Dinardo brings passion, charisma to program

He's a passionate person who didn't have any problem displaying emotion in his first day as IU's football coach.\nThirty minutes after he was supposed to be announced as IU's 25th football coach Tuesday, Gerry DiNardo finally arrived at Memorial Stadium and went right to work.\nWith his hands flying in every direction, and his thick New York accent fluctuating, DiNardo enthusiastically discussed a job that hasn't given its owner much reason for excitement. \n"I will be a strong leader, I will be a consistent leader and I will be someone that our team can always look to for leadership," DiNardo said.\nLess than 30 minutes after meeting with the media, DiNardo addressed IU's current players. Dinardo then went to Assembly Hall and greeted fans at the men's basketball game against Michigan State. He also found time for a nationally televised interview with ESPN's Dave Barnett and Quinn Buckner during the early stages of the second half. DiNardo was smiling the entire interview.\n"He's very passionate about what he does," DiNardo's wife Terri said. "He's passionate about football, and he's passionate about people."\nDiNardo, 50, said his first two tasks as head coach include assembling a coaching staff and recruiting. \n"Gerry is a builder," Athletics Director Michael McNeely said. "He will gather the resources at hand and get them focused. That's something we need and he has great experience doing that."\nThis isn't the first time DiNardo has become a coach at a school where the football program had a pattern of losing.\nDiNardo served as Vanderbilt's coach from 1991-94 where he compiled an 18-26 record. It was his first tenure as a head coach. Vanderbilt is widely-known as the SEC's most challenging job because of the school's high academic standards. \nFrom Vanderbilt, DiNardo was hired to replace Curley Hullman as LSU's head coach in 1994. At the time, DiNardo was LSU's sixth coach since 1979. \nDiNardo's overall record at LSU was 32-24-1, and his best season was 1996 when he guided the Tigers to a 10-2 record, including an upset victory over then No. 1 ranked Florida during the regular season. The season ended with a victory over Notre Dame -- where DiNardo played from 1972-74 -- in the Independence Bowl. \nMost of DiNardo's success at LSU came early in his tenure. The Tigers stumbled to a 4-7 record in 1998. The following season was DiNardo's toughest in Baton Rogue. \nAfter defeating two non-conference opponents to start the season, LSU lost its eight consecutive games. DiNardo was fired with one game remaining after the Tigers lost to Houston, 20-7, at Tiger Stadium. \nCurrent IU offensive coordinator Hal Hunter replaced DiNardo, and guided the Tigers to a 35-10 victory over Arkansas in the season finale. Hunter also was an assistant with DiNardo at Vanderbilt.\nLSU lost 14 of its last 15 SEC games under DiNardo. In 1998 and 1999, LSU lost nine games decided by six points or less.\nLast year, DiNardo coached the Birmingham Thunderbolts of the now defunct XFL to a 2-8 record. The Thunderbolts lost their last seven games after starting the season 2-1.\n"It was my first experience in pro football," DiNardo said. "I learned a lot."\nBefore becoming a head coach, DiNardo, a native of Brooklyn, N.Y., served assistant coaching stints at Colorado, Eastern Michigan and Maine. While at Colorado, DiNardo worked on the same staff as McNeely.\n"He's a very dedicated, very smart coach," McNeely said. "He's a very good recruiter with great organizational skills"