A 149-90-1 record, .623 winning percentage, 10 playoff berths, eight division crowns, two AFC championships and a Super Bowl title.

That's former Steelers coach Bill Cowher's resume, one that 13 years after his retirement has been judged as hall of fame-worthy.

Another coach who will be going in with Cowher, Jimmy Johnson, was an NFL head coach for just nine seasons. Johnson took over a dreadful Dallas franchise in 1989 and ended up winning back-to-back Super Bowls with the Cowboys in 1992-93.

One can certainly make a case that they are questionable selections. Neither had the length of tenure or the number of wins as coaching giants already enshrined like Don Shula, Tom Landry, Chuck Noll and George Halas.

While I'm glad to see Cowher recognized with the NFL's highest honor and will certainly watch his induction speech next summer, I can honestly say that it doesn't change my view on what he meant to the Steelers franchise.

With or without a bust in Canton, he brought consistent winning football back to Pittsburgh and its fans.

His tenure began with much skepticism. Noll retired shortly after the 1991 season concluded and Cowher was hired in January 1992. One of the men he beat out for the job was Steelers legend and hall-of-famer Joe Greene, who many people believed was the obvious choice.

Cowher had previously played linebacker for the Eagles and Browns, was a special teams coach for Cleveland and defensive coordinator with Kansas City.

In the Steelers, he was taking over a franchise trying to climb back to prominence. Noll's last seven years produced a 51-60 record and a single trip to the playoffs. That was par for the course for some NFL teams, but it wasn't acceptable to Steeler fans, who just over a decade earlier had watched their team rule the league.

When I was a kid, I bought an NFL preview magazine every year. As Cowher's first season with the Steelers was approaching, I picked one up while on vacation and the forecast for Pittsburgh was gloomy.

The very first line of the outlook for the Steelers read: “No wonder Chuck Noll wanted out.”

The writeup went on to detail how, though the Steelers had some playmakers on defense like Rod Woodson and Greg Lloyd, the offense offered little punch and the team was headed for a 6-10 finish in 1992.

Predictions are fun to make, but many evaporate against what really happens on the field and that was the case with this one.

The writer had no idea that third-year running back Barry Foster was going to turn in a 1,690-yard rushing season (still a franchise record) and second-year quarterback Neil O'Donnell would be named to the Pro Bowl.

The defense wreaked havoc on foes, forcing 43 turnovers as the Steelers allowed just 225 points, second-best in the league.

Players fed off of Cowher's emotion and fans believed his coaching style fit perfectly with the blue-collar tradition long associated with not only the city of Pittsburgh, but the entire region.

Pittsburgh went on to finish 11-5 that season and while the Steelers fell in a divisional playoff game against Buffalo, the foundation had been built for a string of success.

The Steelers would go on to make the playoffs in Cowher's first six seasons, to date the second-longest streak in franchise history.

As with any head coach, Cowher's decisions regarding personnel, time management and game situations were often questioned in his 15 years with Pittsburgh.

That comes with the territory, but his record says he was one thing above all others.

The right man at the right time.

Derek Pyda is a staff writer for the Butler Eagle