Mike DuBose
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Mike DuBose | ||
|---|---|---|
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| Title | Head Coach | |
| College | Millsaps College Majors | |
| Sport | Football | |
| Conference | Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (NCAA Div. III) | |
| Team record | 15-6 | |
| Born | January 5, 1953 | |
| Place of birth | Opp, Alabama | |
| Career highlights | ||
| Overall | 39-29 | |
| Bowls | 0-2 (1998 Music City Bowl - Virginia Tech 38, Alabama 7), (1999 Orange Bowl - Michigan 35, Alabama 34) | |
| Coaching stats | ||
| College Football DataWarehouse | ||
| Championships | ||
| SEC Championship (1999) SCAC Championship (2006, 2007-tie) |
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| Playing career | ||
| 1971-74 | University of Alabama | |
| Position | Defensive lineman | |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | ||
| 2005-Present Various 1987-1989 1982/83 1980-1982 |
Millsaps Majors - Head Coach (2006-present) - Defensive Coordinator (2005) Alabama Crimson Tide - Head Coach (1997-2000) - Defensive Line Coach (1984-87 & 1990-96) - Graduate Assistant (1975) Tampa Bay Buccaneers - Defensive Line Coach USM Golden Eagles - Defensive Line Coach UT Chattanooga Mocs - Defensive Line Coach |
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Mike DuBose (born January 5, 1953, in Opp, Alabama) is a former college football player and the current head coach of Millsaps College football team. He is most notable for his tenure as the head coach at the University of Alabama.
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[edit] Playing career
DuBose earned four varsity letters as an athlete at Opp High School,[1] before going to the University of Alabama Crimson Tide where he played on the defensive line under head coach Bear Bryant from 1972 to 1974.[2] The highlight of DuBose's career was a performance against the Tennessee Volunteers in which he caused a fumble and had twenty tackles and was named SEC Defensive Lineman of the Week. His career totals included 129 total tackles, eight forced fumbles, and six fumble recoveries.[1]
[edit] Early coaching career
DuBose's coaching career began as a graduate assistant with the Crimson Tide in 1975.
[edit] High school coaching career
DuBose was an assistant coach in 1976 and 1977 at Fairhope High School in Alabama. In 1978 and 1979, he was the head coach as well as athletic director of Prattville High School in Prattville, Alabama.
[edit] Assistant coaching in college/pros
DuBose began his collegiate coaching career as a defensive line coach at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga in 1980. After two years at UTC, he was offered a job on the staff at Southern Mississippi. DuBose wanted to reject the job offer in hopes of working for Bear Bryant at Alabama, but Bryant told DuBose to go for one year and he'd get a call for a new job the following year (see Ivan Maisel, War In Dixie). DuBose went to USM and was the defensive line coach. He was on the opposite sideline of the game that ended Alabama's then college record 57-game home unbeaten streak in November 1982. Two months later, Bryant died, and DuBose was invited to Alabama as a defensive line coach on the staff of new coach Ray Perkins. He coached the defensive line for four years and followed Perkins to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for three years, 1987-1989. He returned to Alabama as defensive line coach from 1990 to 1996 under head coach Gene Stallings.
[edit] University of Alabama
On December 9, 1996, sixteen days after Stallings announced his retirement, DuBose was named as head coach of Alabama.[3]
[edit] Slow start
In 1997, DuBose's first season at Alabama, the Crimson Tide won its first two games but then lost seven of the last nine games including their first loss to Kentucky since 1922, a rout at the hands of Tennessee, and a shocking loss to Louisiana Tech. The 1997 Iron Bowl presented DuBose an opportunity to salvage at least a piece of a lost season, but Alabama lost in a heartbreaker after the Crimson Tide led the game 17-15 with less than a minute to go. Faced with a third and a long one and the prospect of having to punt the ball to Auburn if they did not convert, leaving Auburn an opportunity to get into field goal range, the Tide ran a screen pass resulting in a fumble and Auburn recovery that led to the game-winning field goal for the Tigers. Much controversy surrounded the apparent fact that DuBose did not call the play, nor did he know which play was being ran. DuBose reacted by firing four assistants including the ones who called the play, Bruce Arians and Woody McCorvey. The Tide finished with the school's worst record since 1957, the year before Bryant arrived.
The following year, 1998, DuBose led the team to a 7-5 record and a berth in the inaugural Music City Bowl against Virginia Tech. The Tide lost with a poor performance on a day with even worse weather, 38-7, and DuBose went back to the drawing board. After pulling off a shocking comeback over LSU in Tiger Stadium, and defeating Auburn in Legion Field, which coincidentally was the last time the Iron Bowl would ever be played at the location, many felt that DuBose was beginning to grow into the job and was on the right path to being a successful head coach. Unfortunately for DuBose and Tide fans, the Music City Bowl showed things were not going as smoothly as hoped.
