Mac's big year keeps going

Ron McBride has a lot to celebrate this week. Not only did the veteran coach lead the Weber State University Wildcats to one of the biggest victories in school history, he was also named Big Sky Conference Coach of the Year. "Some coaches are only focused on winning," said WSU senior quarterback Brendon Doyle. "But he wants us to be successful on and off the field and he emphasizes that to us daily." This was the first time in his long career that Ron McBride was given coach of the year honors. The award is voted on by coaches in the league, making the honor that much sweeter for the 69-year-old McBride. Fans, players and administration were all quick to heap praise on the veteran coach. "It shows that the rest of the coaches in the league really respect what coach (McBride) has done," said WSU Athletic Director Jerry Graybeal. "We're very fortunate to have a person of his coaching caliber to come and invest that much of their heart and soul into our program." During his 13 seasons (1990-2002) as the head coach of the University of Utah, McBride led the Utes to six bowl appearances and three conference titles, and after spending two years as an assistant coach at the University of Kentucky, McBride came back to coach in the Beehive State. This season McBride has coached a record 12 players to the All-Conference first team, led the team to its best conference start in school history and delivered the first playoff win 1987 Saturday night at California Polytechnic State University. "It was awesome," McBride said. "To beat the No. 3 team in the country, on the road, at their place, and play as hard as we played, it's one of the biggest wins in school history." McBride has been recognized for several things, one of which is his handling of difficult situations that come with the territory when coaching a university football team. This season McBride was faced with restricted practice time due to academic restrictions and was able to elevate not only the grades of the players, but the level of their game as well. McBride has also been cited for his effective recruiting, particularly in the Hawaiian Islands. WSU sophomore quarterback Cameron Higgins has helped lead the 'Cats through the season along with a host of players from the Islands, and a few from his old stomping grounds. "I came to play for Coach Mac when I transferred from the U," said WSU senior defensive tackle Bryce Scanlon. "He's a players coach, he treats us good. He can be hard on us, but he is a great coach and we love playing for him." While this will be the last season for several seniors, McBride recently signed a four-year contract extension that will keep him at Weber State through another class of Wildcat football.