George O’Leary cemented his reputation as a tough-guy coach immediately after he took over at Central Florida in January 2004.
He ran off more than a dozen players who couldn’t handle his maniacal weight-lifting sessions or academic demands.
“I had to clean house,” O’Leary recalled. “Kids didn’t want to do what they had to do.”
Or, as wide receiver Brandon Marshall put it: “He weeded out the weak and strengthened the strong.”
So O’Leary is demanding, but not quite as much as reports indicate. He does not, for example, prohibit his players from wearing dreadlocks or cornrows.
“I don’t know why they say that,” he said. “I don’t allow them to wear jewelry in the games, but I think that’s an NCAA rule, anyway. Sometimes you see kids looking like they’re going out two-stepping.”
So what are the team rules?
“Be on time,” he replied. “And do what you think is right. If you have a problem, let me know about it. Don’t lie to me and try to push it off somewhere. That only makes it worse.”
To say O’Leary speaks from experience would be an understatement.
The main Knight
Early in his coaching career, O’Leary padded his resume by claiming he had played football at New Hampshire and earned a master’s degree from the school. When Notre Dame officials learned that neither was true, O’Leary lost his dream job after a five-day tenure in 2001.
Now many are calling O’Leary the nation’s coach of the year for his work at Central Florida. The Golden Knights went 0-11 last season in O’Leary’s first year. But after starting with two losses this season, they are 8-3 and will host Tulsa in Orlando on Saturday in the Conference USA title game (11 a.m., ESPN).
A victory would mean an 8 1/2-game improvement, tying the NCAA mark set by Hawaii, which went from 0-12 in 1998 to 9-4 the following season.
Like their head coach, the Golden Knights know how to come back from the brink. They have outscored their opponents 108-50 in the fourth quarter this season, an apparent result of O’Leary’s demanding ways.
Still a tough coach
Marshall recalled the time O’Leary kicked the entire team out of spring practice after barking at the players: “Football means a lot to me. And I don’t know if it means a lot to you. So get off my field!”
Marshall said O’Leary’s weight-room workouts call for constant activity. In between bench-pressing reps, coaches might demand they do crunches or sit-ups or “ball” push-ups or “up-downs.”
Said Marshall: “When Coach O’Leary came in, guys were dropping like flies–transferring, quitting, giving up. The ones who stayed are strong mentally. That’s why we’re so successful in the fourth quarter.”
Marshall said he couldn’t recall O’Leary discussing his resume discrepancy. But he said it’s a non-issue because “we believe in him.”
Looking forward
O’Leary, 59, said he tries not to look back: “They say angry people live in the past and excited people live for today.”
An Irish-Catholic who never has lost his New York accent or his love for Notre Dame, O’Leary said he still roots for the Irish.
Asked if the school treated him fairly, O’Leary replied: “Well, they had to make a decision and they felt that the damage was not controllable, I guess. I haven’t spoken to anyone at Notre Dame since the day I left. They made decisions based on the best interests of the university. I was more concerned about my family.”
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tgreenstein@tribune.com
