Brian Schottenheimer family tree: Meet NFL coaching dad Marty, wife Gemmi and more from Cowboys coach's roots

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• Brian Schottenheimer dad: Marty Schottenheimer
• Brian Schottenheimer mom: Pat Schottenheimer
• Brian Schottenheimer wife: Gemmi Schottenheimer
• Brian Schottenheimer children
• Brian Schottenheimer sister: Kristen Schottenheimer
• Brian Schottenheimer uncle: Kurt Schottenheimer
• Where is Brian Schottenheimer from?

The first two head coaches to work under Jerry Jones won at least one Super Bowl. The following six did not — in fact, none of those six were able to get the Cowboys to an NFC championship game.

Is Brian Schottenheimer the coaching solution Jones has been looking for?

Few expected Schottenheimer, a longtime offensive assistant with no prior head coaching experience, to land the job after Mike McCarthy was fired. Jones acknowledged the decision was a risk but defended his choice, betting that the results would justify it.

If Schottenheimer succeeds in Dallas, he can trace much of his path back to his father, whose own coaching career helped make the Schottenheimer name a prominent one in the NFL.

Here’s a closer look at Schottenheimer’s family, including his father’s extensive career as an NFL head coach.

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Brian Schottenheimer dad: Marty Schottenheimer

Brian Schottenheimer's father, Marty, was born and raised in Pennsylvania, playing linebacker at the University of Pittsburgh before spending time with both the Bills and Patriots in the NFL. 

It was as a coach that the Schottenheimer name rose to fame, however. Marty took over as head coach of the Browns in 1984 after nearly a decade as an NFL assistant, and he would ultimately spend 21 seasons as a head coach between four teams.

Here's more to know about Marty Schottenheimer's head coaching career.

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NFL head coaching career

Marty had four stints as an NFL coach, the longest of which came with the Chiefs from 1989-98. Here is his record at each stop:

Marty suffered just two losing seasons over 21 years, notching double-digit wins in more than half of his campaigns and reaching the playoffs 13 times. However, postseason success largely eluded him. He finished with a 5-13 playoff record, never advanced to the Super Bowl, and lost in the opening round in nine of his 13 playoff appearances.

Ironically, Marty's most successful regular season marked the end of his NFL coaching career. He was fired after the 2006 season despite guiding the Chargers to a 14-2 campaign that ended with a divisional round loss to the Patriots. The Chargers initially announced Marty would return for 2007, but the franchise reversed course and fired him, citing dysfunction between the coach and GM A.J. Smith as well as significant turnover on the staff. 

Despite his lack of playoff success, Marty stands as one of eight coaches in NFL history with at least 200 wins. 

Marty Schottenheimer died in 2021 after a battle with Alzheimer's Disease. 

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Brian Schottenheimer mom: Pat Schottenheimer

Brian Schottenheimer's mother, Pat, married Marty in 1968 and lived in North Carolina before Marty's death in 2021.

Pat stood by Marty during his battle with Alzheimer's, speaking glowingly about her husband's love for coaching. Marty, meanwhile, called Pat his "anchor." The two were married for more than four decades. 

When Brian was hired by the Cowboys in 2025, Pat said her son was born to be a head coach.

"When Marty was coaching, they had the projectors with the tapes and the plays. And my kids would sit in Marty's office and run the projector and look at plays. He was 7, 8, 9. He's built for this," she told reporters after Brian's introductory press conference.

"Brian told me he's going to win a Super Bowl for his dad ... It will be for him," Pat said. 

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Brian Schottenheimer wife: Gemmi Schottenheimer

Schottenheimer met his wife, Gemmi, while working under his father as the Redskins' quarterbacks coach in 2001. Gemmi, who was a team employee at the time, said she didn't even know Brian was Marty's son when she started working alongside him.

"When I met Brian, didn’t even know that he was Marty’s son in the beginning," Gemmi said in 2024, explaining that she became an unofficial personal assistant for Marty and got to know the family before dating Brian.

After getting married, Brian and Gemmi welcomed a son and a daughter.

Gemmi found out about her husband's promotion to head coach through none other than Jerry Jones, who along with his son, Stephen, got on the phone with her to share the news in January 2025.

"I got out of [Brian's] truck and started saying, ‘Oh my gosh! Oh my gosh!'" Gemmi told reporters. "I didn't have anyone to talk to. I was by myself, but it was really special."

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Brian Schottenheimer children

Schottenheimer has a son, Sutton, and a daughter, Savannah, according to the Cowboys. While little else is known about Schottenheimer's children, he posted an image of his family after joining social media in 2019.

Got inspired by my awesome family 👇🏼 to hop on Twitter. As some of y'all know my dad, Marty has Alzheimer's -- Hoping to raise awareness & have some BTS @seahawks fun. If you have a minute, give a follow & have patience as I’m new to the Twitter world. #GoHawks pic.twitter.com/J86FCXvoDT

— Brian Schottenheimer (@CoachSchotty) June 27, 2019

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Brian Schottenheimer sister: Kristen Schottenheimer

Schottenheimer's sister, Kristen, is a fitness trainer and advocate for Alzheimer's research.

Kristen briefly worked as an on-air sports host for Kansas City’s NBC affiliate while her father was head coach of the Chiefs. She later left the sports world to work for Wells Fargo and eventually became a fitness coach in 2010.

Kristen continues to advocate for research toward an Alzheimer's treatment or cure, even after her father's death. She founded SchottyStrong, a foundation in her father's name that directs donations toward the Alzheimer's Association of Western Carolina.

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Brian Schottenheimer uncle: Kurt Schottenheimer

Schottenheimer's uncle, Kurt, is the younger brother of Marty and worked as an NFL assistant coach.

Kurt joined his brother's staff in Cleveland as special teams coach in 1987, later working for Marty in Kansas City and Washington as well. After stints as the defensive coordinator with both squads, Kurt became the Lions' defensive coordinator in 2002 and had four more coaching stints through 2010, including two with the Packers.

While Kurt never became an NFL head coach, he succeeded his brother as head coach of the UFL's Virginia Destroyers in 2012 before the league folded.

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Where is Brian Schottenheimer from?

Schottenheimer was born in Denver while his father was between the end of his playing career and start of his coaching career. 

Schottenheimer ultimately attended high school in Overland Park, Kansas, while his father was serving as head coach of the Chiefs. He started his own college career at the University of Kansas before transferring to Florida.

Schottenheimer hasn’t stayed in one place for long since launching his coaching career, with stints at nine NFL teams and three college programs. He now finds some stability in Dallas, serving as the head coach of the most valuable franchise in professional sports.

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