White’s Star Rising in Bid for Head Coach

The candidacy of Mike White continued to gain momentum and currency around the NFL Wednesday when one prominent player-agent said White has the inside track for the vacant Charger head coaching position and one NFL general manager said he couldn’t figure out why the Chargers were delaying the announcement on White.

It also has been learned that New Orleans Coach Jim Mora and former San Francisco Coach Bill Walsh strongly endorsed White to top Charger management within the past week. The Chargers have been looking to replace the fired Al Saunders since Dec. 19.

“I hear it’s going to be White,” agent Leigh Steinberg said. “And I think he’d be a fabulous head coach. The guy is amazing. And he can make guys play over their heads, which is especially important for a team that doesn’t have the highest talent level.”

“If I had to guess, I’d say the job is Mike’s,” said the general manager, who wished to remain anonymous. “Frankly, I’m surprised it has taken this long. It looks like Mike fits.”

All the Chargers will say is that White, who had winning records as a head coach at Illinois and California, is one of the finalists for the job along with Redskin assistant Dan Henning and Charger defensive coordinator Ron Lynn. The Chargers also say they are still considering Bears’ running backs coach Johnny Roland and two of their own assistants--Wayne Sevier and Jerry Rhome. Rhome is the Chargers’ offensive coordinator. Sevier runs the special teams.

But last week Mora spoke at length about White by phone to Steve Ortmayer, the Chargers’ director of football operations. In that conversation Mora recommended White highly. Ortmayer is an admirer of Mora and employs his son, Jim Mora Jr., as a defensive staff assistant. The Mora endorsement is seen as a major plus on White’s resume.

Then last week at a social gathering in Monterey, Walsh reportedly approached Charger owner Alex Spanos and told him why White was the best man for the job. White was present at the time. Spanos was playing in the Pebble Beach Pro-Am golf tournament, as was 49ers’ owner Eddie DeBartolo Jr. Walsh was there to meet with DeBartolo about the decision DeBartolo eventually reached to name George Seifert as Walsh’s replacement. At one time Seifert was a candidate for the Charger job.

Ortmayer was unavailable for comment Wednesday. He begins evaluating college talent today at the annual scouting combine workouts in Indianapolis. Spanos, who was ill with the flu Tuesday, has repeatedly referred inquiries concerning the job search to Ortmayer. The Chargers are not expected to announce their new head coach until the beginning of next week at the earliest.

White like Walsh, has made his reputation as an innovative offensive mind. He resigned his position at Illinois last January after being linked with a recruiting scandal involving Hart Lee Dykes, a wide receiver who later enrolled at Oklahoma State. Since then White has been working for Pro Scout Incorporated, a pro personnel service for NFL teams. He lives in Newport Beach.

Steinberg has represented several quarterbacks who have played for White, including New England’s Tony Eason and former Falcon Steve Bartkowski. White also helped develop NFL quarterbacks Jim Plunkett, Mike Boryla, Dave Wilson and Jack Trudeau.

One reason for the delay on naming White could stem from White’s association with Saunders. Saunders was White’s assistant at Cal in the ‘70s. Saunders became persona non grata within the Charger organization after he gained the reputation for playing inside politics. White also is a political animal. But his coaching skills and enthusiasm are unquestioned.

White already has told the Chargers he would retain Lynn as his defensive coordinator, a prerequisite for the job. But he would probably get permission from the Chargers to bring in his own offensive staff.

And, Steinberg said, “he’s the kind of guy who could attract the hot comers as assistants--guys who would be future head coaching candidates in their own right.”

Steinberg has dealt with Spanos in negotiations with Chargers players such as Jim Lachey (now a Redskin) and James FitzPatrick. And he says he thinks White and Spanos could get along. “As volatile as Spanos is, my feeling is he would slack off a little if he had total confidence in his coach,” Steinberg said. “And I think he would have that confidence in Mike White.”

Steinberg said the Chargers won’t go wrong if they hire Lynn either. “I’d be excited about that. But maybe he’s not quite ready. One day he (Lynn) will be a head coach.”