Daily Bruin File Photo Former UCLA head football coach
Terry Donahue is the all-time leader for Pac-10
coaching victories with 151.
By Adam Karon
Daily Bruin Staff
SOUTH BEND, Ind. “”mdash; Former UCLA head football coach and all
time Pac-10 winningest head coach Terry Donahue was inducted into
the College Football Hall of Fame Saturday.
The honor highlighted a career which featured four Rose Bowl
appearances and two conference coach of the year awards.
“When I look at the class of inductees, it really is
amazing that I’m here,” Donahue said.
The former Bruin head coach was referring to the 2001 class of
enshrinees that features Stanford All-American John Elway, USC
Heisman Trophy winner Marcus Allen, and Nebraska Heisman Trophy
winner Johnny Rodgers.
Also among the inductees are Michigan offensive tackle Dan
Dierdorf, Super Bowl XXII MVP Doug Williams, and New Orleans Saints
head coach Jim Haslett.
Bernie Kish, executive director of the College Football Hall of
Fame, called the 2001 class “a very elite group of
men.”
Former Iowa head coach Forest Evashevski was the only other
Division I head coach enshrined in 2001.
 Daily Bruin File Photo Terry Donahue is
carried off the field by his players in the aftermath of a 45-6
victory over Illinois in the 1984 Rose Bowl. Coaches become
eligible three years after retirement. They must have coached a
minimum of ten years in at least 100 games, winning 60 percent or
more of those contests.
Donahue won 151 games in his time at UCLA, tallying 12 top 25
finishes and five top 10s, but he takes little credit for his
success in Westwood.
“When a coach gets into the Hall of Fame, he gets in
because he’s been blessed with many wonderful players over
the course of his career, and I had a number of great players
during my time as a coach at UCLA,” Donahue said.
“Another reason a coach gets into the Hall of Fame is
because he was surrounded by very creative, talented assistant
coaches,” he added.
After nearly thirty years as a student, assistant coach and head
coach in Westwood, Donahue knows that he will always be a Bruin.
Upon retiring he took to the broadcasting booth as a commentator
for CBS, which proved difficult initially.
“The first year out of coaching was the hardest,”
Donahue said. “It was kind of like an out-of-body
experience.”
His first broadcast assignment was UCLA vs. Tennessee, making it
difficult for Donahue to watch the same players he had recruited
take to the field under a different coach.
After growing tired of the press box Donahue took his current
position with the San Francisco 49ers as director of player
personnel and assistant to the general manager.
But he will always look fondly upon his time at UCLA.
“For me UCLA was a 25-year love affair,” he said.
“Our children grew up around UCLA. I’m very grateful to
the university and the way it treated us, and it’ll be a part
of my life forever.”
Donahue coached 25 first-team All-Americans, and more than 100
of his players were selected in the NFL draft. He is a member of
the Rose Bowl Hall of Fame and is slated to be inducted into the
UCLA Hall of Fame later this year.
Donahue got a chance to return to the sidelines Saturday
afternoon when he coached the West team of enshrinees during the
annual College Football Hall of Fame flag football game. He
returned to his winning ways when he called for a two-point
conversion in overtime to help an Elway-led team beat Doug
Williams’ East enshrinees.
Donahue becomes the 11th UCLA coach or athlete inducted into the
Hall of Fame since its inception in 1951. He spent his entire
playing and coaching career in Westwood.
“This is the pinnacle of 25 years at UCLA,” he said.
“It’s the crowning jewel in a marvelous, wonderful
college career.”