Updated Jan. 14, 2010 Mike Riley has rightfully been credited with the rebirth of Oregon State football. The 57-year-old head coach has guided the Beavers to six bowl games in the last seven years, winning five, and started the rejuvenation of the program during his first tenure in 1997-98 that subsequently made three postseason appearances. A member of the American Football Coaches Association's (AFCA) Board of Trustees and Ethics Committee, Riley is the second winningest coach in Beaver football history with 64 victories - 10 short of matching Lon Stiner's (1933-48) total. His resume sparkles with achievements, including the 2008 AFCA and Pac-10 Conference Coach of the Year. The Beavers are the only team to finish in the top three of the Pac-10 standings in each of the last four seasons and have appeared in the final Associated Press top-25 rankings in three of the last four years. The tenth-year head coach has also led his team to outstanding success in the classroom, where over the last three years Beavers have been honored by the Pac-10 for academic achievement 35 times. He's also developed future NFL players with 20 draftees (as of Jan. 2010) since his second arrival in 2003 and only USC has had more than OSU's 61 all-conference selections. Riley is the first coach in OSU history to win more than one NCAA-sanctioned bowl game at OSU, capturing the 2003 Las Vegas Bowl, the 2004 Insight Bowl, the 2006 and 2008 Sun Bowls, and the 2007 Emerald Bowl titles. He also is the first coach to lead the program to more than one winning conference season (5-3 in '04, 6-3 in '06, 6-3 in '07, 7-2 in '08 and 6-3 in `09) since 1969. In 2009, Riley and his staff had a monumental task of replacing nearly every starter on defense and a total of seven NFL draftees. The Beavers not only qualified for a bowl game, but also for the second straight year played the season finale for the opportunity to receive the Rose Bowl berth. A league-high seven Beavers earned first team All-Pac-10 honors and the team finished higher than the preseason predictions for the fourth consecutive year. The 2008 Beavers lost more starters than any other Pac-10 team, but Riley and his staff found replacements within the program to turn what was expected to be a rebuilding year into a 9-4 season and the program's second-best ever mark in the Pac-10 Conference at 7-2 (tied for second). All of this while playing a schedule that was considered one of the toughest in the nation that included three BCS bowl teams (USC, Utah, Penn State). The keynote victory of the season was a 27-21 win over then No. 1 USC Sept. 25 -- at the time the Beavers were unranked. The season culminated with a 3-0 victory over No. 18 Pittsburgh in the Sun Bowl, a game OSU played without two of the team's top three offensive weapons - Pac-10 Offensive MVP and All-America running back Jacquizz Rodgers and his brother receiver James Rodgers. The team ended the year No. 18 in the final Associated Press Poll and No. 19 in the USA Today. His 2007 team won seven of the final eight games on the way to a 9-4 mark, just one game behind co-Pac-10 champions USC and Arizona State at 6-3 in the league. The team won at No. 2 California when a Bear victory would have moved them to No. 1 and beat No. 18 Oregon in Eugene. The defensive unit finished first in the nation against the run and accumulated the most yards lost via tackles than any other team in the Football Bowl Subdivision. The 2006 team became only the second club in OSU history to capture at least 10 victories - winning eight of the last nine, including defeating No. 3 USC, No. 24 Hawai'i and Oregon. To cap one of the best seasons in school history, the Beavers won a thrilling game over Missouri (39-38) in arguably the best Sun Bowl ever played. The final summary of the season showed OSU finishing third in the Pac-10, just one game behind co-winners USC and California. In 2004 the team accepted the challenge of playing both the '03 defending national champions, the eventual 2004 national champions and faced one of the most difficult schedules overall in the nation. The team fought through early setbacks before defeating Oregon in the annual Civil War in then record fashion. The victory over the archrivals propelled OSU to a convincing 38-21 victory over Notre Dame in the 16th annual Insight Bowl. The Beavers closed 2004 winning six of their final seven games and pushing Orange Bowl/National champion USC to the wire. The hometown boy--he attended Corvallis High School--returned to the Beaver sideline for the second time and led the program to the 2003 Las Vegas Bowl title. His '03 team set numerous individual and team records, and led the Pac-10 Conference for both offense and defense. He followed up the '03 team's success by signing the program's best ever recruiting class, according to several scouting organizations. Riley left Oregon State after the 1998 season to pursue a unique opportunity to become the head coach of the National Football League's San Diego Chargers. He spent four years in the NFL, returning to Oregon State after a one-year stint as an assistant with the New Orleans Saints. Riley was a popular choice when he was originally hired for the position in late December of 1996 and was equally as popular upon his hiring the second time. Riley calls Corvallis his hometown, although he was born in Wallace, Idaho. He grew up watching Beaver football, as his father Bud was an assistant coach for the program from 1965-72 and again in 1979. Mike was a standout quarterback at Corvallis High School, leading the Spartans to the 1970 state title. Riley, who already had coaching in his blood at a young age, made the decision to continue playing the sport in college at the University of Alabama for legendary coach Paul "Bear" Bryant. He played cornerback from 1971-74, helping the Tide to four Southeastern Conference titles and the 1973 national championship. Riley immediately launched a successful coaching career following his graduation from