Chris Ault’s career probably wouldn’t muster much familiarity with the casual college football fan, but those who study the game well can appreciate his contributions as a true offensive tactician.
A 24-year veteran at his current position, he was the youngest head coach in the nation when he took over the Wolf Pack at 29 years old in 1976.
“I probably brought more enthusiasm than I brought knowledge,” he said recently as his Wolf Pack prepare for their season opener against the Irish on Saturday. “It became something very special in terms of being at your own university that you’ve taken a big part of a program that went from Division II to I-A. Not many coaches can say they’ve been with the past and the present.”
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Ault was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2002 following his previous two stints at Nevada.
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Ault’s career has included three separate stints (1976-92, 1994-95 and 2004-current) at Nevada – also his alma mater where he was a 1968 graduate and played quarterback for the program from 1965-67 and was the athletics director from 1986-04 – during which he posted a 198-91-1 record, which ranks him fifth among winningest active coaches.
When Ault returned to coach Nevada in 2004, he created and implemented the “Pistol” offense, which is a combination of the shotgun, spread and option offenses.
“The reason for going to the Pistol was to make the quarterback the pivotal point, in other words be able to move them on the edges, be able to do certain things with the quarterback that adds him to the running game,” he said.
The move has apparently paid off, albeit quietly. In five seasons, the Wolf Pack have ranked no worse than No. 35 in scoring offense, which is where they finished the 2004 season when they averaged 29.67 points per game. Nevada’s offense currently owns an active streak of four consecutive seasons during which they have averaged 30 or more points per game.
The “Pistol” was effective when Jeff Rowe ran it for Ault and the Wolf Pack from 2004-06, but it has experienced tremendous growth in two seasons under the leadership of redshirt junior Colin Kaepernick, who was once a recruiting castaway whose only offer came from Nevada. And that offer might not have come, either, if not for his participation in Ault’s summer camps, where the head coach was able to truly gauge the talents he possessed, though unrefined.
“We knew he was athletic,” Ault said of Kaepernick. “We knew he was fast. How fast and what he could do on the field, you never know. But we knew that he was very athletic. That was something that came with him as a recruit.”
Since taking over the reins in 2007, Kaepernick has totaled more than 6,700 in just two seasons as the starter. However, despite his athleticism and his experience with the Wing-T offense in high school, even Kaepernick didn’t think he would have the impact he’s had on Nevada’s especially as a runner.
“It’s definitely not something I expected coming into college – to be a running quarterback,” he said. “But at the same time, I will do anything I can to help my team get a victory. If that means running the ball, I’m going to do that. If that means becoming a better passer like coach has asked me to, I’m going to do that to the best of my abilities.”
Ault acknowledged that Kaepernick will have to improve his passing game if the offense is going to continue to improve, though he’s come a long way from what Ault described as a “pitcher’s motion” when he first saw him.
Games like the September 5th matchup don’t come around often for the Wolf Pack program, so Ault welcomes the challenge the Irish defense presents and looks forward to seeing how his creation stacks up against tougher competition.
“The concern is to be sound on offense, to do the things that we might give us a little bit of an advantage on our side of the ball,” he said. “We are certainly going to have to execute. We’re an up-tempo offense. We like to do that. We’ve done some things to improve some of the things we’ve done in the Pistol and hope that will balance some of the things Notre Dame does.
“I feel, certainly, that our guys have to respond to a team that has really fine athletes.”
However, in addition to the offense, Ault will also have to work to balance his team’s emotions. The Wolf Pack players were reportedly a bit starry-eyed when they took on Arizona State in 2006. It was noted that the camera phones got quite a workout during the tour of Sun Devil Stadium – former site of the Fiesta Bowl. Nevada went on to lose, 52-21.
“We didn’t play very well, but I don’t think that had anything to do with it,” Ault said of the 2006 contest. “Obviously, when you go to a university like Notre Dame, the thrill of the stadium, the campus, all the college pageantry is exciting. I don’t want to take that away.
“The bottom line, like all coaches say, is you’ve got to refocus, and somewhere along the line you’ve got to stand, strap it up and play the game. There’s certainly an awe effect so to speak. I think it’s a terrific challenge for our university, without question.”
While it might be easy for Ault’s players to get caught up in the lore of Notre Dame Stadium, he was also quick to hint that the Wolf Pack have plenty to gain from their trip to South Bend if they earn it.
“In my opinion, there is no atmosphere better than Notre Dame’s in terms of football and what it provides and the opportunities.”
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