Death to Google Ads! Texans Talk Tip Jar! 🍺😎👍
Thanks for your support!

Frank Bush named New Texans DC

TEXANS84

Moderator
Staff member
Got it:

The Texans hired their senior defensive assistant, Frank Bush, as defensive coordinator today.

Bush's promotion wasn't a surprise. He was the leading candidate and the only one interviewed for the defensive coordinator position that became available when Richard Smith was fired after the season.

The Texans asked for permission to interview Washington assistant Jerry Gray, but the Redskins denied him the opportunity last week. Under league rules, teams can deny permission for any assistant under contract unless the interview is for a head-coaching position.

Don't be surprised if David Gibbs, who coached Kansas City's defensive backs for the last three years, is the new secondary coach. Gibbs, the son of assistant head coach/offense Alex Gibbs, interviewed for the job Monday. Gibbs coached Denver's defensive backs for four years. He also was defensive coordinator at Minnesota and Auburn as well as an assistant at Colorado, Oklahoma and Kansas.

When Gary Kubiak was hired as head coach in 2006, Bush was his first choice to become the defensive coordinator, but Arizona wouldn't let him out of his contract. Kubiak promoted Smith, who had been hired to coach linebackers. In 2007, Ken Whisenhunt was hired to coach the Cardinals, and he allowed Bush to leave for the Texans.

Bush has been in the NFL for 24 years as a player, scout and assistant coach. He was drafted by the Oilers in 1985 to play outside linebacker. He was a starter as a rookie, and when a congenital spinal defect forced him to retire, he moved into the scouting department. Bush spent 10 years with the Oilers before moving to Denver, where he coached linebackers, defensive backs and special teams. He was assistant head coach\linebackers when the Texans hired him from Arizona.
Chronicle Article
 

Brando

Hall of Fame
link

The Texans hired their senior defensive assistant, Frank Bush, as defensive coordinator today.

Bush's promotion wasn't a surprise. He was the leading candidate and the only one interviewed for the defensive coordinator position that became available when Richard Smith was fired after the season.

The Texans asked for permission to interview Washington assistant Jerry Gray, but the Redskins denied him the opportunity last week. Under league rules, teams can deny permission for any assistant under contract unless the interview is for a head-coaching position.

Don't be surprised if David Gibbs, who coached Kansas City's defensive backs for the last three years, is the new secondary coach. Gibbs, the son of assistant head coach/offense Alex Gibbs, interviewed for the job Monday. Gibbs coached Denver's defensive backs for four years. He also was defensive coordinator at Minnesota and Auburn as well as an assistant at Colorado, Oklahoma and Kansas.
 

Errant Hothy

Hypermediocrity
I guess this means that Gray was the only other serious canidate?

Either way, I'll give Bush some time but I'm not very excited, or depressed, by this.
 

FirstTexansFan

The Unknown Fan
Who knows? I do remember everyone drooling when he was going to be our selection before Richard Smith, up until we were denied the right to talk to him by Arizona. Makes me question why we're all so negative about it now.
 

Errant Hothy

Hypermediocrity
Who knows? I do remember everyone drooling when he was going to be our selection before Richard Smith, up until we were denied the right to talk to him by Arizona. Makes me question why we're all so negative about it now.
I wouldn't say we're negative, just..."meh"...that's why I said neutral.
 

Hervoyel

BUENO!
I'm kind of "Ok people, lets get behind this" about this decision. This is what Kubiak originally wanted so now he's got it. The Texans will sink or swim with the coaches that Gary wants.

I want to hear some interview material with Bush and find out what he's got to say about where he wants to take the Texans defense. It's time for him to interview with the fanbase so to speak and sell us on his hiring.
 

gtexan02

Working?
This is great, IMO.

We get a guy who we know works well with our players, has ties to Houston, works well with Kubiak, and was his original #1 choice. I'm glad we're not bringing in Williams. Gray would have been nice, but it didn't work out. Time to move on and start signing up positional coaches.
 

Shaft75

All Pro
Ahhhh... The power of observation...

From the Gibbs Interview Thread:

I was just watching ABC 13 news and they were showing a segment on the Shriners game in Houston. Why would I bring this up?

Well write in the middle of reading comments in this thread on my iphone, I looked up a the tv and saw some coaches watching the practice today. Good old Kubiak was in the middle with his offensive coordinator, Kyle Shanahan to his left and you guesses it... Frank Bush to his right.

