LaVell Edwards: 1930-2016
Brigham Young University football begins and ends with LaVell Edwards. For 29 seasons, Edwards led the BYU football program out of the shadows and into the national spotlight.
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While college football was largely dominated by running the ball, Edwards ignored the national trend. He paved a path towards BYU quarterbacks passing for over 100,000 yards during his coaching tenure. With 18 Western Athletic Conference (WAC) titles, one Mountain West Coast (MWC), and a National Championship in 1984, Edwards cemented himself as one of the greatest collegiate coaches of his generation. In 2004, Edwards was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame with 257 victories, good for sixth all-time.
That amount of wins at a single program is the second-most in collegiate history, only behind Joe Paterno at Penn State. BYU properly renamed their arena after their long-time head coach, and as of 2000 have played in LaVell Edwards Stadium.
Part of bringing BYU back into national recognition was getting the right players into the program. Among the hundreds of young men brought in by Edwards include Heisman winner Ty Detmer, Steve Young, Via Sikahema, Steve Sarkisian, and a total of 31 All-Americans.
LaVell Edwards was 86-years-old.