GREEN BAY, Wis. -- Mike Holmgren had his man. What he did not have was a job title for him.
It was 1990, and Holmgren was the offensive coordinator for the two-time defending Super Bowl-champion San Francisco 49ers. He wanted someone who could take Bill Walsh’s playbook for the West Coast offense and computerize it. One of the 49ers’ longtime scouts had a 27-year-old son working as an assistant coach at the University of Pacific following an undistinguished career as a backup quarterback at the University of Dayton and set up an interview.
Holmgren liked the kid immediately.