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Pastimes : The new NFL -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: calgal who wrote (3137)	1/17/2003 12:04:17 AM
From: calgal	Respond to of 89687

Get in the playoffs? Get out of town URL:http://www.bayarea.com/mld/mercurynews/4957981.htm BAY AREA COACHES OF MAJOR PRO TEAMS RAPIDLY DEPARTING DESPITE SUCCESSES By Bud Geracie Mercury News Steve Mariucci's dismissal from the 49ers on Wednesday completed a remarkable upheaval in which the leading men of the Bay Area's six major pro sports teams have departed in the past 12 months. More remarkable, five of the six teams were coming off seasons in which they had qualified for the playoffs. So, what's up with that? It depends on whom you ask, but everyone agrees on one thing: ``This is amazing, to have that much success and that much turnover in that period of time,'' said former A's owner Wally Haas. ``It's awfully odd, that's for sure,'' said Corey Busch, a former Giants executive and a 32-year resident of the Bay Area. ``It's pretty stunning,'' said sports agent Leigh Steinberg, a Bay Area resident since 1966. ``It's an unprecedented occurrence to have that level of coaching upheaval against the backdrop of that level of success. This may never be replicated again.'' The exodus began Feb. 18 when Jon Gruden, after coaching the Raiders to within one controversial play of the conference championship game, bolted for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. In July, the Warriors, after their eighth losing season in a row, formally relieved Brian Winters of his duties by introducing Eric Musselman as their new coach. In October, after a 103-win season and a third consecutive postseason appearance, the A's happily let Manager Art Howe jump to the New York Mets. In November, after coming to within five outs of a World Series championship, the Giants pulled the plug on contract negotiations with Manager Dusty Baker. On Dec. 1, in a good old-fashioned firing, the Sharks canned Coach Darryl Sutter, who had presided over six consecutive seasons of improvement and the team's first Pacific Division title in 2001. And then, on Wednesday, Mariucci fell. Six up, six down. ``It's a fascinating fluke,'' said San Francisco-based sports agent Steven Kay, whose clientele includes former 49ers coaches George Seifert and Bill Walsh. ``One of the common threads is that success on the field no longer is enough,'' said Steinberg. ``The traditional tenet that winning is everything no longer rules the day. Now there is structural conflict, personality conflict, comfort level -- a variety of factors not related to winning.'' Such was the case with Mariucci, who was fired despite a 22-10 record over the past two seasons. Like Mariucci -- hired by Eddie DeBartolo and fired by John York -- Sutter was the victim of an ownership change. When the Sharks stumbled out of the gate this season, in large part because of contract holdouts, the new owners displayed little patience with a a coach they had inherited. Like Mariucci, Howe never won over the general manager who didn't hire him. Like Mariucci, Baker had a deteriorating personal relationship with the owner. ``When there is a fundamental difference in philosophy,'' said Kay, ``there has to be overriding success.'' And success is defined differently in the Bay Area than in most other places. One explanation: Next to the New York-New Jersey area, no market has a greater number of teams chasing an ever-shrinking number of dollars. Another: One of those teams is the 49ers. ``Five world championships is a big deal as a backdrop for every other club in the area,'' said Giants Vice President Larry Baer. ``And without playing amateur psychologist, maybe the reason tensions get so high between coaches and management is because both are feeling such pressure to get to that standard.''