Am I reading to much into it?
 

BigWig

Bigimus Wigimus
I think its a safe pick, would I like to have had a gamble pick, maybe, it just doesnt do much for me right now. Hopefully Kubes and this guy will make a 1-2 punch type of team, including Shanny jr. and have our D bcak in at leats the top 10.
 

bckey

All Pro
Alot of people on here called this one. The Texans were basically going through the motions with Bush as their man all along. John McClain has some positive stuff to say about Bush in his chat for what its worth:

John McClain: I hope Frank Bush gets it. Frank will blitz like crazy and have the linemen shoot the gaps to get after the quarterback and give the defense an identity -- everybody to the ball and hit until the whistle. That's the system he was brought up under.
 

HOU-TEX

Ah, Football!
I'm good with it. I agree with Herv. It'd be nice to have a PC with Bush having him throw us a bone about his defensive philosophy. Doubtful, but who knows?

Now, on the the Dline and Secondary coaches. Who do we have out there?

:texflag:
 

barrett

All Pro
I am supportive of it but it's hard to understand why we only interviewed 1 guy. The other guy we wanted we couldn't have. Was Bush that much of a sure thing or what? I would have liked to play the field a bit more. But with absolutely no idea what Bush plans to do it's hard to be negative about it.
 

Texans Pride

Veteran
I don't like it.

Take the time time to interview SOMEONE else. . . ANYONE.

I'm never a big fan at jumping at the first opportunity. You should always look at all your options on the table.
 

Porky

Hall of Fame
I'm not happy with this hiring. Nor am I upset about it. The guy has no track record calling a defense.

He's a clean slate. If he can turn that defense over and shake it up good and erase the mess left over from Smith, then he will be the the etch a sketch coach.

Of course, if he retraces the same lines as his predecssor, then he will be the unemployed coach.

I'm willing to give him a shot and the proof will be in the pudding.
 

SheTexan

Hall of Fame
Hummmm, just wondering. Bush leaves the Cards and they go to the NFC championship game, maybe the SB. Maybe Coach Whisenhunt knows something GK refuses to acknowledge. :headhurts: I don't pretend to know as much as some of you guys know about coaching defenses, etc, but, for some reason, I don't get a warm fuzzy feeling about his promotion. I just wish I could pick the brains of the guys that PLAY on our defense. Wonder how Dunte will react to this? Guess we'll find out soon enough.
 

TheRealJoker

Hall of Fame
Bush is the safe pick. He's a guy Kubiak knows isn't going to be a hot candidate for a HC position his lack of a sparkling resume as a DC at this point in his career. But he's got a lot of coaching experience and he knows all the players on defense and more importantly their strengths and weaknesses.

I'm not happy that we have no idea what type of scheme he wants to run like we would've known with Jerry Gray but at the same time if we would've hired a guy at DC who is already interviewing for HC openings and he turns the D into a top 10 unit in 1 season then its very likely he would've been a HC after only 1 season or so with us. With Bush atleast we know we've got him at minimum 3 years unless he lights things up and becomes a top HC candidate or is Richard Smith 2.0 and gets Kubiak fired.

But if Bush is Smith 2.0 then Kubiak SHOULD be fired for hiring him. Kubiak knows this DC is going to get him an extension or get him a pink slip so I trust in his decision making.
 

76Texan

Hall of Fame
I'm kind of "Ok people, lets get behind this" about this decision. This is what Kubiak originally wanted so now he's got it. The Texans will sink or swim with the coaches that Gary wants.

I want to hear some interview material with Bush and find out what he's got to say about where he wants to take the Texans defense. It's time for him to interview with the fanbase so to speak and sell us on his hiring.
Well, the continuity will be there.
But Kubiak is now caught lying that he wants a big-time upgrade there!
I never thought that Smith was alone in running the Defense.

Remember back in 06, we started out playing quite agressively, blitzing and so forth... for a few games... getting burned badly... and so they toned it down. We simply don't have the personnel.

With a couple more draft picks next year, we'll be able to get back to what Kubiak has wanted to do all along, playing more agressively on defense!

We'll be fine with Bush. (Knock on wood!)
 

barrett

All Pro
i wonder if they will "introduce" him or if we'll just have to learn what he's going for via Chron's crackpot staff?
 

