Colts Add Assistants Ron Turner, Ron Prince to Coaching
Staff
INDIANAPOLIS – The Indianapolis Colts announced the additions of two coaches on Friday, Wide Receivers Coach Ron Turner and Assistant Offensive Line Coach Ron Prince, while altering the titles of four others on the staff.
Tom Moore will hold the title of Senior Offensive Assistant, while Clyde Christensen has been promoted from Assistant Head Coach/Wide Receivers to Offensive Coordinator and Pete Metzelaars from Offensive Quality Control/Assistant Offensive Line to Offensive Line Coach. Jim Bob Cooter, who joined the Colts in 2009 as staff assistant, has been named Offensive Assistant.
Turner enters his 34th year of coaching and joins the club after serving five seasons as Offensive Coordinator for Chicago. He also was Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks for Chicago from 1993-96. Turner served as Head Coach at Illinois from 1997-2004, prior to his second stint with the Bears.
Prince, an 18-year coaching veteran who spent 2006-08 as Head Coach at Kansas State University, joins the Colts after spending 2009 at Virginia as Special Teams Coordinator. Prince also was Offensive Line Coach and later Offensive Coordinator at Virginia for five seasons prior to Kansas State.
Biographies for Turner and Prince follow:
Ron Turner Wide Receivers
Ron Turner enters his first year as wide receivers coach of the Colts. Turner joins Indianapolis after serving nine years in two tenures with Chicago. Turner served 2005-09 as offensive coordinator after spending eight seasons (1997-2004) as head coach at Illinois. He was Chicago's offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach from 1993-96. This marks his 34th season in coaching.
In 2009, Chicago had the NFL's 23rd-ranked offense in total yardage, the 17th-ranked passing attack. QB-Jay Cutler was 336-555-3,666, 27 TDs, setting club individual seasonal marks in completions and attempts, while his yardage ranked second-best and touchdowns ranked third-best. Chicago amassed 3,473 net passing yards, the third-best seasonal total in club history. It surpassed the previous third-best mark of 3,362 in 2007, while the second-highest mark of 3,743 net yards came under Turner's tenure in 1995. RB-Matt Forte (258-929, 4 TDs rushing/57-471 receiving) topped 900 rushing yards for the second consecutive season, while his 1,400 scrimmage yards ranked 12th in the NFL. Turner's offenses produced four of the top five and seven of the top 17 passing attacks in club's 90-year history. Chicago topped 3,000 net passing yards in seven of nine seasons under Turner. The rushing attack produced 8,512 yards in Turner's last five seasons, including the second- and third-best club totals (2,099, 2005; 1,918, 2006) in the last 18 seasons. Chicago surpassed 4,600 net yards annually from 2006-09.
In 2008, QB-Kyle Orton was 272-465-2,972, 18 TDs/12 ints. Orton set a team mark with 205 consecutive attempts without an interception. Forte was 316-1,238, 8 TDs rushing/63-477, 4 TDs receiving to set club rookie marks in yards, scrimmage yards (1,715) and receptions. The team's 375 points tied the seventh-best seasonal mark in club history. In 2007, QBs-Brian Griese (161-262-1,803) and Rex Grossman (122-225-1,411) shared duties, while WR-Bernard Berrian (71-951, 4 TDs) was one of six players with scoring receptions. The 2006 Bears topped 30+ points seven times, the best seasonal total since 1956. The club produced 5,199 net yards. Grossman was 262-480-3,193, 23 TDs, while RB-Thomas Jones was 296-1,210, 6 TDs rushing. The club's 38 offensive touchdowns were the most since 44 in 1995 under Turner. The Bears were the only NFL team with six players scoring 5+ touchdowns, with the last time the club achieving that mark being 1948. Chicago was 13-3 in winning the NFC North and earning home-field advantage. The Bears bested Seattle (27-24) and New Orleans (39-14), before falling in Super Bow XLI to Indianapolis. In 2005, the club rushed for 2,099 yards, the first 2,000+ season by Chicago since 1990. Chicago ranked 8th in rushing offense (131.2), topped 100+ yards 13 times (including six individual 100+ performances) and tied for the league lead with 19 rushes of 20+ yards. Jones was 314-1,335, 9 TDs. Grossman was 190-368-1,869 passing, while compiling a 10-5 rookie starting record. Chicago sported an 11-5 record. During his first tenure, Turner helped Chicago to a 33-33 overall record while working with a different starting quarterback each season. The club's completion percentages in 1994 (61.4%) and 1995 (60.2%) rank among the highest in team history. Chicago's net passing yard total of 3,743 in 1995 ranks second in team annals. With QB-Erik Kramer (315-522-3,838, 29 TDs) in 1995, the Bears set a team record for passing offense (233.9) and scored the fifth-most points (392) in club history. Kramer set club records with 29 touchdown passes and 10 interceptions (least among 16-game starters). The 1995 squad produced the third-most total net yards (5,673) and the second-most first downs (340) in team history. The offense also featured a 1,000+ rusher (Rashaan Salaam, 1,074) and two 1,000+ receivers (Jeff Graham, 1,301; Curtis Conway, 1,037), the only such season in team history. Chicago earned three playoff berths during Turner's overall tenure.
