Georgia Force coach finds success at every turn

by Scott Sowers

DULUTH – If Doug Plank is involved with a football team, chances are they're going to be good.

From college to the NFL to the Arena Football League, the current Georgia Force coach knows how to win.

Plank's 2005 head coaching debut with the Georgia Force saw him win more games (33) than any other AFL coach during their first three years on the job. His winning ways guided the Force to the 2005 Arena Bowl his first year, earning him Coach of the Year honors. He picked up another award last season after leading the Force to a 14-2 record and a birth in the National Conference Championship game.

But what has helped drive Plank's success so quickly?

"It would definitely be the great coaches I've played for and worked with over the years," he said.

Plank has been around some legends to wear the headset. In college, Plank played for the legendary Woody Hayes at Ohio State where he participated in three consecutive Rose Bowl Games from 1973-75. After leaving Columbus, Plank was drafted in the 12th round of the 1975 NFL Draft to the Chicago Bears where he played safety for eight seasons, many of them under the tutelage of one of the all-time great defensive coordinators in Buddy Ryan and iconic head coach Mike Ditka.

Plank was a cornerstone of a Bears defense that came to be revered as one of the greatest of all time. The coach was known to be so hard-hitting that Ryan named his legendary defensive set the "46 Defense" in honor of Plank's jersey number. Although Plank retired in 1982, several years before the Bears won Super Bowl XX in 1985, the team used the 46 Defense throughout the season to help propel them to the title.

After retiring from the league, Plank moved into business, where he owned and operated fast food franchises, as well as several other ventures. He did some broadcast work for the AFL on the radio, but largely remained away from the game for about 20 years before he began his first foray into coaching.

"I was in Arizona at the time and the defensive coordinator position became open with the Arizona Rattlers," he said, referring to the AFL franchise. "I had been preparing schemes every week for my radio broadcast and I knew defense and I had developed a good relationship with [Rattlers] coach Danny White so I took the job."

The coach said transitioning from the outdoor game to inside arenas was not as difficult as one would think because the coverages are largely the same. No one grows up with a background of playing or coaching the arena game, everyone is used to the outdoor game, so crossing over is not hard because everyone deals with it, he said.

Plank's first year was so successful that his team led the league in fewest points allowed per game. His defense helped propel the Rattlers to three consecutive Arena Bowl berths from 2002-2004.

Because the Rattlers could never get over the hump in the big game, ownership indicated they would be looking in another direction.

"But in my final season with the Rattlers I began to think that I was ready to be a head coach," Plank said. "I think that if you want to obtain a position, start acting like it.

"So all that season I acted out in my head what I would do in situations if I was the coach. Would I call a timeout here? Would I run this play? Then I'd go back after the game and see if it worked."

Plank said he didn't really have any intentions of taking the Force job when it opened because he didn't have any ties to the area and it was very far from Arizona where he had settled down with his family.

"But once I walked in and saw how professional of an organization it is and how great the facilities are, I felt it was the right place for me," he said.

Now, Plank divides his time between the Atlanta area and Arizona, taking time to visit home whenever he can, such as during the team's bye week. He said his son, Michael, is a student at Arizona State, so he didn't want to move his family all at once.

"Actually I probably spend most of my time in airports," he said.

During the offseason, Plank moves over to the NFL where he broadcasts for Sports USA Radio network, which assures he is in the mode of "all football, all the time."

Although the Force haven't had quite as quick a start this season, with just a .500 record after the first six games compared to 5-1 last year, Plank isn't worried.

"Last year our team stayed intact for pretty much the whole season, so it really helped our success," he said. "This year we've had a different lineup practically every game so it's contributed to our slower start. Once everyone knows their role I think our best football is yet to come."

Plank's tenure with the Force has brought unprecedented good times, but he said there is still room in the trophy case for that elusive Arena Bowl title, and with it, maybe a third Coach of the Year award in four tries.