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SALT LAKE CITY — John Pease, who came out of his NFL coaching retirement to accept a position as Utah's assistant head coach and defensive line coach, is retiring again. The 67-year-old told the team of his decision in a meeting today.
Pease coached in the NFL for nearly two decades with New Orleans and Jacksonville before retiring in 2005. He was lured out of retirement in 2009 by an offer from Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham to return to his alma mater.
"I've coached in 646 games since 1966 and I'm ready to watch from the sidelines," said Pease, whose NFL career was preceded by stints as a college assistant at Long Beach State (1974-76), Utah (1977) and Washington (1978-82). "This is a young man's game and this is a great young coaching staff that does things the right way. I wouldn't have returned to coaching if it weren't for this university, this coaching staff and Kyle Whittingham."
Whittingham had this to say of Pease's departure: "John has been an invaluable member of our coaching staff and we will miss him. His coaching expertise and knowledge of the game has been a huge factor in our success the past two seasons. He is well liked by the players, coaches, staff and administration and we wish him all the best in his retirement."
Whittingham has not set a timetable on replacing Pease. He will likely designate an interim defensive line coach from within his current administrative staff for the bowl game.
