(Written by jsnell)

[Jason here, making a very rare appearance…]

Mike Dunbar, Cal’s offensive coordinator during the Pac-10 co-championship season in 2006, died of cancer Friday at home in Washington state. There’s a great article about him in the Chicago Tribune. Dunbar finished his career on the staff at Northern Illinois, but he had to resign after getting his cancer diagnosis.

I think it’s safe to say that Dunbar was brought to Cal by Jeff Tedford specifically because Tedford continued to struggle with his development as a head coach. Dunbar brought knowledge of the spread offense, and in hindsight Tedford just couldn’t give up control of his pro-style offense. It was a bad fit and Dunbar left after a year.

My aunt and uncle met Dunbar when he was coaching at Toledo and remained friends for the rest of his life. My family and I were fortunate to be in the same room as the coaches and their families when UCLA upset USC immediately after Cal won the 2006 Big Game, making the teams co-champions. Many cheers for Cal’s first co-championship since the ’70s.

RIP Mike Dunbar.