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Jan. 2, 2009
OXFORD, Ohio - CARL "BULL" REESE and PETER VAAS, two veterans with a combined total of 73 years of coaching experience, will serve as respective defensive and offensive coordinators for Miami University's football team, Head Coach Michael Haywood announced today.
Reese has served as a defensive coordinator for 23 of his 34 collegiate seasons, including a combined nine seasons in that role at LSU and Texas, while Vaas's resume includes eight seasons as a college head coach and six other seasons as a head coach in the National Football League's Europe League.
Haywood emphasized the experience that Reese and Vaas bring to his new staff.
"The 73 years of combined coaching experience between Bull and Peter brings an extraordinary amount of information and knowledge to our football program," Haywood said.
"I've been privileged to coach with Coach Reese at two different universities, LSU and Texas. His 34 collegiate seasons--including 23 years as a coordinator--bring a tremendous amount of experience to such a young defense. Bull is a great motivator of young men and probably the best game-day coach with whom I've ever been associated.
"As for Coach Vaas, I've had the opportunity to observe him closely over the years. He has coached running backs for Coach Lou Holtz and became a tremendous quarterbacks coach for the University of Notre Dame. His experience and knowledge will guide our offense in the appropriate direction. We're glad to have him on our staff."
CARL REESE--Defensive Coordinator
Reese, whose last coaching assignment was as defensive coordinator for Coach Mack Brown's Texas Longhorns from 1998-2003, served on the same staff with Haywood during his final season in Austin. The two men also were at LSU together from 1995 through 1997.
One of the nation's premier defensive architects, Reese transformed the Texas defensive unit into one of the nation's annual leaders. The Longhorns' aggressive attacking scheme led the nation in total defense (236.2 ypg) and ranked first in the Big 12 in rushing (89.5 ypg/sixth NCAA), passing (146.7 ypg/third NCAA) and scoring (13.7 ppg/third NCAA) defense in 2001. The Longhorns also ranked fourth nationally in pass efficiency defense (88.0 rating) that season. UT's performance made Reese one of six finalists for the Frank Broyles Award, which honors the nation's top assistant coach. Under Reese's guidance, UT improved in every statistical category over his last 77 games, boasting 95 fumble recoveries, 145 forced fumbles, 91 interceptions, 245 sacks, 751 tackles for loss, 432 pass breakups and 186 forced turnovers. During his last five seasons, the UT defense allowed only 17 runners to gain more than 100 yards and limited 30 opponents to less than 100 total yards rushing. His UT defense produced six All-Americans and numerous finalists for national individual honors, including current NFL players Quentin Jammer, Casey Hampton, Derrick Johnson, Cory Redding, D.D. Lewis and Nathan Vashar.
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Prior to his six years at Texas, Reese transformed LSU's defense into one of the SEC's best from 1995-97. The Tigers allowed just 15.3 points per game (11th nationally) and also ranked among the nation's top units in both pass efficiency defense and rushing defense. In 1995, his first season at LSU, he coordinated a defense that led the SEC and ranked sixth nationally in scoring defense. The Tigers also led the league in pass efficiency defense and ranked second in total defense. One of Reese's greatest defensive players at LSU was nose tackle Anthony McFarland.
Reese served as the defensive coordinator at Vanderbilt for four years from 1991-94, where he was responsible for overseeing a unit that shattered all of the school's quarterback sack records.
A 1966 graduate of Missouri, Reese was a tri-captain and fullback on the Tigers' 1966 Sugar Bowl Championship team. He was a three-year starter, led the Tigers in rushing in 1963 and earned Academic All-Big Seven honors as a senior.
Reese began his coaching career as a graduate assistant under Dan Devine at his alma mater in 1966. He then served as linebackers coach at Northern Michigan from 1967-68 and Southern Illinois in 1969 before taking his first defensive coordinator job at East Carolina one year later.
Reese coordinated the Pirates' defenses and served as assistant head coach for four years from 1970-73 before working in the same role at Virginia in 1974. He was linebackers coach at Kansas from 1975-76 and returned for a second stint at Missouri as defensive coordinator from 1977-81. The Tigers not only advanced to four consecutive bowl games during his time there, but they also led the nation in pass defense and ranked seventh nationally in total defense in 1981.
