This almost made me puke. This was ran in a California Newspaper. Dispatch didn't touch it.
http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercu...s/13682561.htm
BY BERNIE MIKLASZ
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
ST. LOUIS - It was `round midnight Wednesday when
Scott Linehan entered Georgia Frontiere's office at her home in Sedona, Ariz.
As the Rams' search for a head coach intensified, team president John Shaw formally offered a pro-Linehan recommendation to Frontiere, but the Rams' owner had to approve.
Contrary to some Internet reports that surfaced Wednesday afternoon, no final decision had been made to hire Linehan. In fact, the Rams had Chicago Bears defensive coordinator Ron Rivera on standby, waiting in the wings. If Frontiere didn't like Linehan, then Rivera would travel to Sedona on Thursday to meet with the owner.
The evening got off to a pleasant start. Frontiere, Linehan, Shaw, director of football operations Jay Zygmunt and Frontiere's beau, Earle Weatherwax, dined on steak, salmon and pasta. Then the gang moved into Frontiere's home theater to watch the movie "Miracle," the story of the 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey team.
Interestingly, Linehan was carrying a DVD copy of the film and suggested a showing. After the movie, Frontiere and Linehan excused themselves and went to the second-floor home office for the key interview.
An hour later, the door to the small elevator opened on the first floor.
Frontiere, never lacking a sense of the dramatic, or the theatrical touch, stepped out first.
"Gentlemen," she said, looking at Shaw and the others, "I'd like you to meet our new head coach."
And with that, the smiling Linehan walked into the room.
What did Frontiere see in Linehan?
"It's like picking a star for a movie," Frontiere said, in a rare interview. "You want the right person. My first impression was that he was youthful and upbeat and had great energy. He's just a down-to-earth person, very genuine. He's warm and friendly, but not to the point where it makes you think he's selling something. He told me of his plans for the Rams, and it made me want to get the season started right away.
"Could we have picked a better young coach, someone with the promise that this man has? I don't believe so. He's very impressive. And we hit it off right away."
Frontiere has owned the Rams since 1979, and in her time as owner, the franchise has qualified for the playoffs 14 times, won 13 postseason games, and competed in three Super Bowls, winning one.
Frontiere was disheartened by the turmoil of the 6-10 season and the dissension between former coach Mike Martz and the team's executives. After health problems prompted Martz to take a leave of absence, putting his coaching future in doubt, he said Frontiere told him that he'd be her coach as long as she owned the Rams.
Frontiere said she merely told Martz that she hoped he'd always be her coach. "Because I've always been upbeat, and I want to believe in happy endings," she said. "I wanted Mike to make it."
Martz's Jan. 2 firing, "made me so sad," Frontiere said. "It was upsetting, because I liked him very much_and I still do. We had a great run with Mike, and I'm disappointed it didn't last. But that's life. You take the good with the bad, and you start all over again.
"We've been able to win for the fans in St. Louis, and I feel bad that we let them down this season. The fans believe in us. They count on us. And all of what happened brought them down. It brought us all down. It was a difficult experience.
"But now we have a new beginning, with a new coach. And we have to do everything we can to help him win."
But as she spoke about her hopes for the future, Frontiere paused to reflect on the death of Jack Snow, a former Rams wide receiver and team broadcaster. Snow died Jan. 9 from complications of a staph infection.
"I'm heartbroken," said Frontiere, who wrote a poem that was read to mourners at Snow's memorial service. "He was a true Ram, through and through, and a dear friend. I will always miss him."
Frontiere praised Shaw and Zygmunt for their recommendation of Linehan. Asked how she sees her role, Frontiere said: "I try to help John and Jay and others achieve success, and that's what makes me happy. I hope I've been a catalyst. I'm not looking for attention. I don't need to say, `I'm the boss.' No one can do it alone. We need teamwork."
Frontiere, 78, is in solid health after recovering from a nasty fall last year. I told her that Rams fans often wonder how long she'll keep the team, and if she plans to sell the Rams to ownership partner Stan Kroenke.
Frontiere said she has no plans to sell the Rams for two reasons. First, she still enjoys being the owner. And she also feels obligated to her late husband, Carroll Rosenbloom, who died in 1979, leaving control of the Rams to his widow.
"Carroll trusted me," she said. "He left me the team because he knew I'd never give up. And he told me to never give up. So I'm going to stick in there.
"It's been a nice trip, but it's never enough. You can't wait for the next day, the next adventure. I'm young enough in mind and spirit to realize that things change, and you have to evolve and change with it."
The Rams have changed again. They have a new, 42-year-old coach. But understand this: Linehan wasn't the coach until he passed the interview test with Frontiere. Linehan wasn't the coach until she stepped off the elevator and made the grand announcement.
"Whether he'll be successful, time will tell," Frontiere said. "But his optimism is wonderful. And I feel really good about the future."