Texan JBZ

Da Sip's Finest
I'm willing to give Bush a chance to see what he can do. Kubes has had a good history with his hirings. Well..that is besides Smith. But if you look at jus the OCs the Texans have had under Kubes, they've been decent hires. Calhoun, Sherman, now Shanny. He's been able to keep very important coaches like Holland, Marciano, Karm, and Harris on the staff. He was able to upgrade the staff with Rhodes and Gibbs. So, I'm going to give him the benefit of the doubt on Bush right now. Not to say that I won't change, but I'm good with the hiring for now.
 

drewmar74

disgruntled
I'm not happy that we have no idea what type of scheme he wants to run....
Per McClain on his chat today:

John McClain: I hope Frank Bush gets it. Frank will blitz like crazy and have the linemen shoot the gaps to get after the quarterback and give the defense an identity -- everybody to the ball and hit until the whistle. That's the system he was brought up under.

http://blogs.chron.com/nfl/2009/01/texans_nfl_chat_0113.html

Sounds decidedly more aggressive than the vanilla wafer defense (plain, flat, and crumbles easily) that RS trotted out.
 
It is still a mystery to me with Bush getting the dc gig why Jethro Franklin was axed. They were supposedly great friends unless something changed over time. See this from the video archives on the other board.


http://www.houstontexans.com/tv/index.asp?mm_file_id=1560
Maybe it has something to do with Frank wanting to shoot gaps and Jethro having his guys read then react. Just because your friend does not mean you think alike.

If Bush turns out the way McClain described him, then I am thrilled. Use the DL properly and get us some better athletes at LB.
 

Wolf

100% Texan
Maybe it has something to do with Frank wanting to shoot gaps and Jethro having his guys read then react. Just because your friend does not mean you think alike.

If Bush turns out the way McClain described him, then I am thrilled. Use the DL properly and get us some better athletes at LB.
maybe he can utilize Amobi then by shooting the gaps
 

TheRealJoker

Hall of Fame
Per McClain on his chat today:

John McClain: I hope Frank Bush gets it. Frank will blitz like crazy and have the linemen shoot the gaps to get after the quarterback and give the defense an identity -- everybody to the ball and hit until the whistle. That's the system he was brought up under.

http://blogs.chron.com/nfl/2009/01/texans_nfl_chat_0113.html

Sounds decidedly more aggressive than the vanilla wafer defense (plain, flat, and crumbles easily) that RS trotted out.
Sounds great if true. If it turns out to be another "aggressive 4-3" however...

On the positive side he did have some strong years as LB coach for Denver and Arizona. Hope he can bring some attitude to the defensive side of the ball!!!

Also, i'm sure he had input on Marinelli getting interviewed. Marinelli runs a DL that is quick and shoots the gaps in a tampa 2. That leads me to believe that's what Bush wants on defense...hopefully he'll use Amobi effectively!!!
 

kiwitexansfan

Hall of Fame
John McClain: I hope Frank Bush gets it. Frank will blitz like crazy and have the linemen shoot the gaps to get after the quarterback and give the defense an identity -- everybody to the ball and hit until the whistle. That's the system he was brought up under
[.
This sounds like a system that will suit our DL personnel pretty well, Mario, AO, TJ are all pass rushers who need to play in gaps and go for the jugular.

We'll need some better LB and S play to compensate but hopefully with Demeco fit again, Adibi and Diles better for a years experience and hopefully an infusion of new talent at S via draft and/or FA, we'll gave what it takes to pull it off.
 

Shaft75

All Pro
Did McLain say on his chat why they waitd so long in the DC was allready in-house? Still a burning question for me... Spending too much time in the Rivalry forum to look it up.:pirate:
 

bckey

All Pro
Maybe it has something to do with Frank wanting to shoot gaps and Jethro having his guys read then react. Just because your friend does not mean you think alike.

If Bush turns out the way McClain described him, then I am thrilled. Use the DL properly and get us some better athletes at LB.
I think we will all be thrilled if Bush turns out that way. I was under the impression Franklin had them read and react because Smith wanted that. If it ws Franklin then I can see why he was let go.
 

Kaiser Toro

Native Mod
Did McLain say on his chat why they waitd so long in the DC was allready in-house? Still a burning question for me... Spending too much time in the Rivalry forum to look it up.:pirate:
Gray had a meeting with the Redskins yesterday to address their decision not to allow him to visit with the Texans. Perhaps that was what Kubiak was waiting for.
 

