Steve Belichick

Steve Belichick

Belichick in Yackety Yack 1954,
North Carolina yearbook
Sport(s) Football, basketball
Biographical details
Born (1919-01-07)January 7, 1919
Monessen, Pennsylvania
Died November 19, 2005(2005-11-19) (aged 86)
Annapolis, Maryland
Playing career
Football
1938–1940 Western Reserve
1941 Detroit Lions
Position(s) Fullback
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
Football
1946–1948 Hiram
1949–1952 Vanderbilt (backfield)
1953–1955 North Carolina (backfield)
1956–1989 Navy (backfield/scout)
Basketball
1946–1949 Hiram
Head coaching record
Overall 8–12–2 (football)
24–29 (basketball)

Stephen Nickolas "Steve" Belichick (January 7, 1919 – November 19, 2005) was an American football player, coach, and scout. He played college football at Western Reserve University, now known as Case Western Reserve University, from 1938 to 1940 and then in the National Football League (NFL) with the Detroit Lions in 1941.

After serving in World War II, Belichick began his coaching career. From 1946 to 1949, he was the head football coach and the head basketball coach at Hiram College. He continued on as an assistant coach in college football with stints at Vanderbilt University (1949–1952), the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (1953–1955), and then for 34 years at the United States Naval Academy (1956–1989).

Belichick's son, Bill, is the current head coach of the NFL's New England Patriots.

Playing career

After graduation from Struthers High School,[1] Belichick attended Western Reserve University, where he played at fullback, scoring several touchdowns for the team in his senior season in 1940.[2] He scored the first touchdown during the school's first and only bowl game, the 1941 Sun Bowl.

After graduation, he worked as an equipment manager for the Detroit Lions. The team was struggling, and Belichick reportedly told the coach, Bill Edwards, "I can do better than most of the guys you've got."[3] Edwards, who had coached Belichick at Western Reserve, agreed, and signed him as a player. Though the team's fortunes did not improve, Belichick had some success, scoring a 65-yard touchdown punt return in a loss against the New York Giants.[3]

Coaching and scouting career

In 1942, Belichick joined the United States Navy, serving in both Europe and the Pacific.[4] After he completed his service in 1946, he became the head coach at Hiram College, southeast of Cleveland.[1] In 1949, he left Hiram to become the backfield coach at Vanderbilt University,[5] where he spent two seasons before joining the University of North Carolina as an assistant to George Barclay in 1953.[6]

In 1956, Belichick joined the United States Naval Academy staff, where he served primarily as a scout for over 30 years. His book Football Scouting Methods (Ronald Press, 1962) became a standard, described by Charley Casserly as the best book on the subject he had read,[4] and by Bleacher Report as the "Bible" of football scouting.[7]

Family

Steve Belichick was the youngest of five children born to Marija (Mary) Barković and Ivan (later John) Biličić, who immigrated to the United States in 1897 from Draganić, Karlovac County in Croatia.[8][9][10] Steve Belichick maintained strong ties with the Croatian community in Pennsylvania. When he married, he changed his surname from Biličić into Belichick at the suggestion of Immigration Center.[11] In 1951, he married Jeannette Ruth (Munn), with whom he had one child, Bill.[4][12] Their son is currently the head coach of the New England Patriots and has cited his father, with whom he began analyzing game film at the age of 10, as his chief early influence.[13]

Legacy

Located inside the Wyant Field House at DiSanto Field in Cleveland, the 4500-square foot Steve Belichick Varsity Weight Room is utilized by the Case Western Reserve Spartans football team.[14] Belichick was inducted into the Case Western Reserve University Athletics Hall of Fame for both football and basketball in 1976.[15]

Head coaching record

Football

Year Team Overall Conference Standing Bowl/playoffs
Hiram Terriers (Independent) (1946–1948)
1946 Hiram 5–3
1947 Hiram 2–4–1
1948 Hiram 1–5–1
Hiram: 8–12–2
Total: 8–12–2

References

  1. 1 2 "Belichick named Hiram grid coach". Youngstown Vindicator. Ohio. Associated Press. June 17, 1946. p. 10.
  2. ↑ "WESTERN RESERVE WINS; Upsets Boston University, 19-0 -Booth Goes 95 and 39 Yards". The New York Times. Proquest.com. November 3, 1940.
  3. 1 2 Daley, Arthur (November 10, 1941). "Leemans is Star of 20-13 Triumph". The New York Times. Proquest.com.
  4. 1 2 3 Litsky, Frank (November 21, 2005). "Steve Belichick, 86, Coach Who Wrote the Book on Scouting". The New York Times. Retrieved 2009-09-12.
  5. ↑ "Steve Belichick Quits To Accept New Post". The Hartford Courant. Proquest.com. February 23, 1949.
  6. ↑ "Belichick in Coaching Shift". The New York Times. Proquest.com. April 5, 1953.
  7. ↑ http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1076567-the-11-football-books-any-true-student-of-the-game-must-read
  8. ↑ Ryan, Bob (November 21, 2005). "Belichick learned well from dad". Boston Globe.
  9. ↑ "Bill Belichick: Djed iz Draganića uvijek mi je pričao o Hrvatskoj" [My grandfather from Draganić always told me about Croatia] (in Croatian). Jutarnji list. February 22, 2007. Archived from the original on September 29, 2013.
  10. ↑ Martinovic, Ratko (October 28, 2012). "Loš PR u dijaspori - Koje su svjetski poznate osobe podrijetlom Hrvati, a da to niste ni znali" [World celebrities with Croatian roots]. Dnevno.hr (in Croatian). Retrieved 2014-02-02.
  11. ↑ (Croatian) Jutarnji list Bill Belichick Djed iz Draganića uvijek mi je pričao o Hrvatskoj, February 2, 2007
  12. ↑ King, Peter (February 16, 2005). "This Is The Way It's Supposed To Be". Sports Illustrated.
  13. ↑ Shapiro, Leonard (January 28, 2005). "For Belichick, Father Truly Knew Best". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2009-09-12.
  14. ↑ http://observer.case.edu/nfl-coach-donates-funding-for-construction-of-north-side-field-house/
  15. ↑ http://athletics.case.edu/sports/spartan_club/bios/belichick_stephen

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 10/10/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.