Dick MacPherson
Dick MacPherson went 111–73–5 as a head coach, 1971–1990, at UMass and Syracuse. Share
Seven seasons our game records don’t credit to him come from the coach’s Wikipedia article: 1971–77 at UMass. They’re marked in the table.
- Record
- 111–73–5 career
- Seasons
- 17
- Schools
- 2
- Final AP top 10
- 1 season
- Hall of Fame
- 2009 inducted
- Best season
- 1987 11–0–1, No. 4
Season by season
| Season | School | Record | Conference finish | Bowl | AP final | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1971 | UMass * | 4–4–1 | T–1st | |||
| 1972 | UMass * | 9–2 | 1st | Boardwalk W | ||
| 1973 | UMass * | 6–5 | 3rd | |||
| 1974 | UMass * | 5–6 | T–1st | |||
| 1975 | UMass * | 8–2 | 2nd | |||
| 1976 | UMass * | 5–5 | 2nd | |||
| 1977 | UMass * | 8–3 | 1st | NCAA Division II Quarterfinal L | ||
| 1978–80: not a college head coach | ||||||
| 1981 | Syracuse | 4–6–1 | ||||
| 1982 | Syracuse | 2–9 | ||||
| 1983 | Syracuse | 6–5 | ||||
| 1984 | Syracuse | 6–5 | ||||
| 1985 | Syracuse | 7–5 | Cherry Bowl L | |||
| 1986 | Syracuse | 5–6 | ||||
| 1987 | Syracuse | 11–0–1 | Sugar Bowl T | 4 | ||
| 1988 | Syracuse | 10–2 | Hall of Fame Bowl W | 13 | ||
| 1989 | Syracuse | 8–4 | Peach Bowl W | |||
| 1990 | Syracuse | 7–4–2 | Aloha Bowl W | 21 | ||
Each season links to the team’s season page; bowls and playoff games link to the game. Conference finishes from the Wikipedia article’s record table. * A season our game records don’t credit to him; its record is the article’s.
Players he coached
Ted GregoryConsensus All‑American, 1987- John FlanneryConsensus All‑American, 1990
Every player from his seasons with a Heisman top-five finish, a national award, consensus All-America honors or a first-round pick. Photos: Wikimedia Commons, free licenses; credits on each player’s page.
How his teams did
| Kind of game | Games | Record | Won |
|---|---|---|---|
| Against ranked teams | 27 | 5–19–3 | 24% |
| Against top-10 teams | 13 | 2–10–1 | 19% |
| Against rivals | 53 | 29–23–1 | 56% |
| Bowls and playoffs | 5 | 3–1–1 | 70% |
| Decided by 8 points or fewer | 34 | 13–17–4 | 44% |
| At home | 58 | 38–18–2 | 67% |
| On the road | 51 | 24–26–1 | 48% |
| At neutral sites | 7 | 4–2–1 | 64% |
| As our Elo’s favorite | 70 | 51–17–2 | 74% |
| As our Elo’s underdog | 46 | 15–29–2 | 35% |
His own 116 games on file, 1981–1990, as played (vacated wins counted, ties as half a win). Ranks are the AP poll going into the game; rivals are the ones either program’s Wikipedia article names; favorite and underdog by our own Elo rating, which reads only scores.
Against other head coaches
| Coach | Record | Their schools | Games | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jack Bicknell 1981–1990 | 7–3 | Boston College | 10 | |
| Don Nehlen 1981–1990 | 5–5 | West Virginia | 10 | |
| Joe Paterno 1981–1990 | 2–8 | Penn State | 10 | |
| Dick Anderson 1984–1989 | 4–2 | Rutgers | 6 | |
| Gary Tranquill 1982–1986 | 4–1 | Navy | 5 | |
| Bruce Arians 1983–1988 | 3–1 | Temple | 4 | |
| Jim Young 1984–1990 | 3–1 | Army | 4 | |
| Mike Gottfried 1986–1989 | 3–1 | Pittsburgh | 4 | |
| Foge Fazio 1982–1985 | 2–2 | Pittsburgh | 4 | |
| Bobby Ross 1982–1985 | 1–3 | Maryland | 4 |
Dick MacPherson’s record against the head coaches he met three or more times, from the games on file, as played.
