.vresize.36.36.medium.0.png){kind=small}
.vresize.36.36.medium.0.png){kind=small}
Howard Schnellenberger's voice is distinctive, a rich, deep baritone that begs to be imitated. Say the word ''pipe'' to any football fan in South Florida, and he'll almost certainly come to mind. In a region where football is king, he's royalty.
His legacy was complete long ago.
And on Saturday, he completes his coaching life.
Schnellenberger - the only person-in-charge of Florida Atlantic football since its founding in 1998 and first practice two years later - coaches his final game on Saturday, when the Owls (1-10) host Louisiana-Monroe (3-8) in the Sun Belt finale for both teams. The game will take place in perhaps the crown jewel of Schnellenberger's time at FAU, the 2-month-old stadium that even the university president calls ''The House that Howard Built.''
''It's going to be a lot of emotion,'' FAU defensive back Marcus Bartels said. ''Add in coach's last game, the last game he's ever going to coach, it's a whole lot more than just another end-of-the-year. I just hope we can send him out on a good note.''
It'll be the 312th college game for Schnellenberger as a head coach, and will cap the worst of his 27 seasons at the college level. FAU earned its first win of the season just last week. Next week, FAU plans to introduce Nebraska defensive coordinator Carl Pelini as the replacement for Schnellenberger; a person familiar with the hiring process said the sides are working toward finalizing an agreement this weekend.
Pelini's tenure will presumably start Monday. For now, FAU is all about Howard, one more time.
And if Schnellenberger is particularly thankful for anything this week, it's that his Owls aren't still winless going into the finale.
''To win the 11th game, to stop a 10-game losing streak, in your last year of coaching, after experiencing the joy of everybody associated with Florida Atlantic University and the opening of their new stadium ... all that coupled with stopping the bleeding gave a ranking of joy, but with an altogether different feeling,'' Schnellenberger said. ''There was relief. There was joy. There was positive. There was a reprieve.''
He can thank Alfred Morris for that reprieve. In short, Schnellenberger will surely remember his name now.
Morris ran for a career-high four touchdowns last week, literally carrying FAU to a 38-35 win over Alabama-Birmingham. When asked about some of his favorite Schnellenberger stories this week, Morris had one from 2009, his third year on campus, that particularly stood out.
Around FAU, it's known as The Ralph Story.
''He called me Ralph and got mad because I didn't answer,'' Morris said. ''I was like, `I didn't know. That's not my name. How did you expect me to know you were talking to me?' That's always going to stick with me. It was definitely funny.''
It's just another story of Schnellenberger, who announced his retirement in August.
He has coached with legends like Bear Bryant and Don Shula, and credits that duo, Blanton Collier, George Allen and Paulie Miller - his high school coach - for ''passing the torch'' to him, which is why he's planning to write an autobiography bearing that title. He recruited Joe Namath, was the offensive coordinator for three national championship teams at Alabama in the 1960s and ran the offense for Shula's undefeated Miami Dolphins in 1972.
''Don Shula's perfect season,'' Schnellenberger says, slyly, ''was partially mine.''
He resurrected a program at Louisville, flopped in his one year at Oklahoma, was an assistant once with the Los Angeles Rams and struggled in his time coaching the Baltimore Colts.
What he's likely best remembered for, however, is what he did with the Miami Hurricanes.
''If Howard Schnellenberger had stayed for more time at the University of Miami,'' former Florida State coach Bobby Bowden once said, ''he would of had more championship rings than fingers to wear `em, know what I mean?''
Schnellenberger took over the Hurricanes in 1979, armed with a pipe - he used to leave them behind on recruiting trips, a calling card of sorts - and bold proclamations, such as how Miami would win a national championship. Five years later, the Hurricanes did exactly that, the first of five they claimed in a span of 19 years.
''Howard Schnellenberger set the standard here,'' Miami offensive line coach Art Kehoe said.
Schnellenberger left Miami after that 1983 season for an opportunity in the USFL that never panned out, a decision that he's regretted somewhat ever since. When FAU decided to start a program in 1998, the school asked Schnellenberger for help. Two years later, he was running the Owls' first practice. The football office complex is now loaded with trophies and plaques, memories and accomplishments. FAU has been to the Division I-AA semifinals, won a Sun Belt title and prevailed in two bowl games under Schnellenberger.
Many of the people from those games are expected to be there for Saturday's finale. Not for a goodbye - but rather, a thank you.
''Life is full of symbolisms and ceremony,'' Schnellenberger said. ''Sports is a great opportunity for those things to have real meaning. And it'll have real meaning for me and (his wife) Beverlee and the family. And it will be real meaning for those who come together who haven't seen each other in time, whether it'll be `Canes or Cardinals, whether it'll be Dolphins or Colts. And there might even be a Roll Tide guy involved, maybe even a Ram.''
He looks out the window of his office, overseeing the practice field, studying his team for one of the last times, talking about the stadium that some thought he could never deliver. Without him, none of it would be there.
Soon, a new chapter begins.
Pelini is expected to take over the football side of things. With that, Schnellenberger will transition into a new role at FAU, working with current and prospective donors and selling them on the vision of making the place even better.
''When people are going to talk about him - `You remember that coach Howard Schnellenberger? He brought Miami up. He started all these programs.' - I'm going to be like, `I played for that guy,''' Bartels said. ''I played for that legend. Just to be able to say something like that, it means a whole lot to me.''
---
Follow Tim Reynolds on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/ByTimReynolds
