College Coaching Career
During his college coaching career, White was twice named National Coach of the Year, first in 1975 where he coached a team led by Joe Roth, Chuck Muncie and Wesley Walker to the Pac-8 co-championship.
White moved to the University of Illinois in 1980. He succeeded Gary Moeller, who in three seasons at Illinois finished no higher than eighth in the Big Ten Conference. White quickly turned around the Illinois football program, posting a winning season in only his second year. In 1982, Illinois went to the Liberty Bowl, the school's first bowl appearance since the 1964 Rose Bowl. The 1982 Liberty Bowl was also notable as the final game coached by University of Alabama head coach Bear Bryant. In 1983, Illinois won its first Big Ten title in 20 years--and the school's last outright conference title in the pre-championship game era--with an overall record of 10–1, including a 9–0 conference record, and played in the 1984 Rose Bowl. It also marked the first time since 1967 that neither Michigan nor Ohio State won at least a share of the conference title. White was honored for his team's achievements by being named UPI Coach of the Year. The 1983 Illinois team is the only team in Big Ten history to beat each of the other conference teams in a single season, an achievement made possible by the fact that rarely in conference history have teams played all the other teams in a season. White also led the Fighting Illini to the 1985 Peach Bowl, which they lost to Army 31–29. In eight seasons at Illinois, White's teams had a combined record of 47–41–3, for a winning percentage of .533. Along the way, White coached future NFL quarterbacks Dave Wilson, Tony Eason, and Jack Trudeau, and record-setting wide receiver David Williams.
Read more about this topic: Mike White (American Football)
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