Sunday, January 11, 1998

Barry Switzer: 'I knew it was time'

By Josie Karp / Knight-Ridder Newspapers

IRVING, Texas -- Former Cowboys coach Barry Switzer said he felt one overriding emotion when he woke up Friday morning.

"Relief," he said.

With the load of four tumultuous seasons off his mind, Switzer spent the early afternoon packing his car to head back to Oklahoma at the same time Cowboys owner Jerry Jones was at Valley Ranch announcing his coach's resignation.

"I knew it was time (to resign) with about two games left," Switzer said in an interview with the Star-Telegram at his Coppell home five minutes from team headquarters. "I told Jerry and (Vice President Stephen Jones.) They knew."

Switzer said he would have preferred an announcement immediately after the season to quiet the media storm. "The media (were) tearing us apart," he said.

Instead, it took media reports on Friday of his coach's resignation before Jerry Jones called a news conference announcing the foregone conclusion: Switzer wasn't his coach anymore.

"We have come to the realization that we must chart a fresh, new path toward returning this team toward the level ... of being a Super Bowl team," Jones said.

He would not reveal a timetable for hiring Switzer's replacement. He refused to discuss how he will conduct a search or what qualifications he's looking for in a coach.

"I have a great plan," Jones said. "I want someone with magic, spark, a good touch, someone who can energize the team. Those are very important ingredients and I will find that type of individual."

Switzer's resignation ends a turbulent four-year tenure. It came on a day that started with the type of comical episode that marked his reign. Switzer couldn't get his access code at Valley Ranch to work. It wasn't until someone heard him banging on the door that he got in to team headquarters.

Switzer said he spent his last evening as Cowboys head coach at the Cowboys offices "watching film with (public relations director) Rich Dalrymple, talking, crying and laughing."

He then went home and stayed up for another two hours watching family home videos.

On Friday morning, he talked with Jones and his coaching staff. He said he offered a recommendation to Jones for his successor, but declined to name that person. He said Jones "doesn't know yet" who he will name to succeed him.

The coach most commonly mentioned as a possible successor, former San Francisco 49ers coach George Seifert, is free of his 49ers contract on Feb. 1. Switzer said he strongly doubted that Seifert would be hired to replace him.

Switzer said he believes that most, if not all, of the Cowboys defensive coaches will maintain their jobs when a new coach takes over. Jones has extended the contracts of at least two assistant coaches, but will not reveal their names. Switzer said he talked to the offensive coaches and made it clear that their jobs are probably in jeopardy.

Switzer said he discussed with Jones ways in which they will maintain their friendship and business associations outside of football.

According to the terms of his resignation, Switzer will not have any role with the team. He said he was comfortable with his decision but said he had not reached a financial settlement with Jones.

"We haven't talked about it," Switzer said. "That's something we'll do later. I'm still on the payroll." He has two years left on his contract that pays him approximately $1 million per year.

Jones, however, said he had reached an agreement with Switzer.

"We settled on his contract," Jones said. "I've known him for 37 years. We will still have a personal, ongoing friendship. His ledger is square with me."

Jones made it clear that he will stay active in all aspects of the football operation and that the new coach must be comfortable with that arrangement.

"It will be someone who can work within a system that works," Jones said. "The philosophy we have and how we approach football is why we've had three Super Bowl wins (under his ownership)."

The only person Jones has ruled out as coach is himself.

Before hiring Switzer in 1994, Jones said there were up to 500 coaches who could take the Cowboys to the Super Bowl. On Friday, he said that pool was considerably smaller because of the demands of rebuilding a 6-10 team stripped of 31 players in the past four years by free agency.

He made it clear, however, that he expects the new coach to take the Cowboys to a Super Bowl soon, despite the fact the Cowboys are 17-17 over the past two seasons.

"I am not expecting us to take a very long road back to the top," Jones said.

Players varied in their reaction.

"We need a change at the leadership helm to help get us going into a different direction," defensive tackle Chad Hennings said.

Offensive guard Larry Allen, however, said the players should be held responsible. "I thought it was our fault," Allen said. "We've got to do a better job."

Switzer's final year as Cowboys coach began on an embarrassing note. Switzer was arrested before the start of the season for carrying a loaded gun through D/FW Airport. After that incident, Jones fined him $75,000 and refused to talk about Switzer's job status beyond the 1997 season.

After the final game, a loss to the New York Giants, Switzer said he wasn't sure if he wanted to return next year.

Jones praised Switzer's work as the head coach while acknowledging that the team needed a change in leadership. He stopped short of blaming Switzer for the team's recent failures.

"It would be very unfair for me to say that our shortcomings on the field over the last two years are solely the responsibility of one coach," he said.

After winning the Super Bowl after the 1995 season, the Cowboys began a steady decline, culminating in five consecutive losses to end the 1997 season.

"Why we have not (gone to the Super Bowl) in the past two seasons is a burden every member of this organization shares," Jones said. "It is certainly not something that can be laid at the feet of one individual. ... Still, I know that a change can often times bring about a refreshing new attitude that can re-energize and refocus a group of people."

Switzer started the newest phase of his life -- his second stint during his adult life that will not be spent as a football coach -- with a trip. He left for Oklahoma on Friday afternoon for a visit with family and friends.

He plans to see his son, Greg, perform a piano recital in Missouri on Tuesday. And, on Wednesday, he'll escape to a popular Mexican beach resort. "I'm going to Cabo ( San Lucas)," he said.

---

(c) 1998, Fort Worth Star-Telegram

Visit the Star-Telegram on the World Wide Web: www.startext.net; www.arlington.net; and www.netarrant.net.

Distributed by Knight-Ridder/Tribune Information Services.