Joseph John Bugel (March 10, 1940 – June 28, 2020) was an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...

coach in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL). For many years, he was acknowledged as the greatest

offensive line coach In American football, a position coach is a team official in charge of coaching a specific position group. Position coaches have more specialized duties than the head coach, assistant coach, and the offensive and defensive coordinators. Common ...

in the league, particularly with the

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) N ...

under head coach

Joe Gibbs Joe Jackson Gibbs (born November 25, 1940) is an American auto racing team owner and former professional football coach. In football, he was head coach for the Washington Redskins of the National Football League (NFL) from 1981 to 1992, and ...

in the 1980s. He was the architect behind " The Hogs", the Redskins' dominant offensive line that helped lead them to three Super Bowl wins. Bugel played college football for the

Western Kentucky Hilltoppers The Western Kentucky Hilltoppers and Lady Toppers are the athletic teams that represent Western Kentucky University (WKU), located in Bowling Green, Kentucky, in intercollegiate sports as a member of the NCAA Division I ranks, competing in the Co ...

before becoming a college assistant coach. Prior to joining the Redskins, he served as the offensive line coach or assistant for several other teams, including the Detroit Lions,

Houston Oilers The Houston Oilers were a professional American football team that played in Houston from its founding in 1960 to 1996 before relocating to Memphis, and later Nashville, Tennessee becoming the Tennessee Titans. The Oilers began play in 1960 a ...

, and San Diego Chargers. He was also the head coach of the

Phoenix Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division, and play t ...

() and Oakland Raiders (), compiling a combined record of 24–56 with them.

Early life

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Western Pennsylvania, the second-most populous city in Pennsylva ...

native, Bugel was a two-way star in football at Munhall High School. Bugel also played for the Daytona Beach Thunderbirds, a semi-pro team. In 2005, he was inducted into the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame (Western Chapter). While earning his degree in physical education, Bugel was an all-conference guard and linebacker. He earned a master's degree in counseling, also at

Western Kentucky Western Kentucky is the western portion of the U.S. state of Kentucky. It generally includes part or all of several more widely recognized regions of the state. ;Always included * The Jackson Purchase, the state's westernmost generally recogniz ...

.Washington Redskins bio

Coaching career

Early career

Before joining the NFL, Bugel spent time coaching at

Ohio State The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best public ...

(1974), Iowa State (1973),

Navy A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It in ...

(1969–1972) and his alma mater,

(1964–1968). Bugel originally entered the NFL in 1975, spending two seasons as the offensive line coach for the Detroit Lions.

Houston Oilers

Bugel joined the

in the same capacity in 1977. During his four seasons with the Oilers, the team set records in rushing and passing. His offensive line was also instrumental in the Oilers' 1979 playoff upset over the San Diego Chargers, led by

Dan Fouts Daniel Francis Fouts (born June 10, 1951) is an American former football quarterback who played for the San Diego Chargers of the National Football League (NFL) throughout his 15-season career (1973-87). After a relatively undistinguished fi ...

. Working without

Earl Campbell Earl Christian Campbell (born March 29, 1955), nicknamed "the Tyler Rose", is an American former professional football player who played as a running back in the National Football League (NFL) for the Houston Oilers and New Orleans Saints. K ...

, Bugel's line, led by All-Pro tackle

Leon Gray Leon Gray (November 15, 1951 – November 11, 2001) was an American football offensive tackle in the National Football League for the New England Patriots, Houston Oilers, and the New Orleans Saints. Gray played college football at Jackson Sta ...

, made one-playoff-game heroes out of the likes of Rob Carpenter, Ronnie Coleman, Gifford Neilsen and

Boobie Clark Charles Lee "Boobie" Clark (November 8, 1949October 25, 1988) was a professional American football running back who played in the National Football League (NFL) for eight seasons and was named the UPI AFL-AFC Rookie of the Year for 1973. Early ...

Washington Redskins

In his first stint with the

(1981–1989), he began as the Redskins offensive coordinator in 1981 and was promoted to assistant head coach in 1983. In 1982, he started to develop " The Hogs"—the nickname he penned for his offensive line unit during the Redskins' 1982 training camp. Bugel developed the dominating "Hogs" offensive line that included stalwarts

Russ Grimm Russell Scott Grimm (born May 2, 1959) is an American former professional football player who was a guard for the Washington Redskins of the National Football League (NFL). He has also served as an assistant coach for the Redskins, Pittsburgh St ...

, Joe Jacoby,

Mark May Mark Eric May (born November 2, 1959) is a former American college and professional football player who was a guard in the National Football League (NFL) for 13 seasons during the 1980s and 1990s. May played college football for the University ...

Jeff Bostic Jeffrey Lynn Bostic (born September 18, 1958) is a former American football center who played for the Washington Redskins in the National Football League (NFL). College career A 1980 graduate of Clemson University, Bostic was named All-ACC in 1 ...

