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SALT LAKE CITY - Ron McBride isn't quite ready to give up football.
After retiring from his head coaching position at Weber State just over three months ago, McBride has accepted a position to be the offensive line coach for the Utah Blaze. Yep, Mac is back.
"I'm excited about the opportunity," McBride said in a press conference Monday. "I coached the offensive line during the first 30 years of my career. It's a passion of mine and something I really enjoy doing."
The 72-year old coach is kind of a big deal when it comes to football in the state of Utah. And while he may or may not have many leather bound books (or have an apartment that smells of rich mahogany), McBride was instrumental in revitalizing the University of Utah's football program during his 13 seasons as head coach (1990-2002).
Prior to his arrival on the hill, the Utes had reached bowl games just three times in 97 years. Yet in just his third season as head coach, McBride guided Utah to its first bowl appearance since 1964. Utah made six bowl games under McBride's guidance. Impressive. In 1994, McBride led Utah to its first 10-win season in school history. He also turned the tide of the Utah-BYU rivalry, winning six of his final 11 games against the Cougars, after the Utes had lost 16 of the previous 18.
"It is truly an honor to have a coach of Ron McBride's stature join our staff," said Utah Blaze President & Head Coach Ron James. "We are dedicated to bringing our fans the best football team possible in 2012. This hire is yet another example of our organization's commitment to excellence. Coach McBride has extensive football knowledge and we are looking forward to working shoulder-to-shoulder with a football coaching legend."
"The arena game is a new and exciting opportunity for me, and I'm really looking forward to coaching these young players and helping them develop," McBride said.
McBride also served as head coach of the Weber State Wildcats for seven seasons before announcing his retirement back on November 8, 2011. Since being named the ninth head coach in school history in 2004, Coach McBride compiled a 43-38 overall record that included two NCAA FCS Playoff appearances. His signature season at Weber State came in 2008, when he led the Wildcats to their first Big Sky Conference Championship in 40 years.
McBride's storied coaching career has also included stops at San Jose State, Wisconsin, Arizona and Kentucky. He's coached over 70 NFL players, including All-Pros Jamal Anderson (Atlanta Falcons), Luther Ellis (Detroit Lions), Steve Smith (Carolina Panthers) and Jordan Gross (Carolina Panthers). In April of 2008, Coach Mac was honored by the Utah Football Coaches Association and given the first ever Lifetime Achievement Award for his contributions to football in the state of Utah.
The 2012 season begins for the Utah Blaze March 10 in San Antonio.
