GEORGE O’LEARY
HEAD COACH • SEVENTH YEAR AT UCF • NEW HAMPSHIRE, 1969 In his six years at UCF, George O’Leary has helped the Knights achieve dozens of historic firsts including games in front of sellout crowds on campus, individual accolades for student-athletes, a conference championship and trips to prestigious bowl games. For O’Leary, it has been business as usual.
Defensive lineman Keith Shologan became the first player in school history to receive ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America First Team honors in 2007. Rocky Ross picked up Academic AllAmerica honors in 2009. Ross, Shologan and deSince taking over the program in 2004, O’Leary has made sure that UCF has fensive back Sha’reff Rashad have been selected reached new heights. On and off of the field, the veteran head coach has molded to the C-USA Football All-Academic Team under his program into a consistent winner. O’Leary. His hard work contributed to the construction of Bright House Networks Stadium. In 2008, Rashad was named to the league all-academic squad for the second-conInterest in the program has never been higher. His student-athletes are enjoying secutive year. In 2007, he was named the UCF Male Scholar Athlete of the Year, record success in the classroom, and the Knights are winning on the football field. becoming the second-straight football player to earn the honor. Rashad was twice named to the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame’s Hampshire In 2007, O’Leary guided the Knights to arguably the finest campaign in program Honors Society. Offensive lineman Dan Veenstra was the award winner in 2006. history. UCF won 10 contests, claimed the Conference USA Championship and participated in the AutoZone Liberty Bowl in front of a nationally-televised audience Guiding the Knights Toward Prominence on ESPN. The 2006 season featured several memorable moments for the Knights as they finished their final campaign at the Florida Citrus Bowl. Wide receiver Mike SimsThere was little suspense as to who would garner C-USA Coach of the Year honors. Walker had a record-breaking season. The Orlando native broke the single-season O’Leary was recognized with the award for the second time in three campaigns. school record for receptions with 90 and hauled in 1,178 receiving yards just a year For the Knights and their fans, 2007 was truly a year to remember. For the college removed from an ACL injury. He earned All-C-USA First Team honors and was one football world, the season was more evidence that O’Leary has built the Knights of five Knights recognized for their strong play by the league office. into a powerful program. In 2005, O’Leary’s second season at UCF, he engineered one of the top turnAnd just two years later, O’Leary and the Knights put together an impressive run arounds in the history of college football. Just one year removed from an 0-11 at the end of the 2009 season to earn a bid to the St. Petersburg Bowl. UCF went campaign, he guided the Knights to a historic season, complete with the program’s 5-1 down the stretch and won six-straight C-USA contests to close out the regular first bowl appearance. season. That included the Knights’ first win in school history over a nationallyranked Football Bowl Subdivision program when they upset No. 13/12 Houston, O’Leary led UCF to the fourth-best turnaround in NCAA history with a record of 37-32, on Homecoming. 8-5. The Knights went 7-1 in C-USA and claimed the league’s East Division title. The squad became just the sixth team in NCAA history to go to a bowl game a year Helping UCF Arrive on the National Scene after going winless as the Knights participated in the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl. O’Leary has already left his stamp on the Knights’ program. When he arrived in Orlando in 2004, UCF was not a factor on the regional or national scenes. O’Leary rebuilt the program from the ground up. He lobbied for new facilities, toured the state to gain publicity, restocked UCF with top recruits and made sure his student-athletes excelled in their studies. The growth of the program was no more evident than in 2007. UCF posted a school-record seven-game winning streak during the season. The conference championship was the first in program history. The 10 wins during the year established a program record at the FBS level. Nationally, only 19 teams won at least 10 contests during the year. O’Leary helped tailback Kevin Smith post one of the most dominant single-season rushing performances. The junior rushed for 2,567 yards, good for second all-time in NCAA history, and 29 touchdowns. He became the only rusher in the state of Florida and the 12th all-time in the NCAA FBS to eclipse the 2,000-yard mark in a season. The 2008 season saw Joe Burnett also earn first-team All-America honors as he shattered the school and C-USA punt return records and graduated ranked 19th in NCAA history in career punt return yards. In 2009, Josh Robinson was a first-team freshman All-American and Bruce Miller is on many preseason All-American teams heading into 2010. Miller is also the 2010 preseason C-USA Defensive Player of the Year, an award he also won following the 2009 campaign. Excellence off the Field O’Leary has reshaped the UCF program in every facet, including improved results in the classroom. The Knights turned in a successful effort in the classroom during the 2008 campaign, registering the highest in-season grade-point average in program history at 2.782. A total of 55 student-athletes recorded a GPA of least 3.0 during the fall 2008 semester.
