It’s easy to trace the origin of the fiery speeches. Mike Singletary’s father was a preacher — an imposing 6-foot-2, 260-pound reverend known for his fire-and-brimstone delivery.

The 49ers’ brutal training camp sessions have obvious roots, too. The coach learned those under Chicago Bears defensive coordinator Buddy Ryan, who introduced himself to Singletary by making him run sideline to sideline and calling him “a fat little rascal.”
Choosing Shaun Hill as his starting quarterback? You could see that coming as early as 2005, when Singletary wrote about the team he would someday have: “Next, I will find a quarterback. He won’t have to have a great arm ... I want a quarterback who will look me in the eyes when we’re losing — whose expression will tell me that he still believes he can win.”
Singletary wrote that line years before Hill looked him in the eyes at halftime, refused to be benched and led a comeback victory over St. Louis last December.
Singletary might be a neophyte coach, but he’s no mystery.
His life is an open book — three of them, in fact.
Singletary is the co-author of “Calling the Shots” (a 1986 autobiography), “Daddy’s Home at Last” (1998 advice for balancing family and career) and “One-on-One” (lessons in Christianity published in 2005).
For his next project, Singletary is making revisions on a 49ers franchise in need of total rewrite. The 49ers open the season Sunday in Arizona in search of their first playoff trip since 2002.
Because Singletary has such a short coaching resume — 5-4 as an interim last season, no coordinator experience — the best place for a background check is his literary work. All told, it’s a 640-page paper trail of his experiences, values and aspirations.
Indeed, many of his actions as a 49ers coach have already been foreshadowed on the page. (Vernon Davis might want to check out the chapter on tough discipline in “Daddy’s Home.”)
As Singletary embarks on his first full season, here is a look at the hurdles ahead, with help from the coach’s own words.
Challenge: The 49ers are coming off six consecutive losing seasons.
By the book: Singletary has been dealing with long odds since the womb. “When my mother was pregnant with me, her doctors recommended aborting me. She already had given birth nine times and had had several miscarriages. ... I was a regular at the hospital. In fact, I clearly remember the time when I had to sleep in an oxygen tent. The doctors told my mom, ’This kid will not have a normal childhood. He will have a difficult time keeping up with others.’ “
Challenge: The 49ers have yet to sign first-round pick Michael Crabtree and the impasse shows no sign of a breakthrough.
By the book: If Singletary has sounded diplomatic about the situation, it’s because he was the Crabtree of 1981, albeit with less money involved. Like the Texas Tech receiver, the young linebacker thought he should have gone higher on draft day. “I wanted first-round money, whether I had been drafted in the second or sixth round. To me, that meant three years, $120,000. Well, during summer of 1981, I got the Bears’ offer: $22,000 for one year. ’It’s just a ploy,’ a friend told me. But tactic or not, I wouldn’t sign.”
Challenge: Troubled by the 49ers’ work ethic, Singletary ordered a hill built alongside the practice field for conditioning drills.
By the book: Singletary discovered the glory of hill training in his Bears days. He described a boat ramp near Lake Forest, Ill., as “worthy of a World Cup slalom competition. We’d run 20, 30, 40 sometimes 50 of those hills. Always the same routine: sprint up, walk down. Sometimes we’d sprint up backward, working on our pass drops. ... Other players would visit, but they’d run 10 or so and leave.”
Challenge: Singletary came across as a little unhinged during his famous “I want winners!” rant that became a YouTube sensation.
By the book: Singletary has been ranting for decades. “I generally don’t like nicknames, but in 1983, my third year with the Bears, strong safety Doug Plank hung Samurai on me. He likes Samurai because when I get excited I scream and throw my arms around the way the late John Belushi did on ’Saturday Night Live’ a few years ago. And I do scream when I hit someone — loud, karate-like yells.”
Challenge: The 49ers’ offense lacks explosiveness.
By the book: Singletary envisioned a conservative offense long before getting the 49ers job. “When I’m head coach, I’m going to run it, run it and run it some more — and toss an occasional deep pass for balance. The question will be, can the other team stop our run? ... I want my quarterback to be a disciplined leader. I don’t need him to win the game. We’ll have 11 people and together we will win the game. The quarterback has to be the kind of guy who won’t hurt us.”
Challenge: Singletary had a dust-up with Vernon Davis last season after Davis committed a personal-foul penalty and failed to stop when Singletary tried to pull him aside as Davis came off the field.
By the book: No wonder Davis’ lack of accountability set Singletary off. “Once I accidentally hit an opponent the wrong way and hurt him, but the referee didn’t make the call. I knew I had broken a rule, so I told the ref, ’I did it. I didn’t do it on purpose but I did it. It was my fault. You should penalize me.’ I wanted both the referee and the other player to know that I was honest and I would take responsibility for my mistakes. The ref thought I was nuts.”
Challenge: The previous two 49ers coaches, Dennis Erickson and Mike Nolan, went a combined 27-60.
By the book: Shortly after meeting his future wife, Kim, at Baylor, Singletary told her, “One day I’m going to be one of the greatest linebackers that ever played this game.” Her response? Yeah, right. Now, after a Hall of Fame playing career, Singletary is back at it. “Deep in my being, with everything that’s in me, I believe I can be one of the best coaches in the history of the NFL. That’s what I want to be. ... I believe it is my destiny.”