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BILL WALSH 1931-2007
'The Genius' dies at 75
Walsh got his start as an assistant coach with the Bengals
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
GEORGETOWN, Ky.— Bill Walsh, the Hall of Fame coach who led the San Francisco 49ers to three Super Bowl titles and originated the West Coast Offense as a Cincinnati Bengals assistant from 1968-75, died at his Bay Area home Monday following a long battle with leukemia. He was 75.
"Bill's record speaks for itself," Bengals president Mike Brown said. "He was the top coach in the NFL during his time in San Francisco (1979-88). During his eight years on our coaching staff, he brought imagination and ideas to the game.
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"He was a tremendous part of our staff, and we were lucky to have him. He set a mark on the game that is admired by everyone, and he will be greatly missed."
Walsh, nicknamed "The Genius," created an innovative scheme for Bengals quarterback Virgil Carter in 1970 after Greg Cook suffered a career-ending shoulder injury.
"They had Greg Cook as a pocket passer and ended with a little guy, with not a strong arm, who liked to move out of the pocket when harm was on the way," Carter said from Helendale, Calif. "So Bill designed a controlled, scramble, movement, possession-type passing game. It was out of necessity to suit my strengths."
Walsh was the architect of the Bengals offense as a member of head coach Paul Brown's original staff, but the two had a bitter falling out in 1976 when Brown chose Bill "Tiger" Johnson as his successor.
Walsh left Cincinnati for stints with the San Diego Chargers and Stanford before the 49ers hired him to rebuild the franchise in 1979.
"Bill pushed us all to be perfect," 49ers Hall of Fame quarterback Joe Montana said. "That's all he could handle as a coach, and he taught all of us to be the same way."
He is survived by his wife, Geri, and two children, Craig and Elizabeth. Walsh's son, Steve, an ABC News reporter, died of leukemia at age 46 in 2002.
b>Walsh by the numbers
102-63-1 record in 10 seasons (1979-1988)
Led San Francisco 49ers to three Super Bowl titles (1981, 1984, 1988)
Won 10 of 14 playoff games
Won 6 NFC West titles
Elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame (1993)
Seven assistants later became NFL head coaches (Mike Holmgren, Mike White, Ray Rhodes, Sam Wyche, Bruce Coslet, George Seifert, Dennis Green)
Creator of the West Coast offense (in Cincinnati) utilizing short passing attack
