Pittsburg State head football coach Tim Beck received the 2011 Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year award for Division II on Monday and the award recognizes coaches for both on-field and off-field excellence transcending wins and losses.
?I am very humbled and very excited to give some money to some very deserving charities,? Beck said. ?I?m extremely thankful. The Liberty Mutual people have been tremendous in how they?ve set this up. It?s been a wonderful experience.?
Beck has already given Pitt State a lifetime of dedicated service ? two years as player (1985-1986), 23 years on the coaching staff (highlighted by 16 years as offensive coordinator) and two years as head coach.
?Today we celebrate Coach Beck for the latest honor he has brought to Pittsburg State University, our alumni and fans as well as the Pittsburg community,? Jim Johnson, PSU athletic director, said in a media release. ?Being named the 2011 Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year Award winner is a testament to his significant impact and positive influence on our students and our community.?
During his second year as head coach of his alma mater, Beck saw Pitt State return to national prominence ? culminating with a 35-21 win over Wayne State in the National Championship Game (Dec. 17) for a 13-1 final record and the school?s first national title since 1991. Pitt State developed into a team in the truest sense of the word.
?I?m so thankful for our football team because it?s an individual award that?s won by the hard work of all our players and coaches,? Beck said.
The 110-student football team recorded a cumulative 3.0 GPA during the recently completed fall semester and 17 Gorilla football players have earned Academic All-American honors since 2000, more than any other Division II football program over that period.
Notable community involvement projects for Beck include ?Ladies Night at the Pitt? (fundraiser for the Via Christi Cancer Center and Angels Among Us), the PSU Big Event (providing free yard and lawn service and trash pick-up for local elderly and disadvantaged families), relief efforts after the Joplin tornado and fundraising for anemia research on behalf of his nephew, Bradley Richard.
Beck went up against Bill Maskill of Midwestern State (Texas), Peter Rossomando of New Haven (Conn.), Scott Underwood of St. Cloud State (Minn.) and John Wristen of Colorado State-Pueblo for the DII prize.
The Pitt State head coach dominated the fan-based voting from wire-to-wire (Dec. 6-22) at CoachoftheYear.com, reflective of the passionate support Pitt State football receives from its fans.
Beck showed appreciation for the fans who cheered on Pitt State all season ? including three consecutive home playoff games ? during a National Championship send-off at the PSU Recreation Center.
?I?d like to thank all of you for coming out,? Beck said. ?We talked about this last weekend. We?ve got the best fans in America and we want to tell you that last week at the game (against Delta State), all of you that were there, it was awesome. Those first three plays that we had on defense and then John Brown returning that punt for touchdown, that?s as electric as I?ve heard Carnie Smith Stadium.?
Fan votes made up only 20 percent of the coaches? final scores. Voting by national media (25 percent) and College Football Hall of Fame players and coaches (55 percent) accounted for the rest ? national media included Tim Brando (CBS Sports) and Kirk Herbstreit (ESPN) and the Hall of Fame voting block included Archie Manning, two-time Heisman Trophy winner Archie Griffin, Herschel Walker and former head coach Lou Holtz.
Beck will now join former Pitt State head coach Chuck Broyles (2008 winner) in the permanent Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year display area in the College Football Hall of Fame in South Bend, Ind.
?Someday we?ll have to make a trip,? Beck said.
Liberty Mutual will make a $50,000 charitable donation on behalf of Beck ? his designated charities are Angels Among Us, the Bradley Richard Research Fund of the Aplastic Anemia & MDS International Fund, the Mirza Shrine Center Hospital Dads Fund in Pittsburg and the Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church Memorial Fund in Pittsburg. Liberty Mutual will also donate $20,000 in scholarships to the Pittsburg State Alumni Association in Beck?s honor.
Other 2011 award winners are Les Miles of LSU (FBS), Rob Ash of Montana State University (FCS) and Glenn Caruso of University of St. Thomas (Division III). Miles received his award on the day of the National Championship Game showdown between LSU and Alabama.
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