When he takes the field as head coach of the Dallas Cowboys for the first time, Brian Schottenheimer will be thinking of his dad.
Schottenheimer will become the latest second-generation head coach — according to ESPN.com, he and famed longtime NFL coach Marty Schottenheimer are the ninth to both land head-coaching roles in the NFL — when the Cowboys take on the Philadelphia Eagles on Thursday.
Though he has spent the past two-plus decades on NFL sidelines, Brian Schottenheimer just took his first head-coaching position in January, replacing Mike McCarthy on the Cowboys sidelines.
Marty Schottenheimer retired after the 2006 NFL season but passed away due to Alzheimer’s disease in 2021.
Of course, Marty Schottenheimer never was the Cowboys head coach, but he did amass a 200-126-1 record over 21 years coaching the Cleveland Browns, then-San Diego Chargers, Kansas City Chiefs and Washington Commanders.
What Did Brian Schottenheimer Say About His Dad?
The Cowboys coach had strong words to say about his dad and his family writ large.
“He’s my idol, the guy I looked up to from the time I was a little boy,” Brian Schottenheimer told Todd Archer of ESPN.com. “I’ve always wanted to make him proud.
“I think that was always something when I got into the business, I knew that I had literally two things: It was my word, which I never will break for anybody because it’s too important, and my last name. That was something that he just always beat into my head like, ‘Hey, you know, you’re a Schottenheimer and what you say has to be truth and honor.'”
Archer reported the bond Brian and his dad still have and how he looks to Marty for guidance.
“He will ask his father for courage to lead his players,” Archer reported. “He will ask his father to be there with him and say, ‘I know you’re watching.’ He will tell his father he hopes to make him proud.”
Brian also admitted feeling differently about being a head coach, and truly following Marty’s legacy, rather than being an NFL assistant as he has for 15 of the past 19 NFL seasons.
“Sitting in this chair makes it a little bit different because I’m following truly in his footsteps,” Brian said. “I mean I’ve been a coach for a long time, but if I was just a quality control coach right now, I’d still be trying to carry on his legacy.”
What Did Brian Schottenheimer Learn About Football From His Dad?
Aside from the Xs and Os, and how to best deploy players, Brian said being around his dad’s teams taught him life lessons — like how great teams commit to one another on a deeply personal level.
“These things that these young men try to do around the league, not just here, it’s different,” Schottenheimer said. “I mean they commit to something, and they give it their all. Not for money. Not for fame or things like that. Yeah, that’s nice, but they do it because they love one another and those are the ones that stick with you.”
Brian also admitted he can hear his dad’s voice critiquing him when things aren’t done right.
“The way we practice, and the way I act at practice, my father is looking down from heaven going: ‘What are you doing? That’s not how you practice,'” Schottenheimer said. “But my father also coached a long time ago, and the type of athletes and type of young men that we are dealing with has changed.”
Brian Schottenheimer Sends Heartfelt Message on His Dad Ahead of Cowboys Debut