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http://www.nfl.com/news/story/09000...ers-coach-passing-guru-don-coryell-dead-at-85
Don Coryell, the innovative coach whose Air Coryell offense produced some of the most dynamic passing attacks in NFL history, has died. He was 85.
The Chargers confirmed that Coryell died Thursday at Sharp Grossmont Hospital in La Mesa, just outside of San Diego. The team didn't release the cause of death, but Coryell had been in poor health for some time.
"We are terribly saddened by the passing of Coach Coryell," Chargers president Dean Spanos said in a statement released by the team. "He revolutionized the game of football, not only in San Diego, but throughout the entire NFL. Don Coryell was a legend not only with the Chargers but throughout San Diego. Though unfortunately he did not live long enough to see it, hopefully one day his bust will find its proper place in Pro Football’s Hall of Fame. He will be missed."
Coryell is one of the founding fathers of the modern passing game. He coached at San Diego State from 1961 to 1972 and went 104-19-2. He left the Aztecs for the NFL's St. Louis Cardinals in 1973. With Jim Hart at quarterback, the Cardinals won division titles in 1974 and '75 behind Coryell.
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Coryell returned to San Diego in 1978 when he was hired by the Chargers.
From 1978 to 1986, his Air Coryell offense -- led by quarterback Dan Fouts -- set records and led the NFL in passing almost every season. Coryell guided the Chargers to the AFC Championship Game after the 1980 and '81 seasons, but he never reached the Super Bowl.
The lack of a Super Bowl on his resume might have hurt Coryell last winter in voting for the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He was a finalist for the first time, but he wasn't selected for induction -- a source of consternation for many of his former players and assistant coaches.
Fouts, tight end Kellen Winslow and wide receiver Charlie Joiner, who made Air Coryell go, all ended up in the Hall of Fame.
"Coach Coryell deserves to be in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and it's a shame that he is not," Winslow told NFL.com in 2008. "So many offenses that are being run today are variations of Air Coryell. They call it the West Coast offense because San Francisco won Super Bowls with it, but it was a variation of what we did in San Diego. ...
"For Don Coryell to not be in the Hall of Fame is a lack of knowledge of the voters," Winslow added. "That's the nicest way that I can put that. A lack of understanding of the legacy of the game. He deserves to be there just as much as anybody else, any other coach who is in the Pro Football Hall of Fame."
Hall of Fame coach Joe Gibbs, a former Coryell assistant, agreed with Winslow.
"He had no ego, had great common sense and had an intensity for the game," Gibbs said of Coryell during a 2008 press conference at the Hall of Fame. "He was extremely creative and fostered things that are still in today's game because he was so creative. I think he's affected a lot of coaches, and I'd like to see him get in."
Coryell had a record of 111-83-1 in 14 NFL seasons. He is the first coach to win 100 games in college and pro football, and he is a member of the college Hall of Fame.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
http://www.nfl.com/news/story/09000...ers-coach-passing-guru-don-coryell-dead-at-85
Don Coryell, the innovative coach whose Air Coryell offense produced some of the most dynamic passing attacks in NFL history, has died. He was 85.
The Chargers confirmed that Coryell died Thursday at Sharp Grossmont Hospital in La Mesa, just outside of San Diego. The team didn't release the cause of death, but Coryell had been in poor health for some time.
"We are terribly saddened by the passing of Coach Coryell," Chargers president Dean Spanos said in a statement released by the team. "He revolutionized the game of football, not only in San Diego, but throughout the entire NFL. Don Coryell was a legend not only with the Chargers but throughout San Diego. Though unfortunately he did not live long enough to see it, hopefully one day his bust will find its proper place in Pro Football’s Hall of Fame. He will be missed."
Coryell is one of the founding fathers of the modern passing game. He coached at San Diego State from 1961 to 1972 and went 104-19-2. He left the Aztecs for the NFL's St. Louis Cardinals in 1973. With Jim Hart at quarterback, the Cardinals won division titles in 1974 and '75 behind Coryell.
Unlock HQ Video HQ video delivered by Akamai
Coryell returned to San Diego in 1978 when he was hired by the Chargers.
From 1978 to 1986, his Air Coryell offense -- led by quarterback Dan Fouts -- set records and led the NFL in passing almost every season. Coryell guided the Chargers to the AFC Championship Game after the 1980 and '81 seasons, but he never reached the Super Bowl.
The lack of a Super Bowl on his resume might have hurt Coryell last winter in voting for the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He was a finalist for the first time, but he wasn't selected for induction -- a source of consternation for many of his former players and assistant coaches.
Fouts, tight end Kellen Winslow and wide receiver Charlie Joiner, who made Air Coryell go, all ended up in the Hall of Fame.
"Coach Coryell deserves to be in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and it's a shame that he is not," Winslow told NFL.com in 2008. "So many offenses that are being run today are variations of Air Coryell. They call it the West Coast offense because San Francisco won Super Bowls with it, but it was a variation of what we did in San Diego. ...
"For Don Coryell to not be in the Hall of Fame is a lack of knowledge of the voters," Winslow added. "That's the nicest way that I can put that. A lack of understanding of the legacy of the game. He deserves to be there just as much as anybody else, any other coach who is in the Pro Football Hall of Fame."
Hall of Fame coach Joe Gibbs, a former Coryell assistant, agreed with Winslow.
"He had no ego, had great common sense and had an intensity for the game," Gibbs said of Coryell during a 2008 press conference at the Hall of Fame. "He was extremely creative and fostered things that are still in today's game because he was so creative. I think he's affected a lot of coaches, and I'd like to see him get in."
Coryell had a record of 111-83-1 in 14 NFL seasons. He is the first coach to win 100 games in college and pro football, and he is a member of the college Hall of Fame.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