A native of Springfield, Missouri, Reese moved on to the professional level in 1982 when he served as the defensive coordinator for the Birmingham Stallions of the USFL until 1985. The Stallions led the USFL in rushing and passing defense in 1984 and in rushing, passing and total defense in 1985.
Reese then returned for a third stint at Missouri in 1986 as defensive coordinator before becoming the defensive coordinator at the U.S. Naval Academy from 1989-90. Having been retired since the end of the 2003 season, Reese says that he has a renewed enthusiasm and that he's anxious to get back to work in the business he loves.
"It's exciting," said Reese. "I talked to Mike and told him that I can only do so much hunting and fishing. Joining Miami's Cradle of Coaches is absolutely wonderful. As I was a young guy growing up in this business, I heard about the Cradle of Coaches. There are two things nearly every coach aspires to do--to coach at an academy and to coach at the Cradle of Coaches--and now I can say that I've done that."
He and his wife, Pamela, have two children, Jennifer and Andy, a granddaughter, Ashton, and grandson, Wayne.
PETER VAAS--Offensive Coordinator
The association between Vaas and Haywood dates back to 2005 and '06 when the two men served together on Charlie Weis's Notre Dame staff. Vaas was quarterbacks coach and Haywood was offensive coordinator during that time for the Fighting Irish.
Vaas's last appearance in the collegiate ranks was 2007 when he was the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Duke. He is extremely enthusiastic about his new assignment.
"I'm as excited as I can be," said Vaas. "When you have an opportunity to coach at as prestigious a university as Miami University is, and then to work with a first-class gentleman like Mike Haywood, you have to be ecstatic and very, very thankful, and I'm all of that. I bring several years of experience with me to Miami and I think I'll be able to instill a sense of competitiveness within our players."
During his two seasons at Notre Dame, he helped the Irish to a 19-6 record with consecutive BCS bowl game appearances -- Fiesta & Sugar. He coached record-setting All-America quarterback Brady Quinn, who won the Maxwell Trophy and Johnny Unitas Award in 2006 after throwing for 3,426 yards and 37 touchdowns. Quinn, also the recipient of the Cingular All-America Player of the Year award, twice was named Notre Dame's MVP and finished his career with school records of 11,762 passing yards and 95 touchdown passes.
Vaas served six seasons as a head coach in NFL Europe, guiding the Berlin Thunder (21-21 overall record from 2000-03) to World Bowl championships in 2001 and 2002 while earning the league's Coach of the Year honor in 2002. He then directed the Cologne Centurions (2004-05) for two seasons, compiling a 10-10 overall record. Vaas also served two seasons (1998-99) as an assistant coach for the Barcelona Dragons, helping the team to an 11-9 ledger and a berth in the 1999 World Bowl.
Prior to his coaching stints in NFL Europe, Vaas was the offensive coordinator for the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League in 1996. That season, Montreal led the CFL in rushing and fewest turnovers and posted a 12-6 regular-season ledger.
Vaas, a 1974 graduate of Holy Cross, returned to his alma mater as head football coach and registered a 14-30 overall record from 1992-95. He served under head coach Lou Holtz on the Notre Dame staff in 1990 (running backs) and 1991 (quarterbacks). In that two-year span, the Fighting Irish went 19-6, defeated seven top-25 opponents and played in the Orange and Sugar Bowls. The 1991 squad established a Notre Dame regular-season record by totaling 426 points by eclipsing the 40-point barrier in six games.
Vaas spent the previous four seasons as head football coach at Allegheny College where he compiled a 29-11-1 record from 1986-89. He guided the Gators to North Coast Athletic Conference titles in 1987 and 1988, earning league Coach of the Year honors in both of those seasons.
Prior to taking the head coaching job at Allegheny College, Vaas was a member of the coaching staff at New Hampshire as the offensive backfield coach from 1979-82 and later offensive coordinator from 1983-85. He got his start in coaching at Allegheny College where he spent five seasons (1974-78) as an assistant coach.
A native of Westwood, Massachusetts, Vaas was a three-year starter at quarterback at Holy Cross. He was enshrined into the Westwood High School Hall of Fame in 1992 and was inducted into Allegheny's Hall of Fame in 1999.
Vaas and his wife, Rosann, have two daughters, Katelyn and Kelly.
Additional members of Coach Haywood's new staff will be announced over the next two days.
--www.MURedHawks.com--
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