Reuben LaVell Edwards (October 11, 1930 – December 29, 2016)[1] was an American college football head coach for Brigham Young University (BYU). With 257 career victories, he ranks as one of the most successful college football coaches of all time. Among his many notable accomplishments, Edwards guided BYU to a national championship in 1984 and coached Heisman Trophy winner Ty Detmer in 1990.
 Edwards in 2010 | |
| Biographical details | |
|---|---|
| Born | October 11, 1930 Orem, Utah, U.S. |
| Died | December 29, 2016 (aged 86) Provo, Utah, U.S. |
| Alma mater | Utah State University (B.A.) University of Utah (M.Ed.) Brigham Young University (Ed.D.) |
| Playing career | |
| 1949–1951 | Utah State |
| Position(s) | Offensive lineman |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 1954–1961 | Granite HS (UT) |
| 1962–1971 | BYU (assistant) |
| 1972–2000 | BYU |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 257–101–3 (college) |
| Bowls | 7–14–1 |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| 1 national (1984) 18 WAC (1974, 1976–1985, 1989–1993, 1995–1996) 1 MWC (1999) | |
| Awards | |
| Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Award (1979) AFCA Coach of the Year (1984) Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year (1984) Amos Alonzo Stagg Award (2003) | |
| College Football Hall of Fame Inducted in 2004 (profile) | |
Edwards played football for Utah State University and earned a master's degree at the University of Utah prior to coaching at BYU, where he also earned his doctorate.
Coaching career
editEdwards was BYU's head football coach from 1972 to 2000. He had previously served as an assistant coach from 1962 to 1971.[2][3][4] His offensive scheme was passing-dominated.[5] He started coaching in an era when college football offenses were dominated by strong running attacks.[5] His quarterbacks threw over 11,000 passes for more than 100,000 yards and 635 touchdowns.[1] He got the idea to switch to a pass oriented team by looking at BYU's history. The BYU football program had struggled before Edwards[6][7] with the notable exception of one conference championship that resulted from the aerial attack of Virgil Carter. This past success encouraged Edwards to open up the BYU offense.
Edwards coached prominent quarterbacks such as Steve Young, Jim McMahon, Ty Detmer, Marc Wilson, Robbie Bosco, Gary Scheide, Gifford Nielsen and Steve Sarkisian.[1][3][5]
Awards won by his players include a Heisman Trophy, a Doak Walker Award, a Maxwell Award, two Outland Trophies, four Davey O'Brien Awards, seven Sammy Baugh Awards,[8] 34 All-America citations (including 10 consensus All-Americans), 11 conference player of the year and 24 Academic All-America player citations.[5]
In 1984, he was named National Coach of the Year after BYU finished the season 13–0 and won the National Championship.[1][6] Edwards retired after the 2000 season with a 257–101–3 record.[1][3][5][6]
Prior to Edwards' final game, BYU renamed its home field, Cougar Stadium, as LaVell Edwards Stadium in his honor.[1][7][9] The stadium had almost doubled in his capacity during his tenure, from 35,000 people when he took over the program to over 65,000 people upon his retirement.
At the time of his retirement, he ranked sixth all-time in victories,[9][10] and second all-time in victories with a single program (behind only Joe Paterno at Penn State).[11] Edwards received the Amos Alonzo Stagg Award, presented by the American Football Coaches Association, in 2003.[10]
In the 1980 Holiday Bowl, BYU rallied from a 45–25 deficit with only 4 minutes to play to defeat Southern Methodist University (SMU).[10]
Following the 1984 national championship, Edwards was offered head coaching positions with the Detroit Lions and the University of Texas at Austin, but he turned down both offers.[10]
Accomplishments
edit
- 22nd on NCAA all-time list for coaching victories (257)[12]
- Member of the College Football Hall of Fame[9]
- Coached 6 all-American quarterbacks[13]
- His teams led the nation in passing offense 8 times[2]
- His teams led the nation in total offense 5 times[14]
- His teams led the nation in scoring offense 3 times[14]
Coaching tree
edit- Dick Felt,[15] former BYU assistant athletic director / assistant head coach / defensive coordinator / defensive backfield coach (BYU defensive back / running back / punter)
- Mike Holmgren,[3] former Seattle Seahawks & Green Bay Packers head coach, Cleveland Browns president of operations (BYU quarterbacks coach)
- Steve Sarkisian,[16] University of Texas head coach & former University of Southern California head coach (BYU quarterback)
- Norm Chow,[3] former Hawaii head coach, USC offensive coordinator, UCLA offensive coordinator, Tennessee Titans offensive coordinator (BYU offensive coordinator)
