To drive his point home Sunday, new coach Mike Singletary decided he needed a visual aid.

So during his fiery halftime speech, he dropped his pants. And then he pointed to his backside.

"I used my pants to illustrate that we were getting our tails whipped on Sunday and how humiliating that should feel for all of us," Singletary said on 49ers.com. "I needed to do something to dramatize my point."

For the record, a team spokesman has clarified that Singletary was wearing boxers at the time.

Singletary's curious choice of show-and-tell was first reported on radio by Mike Jurecki of XTRA Sports in Phoenix. Because the 49ers don't play this weekend, Singletary is headed for Baylor University for homecoming. But before he left town, he gave a statement to the 49ers Web site.

"There were other ways I could have done it, but I think this got the message across," Singletary said in the statement. "I am excited about having the team back at practice on Monday so we can get back to work."

To recap, Singletary pulled more tricks out of his bag for one game than some coaches do in a career:

—He benched his starting quarterback before halftime.

—He publicly berated tight end Vernon Davis and sent him to the showers with 10 minutes left in the game.

—He publicly apologized to the fans for his team's performance.

—He addressed the team with his pants down.

For what it's worth, Singletary was dropping his drawers at about the same time the 49ers were honoring former linebacker Dan Bunz.