Huskies hire Willingham

SEATTLE - Just two weeks after being firing by Notre Dame, Tyrone Willingham was introduced Monday as the new football coach at Washington.

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The Huskies believe Willingham can restore the school's sagging program to national prominence and clean up a mess left by the school's ugly divorce with Rick Neuheisel.

"I couldn't be prouder at this moment to be the head coach," Willingham said at a news conference.

He has a five-year deal worth $1.43 million in guaranteed annual salary, with $600,000 in incentives that could boost it to $2 million annually, the university said. His base pay is $425,000.

"Integrity, discipline, excellence, someone who would always make us proud," university president Mark Emmert said, listing qualities the school sought and felt it found in Willingham. "And someone who could win at the highest level, someone who knew the West Coast and someone who will be here for a good long time."

Willingham was 21-15 in three seasons at Notre Dame - but after an 8-0 start in 2002, the Irish went 13-15.

Willingham knows the Pac-10, going 44-36-1 with a Rose Bowl berth for Stanford from 1995-01.

Washington plays host to Notre Dame on Sept. 24.

"Am I aware Notre Dame is on the schedule?" Willingham asked, breaking into a playful smile. "I am, but that will not be the focus. With the years of experience I have in this game, I know the most important game is the next game. We open with Air Force."

The Huskies are coming off a school-worst 1-10 season that led Keith Gilbertson to step down after two years as coach. He replaced Neuheisel, who was fired in July 2003 for gambling on NCAA basketball.

"It's about time we had a clean start," safety C.J. Wallace said.

Willingham's connections on the West Coast should be an asset to a Washington program rebuilding from the bottom of the Pac-10.

He was 0-5 against Washington as Stanford's coach, but led Notre Dame to a 38-3 win over Gilbertson and the Huskies on Sept. 25.

Emmert and athletic director Todd Turner, both hired last summer, hope to rebuild a program that was the best in the Pac-10 during the 1990s.