First off, I know you’re coaching now – tell me a bit about your coaching career so far?
After I retired oaI started coaching at my alma mater as their running backs coach. I coached there for six years and won four state championships there in total – one as a player and three as a coach!
Then I went to American Heritage and coached there under Jeff Dellenbach. We have an NFL staff here and I started off as the defensive backs coach, then became their defensive coordinator and am now their assistant head coach and defensive coordinator. I’ve worked with 17 guys now who are in the NFL – guys like Patrick Surtain, Brian Barnes and Brandon Johnson who’s with the Steelers now.
Are there coaches that helped influence the way you coach? How so?
I run the Pittsburgh defense – the fire zone defense. Bill Cowher took a chance on me when he drafted me. I had a shorter career there – I made the team as a practice squad guy and was there for two years before Detroit picked me up off the practice squad and I spent two years, then after that I spent five years in Buffalo.
Tim Lewis was my defensive backs coach in Pittsburgh – I also played for guys like Wade Phillips. Player’s coaches – but tough coaches.
In college I played for Tom Coughlin at Boston College – he was very structured and that’s what I go by now. He had all of the clocks there be 10 minutes fast to make sure everyone was on time! I told Sam Madison when he played for him in New York that all those things Coughlin was having players do in New York, I had to do for free! Coaches weren’t allowed to wear sunglasses. Sometimes you have to be the bad guy – but players always came back and said they appreciated it later.
Were you surprised the Steelers drafted you in ’97?
It was a very weird draft day. I was projected to go in the fifth round and was on the phone with Pittsburgh and Jacksonville called me. That was Coughlin’s first year with the Jaguars. Pittsburgh ended up taking me but if they didn’t I think Jacksonville was going to. It worked out for the best though – it was great being around that type of team. They were a veteran team with guys like Lloyd, Kirkland and those guys.
Tim Lewis and Jerome Bettis were friends of mine there. Lee Flowers took me under his wing and I learned from him and guys like Darren Perry and Carnell Lake and J.B. Brown. They liked the way I played the game and felt like I was just one player away from the 53. The organization was like family to me – they kept me and brought me back. The players never treated me differently as a practice squad guy.
Were there on-field moments that stand out most for you?
Playing Dallas and seeing Deion Sanders for the first time – that was an in-awe moment for me. When you coach and see guys later in the NFL – you see those relationships you form as a high school coach become so important – it’s nice to see that.
As a high school coach, how do you see younger players being different from when you had played?
The speed of the game has changed from high school to college now with the spread offense and teams liking to chuck the ball downfield. Teams are using running backs less. I played against a number of very good players at the high school level like Caleb Williams – you could tell then he was going to make it big at the next level.
Social media and kids branding themselves – it’s a real thing. Coaches have to navigate through it. When guys play well in college and transfer to another school, that’s ok. Now at the combine when kids talk to teams, if they transferred two or three times teams think that’s a good thing now – they think he knows how to adjust. When we played teams would say the kids were running away from competition. Now the littler colleges are developing guys and the power schools come and take them away – offer them more money.
What were some of the positive memories you have of your time in Pittsburgh?
It was a business atmosphere in Pittsburgh. I love Primanti Brothers and tell all the guys to go there when they go to Pittsburgh. I told Brandon he had to go!
A lot of the people may not know but the rookies all had to sing for the veterans. My rookie class there was one rookie who wouldn’t sing – I forget who it was, Well, the veterans went and taped him to his bed. He missed the entire morning practice. Cowher said he was looking for him but he knew what happened!
Me and Oronde Gadsden were roommates then – we’re still good friends today. He came from Dallas after they just won the Super Bowl and I was just drafted. He had this damn monkey he owned that stayed with us in its own room. During breaks he’d go outside with it. It had this little hat and would tip it and fans would give him money. It was like a circus monkey. I’m not sure how he was allowed to have it!
What caused you to leave the team in ’98?
Detroit picked me up off the Steelers practice squad. My agent was Drew Rosenhaus – I ended up getting two signing bonuses! It was cool but I had to move quickly. I played there for two years – I tell my son now – he played in Buffalo – that when you’re playing, you are playing for the other 31 teams. Especially as an undrafted free agent. Each week every team is watching to to see what guys they want to get off of other rosters.