University of Massachusets Athletics
Former UMass Coach Honored By Gridiron Club
September 04, 2003 | Football
Sept. 4, 2003
BOSTON, Mass. - Former University of Massachusetts head football coach Dick MacPherson has been selected as the Gridiron Club of Greater Boston's Man of the Year for 2003. MacPherson will be the club's guest of honor at its annual NFL Alumni Charity Dinner on Thursday, October 23, 2003, at Lantana's in Randolph, Mass. Nationally renowned sports broadcaster Sean McDonough will be the master of ceremonies.
Proceeds from the dinner and accompanying raffle of Super Bowl tickets and other gifts will support the treatment of children and adolescents at the Joslin Diabetes Centers in Boston and Syracuse. These renowned facilities treat more than 2,600 young patients annually. Coach MacPherson and his family have been active and enthusiastic supporters of the Joslin Centers' work on behalf of kids for many years.
"We are thrilled that coach MacPherson will be on hand with us this year, and we expect a great crowd," said Tom Yewcic, dinner chairman and quarterback and punter for the original Boston Patriots. "He has so many friends and admirers, here in the Boston area, in Syracuse, in Western Massachusetts where he coached and went to school, in Maine where he comes from and where he still spends his summers, and everywhere that the game of football is played."
MacPherson served as UMass' head football coach from 1971-1977, leading the Minutemen to four Yankee Conference championships during his seven-year tenure. During his seven seasons, MacPherson compiled a 45 27-1 record and led UMass to its only postseason bowl victory, as his1972 squad defeated California-Davis 35-14 in the Boardwalk Bowl. His squads also posted a 28-8-1 mark in Yankee Conference games, with his .778 league winning percentage still ranking as the fifth-best in conference history. After leaving UMass, MacPherson went on to a successful tour with Syracuse (1981-1990), leading the Orangemen to five postseason bowls, including his undefeated 1987 squad's Sugar Bowl appearance. He also had a two-year stint as head coach of the New England Patriots (1991-1992).
MacPherson and his wife Sandra have two daughters, Janet and Maureen, and four grandchildren. They make their homes in Syracuse, Maine and Florida.
For more information, or to order tickets to the NFL Alumni Charity Dinner, visit the Gridiron Club's website at www.gridclubofgreaterboston.com.
