorado (assistant) Colorado Washington Rainier Beach HS (vol.) Baltimore Ravens (QB) Baltimore Ravens (OC) UCLA
Head coaching record
Overall	85–56
Bowls	5–3
Statistics
College Football Data Warehouse
Accomplishments and honors
Championships
1 Pac-10 (2000)

Richard Gerald "Rick" Neuheisel, Jr. (pronounced /ˈnuːhaɪzəl/, German: [ˈnɔʏhaɪzəl]; born February 7, 1961), is an American football coach and former player. He is currently the head football coach at University of California, Los Angeles, a position he has held since the 2008 season.^[2] Before coming to UCLA, Neuheisel was the head football coach at the University of Colorado at Boulder from 1995 to 1998 and at the University of Washington from 1999 to 2002. From 2005 to 2007, he was an assistant coach with the NFL's Baltimore Ravens, serving as quarterbacks coach for two seasons and then one as offensive coordinator. Neuheisel played quarterback at UCLA from 1980 to 1983, then spent two seasons with the San Antonio Gunslingers of the United States Football League before splitting the 1987 NFL season between the San Diego Chargers and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Early years

Neuheisel was born in Madison, Wisconsin, one of four children and the only son of Dick and Jane (Jackson) Neuheisel, with sisters Nancy, Katie, and Deborah. Dick is an attorney and Rick grew up in Tempe, Arizona, and graduated from McClintock High School in 1979. He lettered in three sports (football, basketball, baseball) and was named its outstanding athlete during his senior year.

Playing career

Neuheisel played his college football at UCLA, beginning his career as a walk-on and holding placekicks for John Lee. He was the starting quarterback in his senior year in the 1983 season. UCLA opened with a loss at Georgia, a tie with Arizona State and then a 42–10 loss at #1-ranked Nebraska. Neuheisel was benched after the Nebraska loss in favor of Steve Bono. On October 1, the Bruins lost to BYU to start the season 0–3–1. Bono was injured during the Stanford game, and Neuheisel came back to finish the season.^[3] Neuheisel led the Bruins to an eventual 6–4–1 record, culminating with a win over arch-rival USC that, combined with Washington State's upset of Washington, gave UCLA the Pac-10 championship in 1983 and sent them to the Rose Bowl on January 2, 1984.

Neuheisel led the Bruins to a 45–9 victory over 4th-ranked and heavily-favored Illinois in the 1984 Rose Bowl, in which he was named the MVP; two of his four touchdown passes were caught by a sophomore wide receiver from San Diego named Karl Dorrell, later Neuheisel's predecessor as the UCLA head football coach.^[4] The victory vaulted the Bruins, unranked through most of the season, into the top 25 in wire service polls. Much like his rise to stardom at UCLA, the road to the victory was a bumpy one. Neuheisel and two other players on the defensive side of the ball suffered from food poisoning hours before the Rose Bowl and it was unsure that Neuheisel would start. Neuheisel would end up starting the game. He also set an NCAA record that year for single game pass completion percentage (since broken) by completing 25 of 27 passes (92.6%) in a Pac-10 win over Washington. In 1998, Neuheisel was inducted into the Rose Bowl Hall of Fame.

Neuheisel was named to the Pac-10 All-Academic team and graduated from UCLA in May 1984 with a B.A. in political science and a 3.4 GPA. Neuheisel still holds the UCLA single season record for completion percentage, completed 185 of 267 passes (69.3%) for 2,245 yards in the 1983 season. He was also a member of Sigma Nu fraternity while a student.

Neuheisel's professional career included two seasons with the San Antonio Gunslingers (1984–1985) of the USFL and three games with the San Diego Chargers of the NFL in the strike season of 1987. He closed out the season's final two games with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but did not receive any playing time.

Coaching career

Early years as assistant

While attending USC Law School on an NCAA postgraduate scholarship, Neuheisel served as a graduate assistant with UCLA, where he tutored Troy Aikman. He graduated with a Juris Doctor (J.D.) from USC in 1988^[5] and passed the Arizona State Bar in May 1991 and the Washington, D.C. Bar in March 1993.

He later became a full-time assistant coach in 1988, and stayed at UCLA through the 1993 season. In 1994, he moved to Colorado as an assistant to Bill McCartney.

Colorado

McCartney retired following the 1994 season and Neuheisel, age 34, was named the head coach. He stayed for four seasons (1995–1998) in Boulder as the Buffs coach. His best season was his first, in which the Buffs tied for second in the final season of Big Eight Conference play and won the Cotton Bowl. His only losing season at Colorado was 1997; the Buffs were expected to be national title contenders, but never recovered from a blowout loss to Michigan on national television. After the season, the Buffs were forced to forfeit their five wins due to an ineligible player, though Neuheisel was subsequently ruled to not be affected.

