Roy Kidd

Roy Kidd had his share of wins against Jack Harbaugh. The retired Eastern Kentucky University football coach notched seven victories in 14 tries against Harbaugh, the former longtime coach of the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers. On the field and the recruiting trial, Kidd and Harbaugh were competitors. Off the field they were friends. “I respected him as a coach,” Kidd said Friday. “His teams were ready to play, fundamentally sound, and he was a good football coach, no doubt about that.

It's been five years since Roy Kidd retired from the coaching ranks. Just because he is no longer active in the coaching circles doesn't mean the legendary football coach at Eastern Kentucky University is taking it easy. In fact, he is as busy as ever playing golf, traveling and catching up on things he missed out on while he coached at Eastern from 1964-2002. He remains close to the university where he won 315 games and had a stadium named in his honor long before he coached his last football game.

On my way home from work today, news circulated that former San Francisco 49ers coach Bill Walsh had passed away at the age of 75. Walsh was one of the good guys. An innovator (West Coast offense), yet Walsh was a coach who was well-respected by those around him. Put Walsh in the same category as Ckuck Noll, the late Tom Landry and former Miami Dolphins head man Don Shula. The kind of coaches that have staying power are hard to come by these days. Memories of watching Walsh stroll the sidelines calling plays for Joe Montana will always be remembered.

Dean Hood considers Richmond close to home. Hood, who has spent the past six years as defensive coordinator and defensive backs coach at Wake Forest, is aware of the current football opening at Eastern Kentucky and is interested in coming back to coach the Colonels. "I love Eastern Kentucky," Hood said Monday. "I am interested in Eastern Kentucky. It's obviously a job that would interest me. " Hood fits the criteria the school is looking for in a coach to replace Danny Hope, who resigned Friday top become associate head coach at Purdue.

Jim Tanara is itching to get back into coaching. Tanara, longtime assistant coach and defensive coordinator at Eastern Kentucky University, confirmed on Thursday night that he's interested in coming out of retirement to coach the Colonels. "It's a great job," said Tanara, who stepped down three years ago. "As soon as it became available, I may have been the first applicant. " Tanara spent 26 years at Eastern and coached under legendary coach Roy Kidd. Before joining Kidd's staff, Tanara coached under the late Paul "Bear" Bryant at the University of Alabama for 11 seasons.

Throughout his coaching career, Eastern Kentucky football coach Dean Hood has earned a reputation as one of the best defensive minds in college football. As defensive coordinator at Wake Forest, Hood's defensive units forced 186 turnovers during the past seven years, an average of two per game. Last season, the Demon Deacons led the Atlantic Coast Conference, forcing 35 turnovers. While at Wake Forest and Ohio University, Hood worked under Jim Grobe, who has guided the Demon Deacons to back-to-back bowl appearances.

RICHMOND - Danny Hope followed a legend at Eastern Kentucky. According to several published reports, he may be following another longtime coach in the near future. Hope, who just completed his fifth season as successor to legendary Eastern coach Roy Kidd, reportedly will take over for Purdue coach Joe Tiller in two years. Eastern athletics director Mark Sandy told the Lexington Herald-Leader this morning that he couldn't confirm or deny the rumors. "If there's something that's happening with Purdue, then it has to come from them," he told the paper.

The first week of January is supposed to be a slow month, while gearing up for another year. Around these parts, it just didn't happen. First, former University of Kentucky football coach Guy Morriss interviews for the head coaching vavancy at Boyle County High School, sending the state into a frenzy mode. Of course my good friend and collegue Larry Vaught in Danville was all over this story, which became a hot topic in Central Kentucky. If that wasn't enough, Eastern Kentucky University finds itself searching for a coach after Danny Hope left for Purdue, where he will serve next season as an associate head coach, before taking over the reigns in 2009.

Maybe the state's media members don't understand that the best high school football player in Kentucky lives in Title Town, but the state's high school coaches do. Media members ignored the state championships, team wins and overwhelming individual career statistics of Boyle County's Brandon Smith and Danville's Kelvin Turner to name Hopkinsville's Curtis Pulley Mr. Football. Pulley might well be the state's best college prospect. But he has never won a state title, doesn't have the career numbers of Smith or Turner, and was obviously outplayed by Smith in a head-to-head matchup last week.

