Huskies Name Neuheisel Coach

Rick Neuheisel and the Washington Huskies, whose stars have faded over the past two years, are ready to pair up and make a go of it together.

The Colorado coach accepted the Washington job Saturday, as he turned out to be the secret candidate UW athletic director Barbara Hedges was hanging onto through the past week.

"Rick is an extremely bright, innovative, creative and talented coach and we are fortunate to welcome him to our program," Hedges said.

Hedges also said Neuheisel would not be introduced in Seattle until Monday.

The new coach acknowledged his move Saturday night, and planned to fly to Seattle Sunday to meet with UW recruits in town for the weekend and start putting together a staff.

"It wasn't an easily arrived-at decision," Neuheisel said. "It was gut-wrenching and it took a lot of soul searching."

Immediately, speculation in Colorado turned to Northwestern coach Gary Barnett, the former CU assistant who has turned down a number of opportunities to change jobs. But unlike UCLA, Washington, Georgia and Texas, which couldn't lure Barnett away, Colorado is a place Barnett has called home and would seem to be a good fit.

Neuheisel's move, though, was a stunner, and the timing could make things complicated for Colorado.

Terms of neuheisel's new deal were not immediately available, but insiders were suggesting a blockbuster package worth at least $1 million a year over seven seasons, which would make him among the four highest-paid coaches in college football.

Neuheisel said Hedges called him Friday night "with what I would call a blockbuster offer, a substantial deal."

"Washington is a program with great prestige and tradition. I currently had a job with great prestige and tradition, which is what made this so difficult."

"I think in the long term, for my career and my family, this is the best decision. It's a seven-year deal. Colorado hathe ability to only do one-year deals," he said.

Florida's Steve Spurrier, Florida State's Bobby Bowden and Tennessee's Phillip Fulmer -- each of whom has won a national championship -- are making $1 million or more.

Neuheisel, 37, replaces Jim Lambright at the Huskies reins, giving Seattle a one-two jolt of electric coaching announcements, following the Seahawks' hiring of Packers coach Mike Holmgren on Friday.

Lambright was fired on Dec. 30, following a 6-6 season -- the school's worst in 22 seasons. A former UW player and longtime assistant coach, Lambright was 44-25-1 in six years as the program's head coach.

But Lambright's 45-25-1 record included no major bowls, and a hugely disappointing 7-9 record in the last year and a half. That mark, along with a growing collection of faux pas that continually placed Lambright in a negative light with at least some of his players, the media ... and, most important, Hedges and her big-money donors.

Enter Neuheisel, the boy wonder who went 20-4 in his first two years as a head coach in 1995-96, but who also has fallen on some rough times lately in Boulder.

As he exits cu to return to the Pac-10, where he played at UCLA, Neuheisel leaves a program in less-promising shape than when he took over for Bill McCartney in 1995.

The same can be said about Lambright, who took over for Don James in 1993.

Both predecessors won national championships (McCartney at Colorado in 1990, James at Washington in 1991), which made things increasingly difficult for Neuheisel and Lambright.

Every time either successor would lose a game or have something bad happen, they could not escape the comparisons of the increasing legend of their predecessors ... "their players didn't respect them enough, their kicking games weren't good enough, they didn't carry themselves professionally enough," and on and on.

Neuheisel's Colorado Buffs stumbled through a disastrous 5-6 campaign in 1997, the schools' worst in 13 years, but then bounced back to go 8-4 in 1998. In his five seasons following the legendary Bill McCartney at CU, Neuheisel went 33-14, including a 33-21 thrashing of Lambright's Huskies in the 1996 Holiday Bowl.

Since then, however, Neuheisel and Lambright have both had a hard time.

Washington started the 1997 season strong, jumping to a 7-1 start and reaching No. 6 in the polls, but have been essentially miserable ever since, winning just 7 of 16 games. Hedges fired Lambright after the embarrassing 45-25 loss to Air Force in the Oahu Bowl, saying she didn't like the looks of the program's future.

It was in then that Hedges apparently first contacted Neuheisel when both were in Honolulu for Christmas Day bowl games.

