Who makes the offensive call? Opinions vary among Pac-10 football coaches

When an offensive play call turns out poorly for the Washington Huskies, the buck truly stops with coach Steve Sarkisian.

Unlike the majority of head coaches around the country, who delegate that responsibility to a coordinator, Sarkisian handles it himself.

He gets ample input from offensive coordinator Doug Nussmeier, run-game coordinator Dan Cozzetto or the two other offensive assistants. Come game day, though, Sarkisian calls 100 percent of the plays.

And despite the team's recent run of five losses in six games, Sarkisian says he thinks handling dual game-day roles has turned out just fine.

"I've really embraced it," said Sarkisian, who called plays his last two years as a USC assistant. "I think it's gone extremely well."

That's not to say all has gone perfectly. Sarkisian readily admits there are a few plays he might call differently, such as sending in two straight quarterback sneaks on the goal line at Notre Dame and the last offensive series at Arizona State, each games UW lost. Some fans also question a few plays in Saturday's 24-23 loss at UCLA, such as not giving the ball more to Chris Polk, who had 132 yards on 15 carries.

And as frustrations have mounted the last few weeks, message boards have crackled with posters wondering if trying to be a head coach while handling play-calling duties isn't a lot to ask for a first-year head coach.

"For me, there are really not a lot of things popping up in season that are pulling me away from my football preparation," he said. "We have a nice time schedule of how we work as a staff and when we get together so that there are no interruptions, and we work very well together. ... From a time-management standpoint, all the issues remain the same."

A few other Pac-10 coaches say finding the time to be a head coach and a play-caller can be tricky. The Times polled all 10 coaches during the weekly Pac-10 Conference coaches call Tuesday to assess their game-day duties.

Half say they do not have the primary responsibility for calling either offensive or defensive plays on game day — Cal's Jeff Tedford, Oregon State's Mike Riley, UCLA's Rick Neuheisel, Arizona's Mike Stoops and Washington State's Paul Wulff.

The other half take on some or all of the responsibility. Stanford's Jim Harbaugh was vague in his response but indicated he calls the plays, while Pete Carroll calls defensive plays at USC. Arizona State's Dennis Erickson said he usually calls offensive plays but didn't last week, while Sarkisian and Oregon's Chip Kelly call all the plays.

Of those who do not call plays now, Tedford and Riley each used to handle all of it but have since given it up.

"I've kind of gone back and forth over the years," said Tedford, in his eighth year at Cal but who gave up play-calling duties two years ago. "I have really found that in order to be play-caller you have to, at least for me, have to be totally consumed in it. And during the game, I have found that I need to have my attention other places on the game, on situations, on calls with the officials, and not always have my eyes and mind on the next play we are going to call."

Riley said he called plays the first five years of his second stint at Oregon State, but gave it up before the 2008 season to offensive coordinator Danny Langsdorf.

"I have found that to be an outstanding move because it takes, to me, an inordinate amount of time to get ready to call a game," Riley said.

Neuheisel said he had a heavy say in calling plays early in his years at Colorado, but gradually deferred to his coordinator. During his four years at Washington (1999 to 2002), he said coordinators Karl Dorrell (1999) and Keith Gilbertson (2000-2002) called offensive plays.

Carroll, Sarkisian's boss and mentor at USC, called handling both tasks "a big challenge."

"I totally understand guys who do it for a while and then don't do it, and understand why guys don't do it at all," Carroll said. "There's a real big job here waiting for you just being a head coach."

Sarkisian, meanwhile, said his biggest challenge has been more rudimentary — deciding whether to go for it on fourth down.

"As an offensive coordinator you always feel you have a call there to be made, and the head coach is trying to go for the big picture of it," he said. "But I think, all in all, it's gone extremely well."

NOTES

• DT Cameron Elisara, out with a stinger since the Arizona State game, again did not practice and is unlikely to play this week at Oregon State.

• LB E.J. Savannah, out last week after suffering another break in his hand against Oregon, also won't play this week.

• Junior cornerback Matt Mosley, who had not played this season but started six games in 2007 and 2008, was not at practice Tuesday and has decided to transfer. Mosley started three games each in 2007 and 2008.

Bob Condotta: 206-515-5699 or bcondotta@seattletimes.com.