A QUARTERBACK WEEKEND
September 29, 2011 07:55 AM | General
West Virginia University Director of Athletics Oliver Luck is no stranger to good ideas, and he came up with a great one earlier this year after a discussion with one of his old Houston Oilers buddies.
“I was talking to Gifford Nielsen and he told me they brought back every BYU All-American quarterback from Gif, to Steve Young, Jim McMahon, Robbie Bosco and Ty Detmer to honor LaVell Edwards,” Luck said. “I loved the idea.”
Luck thought, why not do something like this at West Virginia University for Hall of Fame coach Don Nehlen? And why not include as many former quarterbacks as possible?
Luck started looking at the home football schedule for available dates and the one that jumped out immediately was Bowling Green, which just happens to be Nehlen’s alma mater and also a place he coached before coming to West Virginia.
From there, the pieces have perfectly fallen into place.
“I thought, let’s get as many former Mountaineer quarterbacks back here as we can and do it up right for Don,” Luck explained.
Since Luck’s arrival last July, he has made it one of his prerogatives to get as many former student-athletes back to campus as possible and the Don Nehlen Endowed Scholarship Weekend falls right into that category.
“It has been one of my initiatives to bring guys back,” Luck said. “Think back to the spring game last year when we had (Jim) Carlen and (Bobby) Bowden and all of those coaches back. We want to make sure that, in all sports, everybody feels welcome and everybody gets back for a game.
“We want to keep the ties current and we’ve got a long ways to go,” Luck added. “This is a good indication of the kind of stuff you can take advantage of and the good will that exists here between our fans and our former players.”
The roster of quarterbacks committed to return to West Virginia University for this weekend’s event is beyond impressive – it’s unprecedented.
The list is also an eclectic one as well.
There are NFL All-Pros – Marc Bulger and Jeff Hostetler; Heisman Trophy finalists – Hostetler, Major Harris and Pat White; doctors – Chad Johnston and Danny Williams; judges – Kevin White; ex-pro football officials – Fred Wyant; actors – Ben Reed; and even athletic directors – Luck and Ed Pastilong.
“This will be the largest gathering of former Mountaineer quarterbacks ever,” Luck predicted. “It probably won’t be duplicated for another generation.”
Eras from the 1940s to the present are represented with Richard Loring (1949-50) being the oldest former Mountaineer QB returning to campus this weekend.
“The great part is there are guys coming back who didn’t play for Don,” Luck said. “Bernie Galiffa and Mike Sherwood are on that list. Dan and Mike Williams are also coming back. These guys played the position and have quarterbacked the Mountaineers through the years.”
The weekend will begin on Friday morning with a golf scramble at Mystic Rock and then later a live auction will take place at Nemacolin Resort to benefit the Don Nehlen Endowed Scholarship, which is approaching the $1 million mark in commitments.
“We’re close,” said Matt Borman, director of capital campaigns and major gifs for the Mountaineer Athletic Club.
On Saturday, the returning quarterbacks will walk with the team in the Mountaineer Mantrip before taking part in a special autograph session for fans at the Caperton Indoor Practice Facility from 2-2:45 p.m. That event is being sponsored by MedExpress and will be coordinated by WVU Varsity Club Director Dale Wolfley and the Mountaineer Athletic Club.
“It’s not just the guys coming back – you really want the guys when they do come back to interact with our fans,” Luck said. “When (Darryl) Talley was walking in the Mantrip and was the honorary captain on the field (for last weekend's LSU game), people loved it. He fought for us and he’s one of us.”
Luck anticipates a similar outpouring of support when the former quarterbacks get an opportunity to interact with the fans during pregame festivities, concluding with the ceremonial coin toss right before kickoff.
“It’s going to be a lot of fun and I think the fans will really enjoy it,” Luck said. “The atmosphere last Saturday was unbelievable and I’m sure it will be good again this weekend.
“There are some pretty good players on that list. It would be scary to add up all the touchdown passes among them.”
Quarterbacks expected to return for this weekend’s Bowling Green game:
Richard Loring (1949-50)
Fred Wyant (1952-55)
Dale Evans (1960-61)
Ed Pastilong (1964-65)
Pete Secret (1966-67)
Garland Hudson (1967-69)
Mike Sherwood (1968-70)
Bernie Galiffa (1970-72)
Danny Williams (1975-77)
Mike Williams (1978)
Oliver Luck (1978-81)
Jeff Hostetler (1982-83)
Kevin White (1981-84)
Tony Reda (1985)
Ben Reed (1986-87)
Major Harris (1987-89)
Greg Jones (1990)
Darren Studstill (1990-93)
Jake Kelchner (1992-93)
Chad Johnston (1994-96)
Eric Boykin (1994-96)
Marc Bulger (1997-99)
Rasheed Marshall (2001-04)
Pat White (2005-08)
Jarrett Brown (2007-10)
“I was talking to Gifford Nielsen and he told me they brought back every BYU All-American quarterback from Gif, to Steve Young, Jim McMahon, Robbie Bosco and Ty Detmer to honor LaVell Edwards,” Luck said. “I loved the idea.”
