INDIANAPOLIS —Adam Gase's time with Dave DeGuglielmo was brief, but "Gugs" certainly made quite the impression on the Miami Dolphins head coach.
Today's NFL requires not only passionate, gritty coaches, but also guys who have a streak of creativity to be able to counter what the opposition is throwing at them, and Gase came away impressed with DeGuglielmo's all-around approach last season in their only season together, when DeGuglielmo served as a senior offensive assistant in Miami.
"Very creative," Gase said of DeGuglielmo. "Like, he's seen every scheme known to man."
Gase, talking to Colts.com last week from the NFL's annual meetings in Orlando, Fla., said he was happy to see DeGuglielmo get the opportunity to move on to become the Indianapolis Colts' offensive line coach under new head coach Frank Reich.
So what exactly does DeGuglielmo bring to the table?
"You're getting an old-school O-line coach, man," Gase said. "He gets after it, he works hard."
But hard work can only get you so far as a coach at this level; a connection with players is also a must.
DeGuglielmo has no problems on that end of the spectrum, Gase said.
"I think the players can feel his energy right when they step on the field," he said. " He does a great job in meetings."
DeGuglielmo comes to the Colts with 26 years of coaching experience, the last 13 of which spent at the NFL level.
He began his coaching career in 1991 as a graduate assistant at Boston College, and in 1993 moved over to Boston University, where he served as offensive line coach; in 1996, he was named assistant head coach. From there, he spent two seasons at UConn before leaving the comforts of the northeast for South Carolina, where he coached for four seasons.
In 2004, the NFL came calling, as DeGuglielmo was hired as an assistant offensive line and quality control coach with the New York Giants. He would spend five seasons with the team — helping lead the team to victory in Super Bowl XLII — before moving on to his first stint with the Dolphins in 2009, spending three seasons as their offensive line coach.
DeGuglielmo moved back to New Jersey in 2012, this time to be the offensive line coach of the New York Jets, before getting back to his Boston-area roots with the New England Patriots for two seasons, earning another ring for the team's victory in Super Bowl XLIX.
After spending the 2016 season as the assistant offensive line coach of the San Diego Chargers — where he was on the same staff as new Colts offensive coordinator Nick Sirianni — DeGuglielmo returned to Miami last season as a senior offensive assistant coach.
On Feb. 27, DeGuglielmo was formally announced as the Colts' new offensive line coach, as he looks to shore up a unit that ranked last in the NFL in sacks allowed in 2017.
Gase said he'll miss the chance to simply sit down and talk ball with DeGuglielmo, as the two share a similar coaching background. But he's also happy to see his friend take on an exciting, new endeavor.
"It was fun for me to be around him because we've worked for a lot of the same guys, and being able to kind of just talk football generalities, that was a great experience for us," Gase said. "And I'm happy; he landed in a great place."
