Will The Fridge go to Da Bears?

From the Chicago Tribune:

Cool candidate
Bears strongly consider making run at Maryland coach Friedgen
By David Haugh
Tribune staff reporter
January 7, 2004

Is Chicago ready for another Fridge?

Ready or not, two sources familiar with the process said Tuesday that the Bears are strongly considering Maryland coach Ralph Friedgen, whose nickname happens to be the same as former Bears defensive tackle William Perry.

Friedgen's ascension up the list for the Bears job would make sense on several fronts.

First, Tom Coughlin taking the Giants job on Tuesday is an indication Louisiana State coach Nick Saban, considered the No. 1 choice of Bears general manager Jerry Angelo, will decide to stay. Reports out of New York said the Giants discreetly inquired about Saban's availability Monday and were given the impression he wasn't interested, not a good omen for Bears fans hoping to see Saban.

The Bears still might have a chance by handing Saban a blank check, and ESPN.com reported Tuesday night that as expected the two sides had talked in general terms about the job. A source said earlier Tuesday the Bears had looked into Saban's availability through intermediaries.

Saban still has to sign a new contract proposal from LSU that gives him 30 days to do so, and he kept the door to the NFL ajar when he told the Associated Press the contract isn't to his liking. Saban associates have maintained that if he were to entertain offers from pro teams, he would begin with New York and Chicago. That he apparently eliminated New York shifts some of the focus in Chicago to Friedgen, if one connects the dots in this Bears' coaching search.

The Bears have interviewed three defensive coordinators with plans to meet with a fourth Thursday, Mike Nolan of the Ravens. Monday's interview with 49ers defensive coordinator Jim Mora "went very well," according to Mora, and Angelo agreed. The two watched part of the East-West Shrine Bowl practice together Tuesday at San Francisco City College.

"Jim interviewed very well," Angelo told local reporters. "He's not just a great coach, he's a great person."

Still, Angelo identified offense among the team's top priority in finding its next coach.

Friedgen, 56, carries a reputation as the kind of offensive wizard Angelo was talking about and also has five seasons of NFL coaching experience on the San Diego staff from 1992-96, including a Super Bowl run in his first year as the Chargers' offensive coordinator in '94.

Additionally, a highly respected voice in the Bears' front office, pro personnel director Bobby DePaul, played linebacker at Maryland in 1982-83 when Friedgen was an assistant under Bobby Ross, and it's believed DePaul has been pushing the idea internally to Angelo.

Friedgen's contract, which runs through 2012 at $1.2 million annually, doesn't have a buyout clause, but Atlanta-based agent Jack Reale is in the process of renegotiating the deal. Friedgen, in Orlando for the annual college coaches convention, as recently as Saturday tried to distance himself from NFL rumors.

"Right now, I'm not interested in doing those things [in the NFL]," Friedgen told the Washington Post.

An associate of Friedgen's at Maryland doubted the coach would leave his alma mater--Friedgen played guard for the Terrapins in 1968-70--and the only NFL rumor that made sense to anyone at College Park, Md., was the Falcons job. Friedgen, revered in Atlanta since his days as Georgia Tech's offensive coordinator, had a retirement home built an hour outside the city.

One source even pointed out that Friedgen's father, Ralph Sr., died 18 years ago of a heart attack, and Friedgen has referred to his dad's death in stating a reluctance to take on a new challenge that might include too much stress.

But until Friedgen makes a statement privately or publicly that takes him out of the running, NFL teams like the Bears will continue to discuss the possibility of hiring the guy who saved Maryland football.

The Terrapins had suffered through losing seasons 12 of 14 years before naming Friedgen head coach for the 2001 season. In three years, he has gone 31-8 and has been to three bowl games--including an Orange Bowl in his first season that resulted in a $12 million payoff for the school.

Besides bringing an offensive imagination that more than one Atlantic Coast Conference coach has termed "genius," Friedgen would add a colorful dash of humor Bears fans likely would embrace after five years of a stoic Dick Jauron. He has a Web site, www.FridgeTV.com and has been referred to as college football's version of Rick Majerus.

Friedgen showed a self-deprecating charm in 2002 when he took the public dare of two Maryland boosters who pledged $1,000 for every pound the hefty coach lost, and poked fun at himself along the way. At the time, Friedgen acknowledges weighing more than 350 pounds but by the end of the year had shed nearly 50 pounds and raised almost $50,000.

He once referred to girth as an explanation why he spent 32 years as an assistant before anyone would hire him as a head coach. He reasoned most athletic directors wouldn't let him in the door largely because he had trouble fitting through it.

"I couldn't even get people to return my call," he said.

After his first turnaround season at Maryland, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers were set to offer Friedgen their head coaching job that eventually went to Jon Gruden. But the Maryland coach pulled out of the running when he returned to campus after the interview and found his Terrapin players questioning his loyalty. His ties to Maryland specifically, and college football generally, run deep.

After Ross and his staff left the Chargers for the Lions in 1997, for example, Friedgen opted instead to go to Georgia Tech to become George O'Leary's offensive coordinator. The native of Harrison, N.Y., was asked last year by his hometown newspaper, the Journal News, about his stint in pro football.

"There was something missing," Friedgen said. "You have to deal with a lot of egos, not just with the players but with the front office, too. In college, I saw that I had an effect on kids lives. There's a bond that forms. Pro football is more of a business."

Ralph Friedgen

Age: 56

College experience: Head coach for the past three years at Maryland, where he has a 31-8 record and three straight bowl appearances, including a 41-7 win over West Viriginia in this year's Gator Bowl. Also was offensive coordinator at Georgia Tech (1987-92) during '90 national championship and had previous college stints at Maryland, William&Mary, Murray State and The Citadel.

NFL experience: Offensive coordinator for Chargers under coach Bobby Ross during 1994 Super Bowl season and spent 1992-97 in San Diego before returning to Georgia Tech.

Nickname: Fridge