You think you known him. Every Saturday, win or lose, you see the same no-nonsense look on his face. His dark, razor-sharp eyes glare straight ahead as he leads the nation’s most storied football program out of the tunnel. Determination is etched across his face. In post-game interviews his tone rarely changes.

But, you see, Notre Dame head coach Tyrone Willingham has another side, albeit a side very few others get to see. Every now and then, Willingham relaxes and shows a different, more laid-back personality. But that, say his fellow coaches and former players, is a side they have become quite familiar with. That’s not what Willingham wants you to think – in fact, he doesn’t really care what you think.

Thousands of Syracuse football fans will get a first-hand look at that famous charge out of the tunnel this Saturday when Willingham’s Fighting Irish visit the Carrier Dome at 1 p.m.

‘I’m not overly concerned with that (serious) perception,’ Willingham said. ‘I just want to win football games and have a program with great integrity.’

It’s not hard to find where Willingham’s determination came from. He never had great athletic ability – he worked for it. Nearly all his players know the story of how he walked on to Michigan State football team and eventually earned a scholarship. Now, as a coach, he demands that same hard work from his players. As they say, he makes them want to get better.

At Stanford for his first head coaching position, he built the football program into a perennial winner. In Willingham’s seven seasons, the Cardinal made four bowl appearances. In fact, nearly every stop he’s made, including the NFL with the Minnesota Vikings, Willingham has been a winner. So how does he do it?

He actually demands few things from his players, said former Stanford defensive end Marcus Hoover. It’s simple – all players had to do was attend classes and come to practice, always giving their best.

Another thing about Willingham, Hoover said, is his organization.

‘He’s the single most organized person I’ve ever met,’ Hoover said. ‘He’d give us a schedule in January to cover dates for the whole next year. You just couldn’t make excuses. He’s so driven it’s contagious. He’s a winner and it definitely rubs off.’

The area that Willingham perhaps demands the most from his players is in the classroom. At Stanford, after every trimester, Willingham sat down with each player individually and discussed grades and realistic goals for the next semester.

Former Stanford wide-out DeRonnie Pitts said one of Willingham’s best qualities is he demands more from himself than what he asks from the players. Players would go outside of their abilities just to please Willingham.

For summer conditioning, all Stanford players had to run 10 300-meter runs with only two minutes rest in between. When Pitts first got to school, he couldn’t imagine finishing the workout. To his surprise, he did, and did the same every summer after that, mostly out of wanting to please Willingham.

‘He’d never ask you to do anything he can’t do,’ Pitts said. ‘He’s in better shape than the players. He’ll run with you and beat you. He’ll lift with you and out-lift you. He gets players to play outside their abilities.’

Those who know Willingham well can’t miss his competitive nature. Pitts said if Willingham saw some of the Cardinal players in a game of pick-up ball, he’d always ask in. If they had a free-throw contest, he’d always win it.

Another game Willingham picked up, mostly because of his competitive nature, is golf. Pitts believes that Willingham started playing because it’s a common sport among football coaches. Originally, Willingham struggled, but you better believe he kept practicing until he became good.

Current Notre Dame and former Stanford defensive coordinator Kent Baer can attest to that. Willingham hired Baer – the only original member of Willingham’s staff still with him – when he arrived at Stanford and the two, also frequent golfing partners, have coached together since.

Although Willingham doesn’t get to play as much at Notre Dame as he did at Stanford, he still hasn’t lost his touch. Baer said Willingham almost always wins but is quick to point out that once the season starts, the clubs go away.

Though Willingham gets very competitive during his friendly matches with coaches, golf is one of the many areas where the other side of Willingham shows.

‘He’s got a great personality,’ Baer said. ‘People only see the side of him on TV, but he’s great to play golf with. You can tease and joke around with him.’

Said Hoover: ‘If you’re inside that circle of his you see the great sense of humor. From Sunday through Thursday he’s like anyone else, but from Thursday through Saturday is what the media sees.’

In fact, Pitts’ first comment about Willingham was that he’s not the guy you see on TV. After a 1999 Stanford win guaranteed the Cardinal a trip to the Rose Bowl, Pitts remembers Willingham’s reaction. ‘He told us, ‘Make sure you guys go out and party tonight, because I sure am,’ ‘ Pitts said. ‘But then, of course, he reminded us to be safe.’

Players also like to joke around about Willingham’s iron-man daily routine. Everyday he wakes up at 5 a.m. and eats a bowl of oatmeal. It’s then off to work out. He’s also usually the last person to leave Notre Dame’s football offices.

Riall Johnson, a former Stanford linebacker and current Cincinnati Bengal, remembers how his teammates used to poke fun at Willingham’s routine. He said former wide-out and current Indianapolis Colt Troy Walters had the best impression of him. Johnson said Walters would mock the way Willingham talks, and his frequent pose where he’d sit with his finger on his chin. The team also mocked Willingham’s daily routine. Willingham enjoyed it and played along.

‘The man was up at the crack of freakin’ dawn,’ former Stanford and current Houston Texans linebacker Kailee Wong said. ‘I’d be walking in, and he’d be doing speed jump-roping. We’d swim during training camp and joke around and tell him to jump in. The man is ripped.’

The only fault some former Stanford players found with Willingham was the way he left the program. After the Cardinal’s 2001 Seattle Bowl win, Willingham pledged he wouldn’t leave. Then, when George O’Leary suddenly resigned from Notre Dame, Willingham took the job.

Hoover said many people, including his father, were disappointed because they found out through the media instead of through Willingham himself. Yet, most understood that he had to take the new job.

Pitts said Stanford was close to competing for a national championship before Willingham left. Now, under new head coach Buddy Teevens, the Cardinal has taken a nosedive, finishing the last two years at 2-9 and 4-7, respectively.

‘You can’t fault coach for leaving,’ Johnson said. ‘You fault the school for the personnel that replaced him. My brother was still there when coach left, so I took an intense interest in looking out for my brother. I feel bad for guys I played with that are still there.’

Now, Willingham is in the midst of leading Notre Dame’s ‘Return to Glory.’ After finishing 10-3 last season, the Fighting Irish have dropped to 5-6 this year entering Saturday’s game against SU.

Still, everyone believes that, given time, Willingham will turn Notre Dame around – with a touch of humor, even though he’ll never let the public see it.

‘I know his abilities,’ Pitts said. ‘Once he gets his guys in there, things will change. He has a different system than what (Notre Dame) was using, and once he gets his system working, they’ll be contenders over and over and over again.’

This year may be disappointing for Willingham and the Irish, but with his past success, the program won’t be down for long. Maybe the public will even begin to see that other side of Willingham.

During a press conference, a reporter told Willingham that some of his coaches had hinted that he wasn’t as serious as he comes off on TV. Willingham, never changing his tone, dryly replied, ‘They’re not supposed to say that.’

The question is, was he joking?

Published on December 4, 2003 at 12:00 pm