Naval Academy grad named acting coach for Browns
Naval Academy grad named acting coach for Browns
Hearing that his close friend and Naval Academy classmate Mike Priefer had been named acting head coach of the Cleveland Browns for the wild- card round of the NFL playoffs took Chris
Cashman back in time.
Cashman and Priefer were both recruited to play football at Navy and got to know each other during plebe summer. Cashman learned quickly that Priefer had been born in Cleveland and was a die- hard fan of the city’s sports teams.
Together they watched the AFC championship game between the Browns and Denver Broncos on Jan. 17, 1988, the game best remembered for “The Fumble.”
With Cleveland trailing Denver 38- 31,
Browns running back Earnest Byner, just as he was about to score and give them a chance to tie the game, was stripped of the ball by Denver cornerback Jeremiah Castille. The Browns lost 38-33.
“I remember Mike was absolutely crushed. I mean, he was inconsolable,” Cashman said. “Mike was so upset he just went upstairs and went to sleep.”
That memory came flooding back to Cashman when he learned Priefer would be leading the Browns into their first playoff game since 2002. Cleveland plays at the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday night, and Priefer will be making sideline decisions in place of head coach Kevin Stefanski, who will miss the game after a positive COVID-19 test.
“I think it’s pretty cool for things to come full circle and for Mike to have a chance to lead the Browns to a playoff win,” Cashman said.
Cashman was among many Class of 1989 Naval Academy graduates who texted Priefer to offer congratulations. The former backup quarterback at Navy reminded his friend that he is a longtime Pittsburgh fan.
“For this one game, I’m rooting for Mike instead of the Steelers,” Cashman said.
Cashman and Priefer were among many high school quarterbacks recruited to Navy during that era, with most switching to other positions. Priefer played wide receiver on the scout team for two seasons before giving up hope of getting into varsity games. He joined the Navy lightweight team as a junior and played well as both a quarterback and wide receiver.
“Mike just wanted an opportunity to play, to get out there and compete,” Cashman said.
Commander Phil Bassi coached the Navy lightweight team in 1988 when Priefer was the senior captain and remembers him making a catch to set up the winning touchdowns against Army.
“I remember Mike was an excellent athlete and an outstanding person,” said Bassi, who served 22 years in the Navy.
“Mike was very knowledgeable about the game and would do anything the coaching staff asked. He was a tremendous leader.”
Cutting his teeth
Priefer became a helicopter pilot specializing in anti-submarine warfare along with search-and-rescue missions. He flew over the Persian Gulf in support of Operation Desert Storm and over the Indian Ocean during the civil war in Somalia.
Priefer returned to the Naval Academy in 1994 as a physical education instructor responsible for overseeing some club sports. He also served as a graduate assistant for the football team for three seasons during the tenure of coach Charlie Weatherbie.
Ken Niumatalolo was the running backs coach at the time, having followed offensive coordinator Paul Johnson from Hawaii to Navy. Niumatalolo, now in his 14th season as Navy head coach, was impressed by the 28-year-old.
“Prief was an officer, so he wasn’t your typical GA,” Niumatalolo said. “He was always very professional in every respect.”
Through the years, Niumatalolo and Priefer have stayed in contact — routinely texting after big wins or tough losses.
“I’ve followed Prief’s career closely and I’m really proud of what he’s accomplished,” Niumatalolo said. “He’s one of the most respected special teams coaches in the NFL. I’m not at all surprised because Prief is really smart and a hard worker. You don’t stay in the league as long as he has unless you’re a great coach.”
Niumatalolo said he will be rooting for the Browns because of Priefer.
“I’m really fired up for Prief getting this opportunity,” he said. “I know he will do a great job. He’s certainly well prepared for it.”Current Navy offensive coordinator Ivin Jasper was Weatherbie’s other graduate assistant in 1995 and 1996. He assisted Johnson while Priefer worked under defensive coordinator Dick Bumpas.
Jasper, like Niumatalolo, was another Johnson disciple brought to Navy from Hawaii to help install the triple option. The Los Angeles native had to enlist in the Navy and serve in a “mariner” position to get the GA gig.
“I was in uniform and Prief helped me out a lot as far as the military etiquette and that type of stuff,” Jasper said. “He is just a first-class individual in every way.”
Son of a coach
Priefer’s father Chuck spent 17 seasons in the NFL, mostly as a special teams coordinator. He had a long association with Bobby Ross at Georgia Tech and with the San Diego Chargers and Detroit Lions.