RICHMOND - Roy Kidd was a Rich Brooks supporter long before others jumped on the bandwagon. Kidd, the retired coach at Eastern Kentucky University, won 315 games and two national titles before hanging up his whistle five years ago. He made a call to University of Kentucky athletics director Mitch Barnhart when Brooks' future as coach at the school was on shaky ground early last season. "I told Mitch Barnhart to give the man a chance," Kidd said. "You can't expect a guy to go in anywhere - much less the Southeastern Conference - and turn the program around with so few scholarships (at the time)

Roy Kidd had his share of wins against Jack Harbaugh. The retired Eastern Kentucky University football coach notched seven victories in 14 tries against Harbaugh, the former longtime coach of the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers. On the field and the recruiting trial, Kidd and Harbaugh were competitors. Off the field they were friends. “I respected him as a coach,” Kidd said Friday. “His teams were ready to play, fundamentally sound, and he was a good football coach, no doubt about that.

In this era of instant success and gratification, it's hard to imagine coaches staying longer than a decade at a particular school. Long before winning took precedence over loyalty and commitment, it was common for coaches to stay at one place long enough to raise a family and stay long enough to make a name for themselves within the community. Bobby Bowden not only made a name for himself at Florida State, but impacted thousands of lives in his 44-year coaching career that spanned 34 seasons in Tallahassee.

Former George Rogers Clark and Eastern Kentucky standout Yeremiah Bell touched on several subjects during an exclusive interview recently. Bell opened his sixth training camp with the Miami Dolphins in Davie, Fla. today and is preparing for the upcoming season. The following are leftovers from a three-part series with the Dolphins' up-and-coming star. During the last regular season game last year, you delivered a big hit on Jets quarterback Brett Favre. Tell me a little bit about that play.

RICHMOND ? Eastern Kentucky football coach Dean Hood made sure a piece of the past stayed intact during field renovations at Roy Kidd Stadium. The natural grass has been ripped up and replaced by an artificial turf surface, and is expected to be ready when the Colonels play their home opener on Sept. 19 against Tennessee Tech in a 7:30 p.m. kickoff. During the process, Hood made sure workers sprinkled dirt from the old field underneath the new surface to help preserve the team's past to mix in with the future.

You have to admire Eastern Kentucky football coach Dean Hood. In what has been a roller-coaster endurance for the first-year head coach, Hood has his team primed for a second consecutive appearance in the Football Championship Series playoffs. A win today at Tennessee-Martin will give the school its second straight Ohio Valley Conference title and automatic bid to the playoffs. Eastern (7-3) opened the season with a 1-3 record, losing its Ohio Valley Conference opener to Tennessee State.

Will Muschamp has a target on his back. That's why Texas designated him as head coach in waiting Tuesday afternoon and appointed him as Mack Brown's replacement when he decides to ride into the sunset following a successful stint as coach of the Longhorns. The move shouldn't come as a surprise, considering Tennessee, Clemson and Washington are among the three programs seeking his services. Muschamp will be paid $900,000 beginning in January. Not a bad raise for an up-and-coming head coach.

Throughout his coaching career, Eastern Kentucky football coach Dean Hood has earned a reputation as one of the best defensive minds in college football. As defensive coordinator at Wake Forest, Hood's defensive units forced 186 turnovers during the past seven years, an average of two per game. Last season, the Demon Deacons led the Atlantic Coast Conference, forcing 35 turnovers. While at Wake Forest and Ohio University, Hood worked under Jim Grobe, who has guided the Demon Deacons to back-to-back bowl appearances.

RICHMOND - Former Eastern Kentucky football Roy Kidd remains a popular figure in Richmond. Since his successor Danny Hope stepped down to became associate head coach at Purdue University last week, Kidd's phone hasn't stopped ringing. "So my phone will quit ringing, I hope they will hurry up and pick somebody," Kidd said with a laugh Thursday night. "Everybody has been calling. I bet you I've had 15-20 phone calls. I even had two (Thursday). " Some are simply seeking information and his thoughts on the current search for Hope's replacement.

Jim Tanara is itching to get back into coaching. Tanara, longtime assistant coach and defensive coordinator at Eastern Kentucky University, confirmed on Thursday night that he's interested in coming out of retirement to coach the Colonels. "It's a great job," said Tanara, who stepped down three years ago. "As soon as it became available, I may have been the first applicant. " Tanara spent 26 years at Eastern and coached under legendary coach Roy Kidd. Before joining Kidd's staff, Tanara coached under the late Paul "Bear" Bryant at the University of Alabama for 11 seasons.

Dean Hood considers Richmond close to home. Hood, who has spent the past six years as defensive coordinator and defensive backs coach at Wake Forest, is aware of the current football opening at Eastern Kentucky and is interested in coming back to coach the Colonels. "I love Eastern Kentucky," Hood said Monday. "I am interested in Eastern Kentucky. It's obviously a job that would interest me. " Hood fits the criteria the school is looking for in a coach to replace Danny Hope, who resigned Friday to become associate head coach at Purdue.