Old-timers' game
At the University of Georgia and other winning schools, veteran coaches are the key to victory
ATHENS, GA.--Bulldog football fans may bleed red and black--the school colors--but the hue critical to the school's athletic success is gray.
That's gray as in the gray hair of University of Georgia coaches, many of whom have been at the school for more than a decade. Vince Dooley, the school's athletic director, acknowledges that coaching--more even than money or fan support--is a crucial factor in the overall success of an athletic program. "When you get down to competing at this level," says Dooley, "you have to start with good coaches." And the more gray hair on the sidelines, the better. "Tenure and stability in the coaching staff are key," says Lee McElroy of the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics.
Though football is king at the University of Georgia, and largely funds the school's other 20 varsity teams, the football team isn't winning championships. The Bulldogs--though successful--haven't taken a Southeastern Conference title on the gridiron in two decades or a national championship since freshman Herschel Walker marched into the end zone 15 times in 1980.
Yet Georgia's other sports are consistently hitting the ball out of the park, having won nine National Collegiate Athletic Association championships in the past three years and 12 over the past decade. The men's and women's tennis, women's swimming, men's and women's golf, and women's gymnastics teams compete annually for national and conference titles. The baseball team won its conference last year, and the men's and women's basketball teams are consistently among the nation's top 25.
A stable of veterans. Other schools with winning programs over a range of sports also rely on coaches with more than a touch of gray at the temples. Stanford University has eight coaches who have headed their programs for at least 14 years. The University of California-Los Angeles, which has one of the nation's storied collegiate athletic traditions, also boasts a stable of veteran coaches. "By and large," says Peter Dalis, UCLA's athletic director, "our coaches have been here a long time." Great coaches attract great players, adds Dalis, pointing to legendary volleyball coach Al Scates, in his 40th year at UCLA, with 18 NCAA titles under his belt. "Kids," says Dalis, "want to play for him."
For winning coaches, much of the real work is done off the field, after athletes have returned to their dorms. Georgia's Dooley encourages his staff to assume much of the responsibility for their programs. If that means raising millions for new facilities, then he tells them to pick up the phone and start dialing.
The coaching standard at Georgia was set by Dan Magill--the "Bear Bryant of college tennis"--who coached Georgia's men's team from 1961 to 1995, building a championship program from the ground up and becoming the winningest college tennis coach ever. Through Southern charm, he lured the NCAA tennis championships to Athens 22 times and financed major facilities with donations from celebrities like Kenny Rogers and Kim Basinger.
Suzanne Yoculan and Chris Haack are continuing Magill's tradition. Now in her 19th season as Georgia's gymnastics coach, Yoculan, 46, was a four-time state champion gymnast in high school. A dynamic woman who bounds with as much energy as her "Gym Dogs," Yoculan has led the team to five NCAA and 11 conference titles, and she has been chosen NCAA coach of the year three times. The Gym Dogs sell out home meets and generate more revenue than any other Bulldog team save football and basketball. "The job of coaching has changed," says Yoculan. "If we think we need something more than what we have, we go out and get it."
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