Seifert Deserved Better
Seifert deserved better than a DeBartolo punch Sporting News -- 01.27.97
George Seifert said all the right things during his stunning news conference announcing his "retirement" from the 49ers after a fabulous eight-year run. He talked about how it was "time for some new blood," about how you can't be a "head coach for infinity," and about how "there's a natural process to this thing."
I don't believe him for one second.
The only thing I'm convinced about is that once Seifert told the 49ers' front office that he was unhappy about going into 1997 without a contract extension, he was advised to make sure the door didn't hit him on tire way out of the team's Santa Clara training complex.
Of course, the press conference spin-doctoring orchestrated by Seifert, team president Carmen Policy and owner Edward DeBartolo Jr. was designed to make us believe that this was one big happy family, that the torch was being passed in an orderly fashion, and that University of California coach Steve Mariucci--he of the one year's worth of head-coaching experience--was the perfect choice to lead the 49ers into the next millennium.
Nonsense.
Beneath the outward calm of all the principals involved in Seifert's departure, there is a decided undercurrent that the coach with the best winning percentage in NFL history was thought to have outlived his usefulness by his employers, who don't seem to realize that failing to win the Super Bowl every single year is not a capital crime.
"My wife first told me when I got this job, `Don't-screw it up.' I don't think I did," says Seiferi, who was 108-35 as successor to Bill Walsh after the 1988 season. "I'm proud of the things we accomplished during my watch."
And well he should be. Seifert not only inherited the legacy of Walsh and conducted himself with poise, dignity and single-minded resolve, he also continued the team's winning tradition by leading the 49ers to two Super Bowl championships and reaching the playoffs in all but one season under his stewardship.
This season, the team reached the playoffs even though the offense was nearly crippled by quarterback injuries, running-back inefficiency and breakdowns along the offensive line. All three areas conspired against the 49ers in their division-round loss to the Packers.
Yet DeBartolo reacts to these playoff failures with the petulance of a child. After the game, he was charged with punching out a Packers fan. Last week, he punched out the coach who gave him two more Super Bowl rings.
So now it's time for Mariucci to inherit the understated legacy left behind by Seifert, who never touted himself as a genius like his predecessor but nevertheless contributed mightily to the five-time Super Bowl run and was regarded as one of the league's premier coaches. Mariucci seems to have all the credentials to be a fine head coach in the NFL, but let's not be deceived into thinking he will be an instant success.
After all, one season at Cal and a nice run as Brett Favre's quarterbacks coach in Green Bay hardly constitutes the perfect resume. Mariucci, 41, has-been coaching for 18 years. His Cal team began the '96 season with a 5-0 record but lost six of its last seven games, capped by a loss to Navy in the Aloha Bowl. Under Mariucci, Favre developed into a Pro Bowl quarterback and the league's most valuable player the last two seasons.
"There's no doubt the bulk of my success in the NFL has been due to Steve Mariucci," Favre once-said. "I wouldn't be where I am today without his coaching."
But can the 49ers expect to be anywhere near the Super Bowl in the immediate future under Mariucci? It's a chance the 49ers were willing to take, even if it meant the departure of a coach who might one day join Walsh in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
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