- Dave Kragthorpe,[16] former Oregon State head coach, father of Steve Kragthorpe (BYU offensive line coach)
- Kyle Whittingham,[3] Utah head coach (BYU linebacker)
- Fred Whittingham,[17] longtime NFL and college assistant coach (BYU defensive coordinator)
- Robert Anae,[16] NC State offensive coordinator (BYU offensive lineman)
- Brian Billick,[3] former NFL head coach (BYU tight end / graduate assistant)
- Ted Tollner,[3] former USC head coach (BYU offensive coordinator)
- Doug Scovil,[17] former SDSU head coach (BYU offensive coordinator)
- Brandon Doman,[17] former BYU offensive coordinator (BYU quarterback)
- Tom Holmoe,[3] BYU athletic director & former Cal head coach (BYU defensive back)
- Andy Reid,[3] Kansas City Chiefs head coach (BYU lineman / graduate assistant)
- Charlie Stubbs,[17] Louisville offensive coordinator (BYU graduate assistant)
- Kalani Sitake,[18] BYU head coach, (BYU running back, graduate assistant)
- Ty Detmer,[18] former BYU offensive coordinator, (BYU quarterback / Heisman Trophy winner)
- Gary Crowton,[18] former Louisiana Tech and BYU head coach, Chicago Bears offensive coordinator, Maryland offensive coordinator, LSU offensive coordinator, Oregon offensive coordinator (BYU graduate assistant)
Although not officially a part of the coaching tree, Mike Leach, former head coach Texas Tech, Washington State, and Mississippi State, learned from Edwards as well, as Leach sat in on game film sessions with the BYU coaches while attending BYU. [19]
Numerous other prominent coaches appear as offshoots on the Edwards tree. Holmgren's coaching tree includes Jon Gruden, Steve Mariucci, Jim Mora, Todd Bowles, and Mike Sherman. Reid's tree includes John Harbaugh, Brad Childress, Doug Pederson, Sean McDermott, and Ron Rivera. Billick's tree includes Rex Ryan, Marvin Lewis, and Jack Del Rio.
Head coaching record
edit| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | Coaches# | AP° | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BYU Cougars (Western Athletic Conference) (1972–1998) | |||||||||
| 1972 | BYU | 7–4 | 5–2 | T–2nd | |||||
| 1973 | BYU | 5–6 | 3–4 | T–4th | |||||
| 1974 | BYU | 7–4–1 | 6–0–1 | 1st | L Fiesta | ||||
| 1975 | BYU | 6–5 | 4–3 | T–4th | |||||
| 1976 | BYU | 9–3 | 6–1 | T–1st | L Tangerine | ||||
| 1977 | BYU | 9–2 | 6–1 | T–1st | 16 | 20 | |||
| 1978 | BYU | 9–4 | 5–1 | 1st | L Holiday | ||||
| 1979 | BYU | 11–1 | 7–0 | 1st | L Holiday | 12 | 13 | ||
| 1980 | BYU | 12–1 | 6–1 | 1st | W Holiday | 11 | 12 | ||
| 1981 | BYU | 11–2 | 7–1 | 1st | W Holiday | 11 | 13 | ||
| 1982 | BYU | 8–4 | 7–1 | 1st | L Holiday | ||||
| 1983 | BYU | 11–1 | 7–0 | 1st | W Holiday | 7 | 7 | ||
| 1984 | BYU | 13–0 | 8–0 | 1st | W Holiday | 1 | 1 | ||
| 1985 | BYU | 11–3 | 7–1 | 1st | L Florida Citrus | 17 | 16 | ||
| 1986 | BYU | 8–5 | 6–2 | 2nd | L Freedom | ||||
| 1987 | BYU | 9–4 | 7–1 | 2nd | L All-American | ||||
| 1988 | BYU | 9–4 | 5–3 | T–3rd | W Freedom | ||||
| 1989 | BYU | 10–3 | 7–1 | 1st | L Holiday | 18 | 22 | ||
| 1990 | BYU | 10–3 | 7–1 | 1st | L Holiday | T–17 | 22 | ||
| 1991 | BYU | 8–3–2 | 7–0–1 | 1st | T Holiday | 23 | 23 | ||
| 1992 | BYU | 8–5 | 6–2 | T–1st | L Aloha | ||||
| 1993 | BYU | 6–6 | 6–2 | T–1st | L Holiday | ||||
| 1994 | BYU | 10–3 | 6–2 | T–2nd | W Copper | 10 | 18 | ||
| 1995 | BYU | 7–4 | 6–2 | T–1st | |||||
| 1996 | BYU | 14–1 | 8–0 | 1st (Mountain) | W Cotton | 5 | 5 | ||
| 1997 | BYU | 6–5 | 4–4 | 5th (Mountain) | |||||
| 1998 | BYU | 9–5 | 7–1 | T–1st (Pacific) | L Liberty | ||||
| BYU Cougars (Mountain West Conference) (1999–2000) | |||||||||
| 1999 | BYU | 8–4 | 5–2 | T–1st | L Motor City | ||||
| 2000 | BYU | 6–6 | 4–3 | T–3rd | |||||
| BYU: | 257–101–3 | 175–42–2 | |||||||
| Total: | 257–101–3 | ||||||||
| National championship Conference title Conference division title or championship game berth | |||||||||
| |||||||||
Personal life
editWhile head football coach at BYU, Edwards also earned a doctorate.[10][21][22]
Following his retirement from coaching, Edwards remained a prominent leader and speaker for members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), which owns and operates BYU.[23] He and his wife served an 18-month mission for the LDS Church in New York City during 2002 and 2003.[1][24]
Death
editEdwards suffered a broken hip on December 24, 2016, and died five days later at his home in Provo on December 29, at the age of 86.[1][5][6] A public memorial service was held at the Utah Valley Convention Center in Provo on January 6, 2017. A private funeral service for family and friends was then held the next day, on January 7.[25]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c d e f g h "LaVell Edwards, Coach Who Led B.Y.U. to a Football Title, Dies at 86". The New York Times. December 29, 2016. Retrieved December 30, 2016.
