COACHES: LLOYD CARR : Old-Fashioned Values, Fatherly Demeanor Leave a Lasting Impression on Sons of Michigan

Lloyd Carr does not come across as a warm and fuzzy guy. His serious demeanor suggests he takes a dry, businesslike approach to what, after all, has become a big business.

Yet when the Michigan Wolverines visited Knott’s Berry Farm last week, there was the stolid, 52-year-old coach of the country’s top-ranked college football team standing beside a maize-and-blue uniformed Snoopy and grinning as cameras captured the moment.

If that picture is ever displayed at Schembechler Hall in Ann Arbor, Carr’s image could be shot.

“I’ll take some kidding for that,” he said. “But that’s OK.”

Carr may not be as warm and fuzzy as a cartoon mascot, but neither is he a dour, single-minded general as he has been portrayed.

Carr stepped into an awkward situation, taking over as interim coach in May 1995 after Gary Moeller resigned under pressure following a drunken scuffle in a restaurant near Detroit. Carr, who had worked his way up from coach of the defensive backs to defensive coordinator and assistant head coach, wasn’t the consensus pick to succeed Moeller--which he understood.

“Michigan is a great program and any time an assistant coach is promoted, particularly from within, there’s always room for debate,” he said. “I would not have felt my career was unsuccessful if I never became a head coach. Whether I’d still be at Michigan, I don’t know.”

Michigan conducted a search that sifted through 40-50 applicants but stuck with Carr, who was hired Nov. 13, 1995. And since feeling his way through two inconsistent seasons that ended with bowl-game losses, he has put his imprint on a team that earned a Rose Bowl berth with its first undefeated season since 1971 and is seeking its first national title since 1948.

Carr transformed a passive defense that simply dared opposing quarterbacks to throw, into a young, aggressive unit unfazed by duress. He recruited players with athleticism and speed, not merely bulk, and gave defensive coordinator Jim Herrmann freedom to change the defensive philosophy. He also let Charles Woodson talk him into playing both ways, capitalizing on the unique abilities that produced Woodson’s Heisman Trophy season.

“The first couple of seasons, it really wasn’t his team,” quarterback Brian Griese said. “It wasn’t his recruits. He’s had more input since then.

“I have a lot of respect for him and I think a lot of the reason we’re here is him.”

Said offensive tackle Jeff Backus, “A lot of coaches play a lot of mind games, but he’s straightforward with you and always tells you the truth. . . . When I was getting recruited, he was the only head coach I thought was sincere. He takes a big part in the recruiting process, which is good too. And he has a relationship with everybody. He knows everybody’s names.”

Are there coaches who don’t?

“I won’t comment on that,” Carr said. “I just know that to be successful in what I see as my role in helping kids grow and mature, I certainly can’t do that if I don’t know their names.”

Carr’s name found its way onto a truckload of trophies and plaques this season, including the Bear Bryant coach-of-the-year award. But the greatest testimony to his achievements may not be a victory over Washington State on Thursday. It may be the accolades he has won from his players, compliments so warm they’re difficult to believe in an era when some players would just as soon choke their coaches as praise them.

“Coach Carr is really almost like you would think of your father,” offensive tackle Jon Jansen said. “You could always trust your father and believe in your father and that’s how we think of him.

“Different guys need different motivation, and he’s a great judge of personality and does a good job figuring out how to deal with each guy.”

Freshman fullback Demetrius Smith was recruited by Notre Dame, Ohio State, Iowa and Nebraska but picked Michigan because Carr and assistant Fred Jackson made him feel “at home.”

He described Carr as “a players’ coach,” adding, “He cares about the players on and off the field, about how you’re doing academically and not just football. If he sees you in Schembechler Hall, he’ll ask how you’re doing in class. I came here because of the way he treated players and everything that he believes in.”

Carr’s beliefs stem from old-fashioned values: hard work, respect for those who give honest efforts, and a conviction that players will sacrifice their egos for a common goal if they’re trusted and made to feel important.

“My background is as a teacher and as a father [of six], and I think the most important thing a young man can take out of the college experience is a degree and the maturity he gains in making good decisions and preparing himself for life after college,” said Carr, a Tennessee native who was the backup quarterback on Missouri’s 1966 Sugar Bowl championship team and later was Northern Michigan’s quarterback in an undefeated season.

“There are a lot more important things to the experience than just football,” he said. “Football is very important, but it’s a game. . . . My view is that I would like to help guys that I coach to grow as people and help them be as successful as they can while they’re at Michigan and hopefully prepare them for a successful future where they can contribute to our society.”

Can such noble ideas survive in the high-stakes world of college football?

“That depends on your philosophy as a coach,” he said. “I want to win. I want to be successful. That’s the kind of player we want to recruit, a guy who wants an education and wants to be the best he can be. Hopefully, you keep those things in perspective.

“What I try to do is [teach them] pressure is a part of it. It’s a part of coaching and it’s a part of playing. My own view is that you help players embrace the pressure of playing in a high-profile program but you do it in such a way that you don’t make it a life-and-death situation.

“I don’t worry about the wins and losses. If you have a good foundation, they will take care of themselves. I want to be able to walk away someday and know I was true to my own values as a person and as a coach.”

It couldn’t have been easy to retain those values in his first two seasons, when the Wolverines took perfect records into games against Northwestern and lost each time, then fell into late-season slumps.

They lost two of their final four conference games in 1995, then lost in the Alamo Bowl to Texas A&M; and finished ranked 17th. Last season, they lost to Purdue and Penn State before defeating Michigan State, but lost to Alabama in the Outback Bowl and were ranked 20th.

Their schedule this season was rated as rigorous. Although it didn’t play out that way, because Notre Dame and Colorado didn’t have great seasons, Carr knew critics would pounce on him if the Wolverines faltered.

“Michigan is one of those special places where expectations are tremendously high,” he said. “I don’t think anyone can consistently meet those expectations because the expectations are that you win every game, and that’s not going to happen.

“But I think places like this are fun to coach because it brings out your best and you want to meet expectations, but you have to be realistic.”

The Wolverines weren’t expected to be 11-0, yet they achieved it with little apparent difficulty, scoring at least 20 points in every game and holding opponents to single figures seven times.

“We discussed the schedule before the season started,” Carr said. “We knew there was not one game on there that we couldn’t win, but there were a lot of them that we could lose. The key was to be prepared every week.”

The Wolverines can apply the final successful flourish to their season Thursday. And although Carr has driven them through tough workouts, including two-a-days in the first few days after their Southland arrival, he wants them to enjoy the entire experience, fuzzy mascots and all.

“I tried to tell the players about my memories and impressions of what the Rose Bowl is all about, the highlights and how much fun it is and has always been to come out here,” said Carr, who visited six times as an assistant to Moeller and Bo Schembechler. “To actually have the opportunity to come out here with this team, I want them to enjoy it, so that makes it fun.”