Mike Lucas: From 'retirement' to the Redskins

After 34 years at college level, ex-Badgers assistant Palermo readies for first NFL stint

Mike Lucas  —  6/04/2008 7:00 am

You don't want to use the word "rejuvenate" around Washington Redskins defensive line coach John Palermo unless you're proposing that the former University of Wisconsin assistant is looking forward to helping restore one of his former UW pupils, Erasmus James, to his youthful self and the dominating edge-rusher that he showed that he could be at times as a collegian. "When I met with him the other day, it was like old times," Palermo gushed. "His attitude was awesome."

So, yes, in this context, Palermo is hoping a change of scenery and a return to health will rejuvenate James, a former No. 1 draft choice of the Minnesota Vikings, whose productivity as a pro has been limited by knee injuries. "Ras is probably not going to be ready to go for a while," Palermo said of James, the 18th overall pick in the 2005 draft. "But every indication is that if he continues to rehab and do what he's supposed to do, he'll have a chance to be ready by the time training camp starts. He's very appreciative of getting a second chance. I think he's excited about playing for me again -- as excited as I am about coaching him again."

Now, you can get away with using the word "excitable" to describe Palermo on the practice field, as any of his former players will surely attest. And the list of great college players that Palermo has developed is quite impressive, ranging from Notre Dame's Chris Zorich, to Wisconsin's Tarek Saleh, Tom Burke, Wendell Bryant and the aforementioned James. "Other than Zorich," Palermo allowed, "James was probably the most dominant player at that time -- prior to getting injured during his senior year -- that I've ever coached."

That covers a lot of ground, considering the 56-year-old Palermo will be going into his 35th season as a coach, including a 15-year stretch with the Badgers that included three Rose Bowl triumphs. But when it was suggested that the Redskins job -- his first assignment in the National Football League -- might serve to rejuvenate his own career after spending last season at Tennessee Tech, a Division I-AA school, he reacted with a verbal forearm shiver to the notion that he needed any such additional stimulation to coach.

"You can ask those kids at Tennessee Tech -- I was rejuvenated there, and I coached my ass off," Palermo said with his trademark candor. "I went in early and stayed late. Because of the situation, I ended up doing twice as much work as I did at Miami (Fla.) or Wisconsin. They didn't have the support groups or the number of coaches that you'd have at a bigger university. It was a lot of work, but it definitely kept me on my toes. It kept me going, and it kept me young."

All in all, it was a tame and welcome respite from the turmoil of his 2006 season with the Miami Hurricanes, during which there was an ugly brawl with Florida International, the shooting death of defensive lineman Bryan Pata and the firing of head coach Larry Coker. "The problem was not with the players or the university," Palermo opined. "The problem is with Miami, period. It's such a different lifestyle. I can't tell you I enjoyed living in Miami."

On several fronts, then, Tennessee Tech was the ideal landing pad for Palermo, who was Watson Brown's first hire for his new coaching staff. The move couldn't have been more timely, given that Palermo's wife Donna was raised near the Cookeville campus and they had planned all along to build their dream home on 50 acres of land in Monroe, Tenn. "You can sit on our porch and see and hear cows," said John Palermo, who was not ready to be put to pasture himself.

Despite a Tennessee Tech press release in December that announced Palermo's retirement from coaching, he hadn't ruled out the possibility of returning to the sidelines. "I wasn't going to jump at anything, but I was definitely open-minded about getting back into coaching," he said. "The first week of February, I'm sitting at home and the phone rang and it was (Redskins defensive coordinator) Greg Blache and he asked if I would be interested in being his defensive line coach. I said, 'Sure, why not.' "

On several occasions while Palermo was coaching at Wisconsin, he had visited with Blache when he was the defensive coordinator for the Chicago Bears. Palermo had another Redskins connection: Vinny Cerrato, the team's executive vice president. Palermo and Cerrato had worked together under Lou Holtz at Notre Dame in the late '80s. One day after Palermo accepted the Washington offer, the 'Skins named Jim Zorn as their head coach, replacing Joe Gibbs. Zorn, 55, is one year younger than Palermo.

"There's hardly any difference from the coaching aspect of it," Palermo said of his transition to the NFL. "The difference is when you're sitting in a meeting room, you're talking to a 35-year-old man instead of an 18-year-old boy. But I've been very fortunate. I've got some older players -- like Phillip Daniels (35), Cornelius Griffin (31) and Andre Carter (29) -- who have been a great help to me breaking in. They're self-motivated because they're professionals."

It didn't hurt, either, that Blache coached the D-line, Palermo said. "Greg has done a great job with these guys and we believe in the same things," he said. "It was a real simple transition for me because he's a strong disciplinarian, he's a tough guy, and he coaches them hard. So, they were already used to my style of coaching. Right now, I'm just trying to learn as much as I can, day by day. I believe this: if you're good at what you do, and you work hard, things will work out."

More trademark Palermo: "I've always considered myself a college football coach," he went on. "I guess if you do that for 34 years that's what you are in reality. But this has given me the opportunity to go to a different level. And I'm going on four months now as an NFL coach, and it has been great, awesome. This is something I couldn't pass up."

Mike Lucas  —  6/04/2008 7:00 am