[edit] Alleged harassment
In May 1999, rumor leaked out on the internet that DuBose was accused of having an affair with Deborah Gibson, his secretary. DuBose flatly denied the charges, but three months later reached an out-of-court settlement that paid over $300,000 out of his own pocket, removed the final two years of his contract (leaving him without a job after the upcoming 1999 season unless either an extension was granted or a new contract was reached), and gave the administration the chance to fire him at any time they desired.
After a 2-0 start, Louisiana Tech stunned Alabama again, scoring a touchdown on the last play from scrimmage, a 29-yard pass by Brian Stallworth, who replaced an injured Tim Rattay on the previous play, to complete a shocking upset. Calls for DuBose's head reached a fevered pitch, and the administration responded by firing Athletic Director Bob Bockrath. Many Alabama fans and graduates were openly upset when the following week had passed and DuBose was still the head coach. Rumors persisted that DuBose would be fired in the off week of October 9, 1999, right after the Tide was expected to be routed by the Florida Gators. However, Alabama suddenly took off behind All-American tailback Shaun Alexander and Outland Trophy winner Chris Samuels, who played left tackle. DuBose pulled the team together and beat Arkansas, then stunned Florida in a 40-39 overtime thriller that ended the Florida Gators' five-year home winning streak and put Alabama back in the top ten. They went the rest of the regular season losing only to Tennessee, 21-7, and earned the right to meet Florida again for the SEC Championship after a dominating fourth quarter in Jordan-Hare Stadium to beat Auburn. Coincidentally, the win over Auburn marked the first time since 1992 that either Alabama or Auburn had won the Iron Bowl in consecutive years, and it was first time Alabama had ever beaten Auburn in Jordan-Hare Stadium.
[edit] SEC champions
On December 4, 1999, Alabama and Florida played a rematch at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, Georgia. Florida was expected to return the favor of Alabama's October win. The Gators scored in five plays to start the game but never scored the rest of the night. The game was close, 15-7 Alabama, until the early fourth quarter when a broken play ran by Freddie Milons, a wide receiver lined up at quarterback, bolted for a 77-yard touchdown after reversing his field. Two plays later, defensive lineman Reggie Grimes tipped, intercepted, and scored a touchdown on a pass from Jesse Palmer. The final score was Alabama 34, Florida 7.
After the game, DuBose's two years from the Gibson settlement were restored drawing the anger of some Alabama fans and alumni, some of whom believed he should have been fired in the first place.[4] Alabama then faced Michigan in the Orange Bowl where the Tide lost 35-34 on a missed PAT in the first overtime. Alabama ended the year at number eight and began the next year at number three in the pre-season polls. [5]
For the Tide's 10-3 performance, DuBose was named SEC Coach of the Year.[2]
[edit] The 2000 debacle and firing / resignation
Alabama came into the 2000 regular season with very high expectations. The Tide was ranked third in the country in the pre-season polls, and many felt that Alabama was, as a result of the previous year's success and highly-rated recruiting classes, about to re-establish itself as one of the nation's elite programs. The Crimson Tide opened the 2000 season in Los Angeles, CA against UCLA and the national title hopes were quickly shattered as Alabama lost in a stunning upset, 35-24. After a lackluster win against Vanderbilt the following week, the Tide played a miserable game against Southern Mississippi and lost, 21-0. DuBose offered his resignation to Athletic Director Mal Moore after the game, but Moore refused it.[6] After a controversial loss to Arkansas - where two disputed calls kept alive the Arkansas Razorbacks' game-winning drive - the Tide rebounded to beat South Carolina and Ole Miss to raise its record to 3-3. As it turned out, the 45-7 thumping of Ole Miss was the last game DuBose would win. Things reached a nadir on October 28, 2000, when the Tide lost to underdog Central Florida at home, 40-38. On the Tuesday after the game, the announcement was made that DuBose would be gone at the end of the year.[6] The 2000 season ended disastrously as Alabama lost a close contest to LSU in Tiger Stadium, thus ending the 31-year winning streak over the Bayou Bengals in their home stadium, was dominated in Starkville by Mississippi State, and was shut-out 9-0 by Auburn in the Iron Bowl on a miserable day in which Tuscaloosa had sleet and snow in the first installment of the rivalry played on the Alabama campus since 1901.