Most-faced opponents
| Opponent | Games | Record |
|---|---|---|
| Boston Collegeseries | 10 | 7–3 |
| Rutgersseries | 10 | 7–3 |
| Pittsburghseries | 10 | 5–4–1 |
| West Virginiaseries | 10 | 5–5 |
| Penn Stateseries | 10 | 2–8 |
| Navyseries | 9 | 7–2 |
| Templeseries | 8 | 5–3 |
| Marylandseries | 7 | 3–3–1 |
National coaching awards
The awards- 1987 Syracuse: Bear Bryant Award, Bobby Dodd Award, Eddie Robinson and Walter Camp Coach
Career
| Years | Team | Job | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1958 | Illinois | Graduate assistant | |
| 1959–60 | UMass | Assistant coach | |
| 1961–65 | Cincinnati | Assistant coach | |
| 1966 | Maryland | Defensive backs coach | |
| 1967–70 | Denver Broncos NFL | Linebackers and defensive backs coach | |
| 1971–77 | UMass | Head coach | |
| 1978–80 | Cleveland Browns NFL | Linebackers coach | |
| 1981–90 | Syracuse | Head coach | |
| 1991–92 | New England Patriots NFL | Head coach |
Every job as the infobox of his Wikipedia article lists it (CC BY-SA), assistant jobs included.
Coaching tree
Worked under
- Ray EliotIllinois
- Charles StudleyMassachusetts, Cincinnati
- Lou SabanMaryland, Denver Broncos
Assistants who became head coaches
- Jim ReidMassachusetts, Richmond, VMI
- Gary BlackneyBowling Green
- George O’LearyGeorgia Tech, UCF
- Jim TresselOhio State, Youngstown State
- Randy EdsallUConn, Maryland
- Dave CampoDallas Cowboys
- George DeLeoneSouthern Connecticut State
- Kevin KellyGeorgetown, New England (NH)
- Jim HofherBuffalo, Cornell
- Kevin DohertySaint Francis
- Paul PasqualoniSyracuse, UConn, Western Connecticut
- Andy RondeauPace
- and 1 more
Worked under (3)
| Head coach | Team | Years | His job | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ray Eliot | Illinois | 1958 | Graduate assistant | |
| Charles Studley | Massachusetts | 1960 | Assistant coach | |
| Charles Studley | Cincinnati | 1961–65 | Assistant coach | |
| Lou Saban | Maryland | 1966 | Defensive backs coach | |
| Lou Saban | Denver Broncos NFL | 1967–70 | Linebackers and defensive backs coach |
Coached under him, later head coaches (13)
| Coach | With him | Head coach at | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jim Reid | Massachusetts, 1973–74: graduate assistant; 1975: outside linebackers coach; 1976–77: defensive backs coach | Massachusetts, Richmond, VMI | |
| Gary Blackney | Syracuse, 1981–83: defensive backs coach | Bowling Green | |
| George O’Leary | Syracuse, 1981–84: assistant head coach and defensive line coach; 1985–86: defensive coordinator and defensive line coach | Georgia Tech, UCF | |
| Jim Tressel | Syracuse, 1981–82: quarterbacks coach | Ohio State, Youngstown State | |
| Randy Edsall | Syracuse, 1981–82: graduate assistant; 1983–84, 1986: running backs coach; 1985: tight ends coach; 1987–88: defensive backs coach; 1989–90: defensive backs coach and recruiting coordinator | UConn, Maryland | |
| Dave Campo | Syracuse, 1984–86: defensive backs coach | Dallas Cowboys | |
| George DeLeone | Syracuse, 1985–86: offensive line coach; 1987–90: offensive coordinator and offensive line coach | Southern Connecticut State | |
| Kevin Kelly | Syracuse, 1986–87: graduate assistant | Georgetown, New England (NH) | |
| Jim Hofher | Syracuse, 1987–88: running backs coach | Buffalo, Cornell | |
| Kevin Doherty | Syracuse, 1987–88: graduate assistant | Saint Francis | |
| Paul Pasqualoni | Syracuse, 1987–90: assistant coach | Syracuse, UConn, Western Connecticut | |
| Andy Rondeau | Syracuse, 1990: student assistant | Pace | |
| Dick Coury | New England Patriots, 1991–92: offensive coordinator | Cal State Fullerton, Portland Storm, Boston / New Orleans / Portland Breakers |
From coaches’ Wikipedia infoboxes (CC BY-SA) and each season’s article for its coordinators: an assistant’s seasons at a school count under its head coach in our records; jobs in the NFL and elsewhere, under the head coach whose own article lists the job that year. Names without a page here link to their Wikipedia articles.