Chuck Priefer was largely responsible for helping Jasper obtain an internship with the Lions. Mike Priefer has also made his mark as a special teams coordinator.
“Prief was always a hard worker — very detail-oriented and committed to doing things the right way,” Jasper said. “Prief was a very ambitious person who wanted to be the best at whatever he did. He loved coaching football and wanted to follow in his father’s footsteps.”
Priefer got out of the Navy and accepted a graduate assistant job at Youngstown State under Jim Tressel. He was hired full time as offensive tackles, tight ends and special teams coach for the Penguins, helping Tressel lead them to the Division I-AA national championship in 1997.
There were stops at Virginia Military Institute (1999) and Northern Illinois (2000-01) before Priefer landed with the Jacksonville Jaguars as assistant special teams coach in 2002. He was hired by Tom Coughlin to replace Frank Gansz, a legendary NFL special teams coach.
Priefer got his big break when he was hired as special teams coordinator by the Kansas City Chiefs in 2006. The 54-yearold has been an NFL special teams coordinator for 16 years, also working for the Broncos (2009-10) and Minnesota Vikings (2011-18).
Priefer was brought to Cleveland by Stefanski, with whom he coached alongside in Minnesota. Priefer said Thursday morning the plan for him to be acting head coach in the case of an emergency was discussed in the spring.
“With Coach Priefer, it always makes sense because the special teams coordinator deals with everybody on the team, coaches every player,” Stefanski said. “So I think it’s a very natural place to go in an interim setting, where he cannot miss a beat.”
During a news conference Thursday morning, Priefer said he’s “honored and humbled to have this opportunity.”
“I’ll do whatever is asked of me to help the Cleveland Browns win on Sunday night,” he said. “I do love this city, I think you guys know that, and our fans deserve our best effort. That’s what we plan on giving them.”
Controversy
Priefer’s coaching career has not been without controversy. In 2014, he was suspended by the NFL for two games after an outside investigation determined there was “credibility” to a former player’s accusations of homophobic conduct.
Former Vikings punter Chris Kluwe alleged in a January 2014 essay he wrote for Deadspin that Priefer said, “We should round up all the gays, send them to an island, and then nuke it until it glows.”
Priefer quickly issued a statement denying making that comment.
“I want to be clear that I do not tolerate discrimination of any type and am respectful of all individuals,” he said. “I personally have gay family members who I love and support, just as I do any family member.
“The primary reason I entered coaching was to affect people in a positive way. As a coach, I have always created an accepting environment for my players, including Chris, and have looked to support them both on and off the field.”
However, Vikings long snapper Cullen Loeffler told investigators he heard Priefer talk about putting gays on an island and nuking it, providing enough corroboration of Kluwe’s charge to warrant a three-game suspension.
Priefer had the suspension reduced by one game by participating in sensitivity training and addressed the issue during his introductory news conference with the Browns in February 2019.
“A situation occurred in Minnesota where I made a comment I shouldn’t have made,” Priefer said. “I apologized for that comment. And I learned a lot from it.”
Future goals
This marks the second time Priefer has served as acting head coach. He filled that role with the Vikings for one game when Mike Zimmer had to miss a game in 2016 after undergoing emergency eye surgery. He also interviewed in 2013 to become head coach of Chicago Bears.
“I’d love to be a head coach,” Priefer said during a 2019 news conference. “The way it was phrased when you guys spoke to me back when I was first introduced is: I want to be the best special teams coordinator Cleveland has ever had. That’s my goal.
“Now, would I like to be a head coach? Absolutely. Who wouldn’t? I would love to be up in front of the team and be the leader of that team, but right now my job is to be the best special teams coordinator that I can be for this football team.”
Mike Baird, who played varsity basketball at Navy, was a member of the 15th Company along with Priefer and his roommate in Bancroft Hall sophomore through senior year. Now a pharmaceutical salesperson living in Longmont, Colorado, Baird is the godfather of Priefer’s youngest child, Katie.
Priefer and wife Debbie have four children. Oldest son Michael Priefer Jr. is a graduate assistant with the University of Pittsburgh football program. Another son, Wilson, is a senior at the Naval Academy, and their oldest daughter, Samantha, works in sports marketing for the Denver Nuggets and Colorado Avalanche.
“I could always foresee Prief getting into coaching because it’s in his blood,” Baird said. “He comes from a family that lives and breathes football. I’m not at all surprised by the success and longevity he’s had.
“At the pro level, it’s all about work ethic, and Prief will outwork anyone.”