Alabama. His first stop was as a defensive graduate assistant coach for Mike White at the University of California in 1975. He helped the Bears to an 8-3 record and a share of the Pacific-8 Conference title, the first and only for the program since the Pac-8/10 Conference was formed in 1968. He continued his education and his coaching in 1976 at Whitworth College in Spokane, Wash. He finished his master's degree in physical education in 1977 while working for the popular Pacific Northwest coach and future Canadian Football League legend Hugh Campbell. Riley's first full-time appointment came at NAIA powerhouse Linfield College in McMinnville, Ore. From 1977-82 he served as the program's defensive coordinator and secondary coach, as well as assistant athletic director. Riley assisted head coach Ad Rutschman's Wildcats to a six-year record of 52-7-1, which included five conference titles and the 1982 undefeated NAIA title team. An opportunity to coach in the professional ranks presented itself following the '82 season, and Riley was on his way to the Canadian Football League's Winnipeg Blue Bombers as the secondary coach. During his three-years as an assistant, Winnipeg produced a 32-15-1 mark and won the 1984 Grey Cup title. Riley returned to the college level in 1986 as an assistant coach at the University of Northern Colorado, before being named the youngest coach in CFL history in 1987 with Winnipeg at 33-years of age. Riley guided the Bombers to two Grey Cup titles (1988, '90) and was named the CFL's Coach of the Year in those seasons. He was inducted into the club's Hall of Fame June 13, 2007. In 1991 Riley took over the San Antonio Riders of the World Football League, spending two seasons before the league suspended its North American operations. He returned to the college ranks in 1993 when then USC head coach John Robinson offered him the position of offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach - he later became assistant head coach. The Mesa (Ariz.) Tribune named him the league's top assistant coach in 1993 after leading the Trojan offense to record setting numbers. Then USC quarterback Rob Johnson earned numerous Pac-10 and NCAA records, and would later become a first-round draft pick. Riley remained at USC through the 1997 season, helping the Trojans to victories in the Rose, Cotton, and Freedom Bowls. USC won one outright league title, shared another and finished second one time. In addition, Riley has been the head coach for three postseason all-star games - the Hula Bowl, East-West Shrine Game and Blue-Gray All-Star Classic. Mike and his wife Dee are the parents of one son, Matthew, and one daughter, Kate. Matthew, an OSU graduate, is currently employed within the Beaver Athletic Department as a video specialist and Kate is a senior at OSU. Mike's brother, Edward Riley, is a physician and Associate Professor at the Stanford University School of Medicine. Riley is under contract at OSU through at least 2019 - his contract rolls over one year for every time the team plays in a bowl game. His success at all levels is well documented. Riley has earned the respect of players, coaches, media and fans. He has been called the savior of Oregon State football and the future continues to look bright for the Orange and Black. Assignment: Head Coach Year at OSU: 10th Hometown: Corvallis, Oregon Education: 1977, Master's in Physical Education from Whitworth College 1975, Bachelor's of Social Science from the Univ. of Alabama Wife: Dee Children: Matthew and Kate Year Record Accomplishment 1997 3-8 Total revamp of the program 1998 5-6 Best OSU record in 27 years 2003 8-5 Las Vegas Bowl Champions 2004 7-5 Insight Bowl Champions 2005 5-6 Five First Team All-Pac-10 selections 2006 10-4 Sun Bowl Champions 2007 9-4 Emerald Bowl Champions 2008 9-4 Sun Bowl Champions 2009 8-5 Las Vegas Bowl participant Total 64-47 Posted by Paul Buker, The Oregonian August 09, 2009 It was esteemed sportswriter Bud Withers of the Seattle Times who asked coach Riley the other day if he had ever been in a coaching situation where he had this much 'continuity' - a word that football coaches love to throw around but rarely achieve to their liking. And Riley said, as the countdown began to another camp and the unwrapping of this 2009 Oregon State team, no. ... not even close. In his ninth OSU season, in the town he grew up in, hard by the same stadium where his father toiled for Dee Andros, Mike Riley has found a slice of coaching heaven. He loves this staff he has put together, and realizes how blessed he is that most of this football 'family' has been working shoulder to shoulder for years. As an example, Riley talked about how appreciative he is of defensive coordinator Mark Banker, who is well-respected in college football, has been in the NFL, and could certainly go 'big time' if he chose. "He could have gone a lot of places, and I'm thankful he stayed,'' said Riley, "because he's as much 'this program' as I am, in every way.'' Riley said the OSU program is blessed to have an offensive line coach with the talent of Mike Cavanaugh, and a linebackers' coach with the 24-7 motor of Greg Newhouse, and an offensive coordinator like Danny Langsdorf who has a tremendous gift for relating to young QBs, and a tough-love D-line taskmaster like Joe Seumalo, and oh yes, the Beavers also boast a guy (special teams coach Bruce Read) who was working for the Dallas Cowboys last year. It goes on and on throughout an organization that Riley knows is filled with "good people'' - all the way from grade school chums Jay Locey and Gary Beck to grad assistant Ryan Gunderson to new arrival (but familiar face) Robin Ross, whose Western Washington program folded, allowing Riley the luxury to bring him on as an infinitely qualified grad assistant for tight ends. Oregon State is one of only 10 programs to be ranked in the AP Top 25 at the end of the season for three years running ... media picked the Beavers are picked fourth this season, and I'm afraid some of the