The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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Borges, who has previously been the offensive coordinator at Auburn and UCLA, came with Hoke from San Diego State to Michigan. photo by lon horwedel Al Borges Offensive Coordinator When Brady Hoke accepted the head coaching position at Michigan in January 2011, San Diego State promoted defensive coordinator Rocky Long, and Long extended an opportunity to the rest of Hoke's staff to remain with the Aztecs. Al Borges had been coaching with Hoke for only two seasons, and enjoyed the lifestyle in the Golden State, calling California home for eight years of his life. He didn't hesitate, though, in choosing to join Hoke in Ann Arbor. "When you get this chance at a place like this for a guy like Brady … it was a no-brainer," Borges said. "San Diego State is awesome, but this job is the pinnacle of college football. Coaching at Michigan created an opportunity to get back to where I was when I was coaching with UCLA and Auburn, and competing for championships." The Bruins went 10-2 twice during Borges' five seasons with them (1996-2000), winning Pac-10 titles in 1997 and 1998, and finishing fifth nationally in '97. Auburn went 13-0 in Borges' debut season with the Tigers in 2004, but were blocked from the national championship game, settling for a No. 2 final ranking. But for Borges, the prospect of winning conference crowns and contending for a national title was only part of the equation. Hoke made the decision easy. "The thing about coaching with Brady is it 46 ■ The Wolverine 2013 Football Preview was better than I expected," Borges said. "The reason it's better is because of Brady's ability to deal with the adversity of this position, the ebb and flow of coaching. Some coaches don't handle the ebb and flow, head coaches particularly because there is a lot of pressure. Because of that, their decision-making isn't very good, and the residual of that can be long losing streaks. "Brady keeps things on an even-keel. He's stern and he's tough, and he still understands there are going to be some ups and downs, and as long as you handle those rationally, you have a chance to recover from the downs. "His game demeanor best demonstrates who he is. He's not a screaming, sulking coach. You never see him lose his composure, and that's reflective of the team. That's how we stay in games. His example sets the tone for the coaching staff and the team." Borges and Hoke have a history dating back to the early 1990s when Hoke was coaching at Oregon State (1989-94) and Borges was the offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach at Portland State (1986-92). "Our staff used to make a trek up there every so often, to visit with the coaches at Oregon and Oregon State, and I met Brady when he was an assistant coach," Borges said. "Because of Brady, the way he is, you stay connected to him. Do I call him and talk on the phone with him? No. But through the years, I always saw him, knew him, talked to him, and had a good rapport with him. "He went from Oregon State to Michigan and I went from Portland State to Oregon to UCLA, and we played Michigan twice when I was at UCLA and I saw him … just assistant coaches running into each other all of the time. And then I went to Auburn and he was at Ball State, and we played each other." Borges and Hoke shared common friends, including current U-M assistant Dan Ferrigno, and they would meet at events throughout the calendar year. Hoke possessed the personality Borges naturally gravitated toward, a common thread among his staff. "He's a guy that everybody just wants to have a beer with," Borges said. "People just like him because he's normal. He's a dude." Borges enjoyed his conversations with Hoke, but in the coaching profession, one can never plan in advance. With Hoke working his way up the coaching ranks, becoming the head coach of Ball State in 2003 and Borges coordinating the offense at Auburn from 2004-07, it just didn't appear their paths would cross. The stars would align, though, in 2009, with Hoke moving to San Diego State and Borges looking to re-enter the coaching ranks after sitting out the 2008 season following his departure from Auburn. "I had left Auburn, but my wife was an