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Hall of Famer George Welsh to Appear on ACC LIVE
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April 9, 2004
ATLANTA, Ga. – Former Virginia football coach and Hall of Fame inductee George Welsh will be featured on this week’s ACC LIVE.
ACC LIVE, Fox Sports Net’s weekly signature program profiling the Atlantic Coast Conference, airs Monday, April 12 at 6:30 p.m. EST (re-airs Tuesday, April 13 at 12:30 a.m.). Mike Hogewood hosts the live, half-hour show from FSN’s Atlanta studio, where he is joined by reporter Jenn Hildreth.
On Monday’s show, “ACC Flashback” spotlights former Virginia and Navy football coach George Welsh. Responsible for bringing two struggling football programs to national prominence, Welsh was selected this week for induction into the College Football Hall of Fame. He is the third Virginia coach selected to the College Hall of Fame (Frank Murray and Earle “Greasy” Neale). Welsh has earned National Coach of the Year recognition three times (1989, 1991, 1993) and was named ACC Coach of the Year five times (1983, 1984, 1989, 1991, 1994).
Welsh started his 28 year career as the head coach of his alma mater, Navy, where he coached for eight years (1973-81). He led Navy to three bowl appearances and left the academy as the school’s all-time winningest coach.
Welsh then came to Virginia in 1982 where the first years were used to build the team. By his third season at the helm, the Cavaliers made their first bowl appearance in school history- the 1984 Peach Bowl. Virginia gained consistency by winning at least seven games every season from 1987-99. The 1989 season marked several prominent firsts in Cavalier history- an ACC championship, a 10-win season and a first-ever birth in a New Year’s Day bowl game. The next season (1999) Welsh had the Cavaliers as the No. 1 team in the nation. By 1995 Virginia had won their second ACC title and finished 16th in the final Associated Press poll. Welsh’s final season (2000) marked the program’s 10th bowl appearance since 1989. He ended his career 24th in Division I-A history with a 189-131-4 (.590) record. His 85 ACC wins and 36 conference road victories were also league records at the time of his retirement.