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University of Minnesota Athletics
GLEN MASON NAMED 2002 AFCA PRESIDENT
1/9/2002 12:00:00 AM | Football
Mason, who moves up from first vice-president of the Association, succeeds outgoing president Joe Taylor of Hampton University. Mason was elected president by members attending the Association's 2002 convention this week in San Antonio.
"When I was at the University of Kansas I got a call from Coach Teaff and he said `I'd like you to serve on the Board of Trustees,' " Mason said. "I said I'm honored and he said, `In 13 years you'll be the president.' I thought, I hope I'm still coaching in 13 years. So it was something I don't think I've fully realized yet.
"As a major college football coach, you get to travel quite a bit and visit a lot of different venues," Mason said. "I've really been amazed how many places I go people say, `I saw that you're going to be president of the American Football Coaches Association.' That's an unbelievable honor."
The AFCA, founded in 1922 by Amos Alonzo Stagg, John Heisman and others, has more than 8,000 members from all levels of the profession. According to its constitution, the AFCA was formed, in part, to "maintain the highest possible standards in football and the coaching profession," and to "provide a forum for the discussion and study of all matters pertaining to football and coaching."
In addition to Mason, 2002 AFCA officers include first vice-president Phil Fulmer, University of Tennessee; second vice-president Ken Hatfield, Rice University and third vice-president Paul Pasqualoni, Syracuse University.
Also serving on the Board in 2002: Scot Dapp, Moravian College; Mel Tjeerdsma, Northwest Missouri State University; Ron Randleman, Sam Houston State University; Ken Sparks, Carson-Newman College; Larry Kehres, Mount Union College; Tyrone Willingham, University of Notre Dame; Todd Berry, U.S. Military Academy; R.C. Slocum, Texas A&M University; Tony Samuel, New Mexico State University; Rob Ash, Drake University; Chuck Amato, North Carolina State University and Ken Rucker, University of Alabama, ex officio member and chairman of the Assistant Coaches Committee. Ash, Samuel and Amato are newly-elected members of the Board this year. AFCA Executive Director Grant Teaff serves as secretary-treasurer of the organization.
Mason is the third coach from Minnesota to serve as president of the AFCA. He was first elected to the Board of Trustees in 1995. Previous Minnesota coaches to lead the AFCA were Bernie Bierman (1935) and Murray Warmath (1968). Minnesota joins Harvard, Illinois and Michigan as the only schools with three coaches who have served as president of the Association
Mason completed his fifth year at Minnesota in 2001, his 16th season as a head coach. In 1999 and 2000 he led the Gophers to back-to-back bowl appearances for the first time since 1985-86. His 1999 squad finished 8-4 overall, the most wins by a Minnesota coach since Warmath led the Gophers to an 8-2 mark in 1967.
