Jon Embree Introduced As CU Football Coach

Jon Embree feels the pain of CU football fans.

"It was hard watching what happened to this program. It was difficult seeing it like that," the new coach and former CU player admitted of the team's struggles over the last few years.

Embree, who played tight end at CU from 1983-1986, and served as an assistant from 1993-2002, was introduced Monday as the University of Colorado's 24th full-time coach.

He wasted little time invoking the program's glory days of the late 1980's and 90's.

"People don't know about Colorado like they should. They don't know about our Heisman Trophy. They don't know about our Butkus Award winners... They don't know about the accomplishments we've had as a program," Embree told reporters at Folsom field on Monday morning. "But people are gonna know about it now."

Embree, who had been serving as the Washington Redskins tight ends coach since January, agreed to a five-year contract over the weekend after reports late last week indicated that CU had offered him the head coaching position.

He replaces Dan Hawkins, who was chosen over Embree for the position five years ago. Like Embree, Hawkins vowed to return CU to its past glory when he was hired in 2005. "There have been some scars, but we'll get over that," Hawkins said at the time.

CU fired Hawkins in November after he amassed a 19-39 record.

Former CU running back Eric Bieniemy will be the team's offensive coordinator.

Embree has also served as an assistant with UCLA and the Kansas City Chiefs.

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