MUSIC CITY BOWL

Allure of ACC, U of L attracted McGee

Jeff Greer

@jeffgreer_cj

It's been three lesson-filled years since Garrick McGee accepted the head coaching job at the University of Alabama-Birmingham and told The Birmingham News that he wanted to be a head coach "for the rest of my life."

McGee's Blazers lost 19 games in two seasons, the program underwent several significant changes and he eventually came to a realization. Perhaps coaching at the highest level is his calling, more so than simply being a head coach somewhere.

In his first year as the University of Louisville football team's offensive coordinator, McGee rediscovered the winning taste coaching alongside his mentor, Bobby Petrino. U of L, which plays against Georgia in the Dec. 30 Belk Bowl in Charlotte, won nine games and found its offensive mojo midway through the season.

"It was a difficult season because we had so much change this year," McGee said. "It was a lot going on. We have, as a staff, the confidence in our system. We really believe in the way we teach it, and our kids did a good job of trusting what we're teaching."

When McGee joined Petrino's staff in January, he made it abundantly clear why he left UAB, which has since folded its program. It helped that he got a raise to come here, but he wanted to compete for national and Atlantic Coast Conference titles.

That's a steep hill to climb when Clemson and Florida State play in the same division as U of L, but the Cardinals showed this fall that they are aren't so far away from those programs.

Louisville took both of those teams to the brink, including six-point loss at Clemson after a turnover on downs inside Clemson's 10-yard line with less than a minute to play.

Against FSU, Louisville's offense steam-rolled to an early 21-0 lead, only to watch FSU's offense, led by 2013 Heisman Trophy winner Jameis Winston, score 35 second-half points and win 42-31.

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A former quarterback who played for Petrino at Arizona State and eventually transferred to Oklahoma, McGee tutored three different quarterbacks this season and oversaw significant progress on Louisville's offensive line. The Cardinals also had four different running backs surpass 100 rushing yards in a game.

Much of the credit's gone to Petrino, who's revered in the college football community as one of the best offensive coaches in the game. But U of L's players say McGee, as Petrino's right-hand man, has made his own impact, offering more in-depth critiques of each position group and offensive player.

"Coach McGee is the direct messenger for (Petrino)," senior offensive lineman Jamon Brown said. "He leads us in the right direction. He's a heck of a coach."

Asked to reflect on the 2014 regular season, Petrino said his team had three or four personalities this year. To the surprise of many, including McGee and Petrino, Louisville began the season as a defense-first team. The running game ebbed and flowed, and quarterback play struggled at times. The offensive line was the target of most of the fan angst.

But the second half of the season saw drastic changes, and Petrino credited his coaching staff for that.

"The coaches have done a great job of being positive, working on improvement and trusting our process," Petrino said.

McGee sounds a lot like Petrino when he talks about this season. He wouldn't have returned to coach alongside Petrino if he didn't think that "process" would lead to wins.

The last time they coached together, McGee and Petrino led Arkansas to some of its best offensive performances in program history. Before Arkansas, Petrino did the same thing for U of L during his first tenure.

McGee wanted that feeling again, that chance to produce and win at that level, and Petrino gave him the opportunity. It started a little rocky, but McGee sees smoother rides ahead.

"We have a way of coaching the system – it's just the system that we really believe in," McGee said. "We have a lot of confidence in the way we teach it."

Reach U of L beat writer Jeff Greer at (502) 582-4044 and follow him on Twitter (@jeffgreer_cj).

BELK BOWL

GEORGIA VS. LOUISVILLE

6:30 p.m., Dec. 30, Charlotte, N.C.

TV: ESPN