SAN DIEGO -- Ever since the Chargers' playoff meltdown against New England, Nick Hardwick's life has blossomed.

The Chargers' center made his first trip to the Pro Bowl and married his longtime girlfriend. On Thursday, he predicted that the team's already-potent offense will be better under the guidance of new head coach Norv Turner.

Hardwick forms one-fifth of what many consider among the best offensive lines in football. Along with tackles Marcus McNeill and Shane Olivea and guards Mike Goff and Kris Dielman, Hardwick helped running back LaDainian Tomlinson set a NFL record with 28 rushing touchdowns.

For his work, Hardwick was named to the Pro Bowl team, a very deserving honor.

"It was a blast," Hardwick said of the experience in Hawaii. "It was cool seeing the guys you idolize and don't idolize. It was fun seeing how other guys work."

You can be sure that many were watching how Hardwick goes about his business as well.

But that wasn't the biggest event of 2007 for Hardwick. It was his marriage to the former Jayme Biamonte, who, like Hardwick, graduated from Purdue, where she played soccer.

"I knew her in college, but we didn't date," Hardwick said. "I go back to Purdue pretty often and started things up one offseason, and that was it."

Now, Hardwick is looking forward to the coming season.

"We are going to be crisp this year, real crisp," Hardwick said. "I don't think you'll see as many lulls; we know we can take control of a game."

Hardwick had issues with former offensive coordinator Cam Cameron. Hardwick is an old-school lineman who prefers to run right at opponents and beat them down. Cameron liked to run a few gadget plays and get everyone involved in the offense.

"Instead of going after people, we were worried about, heck, I don't know," Hardwick said. "There was just too much going on. If we just go after people's throats, we would be better off."

Was that a case of an offensive coordinator trying to make sure other teams noticed what he was doing so he could get a head coaching job?

"Yeah," Hardwick said.

That's a pretty bold statement, but Hardwick is not shy in his opinions.

Cameron, incidentally, is now the head coach of the Miami Dolphins.

The Chargers, meanwhile, are still smarting from a 24-21 playoff loss to the Patriots on Jan. 14.

When it was mentioned to Hardwick that Tomlinson touched the ball nine times in the second half of that game after getting it 15 times in the first half, he frowned.

"That's a sore subject," Hardwick said. "We were all a little frustrated, very frustrated. On the first play of the game, a basic play that is not one of our best plays, we got 11 yards from scrimmage. You might think we could run the ball all day."

Hardwick said the problem was not with former head coach Marty Schottenheimer.

"Marty didn't ever call any plays," Hardwick said. "I think he did a great job here. I've heard things about him in the past, but that wasn't his way here. He was pretty loose and flexible."

So what went wrong against New England?

"I think we weren't mature enough to handle being in the position we were in, which was leading," he said. "And I tell you what, they did a lot of little things that distracted us from our game and got us off course. We couldn't regain our composure."

Hardwick thinks that Turner is a good fit for the veteran team. The offense the Chargers run is the one Turner installed when he was the offensive coordinator here in 2001.

"You should hear some of the corrections being made out here," Hardwick said as he watched rookies go through practice on Thursday. "I mean, he picks up on a lot of small things that I've never heard before.

"He can tell when a receiver is drifting on a route or when a receiver is making his break a yard too early. I'm real impressed with him so far."

And by the time this season is over, Turner will be equally impressed with the Chargers' newly married, Pro Bowl center.

Steve Scholfield is senior sports columnist for the North County Times. He can be reached at (760) 740-3509 or stevescho@cox.net.