BigBull17

Hall of Fame
I wouldn't say we're negative, just..."meh"...that's why I said neutral.
I know how you feel. I'm just kinda pissed that we did'nt even talk to one other person. Its not like he was going anywhere. We had him under contract. We could take all the time in the world and have him if we couldnt find someone better. Just lame. This is do or die year. We either get into the play-off's go 12-4 and not make it(could happen) or Kubiak is HC at A&M.
 

gtexan02

Working?
Did McLain say on his chat why they waitd so long in the DC was allready in-house? Still a burning question for me... Spending too much time in the Rivalry forum to look it up.:pirate:
I think they wanted to give Gray a chance at the job in an interview. Once they were denied, they made the annoucement
 

Errant Hothy

Hypermediocrity
I know how you feel. I'm just kinda pissed that we did'nt even talk to one other person. Its not like he was going anywhere. We had him under contract. We could take all the time in the world and have him if we couldnt find someone better. Just lame. This is do or die year. We either get into the play-off's go 12-4 and not make it(could happen) or Kubiak is HC at A&M.
In their defense we know that asked to interview Gray and were denied. There is nothing for sure stating that they didn't interview anybody else.
 

Hardcore Texan

Magnet Man
If Bush was the one calling the plays towards the last part of the season that led to much better defensive performance than I am really happy about this hiring. If it wasn't him than I am "meh, let's see what happens" about it.
 

Killer Bee

Waterboy
Hopefully McClain is right about his style but its all speculation until next season. The silver lining in this is that Bush is up to speed on the personal; he knows our strengths and weaknesses. The scheme will be molded around the talent, not the other way around. That should hasten the turnaround.
 
I hate this move. If this was the direction they wanted to go, it should have happened no later than week 8 last year.

It shows a serious lack of foresight.
 

BigBull17

Hall of Fame
In their defense we know that asked to interview Gray and were denied. There is nothing for sure stating that they didn't interview anybody else.
Yeah, but they could have interviewed a few guys first. There were more out there than Gray and Bush.
 

Shaft75

All Pro
I wonder if he's going to put pictures of rocks in the guys' lockers. :thinking:
He should put up a picture of Ed Reed breaking Chris Johnson in half, or a picture of Ray Lewis blowing up Ahmard Hall to let the players know what is expected of them.
 

drewmar74

disgruntled
He should put up a picture of Ed Reed breaking Chris Johnson in half, or a picture of Ray Lewis blowing up Ahmard Hall to let the players know what is expected of them.
I prefer that to rocks.

:specnatz:

Maybe a picture of Mario violating Bud Adams' mother while pouring sugar in Jeff Fisher's gas tank?

That might fire up the troops.
 

da Bull

Practice Squad
Hopefully The scheme will be molded around the talent, not the other way around.
That's the most salient point.

The one thing about this whole exercise is that Bush has probably demonstrated to Kubiak that he can handle the administrative side of being a coordinator. Which I would think is more encompassing than just being a position coach (i.e. Sean McDermott et. al.)
 

Nawzer

Alienz
Congrats to Frank Bush. I'll reserve judgement till we play 8 regular season games next season. I think Bush will do a better job than Richard Smith did. He knows the players, he's seen what works and what our players are capable of. Hopefully now, we can go get him some players who can wreak havok.
 

TexansFanatic

Extremist
Is it possible that Bush was already calling the defensive plays and taking a more hands-on role overall before Smith was canned? Is it possible he was already the DC for the second half of the season, with Smith having been reined in?
 

dalemurphy

Hall of Fame
It's an exciting day. We have a new defense now. We won't be complaining anymore about the defense playing too conservatively. Apparently, this is the guy the defensive players wanted and it's definitely the guy that Kubes wanted 3 years ago.

I agree with my buddy Barrett that the one concern I have is the lack of interviews. However, I think the Marinelli interview may have been more about DC than was let on. Also, it's possible that their search was a lot more than we know. Besides the reported denial by the Redskins, who knows what else happened behind the scenes the past 2 weeks.

I've been screaming for a year that simply being aggressive on defense and forcing tempo will have wonderful results for this team. Since we have one of the better and more explosive offenses in the NFL, an up tempo game with more posessions is a good thing, even if we do give up a couple more big plays.

In other words, I'd rather give up 24 points, create 3 turnovers, and have our offense get the ball 13 times....

versus,

Give up 20 points, create one turnover, and our offense only gets 10 posessions.

I hope that makes sense. I think teams with good offenses doing themselves a disservice when the defense basically encourages 12-14 play drives. They're shooting themselves in the foot!
 
Top