Legendary college football coach Bill McCartney dead at 84
Bill McCartney, who coached Colorado to its only football national championship in 1990, has died. He was 84.
The charismatic figure known as Coach Mac died Friday night 'after a courageous journey with dementia,' according to a family statement. His family announced in 2016 that he had been diagnosed with dementia and Alzheimer's.
'Coach Mac touched countless lives with his unwavering faith, boundless compassion, and enduring legacy as a leader, mentor and advocate for family, community and faith,' the family said in its statement.
'As a trailblazer and visionary, his impact was felt both on and off the field, and his spirit will forever remain in the hearts of those he inspired.'
McCartney remains the winningest coach in Colorado history, with a record of 93-55-5. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2013.
McCartney led Colorado to its best season in 1990, when the team finished 11-1-1 and beat Notre Dame in the Orange Bowl to clinch the national title.
Bill McCartney, who coached Colorado to its only national championship in 1990, has died
That season included a win at Missouri where the Buffaloes scored the winning touchdown on a 'fifth down' as time expired - one of the biggest blunders in college football history.
The chain crew didn´t flip the marker from second to third down and the officials failed to notice. On fourth down - fifth in actuality - Charles Johnson scored to keep Colorado´s national title hopes afloat.
Asked later if he would consider forfeiting the game, McCartney pointed to poor field conditions and didn´t think it was a fair test.
McCartney coached at Colorado from 1982-94, retiring early to spend more time with his wife, Lyndi, who died in 2013. Following his retirement, he worked full time at Promise Keepers, a ministry he started in 1990 after converting from Catholicism and whose aim is to encourage 'godly men.'
The organization became a flash point in state politics, advocating unsuccessfully that gays be denied the designation of 'protected class,' a position by the group that drew campus protests.
He left as Promise Keepers´ president in 2003 because of his wife´s health but returned five years later.
As a football coach, McCartney's impact at Colorado was immense. During a six-year span in the late ´80s and early ´90s, his teams were right up there with the powers of the time.
McCartney coached Colorado to three Big Eight titles, 10 consecutive winning seasons in league competition and a 58-29-4 mark in conference play, all still school bests.
McCartney, left, died on Friday night 'after a courageous journey with dementia'
His 1989 squad went 11-1 and lost to Notre Dame 21-6 in the Orange Bowl. That set the groundwork for a national championship team that featured quarterbacks Darian Hagan and Charles Johnson, tailback Eric Bieniemy, and a stalwart defense that included Alfred Williams, Greg Biekert, Chad Brown and Kanavis McGhee.
'A hall of fame coach but somehow a better man and human being,' Brown wrote in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter. 'Love you Coach!'
Added Williams in a post on X: 'His legacy is firmly built on love, character, integrity, hope, and faith. I will always thank God for blessing me with the opportunity to have him in my life. Thank you Coach for loving on all of us.'
