Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, February 3, 1994 TAG: 9402030094
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: ASHBURN LENGTH: Medium
The Redskins hired Dallas Cowboys offensive coordinator Norv Turner as their new coach Wednesday with instructions to win next season and get Washington back to the NFL playoffs by 1995.
Turner, after helping take the Cowboys to back-to-back Super Bowl championships, replaces Richie Petitbon, fired in January after one season - the Redskins' worst in three decades.
Washington gave Turner - its third head coach in less than a year - a five-year contract, according to one team official, speaking on the condition of anonymity. No salary was disclosed, but the deal apparently was worth $500,000 per season.
Owner Jack Kent Cooke put high expections on Turner to reverse the Redskins' rapid descent from the Super Bowl championship just two seasons ago, They were 10-8, including the playoffs, in Joe Gibbs' last season in 1992, but fell to 4-12 under Petitbon.
"I have high hopes that pretty soon, and soon to me means this coming year, we're going to embark on winning ways," Cooke said. "And shortly thereafter, the winning ways will turn into playoff ways. That may be as late as 1995.
"Three Super Bowl trophies are not enough for Mr. and Mrs. Turner and me and my son," the 81-year-old billionaire added. "There are going to be more, and it's not going to be in the distant future; it's going to be in the near future."
Gibbs delivered all three of those trophies in his 12 years before resigning last March, only one year into a three-year contract. Since December, after Petitbon's team faltered under limping quarterback Mark Rypien with no protection from an injury-decimated line, the Redskins have looked upon Turner as almost a clone of Gibbs.
"That's amazingly flattering; I've been an admirer of Joe Gibbs for a number of years," Turner said. "But there's no way I can be Joe Gibbs and there's no way I'm going to try to be Joe Gibbs. Only one thing will make the comparison valid, and that's the test of time."
Turner said his first priority is putting a staff together by the end of the week. Turner spent Tuesday night contacting most of the assistants he wants and said Wednesday the only thing that remains is bringing them here "over the next three days" to sign contracts.
Keywords:
FOOTBALL
by CNB