Washington

Neuheisel was welcomed into the Rose Bowl Hall of Fame before the 1999 Rose Bowl.^[6] University of Washington athletic director Barbara Hedges took the opportunity to meet with him. She fired coach Jim Lambright and named Neuheisel as his replacement.^[7] Neuheisel left for Seattle in January 1999 to coach at the University of Washington for four seasons (1999–2002). His starting salary was $1,000,000 annually, at the time one of the five highest in the nation.^[7] In the 2000 season, the Huskies won the Pac-10 title and the Rose Bowl over the Big Ten champ Purdue Boilermakers, led by quarterback Drew Brees. Their only loss was to the rival Oregon Ducks. Washington, led by senior quarterback Marques Tuiasosopo, the Rose Bowl MVP, finished the season at 11–1 and was ranked third in the final national polls. Neuheisel became the first and only former Rose Bowl MVP to coach a winning Rose Bowl team.

During the 2000 season, Neuheisel and Barbara Hedges were accused, retroactively in a series of articles published in The Seattle Times in 2008, of overlooking many examples of criminal conduct and hooliganism, while community institutions, including prosecutors, police, judges and the media, went along.^[8] During that year, UW safety Curtis Williams was allowed to play despite being issued an outstanding arrest warrant for assaulting his wife, Michelle.^[8] Linebacker Jeremiah Pharms was under investigation for robbing and shooting a drug dealer after police found his fingerprints at the scene, but was not charged until the season was over.^[8] Jerramy Stevens, the Huskies star tight end, was under investigation of raping a UW freshman on sorority row.^[8] When Stevens later crashed his truck into a retirement home, Neuheisel suspended him for half a game.^[8]

Baltimore Ravens

Neuheisel became an assistant coach (quarterbacks) with the NFL's Baltimore Ravens in January 2005. In 2006, the Ravens acquired quarterback Steve McNair and won the AFC North division with a 13–3 record. After the season, Neuheisel was promoted to offensive coordinator.

UCLA

Neuheisel was invited to two interviews regarding the head coaching position at his alma mater UCLA, following the firing of his former UCLA teammate, Karl Dorrell.^[9] Ravens head coach Brian Billick assured that he would allow Neuheisel to leave the team before the completion of the 2007 NFL season.^[10] Other candidates in which UCLA showed interest and interviewed included: Oregon Ducks Coach Mike Bellotti, Temple Owls Coach Al Golden, Tennessee Titans offensive coordinator Norm Chow, UCLA’s defensive coordinator and interim coach DeWayne Walker, and then-Philadelphia Eagles assistant John Harbaugh.^[11]

On December 29, 2007, Neuheisel was introduced as the head coach of the UCLA Bruins in a five-year contract that pays him $1.25 million per season and includes incentives that could add $500,000 a year.^[12] He immediately began to consolidate his coaching staff by retaining DeWayne Walker, Karl Dorrell's defensive coordinator and interim coach for the Bruins 2007 bowl game.^[13] He made a major move by hiring Norm Chow, offensive coordinator of the Tennessee Titans and previously the offensive coordinator of crosstown rival USC's 2003 and 2004 national championship seasons.^[14] He also began to make himself highly visible to the media, including appearing at the 2008 Rose Bowl^[15] and coining the phrase "Passion Bucket" during an interview on The Dan Patrick Show by saying, "When you’re at UCLA, you have to have your passion bucket full when you play the Trojans." He also appeared in an ad created by the UCLA athletics marketing department that declared, "The Football Monopoly in L.A. Is Officially Over"^[16] and engineered an agreement with Pete Carroll that allows both UCLA and USC to wear their home jerseys during the annual game.^[17] This home jersey arrangement begat a rule change for the 2009 football season.^[18]

Neuheisel had his first win on September 1 with the Bruins as they defeated #18 Tennessee, 27–24. The win came in overtime as Tennessee's field goal try sailed wide left.^[19] However, the team's momentum came to a halt in successive weeks. A brutal 59–0 defeat on the road at the hands of #15 BYU was followed by a disappointing 31–10 loss at home to unranked Arizona in the Bruins' Pac-10 opener. The UCLA offense failed to score a touchdown in either contest. The team finished the season 4–8 overall and 3–6 in conference.

