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TAMPA — The new man calling the shots for the Buccaneers offense was somewhere behind closed doors Thursday, unavailable to field the barrage of media questions that most assuredly awaited him.
But even with no immediate access to new offensive coordinator Greg Olson, plenty is known about his style and accomplishments; from his years at Purdue helping mold future Pro Bowl quarterback Drew Brees to directing an explosive Rams unit.
In between, he guided a quarterback Tampa Bay fans know something about, Jeff Garcia, to one of his most productive seasons in 2001 while with the 49ers.
Olson, 46, was Garcia's quarterback coach in his first year on the Bucs staff in 2008, when they ranked 14th in total offense and 11th in passing with 3,778 yards, second highest in team history.
He was mentioned as a possible offensive coordinator in Tampa Bay in January but didn't get consideration as the Bucs zeroed in on Jeff Jagodzinski, who had been dismissed as Boston College's head coach.
But after Jagodzinski's firing Thursday, Olson has a chance to put his stamp on the offense.
"When you're talking about Greg, you're talking about a highly intelligent, smart human being who's been coaching quarterbacks for a long time," coach Raheem Morris said. "He's called plays in this league for a while. Been back and forth. Been through the grind. Been through everything you need to get done. Knows where we want to go. Very detailed coach. Very precise coach."
Olson had success as the offensive coordinator of the Rams, who ranked sixth in total offense in 2006 and third in passing. That unit became only the fourth in league history to feature a quarterback with more than 4,000 yards (Marc Bulger), a running back surpassing 1,500 yards (Steven Jackson) and a pair of receivers with more than 1,000 yards (Torry Holt and Isaac Bruce).
Then-coach Scott Linehan called plays initially but turned that duty over to Olson toward the end of the season. Olson continued to call plays through 2007. But the season unraveled amid a wave of injuries to key players, and the offense fell to 24th.
On the hot seat, Linehan shook up his coaching staff and offered Olson a chance to return in a reduced role. But he declined, instead accepting Jon Gruden's offer to join the Bucs in 2008.
"I think Greg is an excellent coach, and I was very fortunate to hire him," Gruden said Thursday. "He has a vast amount of experience. He has coached some young quarterbacks: Drew Brees, Rex Grossman, Joey Harrington. He's a hard-working guy, very smart."
Before coaching in St. Louis, Olson served as quarterbacks coach for the Bears in 2003 and Lions in 2004, taking over play-calling duties in the final three games and supervising an offense that averaged 403.6 yards in those outings. In 2005, he was reunited with Garcia and promoted to the Lions offensive coordinator in Week 11 after Steve Mariucci was dismissed as coach.
Mariucci opened the door to the NFL for Olson in San Francisco after four seasons coaching quarterbacks at Purdue (1997-2000). He played a big part in the development of Brees, a Heisman Trophy finalist in 1999 and 2000.
After his one-season stint with the 49ers, in which Garcia threw a career-best 32 touchdowns, Olson returned to Purdue for the 2002 season because his wife, Lissa, was named its track coach. (She was the first woman to coach a Division I men's track program and now is an assistant at USF.)
"I'm happy for Greg," said Garcia, now with the Raiders. "It's the position he should have been given right from the start. He's qualified, knowledgeable and has a great attitude. He has great relationships with players. It's too bad training camp is over, but it's best for the team to make the decision now instead of midway through the season."
Times staff writer Rick Stroud contributed to this report.
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