Luck thought, why not do something like this at West Virginia University for Hall of Fame coach Don Nehlen? And why not include as many former quarterbacks as possible?
Luck started looking at the home football schedule for available dates and the one that jumped out immediately was Bowling Green, which just happens to be Nehlen’s alma mater and also a place he coached before coming to West Virginia.
From there, the pieces have perfectly fallen into place.
“I thought, let’s get as many former Mountaineer quarterbacks back here as we can and do it up right for Don,” Luck explained.
Since Luck’s arrival last July, he has made it one of his prerogatives to get as many former student-athletes back to campus as possible and the Don Nehlen Endowed Scholarship Weekend falls right into that category.
“It has been one of my initiatives to bring guys back,” Luck said. “Think back to the spring game last year when we had (Jim) Carlen and (Bobby) Bowden and all of those coaches back. We want to make sure that, in all sports, everybody feels welcome and everybody gets back for a game.
“We want to keep the ties current and we’ve got a long ways to go,” Luck added. “This is a good indication of the kind of stuff you can take advantage of and the good will that exists here between our fans and our former players.”
The roster of quarterbacks committed to return to West Virginia University for this weekend’s event is beyond impressive – it’s unprecedented.
The list is also an eclectic one as well.
There are NFL All-Pros – Marc Bulger and Jeff Hostetler; Heisman Trophy finalists – Hostetler, Major Harris and Pat White; doctors – Chad Johnston and Danny Williams; judges – Kevin White; ex-pro football officials – Fred Wyant; actors – Ben Reed; and even athletic directors – Luck and Ed Pastilong.
“This will be the largest gathering of former Mountaineer quarterbacks ever,” Luck predicted. “It probably won’t be duplicated for another generation.”
Eras from the 1940s to the present are represented with Richard Loring (1949-50) being the oldest former Mountaineer QB returning to campus this weekend.
“The great part is there are guys coming back who didn’t play for Don,” Luck said. “Bernie Galiffa and Mike Sherwood are on that list. Dan and Mike Williams are also coming back. These guys played the position and have quarterbacked the Mountaineers through the years.”
The weekend will begin on Friday morning with a golf scramble at Mystic Rock and then later a live auction will take place at Nemacolin Resort to benefit the Don Nehlen Endowed Scholarship, which is approaching the $1 million mark in commitments.
“We’re close,” said Matt Borman, director of capital campaigns and major gifs for the Mountaineer Athletic Club.
On Saturday, the returning quarterbacks will walk with the team in the Mountaineer Mantrip before taking part in a special autograph session for fans at the Caperton Indoor Practice Facility from 2-2:45 p.m. That event is being sponsored by MedExpress and will be coordinated by WVU Varsity Club Director Dale Wolfley and the Mountaineer Athletic Club.
“It’s not just the guys coming back – you really want the guys when they do come back to interact with our fans,” Luck said. “When (Darryl) Talley was walking in the Mantrip and was the honorary captain on the field (for last weekend's LSU game), people loved it. He fought for us and he’s one of us.”
Luck anticipates a similar outpouring of support when the former quarterbacks get an opportunity to interact with the fans during pregame festivities, concluding with the ceremonial coin toss right before kickoff.
“It’s going to be a lot of fun and I think the fans will really enjoy it,” Luck said. “The atmosphere last Saturday was unbelievable and I’m sure it will be good again this weekend.
“There are some pretty good players on that list. It would be scary to add up all the touchdown passes among them.”
Quarterbacks expected to return for this weekend’s Bowling Green game:
Richard Loring (1949-50)
Fred Wyant (1952-55)
Dale Evans (1960-61)
Ed Pastilong (1964-65)
Pete Secret (1966-67)
Garland Hudson (1967-69)
Mike Sherwood (1968-70)
Bernie Galiffa (1970-72)
Danny Williams (1975-77)
Mike Williams (1978)
Oliver Luck (1978-81)
Jeff Hostetler (1982-83)
Kevin White (1981-84)
Tony Reda (1985)
Ben Reed (1986-87)
Major Harris (1987-89)
Greg Jones (1990)
Darren Studstill (1990-93)
Jake Kelchner (1992-93)
Chad Johnston (1994-96)
Eric Boykin (1994-96)
Marc Bulger (1997-99)
Rasheed Marshall (2001-04)
Pat White (2005-08)
Jarrett Brown (2007-10)
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Wednesday, May 13
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Tuesday, May 12
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Tuesday, May 12
Kansas State Recap
Tuesday, May 12
