Steve Mariucci

Steve Mariucci is in his third year with the 49ers as the team’s head coach. He is the 13th head coach in 49ers’ history.

With a 25-7 record and two postseason trips after his first two years as head coach, Mariucci has established himself as one of the finest coaches in the NFL. His 25 wins is the second-best two-year mark in league history, trailing only George Seifert’s 28-4 record.

Mariucci has never lost a regular season game (16-0) at home during his tenure in San Francisco, the fastest start at home in NFL history, eclipsing the 13-0 mark John Madden set with Oakland in 1969-70. Overall, Mariucci has an 18-1 mark at 3Com, including playoffs. He is one of only three coaches in league history to win 12-or-more games in each of his first two seasons.

Under Mariucci’s guidance, the 1998 49ers had the NFL’s top-rated offense and became the first team since the 1941 Chicago Bears to lead the league in gross passing yards and rushing yards in the same season. The 49ers led the league in nine different categories, including total offense, rushing yards, gross passing yards and first downs, while breaking four team records. San Francisco led the NFL and set a team record with 6,801 yards of total offense, breaking the previous mark (6,435) set in 1993. They led the NFL and set a team record with an average of 425.1 yards per game, the second best in league history. The 49ers also set team records and led the NFL with 2,544 yards rushing and 381 first downs.

In addition to team accomplishments, Mariucci’s 1998 troops put together a number of outstanding individual performances. Five players were named to the Pro Bowl, including G Kevin Gogan (3), RB Garrison Hearst (1), WR Jerry Rice (12), LB Winfred Tubbs (1), and QB Steve Young (7). Hearst led NFC running backs in three rushing categories: longest run (96t), yards in a game (198), and average yards per attempt (5.1); Rice set an NFL record by catching a pass in 193 consecutive games (breaking Art Monk’s record of 183); Young threw a career-high 36 touchdown passes and completed 322-of-517 passes for a career-high 4,170 yards; and Young and Rice combined to become the NFL’s all-time QB-WR scoring tandem with 84 touchdowns.

In his inaugural year, Mariucci posted a 13-3 record in 1997 and led the 49ers to the NFC West title for the 13th time in the last 17 seasons, tying a league record (Chicago Bears) for fastest to a division title by sealing it up in Game 11. He became one of 13 head coaches since the NFL-AFL merger in 1970 to lead his team to a division title in his first season, and only the fourth to accomplish the feat directly out of the college ranks. Mariucci is the only head coach ever to lead his team to the NFC Championship Game one year removed from college. With 13 regular season wins in his first season, Mariucci ranked second all-time in wins for a rookie head coach. He established an NFL record for consecutive wins by a rookie head coach with an 11-game winning streak.

Mariucci joined the 49ers’ staff January 16, 1997 after spending one season as head coach at the University of California. In 1996, he led a young Cal team to a 6-5 regular season record and a trip to the Aloha Bowl. His implementation of the West Coast offense helped the Bears average 457.6 yards per game, including a school record 321.5 through the air. Also under Mariucci’s guidance was Kansas City’s 1997 fourth-round pick, Pat Barnes, who set eight Pac 10 records and 30 Cal records.

Prior to joining the Cal staff, Mariucci was quarterbacks coach for the Green Bay Packers from 1992-95, tutoring the likes of three-time MVP Brett Favre, Mark Brunell, and Ty Detmer.

During his college days, Mariucci led Northern Michigan on the greatest turn around in college football history. After posting an 0-10 record in 1974, Mariucci directed the Wildcats to a 13-1 record and the 1975 NCAA Division II National Championship. The two-time All-America quarterback (1976-77) was voted the team MVP for three consecutive seasons, establishing 14 school passing records prior to his graduation in 1977.

Steve began his coaching career at his alma mater (1978-79), serving as the quarterbacks and running backs coach, then moved on to Cal State Fullerton as the quarterbacks and special teams coordinator (1980-82). For the next two seasons, Mariucci was the assistant head coach and offensive coordinator at Louisville (1983-84) before accepting his first pro position in 1985 with the USFL’s Orlando Renegades as receivers coach. Later that fall, he had a brief stint at the Los Angeles Rams as quality control coach, and then transferred to the University of Southern California in ’86 to accept the receivers/special teams coordinator post.

After a year at USC, Mariucci spent the next five years at Cal as the team’s wide receivers and special teams coach (1987-89), then as offensive coordinator (1990-1991). In 1991, his offense led the Bears to a 10-2 record and a No. 7 national ranking. Mariucci joined the Packers in 1992 and spent four seasons as quarterbacks coach under Mike Holmgren. Mariucci was elected into Northern Michigan University Hall of Fame in 1988 and elected into the Upper Peninsula of Michigan Hall of Fame in 1995.

A native of Iron Mountain, MI, Steve was born November 4, 1955. He and his wife, Gayle, have four children: sons, Tyler (11-28-84), Adam (8-23-86), Stephen (2-3-89), and daughter, Brielle (9-19-95).