players think they've been low-balled because they feel like this could be a special year. As they have said repeatedly over the web, '09, OUR TIME.' OSU is getting more pre-season love (maybe because of the Rodgers brothers) than it has since 2001, and while there aren't many pundits who think this team will make another serious run to the Rose Bowl, most of them agree the Beavers will be formidable in their own way, even more dangerous if they get through their September schedule unblemished. The respect for Oregon State football - helped immensely by that ESPN upset of No. 1-ranked USC last September - has gone national and Riley knows it certainly isn't because of the work of one man. "I've got a lot of 'em (coaches who could get 'bigger' jobs) like that and as long as we continue (to keep them at OSU) we've got a chance to help these kids be the best they can be,'' he said. There is a 'foundation' at OSU that gives everyone from coaches, to players, to fans, to the media a feeling that even in a year when the Beavers lose eight defensive starters, and must replace some terrific offensive players such as WR Sammie Stroughter, that somehow, some way, this is going to be a very good team. Continuity? Riley sees it up and down his program, and he hopes it lasts a long, long time. "This really feels great,'' he said, "and I'm thankful for it, and I realize what a passed up a chance for nine years ago (when he took the NFL Chargers' job) but I try not to regret it.'' What Riley 'passed up' was a chance to REALLY turn OSU around in the late 90's but who is to say what would have happened if he had stayed past the 1998 season and hit a few roadblocks? Maybe he gets fired, and history is re-written. No, said Riley, there must have been a reason the man upstairs decided he would leave his first head coaching job, take a three-year detour in San Diego, and hang in limbo for a season in New Orleans while he tried mightily to get back to the west coast. The NFL? Over it. "I wouldn't do it again,'' said Riley, laughing. He is older, and smarter, and he knows - truly knows now - what can happen when a coach and his assistants are allowed some breathing room and job security. In the six years since Riley came back (starting in 2003) the Beavers have risen to the upper echelon of a very tough Pac-10 and gone 10-4, 9-4, and 9-4 since 2006. Riley doesn't often beat USC or the 'big time' programs for recruits, but that doesn't seem to matter. Those one, two, and three-star players who signed letters of intent with OSU because they were totally ignored by the likes of USC or UCLA started looking like bluechippers when they became seniors. The winning, and the increased national exposure, attracted better talent. The 'system' is now firmly in place. "I didn't really understand, until about two years ago, what that time really means,'' said Riley. "What it really means to have seniors become leaders. .. because in order to do that, it takes time to get all that in place.'' As Riley notes, when players are allowed to grow, and get better, in the same system with the same coaches, wonderful things can happen when they are junior or senior starters. ... and when those kids turn into men, when those kids start taking on more responsibility, when those kids start taking 'ownership' of their team and their program, they become role models themselves... And the newest class of freshmen come in and quickly learn to pay attention. ... they study their peers, and they learn ... So you get to a point, said Riley, where the guys who do the best recruiting job, the guys who REALLY sell the program most effectively, are the players themselves. There is very little b.s. thrown at 'star' players when they hit the OSU campus on a recruiting trip. Either they fit, or they don't. ... and often times, players aren't shy about telling Riley who doesn't deserve to put on that OSU jersey. "They (the older players) get it, and therefore they are part of the teaching models and they pass it on to the younger guys,'' said Riley. "It's become very comfortable for me to say, (to a young OLB, for instance), "if you really wanna know this thing they you follow Keaton Kristick around for a week and he'll show you. That's what I tell the freshmen.'' How much does 'continuity' mean to Mike Riley? Consider what he told us, five days before the start of camp. With the knowledge that he and his staff will be around for a long time, Riley said, "we're gonna have bumps in the road, and I don't know where we're going to be football-wise but we have a chance for much more stability, we have a chance for a much greater understanding for what's expected of our players on and off the field. ... this has been an enlightenment for me, and I appreciate it more than ever, and that's why I fight for 'term' in my contract, not anything else. ... because I think it's really important.'' And yeah, Riley knows that tremendous feeling of security and 'continuity' could disappear after a couple blowout losses, or a rash of injuries, or some untoward off-field hijinx, or another debacle against the Ducks. It's the nature of the business but for now, right this minute, you couldn't pry Riley away from his VC office overlooking Reser Stadium for all the money in the world. He doesn't want another job. "I just want to make this better,'' he said of the OSU program has has built. "I can live my life right here and get all the problems and all the satisfaction I need.'' The man loves his work, and loves what he and his staff have built and continue to build. Come to practice tomorrow afternoon (2 p.m. start, Prothro Field) and see what I mean. Mike Riley will be the happiest guy on the field, because another football season has finally begun, and he's found the closest thing to football heaven in a little college town that will never be mistaken for Baton Rouge, or Ann Arbor, or State College, Pa. but contains everything Riley holds dear. |
 
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