Football Preview: Chryst brings with him coaching staff full of experience, leadership

New Pitt football head coach Paul Chryst is understandably receiving much of the attention of…

Brooks Bollinger, who played quarterback at Wisconsin, is Pitt’s new quarterbacks coach.

Luv Purohit, Assistant Visual Editor

New Pitt football head coach Paul Chryst is understandably receiving much of the attention of media and fans as the Panthers prepare for the 2012 campaign.

But one man can’t run an entire football program.

Meet the 2012 Pitt football coaching staff assisting Chryst — the men working behind the scenes to maximize the potential of the players they are responsible for, sitting in the coaching boxes and patrolling the field on Saturdays.

Offensive assistant coaches

Brooks Bollinger, a former Wisconsin Badgers quarterback and eight-year veteran in the professional ranks, enters his first year of coaching at the collegiate level with a difficult challenge: to improve the quarterback play at Pitt, particularly starting redshirt senior Tino Sunseri.

As Sunseri looks to rebound from a difficult 2011 season as the Pitt passer, during which he threw more interceptions than touchdowns and took more sacks than any other quarterback in the country, Bollinger believes his starting quarterback made significant strides during training camp.

“He’s progressing and doing a nice job,” Bollinger said of Sunseri. “You’re not seeing the same mistakes he made in the spring.”

Bollinger played all four years at Wisconsin from 1999 to 2003. As a redshirt freshman, Bollinger led the Badgers to a Rose Bowl victory and earned himself the honor of Big Ten Rookie of the Year. He finished his collegiate career with an impressive 30-12 record and a 3-0 mark in bowl games.

A 2003 NFL Draft pick of the New York Jets, Bollinger spent time with New York, Minnesota and Dallas before playing two seasons in the United Football League.

On duty to protect Bollinger’s quarterbacks is the offensive line, coached by Jim Hueber.

A 38-year coaching veteran at both the collegiate and professional levels, Hueber is coming to Pitt with knowledge of how to demand the most from his players.

“If you talk to those guys coming off the field, I’m the most hated man,” Hueber said following a training camp practice. “They’re so sick of me [at training camp] — it’s ridiculous.”

After playing football at and graduating from the University of South Dakota, Hueber began his coaching career as an offensive line specialist. His career includes a seven-year stint at Minnesota and 13 years at Wisconsin, where he crossed paths with Chryst.

Pitt’s offensive line appears thin entering this season, so Hueber hopes to get the most out of his available players.

Also helping out on the offense is running backs coach Desmond Robinson, a former Pitt standout defensive end and linebacker from 1974 to 1978, and wide receivers coach Bobby Engram, a three-time All-American at Penn State. Robinson played on Pitt’s last national championship team in 1976, while Engram’s records for receiving yards and receiving touchdowns still stand at Penn State.

Joe Rudolph, a Pennsylvania native and Big Ten coaching veteran, will serve as the Panthers’ offensive coordinator and tight ends coach. Rudolph has spent the last three years coaching at Wisconsin alongside Chryst.

Defensive assistant coaches

Like many of his offensive counterparts, new defensive coordinator Dave Huxtable brings decades’ worth of experience to a defense already boasting plenty of veteran players.

Huxtable’s coaching career began in 1982 and recently included a seven-year stint at Central Florida, where his defense helped produce the best season in UCF history. He also spent last year at Wisconsin as a linebackers coach before coming to Pitt.

The defensive line holds perhaps the most promise of any area on this year’s team, thanks mostly to star junior tackle Aaron Donald. Donald and his linemates are coached by Inoke Breckterfield, a two-time All-Pac-12 defensive end at Oregon State.

Breckterfield stated that his most promising defensive lineman is setting a fine example for Pitt’s younger players.

“His biggest [goal] is to be a finisher — to finish plays — and to set that standard for the younger guys,” Breckterfield said.

Joining Huxtable and Breckterfield on defense are linebackers coach Chris Haering and secondary coach Matt House.

Haering’s name might ring a bell around the Pittsburgh area. He coached the Mt. Lebanon High School football team the past 17 seasons, garnering 13 playoff appearances and the 2000 WPIAL Class AAAA championship. This is his first year coaching at the collegiate level.

House spent the last four seasons in the NFL assisting the defensive teams in St. Louis and Carolina. He graduated and began coaching at Michigan State in 2000.

The faces of the Pitt coaching staff might be unfamiliar, but with the numerous veteran coaches helping Chryst during his first campaign at the helm of Pitt football, experience and leadership will be plentiful on the Panthers’ sidelines this season.