Washington was playing in the Oahu Bowl, while Neuheisel and the Buffs were in Honolulu to play Oregon in the Aloha Bowl.

The Huskies' performance against Air Force was pretty much the opposite of Colorado's performance in a 51-43 victory over 21st-ranked regon.

And while there were Neuheisel sightings in Seattle early in the week, they were easily explained away as recruiting trips for the Colorado coach.

Former Texas coach John Mackovic had been considered a finalist, along with the two former Don James assistants -- Toledo coach Gary Pinkel and Idaho coach Chris Tormey.

Mackovic pulled out of the running on Friday, but former UW aides Pinkel and Tormey had been twisting in the wind all week, with all indications suggesting discussions with other candidates (Virginia Tech's Frank Beamer, Oregon State's Mike Riley, Northwestern's Gary Barnett, Georgia's Jim Donnan, Colorado State's Sonny Lubick, among others) had led nowhere.

Neuheisel appears to fit perfectly what Hedges was looking for: A young, offense-minded coach, who has a reputation as a good recruiter, that she could count on leading the program for several years (although if he's successful, Neuheisel would quickly become a candidate for an NFL job).

Colorado athletic director Dick Tharp said "nothing surprises me in this business," but said he was disappointed Neuheisel told him early in the week that he had told Hedges he was not interested in the Washington job.

But Friday, Neuheisel called Tharp back to alert him that he was considering an offer from Washington, and at 7 p.m. Saturday, told the Colorado A.D. he was leaving.

"I am not one given to anger, but I was genuinely disappointed given the history of my conversations and the numerous commitments that had been made," Tharp said. "On the other hand, I am a realist, so I began the process today of identifying a search committee."

Much the way he came out of the blue as a candidate at Washington, Neuheisel did the same in 1995 at Colorado, where he had been an assistant coach. Three more senior assistants at CU also applied for the job, and McCartney had recommended Bob Simmons. But by all accounts, Neuheisel wowed 'em in the interview, and got the job.

Neuheisel's recruiting acumen was something UW officials coveted. His recruiting success in the Northwest and in California in recent years contributed part of what was viewed as Lambright's biggest shortcoming.

Rather than clean up the state, signing virtually every significant prospect, as James had done, Lambright had been unable to recruit in the Evergreen State effectively, losing key players to schools from around the country, including Colorado.

Neuheisel snared some of the hottest prospects in the Northwest the past couple of years, right from under the Huskies: Linebacker Ty Gregorak, tackle Victor Rogers, quarterback Taylor Barton ... and is reportedly well-positioned to snare Paul Arnold, who is considered perhaps the top running back prospect ever from Seattle.

Three years ago, after just one season at Colorado (10-2), Neuheisel turned down the UCLA job (when Bob Toledo was eventually hired), and quickly followed that with another 10-2 season.

But since the 2-4 start, the Buffs have been just 13-10, and the pressure has mounted steadily.

For the past year he has been saying quietly that the expectations at Colorado simply are not reasonable, which is much what Lambright had been murmuring in Seattle, where he felt his Huskies had been hamstrung by the long-term fallout of recruiting restrictions of 1994 and 1995.

And now with recruiting in full swing heading into the Feb. 3 signing day, Neuheisel informed his staff on Saturday that the opportunity had been laid out for him at Washington.

Colorado law prohibits state employees, like the university's football coach, from receiving more than a one-year contract. His $500,000 package at CU had other considerations that made it more secure than the single season (it didn't stop Bill McCartney, for instance), but the less-than-secure long-term situation became an increasing problem for Neuheisel ... and there was Hedges making him an offer he couldn't refuse.

It was an offer believed to be more than twice what he was making at CU, and more than twice what UW was paying Lambright.

At Colorado, Neuheisel was positioned as the youthful coach who followed the legend (McCartney) who had taken the Buffs to their only national championship.

At Washington, following the legend was the uncomfortable role Lambright filled. Neuheisel will be positioned as the young-but-experienced coach who followed the man (Lambright) who had weathered the probation following the legend (James) who had taken the Huskies to their only national championship.

There's a big difference.

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