- ^ a b "LaVell Edwards, legendary BYU football coach, dead at 86". New York Daily News. December 30, 2016. Retrieved December 30, 2016.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j "LaVell Edwards, who coached BYU for nearly 30 years, dies at 86". ESPN. December 30, 2016. Retrieved December 30, 2016.
- ^ "LaVell Edwards, head football coach at BYU from 1972 to 2000, dies at 86". Deseret News. December 29, 2016. Archived from the original on December 30, 2016. Retrieved December 30, 2016.
- ^ a b c d e f Herald, Jared Lloyd Daily. "Legendary BYU football coach LaVell Edwards dies at age 86". Archived from the original on January 1, 2017. Retrieved December 30, 2016.
- ^ a b c d "LaVell Edwards, who made BYU a football power, dies at 86". The Washington Post. December 29, 2016. Retrieved December 30, 2016.[dead link]
- ^ a b "BYU Football: Legendary football coach LaVell Edwards passes away". NCAA.com. December 29, 2016. Retrieved December 31, 2016.
- ^ "Former BYU Head Coach LaVell Edwards passes away at the age of 86". ESPN 960. December 29, 2016. Retrieved December 30, 2016.
- ^ a b c "Former BYU coach LaVell Edwards dies at the age of 86". USA Today. December 29, 2016. Retrieved December 31, 2016.
- ^ a b c d e "Timeline: LaVell Edwards through the years". Deseret News. December 29, 2016. Archived from the original on November 13, 2016. Retrieved December 30, 2016.
- ^ "Former BYU head coach LaVell Edwards left a lasting legacy on the college football world but his greatest impact came off the field". SCOUT. December 30, 2016. Retrieved December 31, 2016.
- ^ "Beehive State sports year in review: 2016 was definitely 'the year of coming close'". Deseret News. December 30, 2016. Archived from the original on January 1, 2017. Retrieved December 31, 2016.
- ^ "Legendary Hall of Fame college football coach LaVell Edwards dies at 86". KUTV.com. December 29, 2016. Retrieved December 31, 2016.
- ^ a b "Legendary BYU football coach LaVell Edwards dies". Fansided. December 30, 2016. Retrieved December 31, 2016.
- ^ "BYU football: Edwards built great system, coaching staff". Deseret News. July 17, 2009. Archived from the original on January 1, 2017. Retrieved January 1, 2017.
- ^ a b c "Throwback Thursday: LaVell Edwards Coaching Tree". Fansided. Retrieved December 31, 2016.
- ^ a b c d "Talo Steves wrote about the life and legacy of former BYU head coach LaVell Edwards after his passing yesterday". SCOUT. December 31, 2016. Retrieved January 1, 2017.
- ^ a b c "RIP to BYU's LaVell Edwards, who built college football's unlikeliest champion". SB Nation. December 29, 2016. Retrieved January 1, 2017.
- ^ https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-daily-oklahoman-low-key-approach-hi/114500389/
- ^ LaVell Edwards Coaching Record
- ^ "Some big names in coaching got started under LaVell Edwards". OdfReport. December 30, 2016. Retrieved December 31, 2016.
- ^ "Legendary BYU football coach LaVell Edwards dies at 86". SCOUT. December 29, 2016. Retrieved December 31, 2016.
- ^ "Former BYU football coach LaVell Edwards, 86, has died". Standard Examiner. December 29, 2016. Retrieved December 31, 2016.
- ^ A Legend in the Making Archived October 13, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Tribune, The Salt Lake. "BYU football: LaVell Edwards memorial service set for this evening". The Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved January 6, 2017.