Utah Utes football: Veteran Pease puts retirement on hold

Most folks, when they turn 65 years old, look forward to retirement because of the opportunity to perhaps play a little golf, sit back in their rocking chair, and generally take it easy.

Not John Pease.

The longtime football coach with 19 years of NFL coaching experience, and nearly as much college experience, has returned to the coaching profession this year as Utah's defensive line coach.

At Ute practices, he's the guy with the thinning gray hair and the slightly hunched-over gait who roams the field like the Energizer bunny.

After retiring from the NFL in 2005, Pease has returned to Utah, where he played in the early 1960s and coached in the 1970s.

So far, it's working out great.

"John has a very impressive coaching resume," said Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham. "He's been at the highest level for a lot of years, and we're very fortunate he was able to accept the position. He's a huge asset to this staff."

"It's fun," Pease says. "A lot of people my age retire and play golf and sit at home, but not me. I hope I have something to contribute. I have a lot of energy left."

Pease played linebacker on Utah's 1964 Liberty Bowl team with the likes of Roy Jefferson, Ron Coleman and Pokey Allen. He started his coaching career as a graduate assistant at the U. and also coached collegiately at Fullerton Community College, Long Beach State and Washington, as well as a year at Utah in 1977.

In 1983, he went to the USFL for three years before joining the New Orleans Saints, where he coached the defensive line for nine seasons. Then he joined the Jacksonville Jaguars as the defensive line coach for six years and as the defensive coordinator for two. Then it was back to New Orleans for a couple of years before he retired in 2005.

Pease came back to Utah, where he had a condo and lived part of the year with his wife, Chris. He couldn't get football out of his blood, so he used to attend Ute practices as what he called "a senior adviser."

"He wasn't on the field, but he was a good sounding board for me," says Whittingham.

Whittingham had first met Pease five or six years ago through a mutual friend. Pease used to come to summer camps and then hung around practices for a couple of years.