Austin Power: Akina Takes Over

Texas Turns to New Play-Caller to Keep Its Defense Strong

Duane Akina simultaneously bemoans and enjoys the piercing shout of his wife each time they have guests over for a barbecue. "Hey!" Donna Akina yells. "Hurry up with those steaks!"

Duane Akina cringes, then smiles. His guests are members of the Texas Longhorns' defense, and as the co-defensive coordinator, Akina thinks it's good for them to see him "get his butt kicked" by his wife. After all, he does much the same to them on the practice field.

These barbecues -- which, Akina said, take place only as often as NCAA regulations allow -- are meant to break down the barriers that usually separate an authority figure from his charges. "I don't want to be seen as just a coach with a hat and a whistle," Akina said.

He will be much more than that this season for the Longhorns. When Gene Chizik left to take the head coaching position at Iowa State, Texas head coach Mack Brown said the "natural choice" to assume the play-calling duties on defense was Akina.

Though he is entering his fourth season as the co-defensive coordinator, since 2001 Akina has worked mostly with the secondary, which has produced the last two Jim Thorpe Award winners and eight first-team all-conference selections. Now, Akina's responsibilities will include dictating the style of play of the entire defense. "We'll manage it in much the same way," Akina said. "We will piece together thoughts as a staff, but I'll make the tough decisions."

Some of those tough decisions will include how often to bring pressure on opposing backfields. Brown described Akina as a very aggressive, very excitable guy, but noted that Akina is "not a cusser." That discretion -- the restraint to hold back when every emotional urge in one's body desires otherwise -- is emblematic of Akina as a coach.

"I think he'll do a better job of disguising the blitz and confusing the quarterback," Brown said. "He'll take lesser chances with the down-to-down calls, but when he blitzes, he'll bring more people."

Akina said he understands that building trust among his players will be critical to his success. That is why he makes an attempt to "put in a good sweat" during practices. He drops when his players drop. He rolls when his players roll. Need an example of how to properly execute a drill? Here comes Akina to demonstrate.

"I always try to be very much about my players," Akina said. "I demand a lot out of these guys, and I'm up front about that. But I try to impress on them that I care about them."

Part of being in charge of an entire unit, Akina said, is understanding that whatever product is put forth on the field is a reflection of the coach and of the coach's teachings. So if Akina wants his players to buy into what he is preaching, telling them he cares about them and their success is not enough. They need to see examples, and that is where those barbecues come into play.

The little things like having their coach cook steaks for everyone, as well as seeing that he can handle being told to move faster, too, go a long way toward engendering respect and admiration. Those little things also give credence to a coach's message.

"He's always looking for your best performance, not your mediocre performance," free safety Marcus Griffin said. "If you have a chance to be great, he wants you to be great."

Recent members of the Texas defense have proved collegiate greatness is attainable. Michael Huff won the Jim Thorpe Award, given annually to the nation's top pass defender, in 2005 and Aaron Ross took home the honor in 2006. When Huff was awarded his trophy, he knew he had to do something special for the man he felt was most responsible for the achievement. He paid for a replica of the trophy and gave it to Akina.

In order to provide some relief this season to a secondary that lost three starters to graduation, the linebacking unit will need to improve. Texas boasted the nation's third-ranked run defense in 2006, but its pass defense sank to 99th, allowing a school-record 3,071 passing yards. Often times, the secondary overcommitted to the run because of shaky performances by the linebackers, which left holes open in the secondary. The Longhorns brought in Larry Mac Duff to work with the linebackers and serve as Akina's co-defensive coordinator.

"We want resiliency in our defense," Akina said. "If we can engrain those types of personalities in our defense, it doesn't matter what schemes I decide to call."