After a long coaching search in which Butch Davis, Frank Beamer, Tommy Bowden, and others were considered for the job, Alabama Athletics Director Mal Moore hired Dennis Franchione to replace DuBose.
Unfortunately for Alabama, the effects of the DuBose era would not dissipate so quickly. The NCAA would, shortly thereafter, begin investigating the recruitment of Albert Means, a star defensive lineman recruited out of Memphis, Tennessee. Although DuBose was never mentioned in the official NCAA report, Alabama was nevertheless hammered for the violations that occurred on his watch, which included a loss of 21 scholarships over three years, a two-year bowl ban, and five years of probation.
[edit] After Alabama
[edit] Northview High School
After a brief respite from coaching, DuBose was hired as head coach of the Northview High School football program in Dothan, Alabama. During his only year there in 2002, DuBose led the Cougars to an 0-10 record.
[edit] Luverne High School
After leaving Northview, DuBose was named head coach of the Luverne High School football program in Luverne, Alabama. During his two years at Luverne, 2003 and 2004, he led the Tigers to a 20-7 record and the 2003 State Runner-up in the 2-A classification. In the 2-A state championship game at Legion Field, DuBose lost in a heartbreaker to Randolph County, who was led to victory on the heels of Ezekiel Knight's 31-yard touchdown run, and 77-yard punt return for a touchdown. Weeks later, Knight would sign a letter of intent to play for Alabama. He is currently a senior on the Tide squad.
[edit] Millsaps College
DuBose was named the head coach at Millsaps College in 2006.[7] He had been the defensive coordinator in 2005. In his first season as head coach, Millsaps finished undefeated in Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference play and made the Division III football playoffs for the first time since 1975. He was later named 2006 Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC) Coach of the Year for his success and leadership of the Majors in the 2006 Season. Shortly after the Majors lost to Carnegie Mellon University 21-0 ending the magical season. In the next season, the 2007 Trinity vs. Millsaps football game made national news for its unusual ending. Although the loss cost Millsaps the SCAC's automatic NCAA playoff berth on a tiebreaker, they nevertheless rallied to rout their final two opponents and tie Trinity for DuBose's second conference title in a row [8] and finished with the program's best overall record in more than a decade. [9]
[edit] Head coaching record
| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl | Coaches# | AP° | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama Crimson Tide (SEC) (1997 – 2000) | |||||||||
| 1997 | Alabama | 4-7 | 2-6 | 5th (West) | |||||
| 1998 | Alabama | 7-5 | 4-4 | T-3rd (West) | L Music City | ||||
| 1999 | Alabama | 10–3 | 7-1 | 1st (West) | L Orange | 8 | 8 | ||
| 2000 | Alabama | 3-8 | 3-5 | T-4th (West) | |||||
| Alabama: | 24–23 | 16–16 | |||||||
| Millsaps Majors (SCAC) (2006 — present) | |||||||||
| 2006 | Millsaps | 7-4 | 6-0 | 1st | L NCAA Division III playoffs | ||||
| 2007 | Millsaps | 8-2 | 6–1 | T-1st | |||||
| Millsaps: | 15–6 | 12-1 | |||||||
| Total: | 39-29 | ||||||||
| National Championship Conference Title Conference Division Title | |||||||||
| #Rankings from final Coaches Poll of the season. °Rankings from final AP Poll of the season. |
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| Preceded by Gene Stallings |
University of Alabama Head Football Coach 1997–2000 |
Succeeded by Dennis Franchione |
| Preceded by David Saunders |
Millsaps College Head Football Coach 2006–present |
Succeeded by current |
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[edit] References
- ^ a b Mike DuBose. Millsaps College. Retrieved on 2007-01-10.
- ^ a b Former Tide Great DuBose joins Millsaps staff. Millsaps College (2005-04-22). Retrieved on 2007-01-10.
- ^ McCreary, Joedy (2006-02-09). Ex-Tider DuBose, now Millsaps coach, says he's learned from past. Associated Press. Retrieved on 2007-01-10.
- ^ Some alumni unhappy about extended DuBose deal. Associated Press (1999-12-30). Retrieved on 2007-01-10.
- ^ 2000 Preseason AP Football Poll - AP Poll Archive - Historical College Football and Basketball Polls and Rankings
- ^ a b Dienhart, Tom (2000-11-27). Tide can win quickly, but it needs the right new coach. The Sporting News. Retrieved on 2007-01-10.
- ^ DuBose Named Head Football Coach at Millsaps College. Retrieved on 2006-03-15.
- ^ Millsaps College :: Football
- ^ Millsaps College :: Football
