Flash back to January 1989. Super Bowl XXIII. Memorable for “The Drive” and the first Bud Bowl. Also memorable for victorious coach Bill Walsh being asked in the locker room if it was his last game with the 49ers, and Walsh trying to compose himself enough to answer the question. It was his last game as San Francisco’s coach, after three Super Bowl victories and an offense that changed the game.

Walsh died Monday of leukemia at the age of 75. His legacy not only will rest in those three Super Bowls, but also the West Coast offense. His strategies turned Joe Montana and Jerry Rice into stars during his tenure, as well as influenced the stardom of other quarterbacks after he left coaching. Steve Young became a Hall of Famer for his West Coast offense prowess after Walsh stepped down. Green Bay’s Brett Favre learned under coach Mike Holmgren, who learned under Walsh. The number of successful Walsh assistants is even more impressive considering how many of their assistants have become successful. In only 10 years of coaching in the NFL, Walsh became a Hall of Famer.

Think about how much the game, specifically offensive strategy, has changed since Walsh led Montana and Co. to their first Super Bowl win 26 years ago. I bet there’s a generation of football fans, myself included for the most part, that just assumed a short passing game has always been part of standard modus operandi for the NFL. “The Drive” perhaps best exemplified that, with a a methodical, yet quick, march down the field, rather than a big play that 10 years earlier a team might have thought it needed to come from behind to win.

The Genius will be missed, but never forgotten.