Despite this record, Neuheisel was still able secure the fifth-best recruiting class in the nation in 2009 as rated by Scout.com. The class was headlined by two former USC commits, Morrell Presley and Randall Carroll, offensive linemen Xavier Sua-Filo and Stan Hasiak, and running back Damien Thigpen. Nevertheless, the Bruins fell to 4–8 in 2010, losing six of their last seven games. Player injuries and other attrition depleted UCLA of its roster depth, while true freshmen were forced into action and seniors who were previously reserves became starters; a quarterback who had attempted only 17 passes in his career became the starter.^[20] At the end of the season Nueheisel fired two assistant coaches, including Chow, and said he would “be crushed ... if we’re not going to a bowl game a year from now.” ^[21]

Neuheisel was one of several college football coaches who participated in the 2009 Armed Forces Entertainment college football "Coaches Tour" to help rally U.S. servicemen and women in the Middle East and Europe and show appreciation for their efforts. The coaches tour made stops at U.S. military installations in Germany, Turkey, Spain, Iraq and Djbouti (Africa).^[22]

Family

Neuheisel and his wife, Susan (née Wilkinson), have three sons: Jerry (born April 1992), Jack (born August 1994), and Joe (born January 1997). His father, Richard "Dick" Gerald Neuheisel, an attorney, is a past president of Sister Cities International.^[23][24]

Head coaching record

Colorado forfeited all wins of the 1997 season due to an ineligible player, but Neuheisel was ruled not to be affected.

Year	Team	Overall	Conference	Standing	Bowl/playoffs	Coaches#	AP°
Colorado Buffaloes (Big Eight Conference) (1995)
1995	Colorado	10–2	5–2	T–2nd	W Cotton	4	5
Colorado Buffaloes (Big 12 Conference) (1996–1998)
1996	Colorado	10–2	7–1	2nd	W Holiday	8	8
1997	Colorado	5–6	3–5	T–4th
1998	Colorado	8–4	4–4	4th	W Aloha
Colorado:		33–14	19–12
Washington Huskies (Pacific-10 Conference) (1999–2002)
1999	Washington	7–5	6–2	2nd	L Holiday
2000	Washington	11–1	7–1	T–1st	W Rose †	3	3
2001	Washington	8–4	6–2	T–2nd	L Holiday	19	19
2002	Washington	7–6	4–4	T–4th	L Sun
Washington:		33–16	23–9
UCLA Bruins (Pac-10/Pac-12 Conference) (2008–present)
2008	UCLA	4–8	3–6	8th
2009	UCLA	7–6	3–6	8th	W EagleBank
2010	UCLA	4–8	2–7	9th
2011	UCLA	5–5	4–3	(South)
UCLA:		19–26	11–21
Total:		85–56
National Championship         Conference Title         Conference Division Title
†Indicates BCS bowl game. #Rankings from final Coaches' Poll. °Rankings from final AP Poll.