George Starke George Lawrence Starke (born July 18, 1948) is a former American football offensive tackle who played for the Washington Redskins in the National Football League (NFL) from 1972-84. After graduating from Columbia College, Starke was drafted by ...

and others. Under Bugel's direction, the Redskins scored a then-NFL record 541 points (1983), had four 1,000-yard rushers, one 4,000-yard passer and nine 1,000-yard receivers. Overall, he has participated in three Super Bowls, six conference championships and 24 playoff contests. Washington won two of its three Super Bowls (

XVII 17 (seventeen) is the natural number following 16 and preceding 18. It is a prime number. Seventeen is the sum of the first four prime numbers. In mathematics 17 is the seventh prime number, which makes seventeen the fourth super-prime, as ...

XXII 22 (twenty-two) is the natural number following 21 and preceding 23. In mathematics 22 is a palindromic number and the eighth semiprime; its proper divisors are 1, 2, and 11. It is the second Smith number, the second Erdős–Woods numb ...

) while Bugel was on coach

' staff.

Phoenix Cardinals

Bugel served as head coach of the

from 1990 to 1993.

Oakland Raiders

Bugel spent three seasons with the Oakland Raiders, serving as assistant head coach from 1995 to 1996 before being promoted to head coach for the 1997 season.

San Diego Chargers

From 1998 to 2001, Bugel oversaw the offensive line of the San Diego Chargers, after which he had a two-year respite from football.

Second stint with the Redskins

Bugel returned to the Redskins in 2004 as assistant head coach on offense in Joe Gibbs' return to the team. Bugel's offensive front led the Redskins to consecutive Top 10 finishes in rushing yards per game in the 2005 and 2006 seasons. The Redskins ranked seventh in the NFL and averaged 136.4 yards per game in 2005. The following season (2006), Washington ranked fourth in the NFL with an average of 138.5 yards per contest. Additionally, the Redskins pass protection unit allowed just 19 sacks in 2006, third-lowest in the NFL. In 2007, Bugel faced his biggest challenge since returning to Washington in 2004. He was without the services of a pair of his starters on the right side and was forced to make a series of adjustments. Right tackle

Jon Jansen Jonathan Ward Jansen (born January 28, 1976) is a former American football offensive tackle. He previously played for the Washington Redskins and Detroit Lions of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Washington Redskins in the s ...

(ankle surgery) landed on injured reserve after the season opener against Miami Dolphins and right guard Randy Thomas (triceps injury) missed 14 contests. Bugel's 2007 offensive line featured six different lineups and three different starters at the right tackle position but still led the Redskins to finish fifth in the NFC and 12th in the NFL in rushing yards per game (116.9 yards per game) in 2007. Running back

Clinton Portis Clinton Earl Portis (born September 1, 1981) is an American former professional football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL) for nine seasons. He played college football for the Miami Hurricanes. He was drafted ...

ranked third in the NFC and sixth in the NFL with 1,262 yards and 11 touchdowns in 2007. Behind Bugel's offensive lines, Portis has established himself as one of the premier backs in football. His 2008 totals: 1,487 yards on 342 carries; move him to sixth among active running backs in career rushing yards. With six 100 yard rushing games in 2008, Portis also took over as the leader in most 100-yard rushing games in Redskins history, with 25. Additionally, Portis's 2008 campaign made it five straight seasons (2004–08) in which Bugel's lines have led a player to eclipse the 1,000-yard rushing mark: Portis, 1,315 in 2004; Portis, 1,513, in 2005;

Ladell Betts Ladell Betts (born August 27, 1979) is an American football coach and former running back who is currently the running backs coach at the University of Iowa. He was drafted by the Washington Redskins in the second round of the 2002 NFL Draft. He ...

, 1,154 in 2006; Portis, 1,262 in 2007 and Portis, 1,487 in 2008. One of Bugel's greatest strengths as an offensive line coach was to fill a void when projected starters sustain injuries, and this skill was on display yet again in 2008. On 2008, despite a rotating cast at the right tackle position and a late-season injury to left tackle Pro Bowler

Chris Samuels Chris Samuels (born July 28, 1977) is a former American college and professional football player who was an offensive tackle in the National Football League (NFL) for ten seasons. He played college football for the University of Alabama, and ...

, the offensive line paved the way for the Redskins running game to rack up 130.9 yards per game, eighth in the NFL. Despite suffering a late-season injury, Samuels continued his stellar career as a member of Bugel's offensive line, earning his sixth

Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (starting in 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's star players. The format has changed thro ...

berth in nine active seasons; including four straight during his five seasons under Bugel's tutelage. He retired from the NFL following the end of the 2009 season.

Head coaching record

Personal life

Bugel and his wife, Brenda, had three daughters: Angie, Jennifer and Holly. Holly died from bone cancer on August 21, 2008. Bugel himself died at the age of 80 on June 28, 2020.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bugel, Joe 1940 births 2020 deaths American football linebackers Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football players Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football coaches Navy Midshipmen football coaches Iowa State Cyclones football coaches Ohio State Buckeyes football coaches Detroit Lions coaches Houston Oilers coaches Oakland Raiders coaches Oakland Raiders head coaches Phoenix Cardinals head coaches Washington Redskins coaches San Diego Chargers coaches Coaches of American football from Pennsylvania Players of American football from Pittsburgh Sportspeople from Pittsburgh