Who saw it coming? Be honest. Who even knew who he was or where he had come from? In the words of the late rapper the Notorious B-I-G, “if you don’t know, now you know!” He’s Mike Tomlin, the second year coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers. Let me rephrase that, Mike Tomlin, the head coach of the World Champion Pittsburgh Steelers. The youngest head coach in the history of the NFL to win a championship.
The Steelers thrilling, last second victory over Arizona in Super Bowl XLIII, gives the storied franchise its sixth Lombardi trophy (most in the NFL history) and Mike Tomlin is the architect of this latest group of champions from the Steel City.
At 36, Tomlin has reached the pinnacle of coaching success after just eight seasons of NFL coaching experience. He was defensive backs coach for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2001-05) and spent the 2006 season as the Minnesota Vikings’ defensive coordinator. Tomlin is the 16th head coach in Steeler history, the third since 1969.
A product of the Tony Dungy coaching tree, Tomlin represents a different breed of coaching persona. True to his mentor he leads by respect, not fear; is firm, not overbearing; confident, not arrogant, always quick to defer credit to his players and his staff.
Those type of qualities led Steeler President Dan Rooney to hire Mike Tomlin over other more well known names in coaching circles.
“He’s enthusiastic. You could tell he was very intelligent, a good person,” Rooney recalled. “The first time we saw him, we said, ‘this guy’s something. We ought to bring him back.’ We didn’t make up our mind the first time we talked to him. He came back and he was just that much better the second time. We talked to him on the phone; he was always tops.”
Not only was Mike Tomlin impressive to the Rooney family, his light was apparent early on in his NFL career in Tampa. Former Buccaneer DB Dexter Jackson, the Super Bowl XXXVII MVP recalls his impression of his former position coach.
“We’re not surprised. We had guys like (John) Lynch who were saying, ‘There’s something about this guy, something special.’ He had everything down to the fine-point detail. If you were playing a man (defense), he had the exact number of yards (to play) off the receiver. … He knows how to push certain guys, and not to push certain guys. That’s what I liked about him.”
As the second African-American head coach to win a Super Bowl, Mike Tomlin is respectful of his place in history.
“Guys like coach (Tony) Dungy have paved that road. I just got to walk down it” Tomlin explained. “I benefit from the sacrifices and the challenges met of those that have come before me; he being one of them. It makes it all sweeter that I consider him a personal friend of mine. It’s really great, it’s beautiful.”
With sage mentoring from giants in the NFL like Dungy, the Rooney family and renowned defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau, Tomlin grasped the most important concept anyone can comprehend, the ability to listen to wisdom.
“Let’s be real, you don’t get into the position that I am in without great influences and mentorship” he concedes. “One thing that I am is, I am sharp enough to realize when people can help me and I listen. I pride myself in trying to do that. Those people (Dungy, Rooney’s, Le Beau) have always provided great advice and opportunities for me, but there are many others along the way as well who are as equally deserving as those people who are not a household name as some of those people are, but they are just as meaningful to me.”
As sharp and successful as Mike Tomlin has been in the NFL as a coach, coaching was not his first choice as a career. As a standout receiver at William and Mary University, Tomlin thought a career playing on Sundays was in his future. His alternative plan was a career as an attorney. Fortunately the courtroom’s loss was the gridirons gain!
“You know, coaching was ‘Plan B’ for me. Truth be known, I thought I’d still be playing. I thought I’d be playing on Sunday. That’s something that all players, I think, go through” Coach Tomlin revealed. “When I was younger, I was just focused on playing the game. Coaching was something that came to mind as it became evident that maybe I wasn’t going to play anymore. That’s why we coach; we coach because we can’t play. Either ability dictates that we can’t play, or age dictates that we can’t play, but that’s a common bond that all coaches share. We love the game, we can’t play it, we do the next best thing which is we instruct, help and get a chance to be close to those that do.
“In regard to the law school thing, it was just on the radar. It was something, again, that I thought I was supposed to do. Maybe the people that were around me and the people that were influential in my life wanted to see me do great things, my mother being central in that. But I think in hindsight, she likes what I’m doing right now.”
As one might imagine by now, Coach Tomlin’s focus includes, but doesn’t conclude with just winning championships.
“I’m extremely blessed” He concedes. “I’ve been around some great people – coaches, players, ownership, what have you, and I’m a product of that. That’s my story. I feel extremely blessed, but I also know I am put in this position for a reason, not only to compete and win and seek championships, but hopefully help young people improve their lives and be shining examples for other people.”
Don’t be surprised with an attitude like that and a core nucleus of young Steeler playmakers; it probably won’t be the last time you see Mike Tomlin hoisting the Lombardi trophy.
