14°c Partly cloudy
13°c Rain
Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION
Arians filling in for ailing Pagano
Colts tab assistant as temporary boss
Bruce Arians (TRIBUNE MEDIA MCT)
INDIANAPOLIS -- Bruce Arians always wanted to coach his own NFL team.
The chance has arrived, and not how he wanted it to go. He will be replacing an old friend on an interim basis in the middle of a season because of a serious illness. The longtime NFL offensive co-ordinator has no illusions about the job as he tries to help the Colts get better while everyone hopes coach Chuck Pagano returns soon from leukemia treatments.
"This isn't a head coaching job for me right now," Arians said after being named Indy's interim coach Monday. "It's just an expanded role as co-ordinator until Chuck comes back."
Arians was an obvious choice.
The Colts' front office followed Pagano's advice and hired Arians, an assistant who had coached with or against Pagano for the better part of a decade. He's someone who mentored three quarterbacks selected No. 1 overall (Peyton Manning, Tim Couch and now Andrew Luck) and has the same kind of personality that hooked the Colts on Pagano.
Team owner Jim Irsay and new general manager Ryan Grigson also liked his previous experience in Indy and his resumé.
Arians also played a key role in the development of Pittsburgh quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and won two Super Bowl rings with the Steelers -- one as the receivers coach, the other as offensive co-ordinator -- before his forced retirement earlier this year. He spent two seasons as Paul "Bear" Bryant's running backs coach at Alabama and six seasons as Temple's head coach.
"He's a veteran. He knows this game well. He has a great synergy with the staff and with Chuck," Grigson said. "He's going to be able to bridge that gap between Chuck and himself and this team because they (the assistants) have a brotherhood on that staff like I've never seen. Chuck's our brother, and we are all here for him. Bruce is the man to lead us forward while our leader is down."
Arians understands this peculiar predicament better than most.
In two decades as an NFL assistant, Arians has seen and done just about everything. And five years ago, Arians was the one being diagnosed with cancer. He needed a radical prostatectomy just before the NFL draft.
"That phone call is not a fun one," Arians recalled.
"I was sitting in my office and they kept telling me there's nothing wrong, nothing wrong and then the doctor calls and tell you you've got cancer. You really don't remember the next 24 hours. ... I'll tell you I could hardly drive home. It's devastating to get that message. Then you figure out, like we always do, what's the plan."
-- The Associated Press
Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition October 3, 2012 $sourceSection0
Fact Check
Have you found an error, or know of something we’ve missed in one of our stories? Please use the form below and let us know.
More Football
- Back to Top
- Return to Football
More Football
(1 of 3 articles for this month)
A tough act to follow
05/16/2013 1:00 AM 0There are tough encores in sports, but just imagine what is staring the Toronto Argonauts in the mug today after ...
Poll
Most Popular Football
- New Blue stadium lives up to the hype; now it's up to you
- Argos release ex-Bomber Brink
- Bombers training camp opens June 2
- Chargers, pass rusher Dwight Freeney agree to 2-year deal
- New GM Ed Hervey says Edmonton Eskimos have upgraded their offence
- Blue sign draft picks Fitzgerald, Pavlopoulos
- Man with no plan tries again
- Bombers sign three defensive players
- CFL gains when draft picks go south
- Buck's No. 1, aims to prove durability
- New Blue stadium lives up to the hype; now it's up to you
- Argos release ex-Bomber Brink
- Bombers training camp opens June 2
- Bombers sign three defensive players
- Bombers load camp roster with two DBs, LB, receiver
- Game ball to tour communities before grand opening of new Bomber stadium
- Bombers pick Fitzgerald, Pavlopoulos
- CFL gains when draft picks go south
- Blue sign draft picks Fitzgerald, Pavlopoulos
- Bombers handing off opening-day ball to fans
- Bombers detail parking plan for new stadium
- Bomber boozers will change or they 'won't be here': GM Mack
- Hall turning heads at Bomber mini-camp
- Bombers are watching you
- CFL draft pick Mulumba would be proud to be a Bomber
- Bomber security to wave wands this season
- Bomber GM silent on Tebow's CFL prospects
- Bombers boast record season-ticket sales
- Blue in the red: Bombers to report a loss of almost $800,000
- New Blue stadium lives up to the hype; now it's up to you
- Game ball to tour communities before grand opening of new Bomber stadium
- Bombers handing off opening-day ball to fans
- New Blue stadium lives up to the hype; now it's up to you
- Super Bowl MVP to speak in Winnipeg
- CFL gains when draft picks go south
- Argos release ex-Bomber Brink
- Bombers detail parking plan for new stadium
- Bombers tackle parking issue
- Game ball to tour communities before grand opening of new Bomber stadium
- Blue in the red: Bombers to report a loss of almost $800,000
- Hall, Clement go to school
- Blue Bombers board of directors accepting nominations
- Bomber security to wave wands this season
- Bombers handing off opening-day ball to fans
- If it was up to me, I would have kept Brink and Elliott
- Going all-in on Buck a risky gamble for Bombers
Ads by Google
You can comment on most stories on winnipegfreepress.com. You can also agree or disagree with other comments. All you need to do is register and/or login and you can join the conversation and give your feedback.
Have Your Say
New to commenting? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions.
The Winnipeg Free Press does not necessarily endorse any of the views posted. By submitting your comment, you agree to our Terms and Conditions. These terms were revised effective April 16, 2010.