INDIANAPOLIS – From investment banking to the NFL.
Coaxed by his wife to stop yelling at the TV and get into coaching, Brad White has been with the Colts since 2012.
White knew the financial implications involved in making such a move, however his wife wanted him to be passionate about his work life.
Get to know Outside Linebackers Coach Brad White:Describe your journey to Indianapolis
"Before I got here I was at Air Force for two years (2010-2011). Coached the inside linebackers there. That was a great stop for me because I got to reconnect with Troy Calhoun, who was the offensive coordinator at Wake Forrest when I was there as a player. That was great to get a chance to be with him because I had just come off of one year as a secondary coach at Murray State (2009). It was my first full-time job. It was a great experience. But the whole staff got let go, so you are sort of sitting there in a state of flux. I actually had another job at Ball State open and I was about to take that and then Troy called and said they had this position open. Before that (Murray State) I was the (graduate assistant) at Wake for two years. Before that (I) was investment banking in Dallas coming out of school."Most memorable moment in football
"Wow. That's hard to pin that one down. There are so many here just being a part of those great wins, those locker rooms. Kansas City (2013 Wild Card) was special. It was different. You couldn't believe that was happening, as it was happening. It was a Hollywood thing. Everyone believed that we could do it, but in the back of your mind, 'Is this really happening? Are we really going to come all the way back?' I think of that victory against Green Bay in 2012. After not having Coach (Chuck Pagano), then going out to play Green Bay. Being down, they jump out to the big lead, then coming back in the second half. That was a great locker room. Then the victory in Denver (2014 Divisional Round), the joy in that locker room was special."When did you know you wanted to be a coach?
"Coming out of school, I had an opportunity to go right into being a GA. They offered me a nice job. I said, 'No thanks.' I had a job lined up. I was getting married out of college and my wife actually was pushing me to saying, 'At least give it a shot.' I had just started for three years in the ACC (at Wake Forest). I didn't even do my Pro Day. I thought the NFL was out of my league. I'm going to use my degree. I had redshirted so I was able to go get my Master's within my scholarship limit. I had a Master's in accounting. I had an investment banking job lined up in Dallas. After two years of that, my college position coach was up for a head coach at a school in North Carolina. He said, 'Hey if I get this, I want you to leave banking and come into coaching.' My wife was like, 'Yes, please. I'm tired of you yelling at the TV screen.' She was the one pushing. That job fell through. He didn't take the (head coaching job), but he said, 'I'm going back to Wake because I like the job I got. Come be a GA.' This was Brad Lambert, who is now the head coach at (UNC) Charlotte. He said, 'Come on. You're meant for this.' My wife was pushing me to go back. They actually had the coaches' convention in Dallas that year. (Lambert) came over to the house and had dinner. We went back and my wife got her teaching certificate so she could basically support us while I was just making a stipend as a GA for two years. It paid off."Favorite part about coaching
"Interaction with the guys. The best part is seeing them put into action what you told them in the meeting room, off of film, whatever the case may be. Not so much, you feel that you're a good coach, but that you feel like, 'Okay, I actually helped them achieve the potential that they've got.' As a coach, that to me, should be your goal. It's nothing about you. It's not your ego, the blitz you designed. It's nothing like that. It's, did you do your job and did the guys in your room reach their potential? To me, that's also the hardest part, when you see guys not be able to reach their potential. Whether or not you could crack the code. Whether or not it was your fault or not, or if there was fault to be had. You just see opportunity lost and that's the hardest part of this job. You want to be able to touch them all but you just can't. But you come to work every day trying."Describe your coaching style
"I am a high-energy teacher. Inside and outside the classroom. I am cerebral in my thinking, but high energy. Sometimes, I think it comes from my analytic background. I sort of think of everything from all angles and if you ask the guys it all comes out at once. I have to go, 'Okay, let me back track. I know you guys aren't all with me.' It's going to be high energy, high pace, all the time. But it's built on respect. There's nothing ever demeaning. No one ever gets put down. I try to have the room be as open as possible, so there's a lot of dialogue in this room. It's not that I sit above them and tell them what to do. We sort of figure it out together. I sort of give them suggestions, guidelines, that will help them succeed, but if they have different views or if they have a better way to do it, I've got no issue shifting to fit their individual abilities."Who was your biggest influence growing up?
"My dad, by far. He was in the military. He was a JAG (Judge Advocate General) in the Air Force, so we moved around a lot. Now, he owns his own private practice in Rhode Island. He's as hard a working individual as I've ever been around. Both my parents (Bill and Lynn) are incredible workers. It's hard to not rub off."Favorite hobby
"Probably golf."Favorite food
"Steak off the grill."Favorite movie
"That's like favorite moment. There are so many that sort of pop in. I'll go with Top Gun."Favorite music/genre
"Was country. Now it's shifted to Christian rock."Favorite quote
"I don't know if I have one. You'd probably have to ask my wife."Favorite place you've traveled
"When my dad was in the Air Force, we traveled to some good places. I'll go with Scotland."Why Indianapolis?
"The ability to coach at the NFL level is second-to-none. I think everybody looks at it and says, 'If only I had the opportunity.' It was not as easy of a decision as people may think. I loved what we had at Air Force. Working with Coach Calhoun, he was as good to work for as you can get. Then you fall in and work for a guy like Coach Pagano, that's just pure luck of the draw. It doesn't happen like that. But the idea of being able to put the NFL on your resume and say that, 'I've done that,' I couldn't turn that down."Favorite Spot/Part about Indy/Colts
"My wife and I have really fallen in love with Indianapolis. Again, that was a hard move. In Colorado Springs, when you walked out on my back porch, you looked out on Pikes Peak. To have the Rocky Mountains as your backdrop and no humidity, we thought that was just perfect. But the people here, we live in Brownsburg. Our neighbors and our neighborhood in Brownsburg are phenomenal. We wouldn't trade it for the world. We have a group of neighbors that would do anything for each other."What do you want to see out of your outside linebacker group?
"To me, what we've emphasized here from Day One, this has got to be the tone setting position group. It has involvement in every aspect of what we need our defense to be. We need to be aggressive edge setters, violent with our hands. Obviously, everybody knows we need to be the heartbeat of the pass rush. We need to get to the quarterback. We are going to be on the edges in base defense, in our sub and nickel package. We are the guys that have to generate the pressure. We understand that. We put that on our shoulders and we invite that criticism. We'll be honest. Everybody knows what everybody has talked about. That's okay. Those are expectations we embrace. When you turn on the film, you are going to find guys that fly around to the ball. They set the tone. They are fast and they are physical. This is a grown man game. When we talk about the trenches, everybody thinks of the interior. They have to thump all day long. But the hybrid nature of what the outside linebackers in our defense have to do…they have to be able to rush the passer, set edges, then they have to be able to drop and cover and cover talented tight ends, running backs, at times wide receivers in certain coverages. So they've got to be able to do it all. It's not for everybody, but the guys that come out of this room are special."Family
Wife: Kate. Daughter: Julia. Son: Lincoln.
