Cam finds sun with Chargers

This is about a coach who endured five difficult years at a school where football doesn't matter that much.\nThis is about a coach who handled the rough times -- and there were a lot -- as well as he embraced the few memorable moments.\nThis is about a coach who cared about his players enough to treat them as student-athletes rather than athlete-students.\nThis is about a coach who received what he deserved Wednesday.\nThis is about new San Diego Chargers offensive coordinator Cam Cameron. \n Remember Cameron? Judging by IU's home football attendance the past five years, most of you probably don't.\nThree months ago, he coached an IU team that was in the process of winning four of its final five games. Ultimately, that wasn't enough to make athletics director Michael McNeely forget about the Hoosiers' 1-5 start or Cameron's four previous losing seasons. McNeely fired Cameron Dec. 5, four days after IU defeated Kentucky in its season finale.\nSince that time, Cameron and his family moved to North Carolina, where he's been looking for a new job. \nTwo NFL teams -- Buffalo and Tampa Bay -- almost hired Cameron as an offensive coordinator. As Cameron discovered the past five seasons, coming close isn't the same as receiving.\nThe resilient Cameron -- you have to be resilient to coach here for five years -- kept interviewing. Finally, first-year San Diego coach Marty Schottenheimer hired Cameron this week. \n"I was very impressed with his understanding of offensive schemes, particularly the way he designs things to attack defenses," Schottenheimer said in a statement.\nSchottenheimer, who coached the Washington Redskins to an 8-8 record last season, isn't the easiest coach to work under. He has a reputation of being a control freak who does things one way: his way.\nCameron's easy-going demeanor should complement Schottenheimer's intense presence. And when given the opportunity, Cameron will experiment with the Chargers' offense.\nAt IU, Cameron gave an undersized quarterback from Riverdale, Ill. an opportunity when his colleagues were scared to take a chance on the prospect. He also made a bold decision when he moved that quarterback (Antwaan Randle El) to wide receiver during the past offseason. \nOf course the move didn't work, and Randle El played his natural position for the remaining 10 games.\nIf anybody can get along with Schottenheimer, it's the affable Cameron. While Cameron's win-loss record didn't earn him many supporters, no one hated the guy.\nWhen a coach with an 18-37 career record gets fired, it's usually reason to purchase a case and throw down. This wasn't the case -- no pun intended -- when Cameron got fired.\nBased on wins and loses, McNeely's decision was justified. Based on character, the decision seemed rotten, especially considering Cameron was in Evansville attending the funeral of running back Levron Williams' mother at the same time McNeely went public with his decision. \nCameron handled the end of his tenure with class. He displayed no bitter feelings toward McNeely or the University. He never resorted to yelling at the media, a tactic many embattled coaches adopt during the end of a rough tenure. \nJust maybe Cameron's good-guy image forced NFL coaches to dial his number. Maybe it was the reason he received a promotion. Maybe becoming a NFL offensive coordinator was a sign that Cameron has graduated from college coaching and moved onto something better.\nCoaching offense is what Cameron does best. Now he's a full-time offensive coach who gets to work with talented players such as running back LaDainlian Tomlinson, wide receiver Curtis Conway and quarterback Doug Flutie. The Chargers also have quarterback Drew Brees, a player Cameron should know well. Brees was Purdue's starting quarterback from 1998-2000 when the Boilermakers won three games against Cameron's Hoosiers by a combined score of 123-44.\n"Probably 75 percent of the gray hair on my head is from Drew," Cameron told the San Diego Union-Tribune.\nBesides some decent players to coach, Cameron's new job has other perks that might return his hair to its original red color.\nHe doesn't have to worry about recruiting. His family doesn't have to worry about lousy weather. He will receive a handsome salary, and if McNeely keeps his word, Cameron will still receive his annual base salary of $150,000 for the remaining three years on his IU contract. \nIn the end, this was about a nice man who found a nice job.