Turner (35-57) was the fourth-winningest Illinois coach. He guided the Illini to two bowl bids. The school won the Big Ten championship in 2001, and earned a BCS Bowl bid to the Nokia Sugar Bowl. The unanimous 2001 Big Ten Coach-of-the-Year presided over three of the top six offenses in Illini history in terms of total yards, while four of his eight squads ranked in the school's top 11 for scoring. The 2001 unit had a school-record 390 points. Three of the top six all-time leading rushers at Illinois and three of the school's top 10 all-time leading receivers played under Turner. He helped place more than 20 players on NFL rosters. Turner began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Pacific before earning his first full-time college job coaching running backs and receivers at Arizona (1978-80). He moved on to be an assistant at Northwestern (1981-82), Pittsburgh (1983-84), Southern California (1985-87), Texas A&M (1988) and Stanford (1989-91) before earning his first head coaching job at San Jose State (1992).
Turner was a second-team junior college All-America wide receiver at Diablo Valley Community College and was inducted into the school's athletic Hall of Fame in 2009. He earned a scholarship at Pacific, where he led the Tigers in receiving in 1975 and 1976 with 40-666, 3 TDs.
Turner was born in 1953 in Martinez, Calif. He and his wife, Wendy, have four children, Morgan, Cameron, Callan and Madison.
PERSONAL DATA: College: Pacific 1975-76.
Coaching Career: Pacific 1977; Arizona 1978-80; Northwestern 1981-82; Pittsburgh 1983-84; Southern California 1985-87; Texas A&M 1988; Stanford 1989-91; San Jose State (head coach) 1992, Chicago Bears 1993-96, 2005-09; Illinois (head coach) 1997-2004; Indianapolis Colts 2010.
Ron Prince Assistant Offensive Line
Ron Prince enters his first season as assistant offensive line coach of the Colts. Prince joined Indianapolis from Virginia, where he served as special teams coordinator in 2009. He spent 2006-08 as head coach at Kansas State. Prince is an 18-year coaching veteran.
In 2009, Prince was one of three former head coaches on the collegiate or professional ranks who served on the Virginia staff. From 2006-08, Prince was the head coach at Kansas State, where he was the first field leader in school history to reach a bowl game in an initial season. He earned 17 victories, the highest three-year opening total by a coach in school history. Prince had 19 players earn all-conference honors, and he directed Kansas State to its first-ever road win over a top 10 team (41-21 at Texas, 2007). His tenure included the school's first-ever offensive consensus All-American (WR-Jordy Nelson). He recruited and signed record-setting QB-Josh Freeman (D1-09, Tampa Bay), only the fifth first-round draft pick in school history. With a reputation under Prince for outstanding special teams, Kansas State led the nation in kickoff returns and kickoff return touchdowns in 2006, punt returns and punt return touchdowns in 2007 and punt return touchdowns in 2008. His 2008 unit blocked nine kicks to rank second nationally. During his tenure, Kansas State led the nation with 13 punts and five kickoffs returned for scores and ranked 5th with 15 blocked kicks. His teams produced the highest conference graduation rate, totaling 21 all-conference academic performers.
Prince joined Virginia in 2001 as offensive line coach, and he added the duties of offensive coordinator in 2003. He helped Al Groh lead the school to four consecutive bowl games (2002-05). By 2003, his line allowed Virginia to lead the ACC in fewest sacks allowed. The 2004 team earned the same distinction, as well as boasting the ACC's top rushing attack and total offense. During his stay, 11 Cavaliers earned All-ACC honors, including the league's 2002 Player of the Year, Matt Schaub, and First-Team All-Americans Elton Brown, D'Brickashaw Ferguson and Heath Miller. Overall, he helped develop nine offensive players into NFL draft selections. Prince was a volunteer assistant at Dodge City in 1992. He coached the offensive line and tight ends at Alabama A&M in 1993, worked as the offensive line coach at South Carolina State in 1994, coached the offensive line at James Madison from 1995-97 and was the offensive line coach (1998-2000) and running game coordinator (1999-2000) at Cornell. Prince served NFL Minority Fellowships with Jacksonville (1996), Washington (1997), Atlanta (1999) and the New York Giants (2000).
Prince played collegiately as Dodge City Community College (1988-90) and Appalachian State (1990-91). He earned a bachelor's degree in history from Appalachian State in 1992.
Prince was born on September 18, 1969 in Omaha, Neb., and grew up in Junction City, Kan. Prince and his wife, Zoe, have four children, Deuce, James, John and Grace.
PERSONAL DATA:
College: Appalachian State 1990-91.
Coaching Career: Dodge City Community College 1992; Alabama A&M 1993; South Carolina State 1994; James Madison 1995-97; Cornell 1998-2000; Virginia 2001-05; Kansas State (head coach) 2006-08; Virginia 2009; Indianapolis Colts 2010.
