Marty Mornhinweg

Marty Mornhinweg (born March 29, 1962) is the offensive coordinator with the Philadelphia Eagles, having joined the Eagles in 2003 as the assistant head coach. He was named offensive coordinator on January 6, 2006, after the Eagles previous offensive coordinator Brad Childress was hired as the head coach of the Minnesota Vikings. He was the head coach of the Detroit Lions from 2001–2002.

Playing career

Early years

Mornhingweg led the Oak Grove Eagles high school varsity team to a CCS championship game in 1978 when they blew out St Francis, 52-7, for the CCS Title.^[1]

College

Mornhingweg played for four years as a starter, at quarterback, the University of Montana, where he set 15 passing records.

Professional

Denver Dynamite

Mornhinweg became the starting quarterback for the Denver Dynamite in the Arena Football League in 1987. He completed 3 of 4 passes for 30 yards and was sacked twice. Soon after Mornhinweg blew out his knee. His team, however, went on to win the inaugural ArenaBowl I with a 45-16 victory over the Pittsburgh Gladiators - a team that featured former University of Arizona Head Coach Mike Stoops.

Coaching career

College

In 1985, Mornhingweg was the coach for receivers at the University of Montana. Then, between 1988 and 1994, he was a coach at Northern Arizona (running backs), SE Missouri State (offense), Missouri (tight ends and the offensive line), and again at Northern Arizona (offense).

Professional

In 1995 and 1996, Mornhinweg was a coach with the Green Bay Packers, first as an offensive assistant, then as the quarterbacks coach. From 1997 to 2000 he was with the San Francisco 49ers, as offensive coordinator under Steve Mariucci.

During the 2001–2002 seasons, Mornhinweg was the head coach of the Detroit Lions, where he compiled a 5-27 record.

The most notable moment in Mornhinweg's history as a head coach came during a 2002 game against the Chicago Bears. The game went into overtime, and the Lions won the toss. However, Mornhinweg felt that having the wind in his favor was more important than getting the ball, despite having as his kicker Jason Hanson, who hit a then-NCAA record 62-yard field goal in his college days at Washington State University. He elected to kick rather than receive. As it turned out, the Lions never got the ball; on the Bears opening drive, Chicago scored a field goal to win the game. The decision prompted fed-up Lions fans to refer to the coach as "Marty Moron-weg". Mornhinweg's decision was that season's runner-up for the Terry Award to Dwayne Rudd's premature helmet toss celebration that cost his Cleveland Browns a victory.

Mornhinweg masterminded the Eagles offense in the final six games of the 2006 season, and into the NFC Playoffs. Coach Andy Reid gave Mornhinweg the play calling responsibilities after the Eagles' disastrous loss to the Indianapolis Colts, 45-21. The Eagles won all six games, employing a more balanced run/pass attack. The wins included an unprecedented three consecutive December divisional road games, all with a back-up quarterback, Jeff Garcia. It was the only time Reid yielded play calling responsibilities, a role Mornhinweg continued through the 2007 season.

NFL head coaching record

Personal

Mornhinweg's son, Skyler, is a quarterback at Saint Joseph's Preparatory School and committed to play football at Penn State.^[2] However, he de-committed from Penn State and instead committed to Florida.

References

External links

• Philadelphia Eagles bio
• CSS Title History
• ArenaFan bio