Brown and Duke are great academic institutions, but when Bill O’Brien was on campus they weren't very good on the gridiron.

In fact, their football teams weren't good at all -- they had a combined 15-58 record with O'Brien on their side.

So you can see why Penn State’s new football head coach is accustomed to being in tough situations.

In his three years as a letter-winning defensive end and linebacker at Brown, the Ivy Leaguers were usually in the red. They were 3-27 in 1990-92, including an 0-10 record when O’Brien was a senior. (Although they did go 11-9 when O'B was a G.A.)

Then, when O’Brien left Brown as an unpaid assistant for a graduate assistant’s position at Georgia Tech in 1995, the Yellow Jackets were just coming off a 1-10 season.

In O’Brien’s four seasons as an offensive coordinator at Georgia Tech and Duke, his teams averaged just 21.4 points per game. And despite the fact that Tech was the No 1 passing team in the ACC in 2001-02, O’Brien’s teams as an OC never ranked better than fourth in total offense.

And in O’Brien’s two years as the offensive coordinator and quarterback coach at Duke in 2005-06, the Blue Devils had back-to-back records of 1-10 and 0-12 that produced a 20-game losing streak.

Those dark days at Duke dropped O’Brien’s career record as a collegiate player and coach to 90-103 – despite a 60-36 mark at Georgia Tech and a 15-9 record at Maryland. Enough to make even the most passionate New England footballer toss in the towel, right?

Not so, says Eron Riley, Duke’s single-season receiving leader who played wide receiver both seasons O’Brien was in Durham, N.C.

“Bill came back to work every day, win or lose, and never quit,” says Riley, who had 144 receptions for 2,413 yards and 22 touchdowns at Duke. “He went right back at it and made sure we did too.”

It’s that kind of attitude, Riley offered without prompting, that will serve O’Brien well at Penn State.

“With all the things that are going on up there, that quality will be great to have,” says Riley. “As the head guy, he’ll be able to deal with whatever comes his way.”

Riley certainly understands stepping into a tumultuous situation. He spent three months of the 2011 NFL season with the dysfunctional New York Jets.

“O’Brien’s ready. I don’t see why not,” says Riley. “He knows what he’s doing. It may not have translated into W’s at Duke for whatever reason, but he’s a real good guy I’m sure can succeed. He’ll work hard and get it done there.”

After five seasons with New England, O’Brien was named the team’s offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach in 2011. He coached the Patriots’ quarterbacks  in 2009-10.

Riley said O’Brien, 42, has an old-school, hard-knocks type coaching style. That’s evident to anyone who saw the heated sideline argument between O’Brien and Patriots quarterback Tom Brady in their game against the Washington Redskins on Dec. 11.

“It didn’t surprise me at all. He’s a competitor. He wants to win,” Riley said. “I’m sure those guys were fine afterwards. I bet that’s happened plenty of times, it’s just the first time they caught it on camera.”

If you had to compare O’Brien to someone, Riley was asked, who would that be?

Riley laughed, then responded: “He’s like a drill sergeant. He makes sure you know what you’re doling, when you’re supposed to do it and how you’re supposed to do it. And you’re going to do it his way.”

Not that the father of two boys can’t have fun, it just has its place, says Riley, who led the ACC in yards per catch (20.1) in O’Brien’s second season at Duke.

“Off the field, he can joke around,” says Riley. “But on the field, he’s all business. That’s what you want in a coach.

“He’s very passionate about his job. When you messed up, he let you know about it. He could yell and scream, but that’s the kind of push you needed. He’s big on encouragement, too.”

That’s also true in the classroom, said Thaddeus Lewis, Riley’s teammate who played quarterback under O’Brien’s tutelage at Duke in 2006. Lewis, a two-time second-team All-ACC selection, is currently a quarterback with the Cleveland Browns.

“Bill’s a guy who went to Brown and came to Duke,” said Lewis, who was just the second player in ACC history to throw for 10,000 yards (Philip Rivers was the first). “He understands the academic side of things. He will make sure guys graduate. He will make sure guys excel on and of the field.”

Proof positive is O’Brien’s work at Georgia Tech under then-head coach George O’Leary. Within four seasons of the O’rrival of O’Leary and O’Brien, Georgia Tech won the ACC, had a 10-2 record and was victorious in the Gator Bowl. After seven seasons, O’Brien had ascended from G.A. to offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach.

And over the past five seasons with the New England Patriots in the NFL, O’Brien has certainly climbed the ladder of responsibility at the professional level as well.

In his first year O’Brien was an utilityman for Pats coach Bill Belichick, serving as a lowly assistant in 2007. The next year, he was promoted to wide receivers coach. But even that came with its set of special challenges.

In the 2008 season opener, Brady tore both his MCL and ACL, and missed the entire season. So not only did O’Brien have to adjust to his first season as a full-fledged NFL assistant coach, he had to help his receivers adjust to backup quarterback Matt Cassel.

Brady returned in 2009 and O’Brien was promoted to New England’s quarterback coach. At the start of the 2011 season, O’Brien was also named offensive coordinator.

Brady has thrived under O’Brien. Three of Brady’s four best seasonal passing ratings have been while working with O’Brien, and his four interceptions in 2010 were a career low. Most impressive is that 2011 has been the best of Brady’s sparkling 12-year career for pass attempts, completions and total yards.

But speaking of frustrating situations:

The Patriots haven’t won a playoff game since the 2007 season, O’Brien’s first year with New England – and even that campaign ended with a loss in the Super Bowl.

Related Content:

• StateCollege.com's Penn State football page