Dick Rehbein

Class of 1977: NFL coach

Dick Rehbein was an NFL offensive position football coach for 23 seasons. He served the Minnesota Vikings from 1984-1991, the New York Giants from 1992-1999 and the New England Patriots from 2000-2001.

He was born Richard Marvin Rehbein Nov. 22, 1955, in Green Bay, Wisconsin. At Ripon, he majored in criminal justice. He was a two-time First Team All-American and three-time First Team All-Conference performer as an offensive lineman for Ripon College. He was one of just three players in program history to earn All-American honors more than once, doing so in each of his final two seasons.

Playing center as the anchor of Ripon’s offensive line, Rehbein started every game of his career. During his senior season, Rehbein was paramount in Ripon leading the Midwest Conference in both rushing yards per game (251) and total offensive yards per game (417). He also was the only Division II or Division III player from a Wisconsin school to earn All-American honors during his senior season.

After Rehbein’s graduation in 1977, he participated in the Green Bay Packers’ training camp that summer but did not make their final roster. He returned briefly to Ripon to serve as an admission counselor.

Two years later, head coach Bart Starr hired him as the Packers’ special teams coach, despite the fact Rehbein had never coached any sport at any level. “It was sink or swim,” he told Ripon.

After four years in that role, Rehbein worked one year for the USFL’s Los Angeles Express; eight years with the Minnesota Vikings, including three years as assistant offensive coordinator and passing game coach; in many roles for the New York Giants; and quarterbacks coach with the New England Patriots starting in 2000.

“I view myself as a teacher; I have a lesson to teach and a week in which to teach it,” Rehbein said. “Football is like the stock market. It’s a high-risk business, with high returns. There is constant pressure, long hours and not much job security. If you’re a coach, you don’t plan too far ahead.

“You can’t lose your perspective. When you win it feels great and when you lose it feels pretty bad. So you don’t celebrate your wins excessively, and you don’t dwell on your defeats.”

One of Rehbein’s most notable contributions to the sport was playing an integral role in the drafting of future NFL Hall of Fame quarterback Tom Brady.

Rehbein was inducted into the Ripon College Athletics Hall of Fame in 1997. He said, “If I had to go back 24 years and do it all over, I’d come to Ripon. Ripon allowed me to live my dream of coaching in the NFL.”

He said his education gave him “a solid background to deal with the organization, teaching and problem-solving needed to be a successful coach. The great thing about athletics at Ripon is that you can invest as much time and energy as you wish without feeling the pressures of a scholarship athlete.”

On Aug. 6, 2001, Rehbein died of a heart condition at the age of 45 during training camp for the Patriots. That season would culminate in Brady’s first career Super Bowl victory.

The Philadelphia Inquirer: described Rehbein as “someone who would listen without judging, and offer counsel without tyranny, someone who knew when to laugh, when to fall silent, when to cry.

“Someone to show you when not to throw the ball, and when you went ahead and threw it there anyway, would know when to shout, would know when to ease up and start over again, someone who seasoned the scolding with some stroking.”

Brady said: “Coach Rehbein was a tremendous influence on my life, on all the quarterbacks’ lives, on what it takes to be successful.”