References

1. ^ Los Angeles Times: Neuheisel goes back to school
2. ^ "Rick Neuheisel Named UCLA Head Football Coach". 2007-12-29. http://uclabruins.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/122907aae.html. Retrieved 2007-12-29. 
3. ^ Dilbeck, Steve - RETURN OF THE RICK CONTROVERSIAL NEUHEISEL BACK FOR REUNION OF '80S BRUINS. Los Angeles Daily News, October 18, 2003 (hosted at thefreelibrary.com) Quote:Neuheisel was a senior quarterback at UCLA in 1983 and was benched after an 0-2-1 start. "(Terry) Donahue told me when things like that happen to a football team, one of two things usually happens," he said. "Either the head coach gets fired or the quarterback gets fired. He said he was sorry to tell me, but he wasn't getting fired."
4. ^ Jerry Crowe, Text messages from press row…, Los Angeles Times, November 27, 2007.
5. ^ Smith <http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22457196/>MSNBC/Orange County Register
6. ^ Rose Bowl Hall of Fame
7. ^ ^{a b} Tom Griffin - Sudden Impact. Husky Football Sees Surprise Coaching Turnover as Colorado Coach Rick Neuheisel Replaces Jim Lambright. Columns - The University of Washington Alumni Magazine, March 1999
8. ^ ^{a b c d e} Armstrong, Ken and Nick Perry - The disturbing story behind the last great UW team — and how its legacy still casts a shadow on the Huskies. Seattle Times, January 27, 2008. Quote:At least a dozen members of the Rose Bowl team were arrested that year or charged with a crime that carried possible jail time. At least a dozen others on that team got in trouble with the law in other seasons.
9. ^ Chris Foster, Neuheisel to get second interview, Los Angeles Times, December 19, 2007.
10. ^ David Ginsburg - With nothing to lose but another game, Ravens focus on Patriots. USA Today, November 26, 2007
11. ^ Foster, Chris - Chow no longer interested in head coach job. Los Angeles Times, December 21, 2007
12. ^ Chris Foster, Neuheisel goes back to school, Los Angeles Times, December 30, 2008, Accessed July 26, 2008.
13. ^ Chris Foster, Neuheisel’s first recruiting effort is for Walker, Los Angeles Times, December 30, 2008, Accessed July 26, 2008.
14. ^ Chris Foster, UCLA hires Norm Chow as offensive coordinator, Los Angeles Times, January 21, 2008, Accessed July 26, 2008.
15. ^ T.J. Simers, Neuheisel sees what he’s up against, Los Angeles Times, January 2, 2008, Accessed July 26, 2008.
16. ^ T.J. Simers, Politics as usual for UCLA's Rick Neuheisel, Los Angeles Times, December 29, 2009, Accessed February 24, 2010.
17. ^ Tom Hoffarth - MEDIA: The special affects of snow - 'Passion bucket' list grows. Los Angeles Daily News, January 18, 2008. Quote:First used by incoming UCLA head coach Rick Neuheisel on Patrick's show a couple of weeks ago, "passion bucket" has already been dropped into an HBO "Inside the NFL" show last week by Bob Costas and used on the NFL Network by "Total Access" host Rich Eisen - both by Patrick's prodding.
18. ^ Rogers Redding, Secretary-Rules Editor, NCAA Football Rules Committee - NCAA Football 2009-10 Rules and Interpretations. THE NATIONAL COLLEGIATE ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION May 2009
19. ^ Foster, Chris - UCLA 27, NO. 18 TENNESSEE 24 (OT) Kevin Craft rallies UCLA past Tennessee. Los Angeles Times, September 2, 2008
20. ^ "Neuheisel's reign tougher than expected". ESPNLosAngeles.com. July 28, 2011. http://sports.espn.go.com/los-angeles/ncf/columns/story?id=6806935. Retrieved July 28, 2011. 
21. ^ "The Fabulous Forum". Los Angeles Times. http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/sports_blog/2010/12/ucla-football-neuheisel-juggles-recruiting-staff-decisions.html. 
22. ^ Rick Neuheisel To Participate in Coaches Tour To Middle East, May 22, 2009
23. ^ http://dailypilot.com/articles/2009/09/17/sports/newport/dpt-spnewportgamer091809.txt
24. ^ Rick Neuheisel Coach bio University of Washington, dated 1999 before the start of his first season coaching the Huskies

Bibliography

• Baker, Chris - Neuheisel Proves to Be Poison to Illinois. Four Scoring Passes Are a Tough Act for Illini to Stomach. Los Angeles Times, January 3, 1984. Quote:"UCLA quarterback Rick Neuheisel had trouble sleeping before Monday's Rose Bowl game, but it wasn't because he was having nightmares about facing Illinois' defense."
• Barnhart, Jim - 1984: Illini no match for Neuheisel, UCLA, Bloomington-Normal, Illinois Pantagraph (Pantagraph.com), December 15, 2007
• Dodds, Tracy - Ailing Quarterback Leads UCLA to 45-9 Win in Rose Bowl. Los Angeles Times, January 3, 1984
• Hurst, Matt - Illinois' 1984 Rose Bowl loss is one the team would like to forget. The (Riverside) Press-Enterprise, December 26, 2007
• Los Angeles Times Staff - Caltech at It Again. Credit Beavers for Sabotaging Rose Bowl Scoreboard. Los Angeles Times, January 3, 1984. Quote:"In the fourth quarter, UCLA was leading Illinois, 38-9, but the scoreboard read: Caltech 38, MIT 9."
• Los Angeles Times Staff - Favorites Bowled Over. Neuheisel Leads Bruins to Glory; Nebraska Loses. Los Angeles Times, January 3, 1984. Quote:"In a day of bowl game upsets, UCLA swamped Illinois, 45-9, No. 2-ranked Texas was defeated, 10-9, by Georgia and previously unbeaten Nebraska, rated No. 1 in all polls, was surprised by Miami, 31-30."
• Timmerman, Bob - The Rose Bowl and me: Part two: January 2, 1984 - UCLA vs. Illinois. Baseball Toaster (Griddle), December 27, 2006
• UCLA Bruins Football Media Guide (PDF copy available at www.uclabruins.com)

External links

• UCLA profile
• Rick Neuheisel at the College Football Data Warehouse
• Rick Neuheisel at Pro-Football-Reference.com

Persondata
Name	Neuheisel, Rick
Alternative names	Neuheisel, Richard Gerald; Neuheisel, Richard G.
Short description	American college football player, college football coach, quarterback
Date of birth	February 7, 1961
Place of birth	Madison, Wisconsin, United States
Date of death
Place of death