Brian Billick
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Brian Billick (born February 28, 1954 in Fairborn, Ohio) is the head coach of the Baltimore Ravens of the American National Football League.
He attended Brigham Young University and was an honorable mention All-America tight end in 1976. Soon afterwards, Billick began a career in coaching, eventually becoming an assistant coach and offensive coordinator in the NFL with the Minnesota Vikings. In 1998, the Vikings set an NFL record for most points scored in a season (556) and Billick gained a reputation as an offensive genius. Both the Ravens and Cleveland Browns interviewed Billick for their head coaching position, and the Ravens selected him in 1999 as the second head coach in their brief history, replacing Ted Marchibroda.
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Coaching achievements
In six seasons, the Ravens under Billick have had a record (regular and post-season) of 61-42 (.593) and the following achievements:
- 1999 - Achieved first non-losing record in team history (8-8)
- 2000 - Achieved first playoff berth with 12-4 record, tied with the Tennessee Titans for the best record in the league. Even though the Titans were named AFC Central champions, the Ravens beat the Titans 24-10 in Nashville in the Divisional Round. Earlier that season, they had won a thrilling comeback versus Tennessee at Adelphia Coliseum, and had the first two victories by a visiting team in that stadium. Led by a record setting defense, Billick's Ravens won both the AFC title by beating the Oakland Raiders and Super Bowl XXXV in Tampa, Florida by crushing the New York Giants, 34-7.
- 2001 - Led Ravens to 10-6 record and AFC Wild Card berth.
- 2003 - Guided Baltimore to their first AFC North divisional title with a 10-6 record, just 2 seasons after a salary cap purge sent many Super Bowl winning veterans away from the team.
Personality traits
- Billick's background includes a stint as a public relations liaison for the San Francisco 49ers.
- He is known for having a very savvy media presence, and is often portrayed by national media as arrogant and extroverted.
- He is known as being a player's coach, letting team leaders such as Ray Lewis have a lot of influence in the locker room. Billick also stands behind his team in times of crisis, such as Lewis's arrest in 2000 on murder charges that were later dismissed, and running back Jamal Lewis's federal investigation into drug trafficking. Lewis plead guilty to a lesser charge and spent 4 months in federal prison prior to the 2005 season.
- When the Ravens made the playoffs for the first time in 2000, Billick gave his players a syllabus for the entire playoffs, including the Super Bowl, before they had played a single playoff game.[[Citing sourcescitation needed]]
- When eliminated from the playoffs, Billick has been used as a studio analyst by the ABC Sports coverage of the Wild Card round.
Trivia
- A young Billick was a contestant on the game show Match Game in 1977. Billick later appeared on The Gong Show in 1980, where he performed his famous "Spider Monkey" routine.
External links
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