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The college football world took notice of the turnaround. O’Leary was named the C-USA Coach of the Year. Both CBSsports.com and SportsIllustrated.com named him the national coach of the year. Facing an 11-game schedule with just four home games, his squad became just the fourth team in NCAA history to earn a bowl berth while playing seven road contests. Even more remarkable, the turnaround was made with a team of mostly underclassmen. Pipeline to the Pros O’Leary has experience coaching on the professional level and, as a result, has helped several Knights move on to the NFL. Seven Knights who played under O’Leary have been selected in the NFL Draft. Torell Troup went in the second round, 41st overall, to Buffalo this past April. Burnett was a fifth-round pick of Pittsburgh in 2009. Smith was one of three UCF players taken in the 2008 draft. He was the first pick of the third round by Detroit. Offensive lineman Josh Sitton went to Green Bay in the fourth round and Kansas City selected tight end Mike Merritt with its seventh-round pick. After his incredible senior season in 2006, Sims-Walker was selected by Jacksonville in the third round. In the previous year’s draft, wide receiver Brandon Marshall was Denver’s fourth-round selection. Other former Knights who played under O’Leary, including defensive lineman Paul Carrington, tailback Alex Haynes, tight end Darcy Johnson and kicker Matt Prater, have also spent time in the NFL. Success at Georgia Tech O’Leary was the head coach at Georgia Tech from 1994-01 after taking over as interim head coach for the final three games of the 1994 season. During his sevenyear stint at Georgia Tech, O’Leary guided the Yellow Jackets to a 52-33 record. The squad made five bowl appearances under O’Leary. From 1995-01, Georgia Tech recorded five winning seasons in six years. His 1998 squad won the Atlantic Coast Conference Championship and played in the Gator Bowl on New Year’s Day. O’Leary’s Georgia Tech teams won at least seven games on four occasions , including a 10-win campaign in 1998 and nine victories in 2000. The 2000 Bobby Dodd National Coach of the Year, O’Leary was named the ACC Coach of the Year in 1998 and 2000.
One trademark of O’Leary’s tenure as a head coach has been the quality of his coaching staffs. While at Georgia Tech, he had three assistants who later garnered head coaching jobs. Ralph Friedgen (Maryland), Randy Edsall (Connecticut) and Ted Roof (Duke) all served under O’Leary. Both Friedgen and Edsall have led their schools to BCS conference titles. NFL Experience Prior to coming to UCF, O’Leary served on Minnesota’s NFL coaching staff for two seasons. In 2003, he was the Vikings’ defensive coordinator. In his first season with the team in 2002, he guided the defensive line into becoming the strength of the Minnesota defense. He also served as the squad’s assistant head coach. O’Leary also served as the defensive line coach for San Diego from 1992-93. In 1992, the defense had 51 sacks as the Chargers won the AFC West with an 11-5 record. Moving Up the Ranks O’Leary had the first of two stints at Georgia Tech from 1987-91. He served as the defensive coordinator/defensive line coach. The team finished 11-0-1 in 1990 and won the national championship, defeating Nebraska in the Florida Citrus Bowl. A Long Island native, O’Leary received his first coaching job at the collegiate level at Syracuse (1980-86). He coached the defensive line and was also the assistant head coach his final two seasons. He started his coaching career at the high school level. From 1968-76, he coached at Central Islip (N.Y.) High School. O’Leary was the head coach at the school from 1975-76, before taking over as the head coach at Liverpool High School. He posted a 37-8-1 record in five seasons as a prep head coach, including a perfect 10-0 campaign in 1979. O’Leary was born in Central Islip, N.Y., and attended Central Islip High School. He attended the University of New Hampshire and earned his degree in physical education. O’Leary and his wife, Sharon, have two daughters, Chris and Trish, and two sons, Tim and Marty. The O’Leary’s welcomed their first grandchild in 2006 as Tim and his wife Jennifer gave birth to a son named Tate. The couple had a second son, Cullen, in 2008.
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Fast Facts • Date of Birth: Aug. 17, 1946 • Hometown: Central Islip, N.Y. • Education: New Hampshire, 1969 (B.S. in Physical Education)
Year-by-Year Head Coaching Record Year School Record Notes 1994 Georgia Tech 0-3 Interim head coach 1995 Georgia Tech 6-5 1996 Georgia Tech 5-6 Coaching Experience 1997 Georgia Tech 7-5 Carquest Bowl • UCF, 2004-Present 1998 Georgia Tech 10-2 Gator Bowl, ACC Co-Champs Head Coach 1999 Georgia Tech 8-4 Gator Bowl • Minnesota Vikings, 2002-03 2000 Georgia Tech 9-3 Peach Bowl Defensive Coordinator (2003), Assistant Head Coach/Defensive Line (2002) 2001* Georgia Tech 7-5 Seattle Bowl • Georgia Tech, 1994-01 2004 UCF 0-11 Head Coach (1995-01), Interim Head Coach (1994), Defensive Coordinator/De2005 UCF 8-5 Sheraton Hawaii Bowl fensive Line (1994) 2006 UCF 4-8 • San Diego Chargers, 1992-93 2007 UCF 10-4 AutoZone Liberty Bowl, C-USA Champs Defensive Line 2008 UCF 4-8 • Georgia Tech, 1987-91 2008 UCF 8-5 St. Petersburg Bowl Defensive Coordinator/Defensive Line at UCF 34-41 (six seasons) • Syracuse, 1980-86 Overall 86-74 (13 seasons) Assistant Head Coach/Defensive Line (1985-86), Defensive Line (1980-84) • Liverpool (N.Y.) High School, 1977-79 Bowl History Head Coach Season Bowl Result • Central Islip (N.Y.) High School, 1968-76 1985 Cherry Maryland 35, Syracuse 18 Head Coach (1975-76), Assistant Head Coach (1968-74) 1991 Citrus Georgia Tech 45, Nebraksa 21 1991 Aloha Georgia Tech 18, Stanford 17 Honors • 2007 Conference USA Coach of the Year 1997 Carquest Georgia Tech 35, West Virginia • 2007 Atlanta Touchdown Club Conference USA Coach of the Year 1998 Gator Georgia Tech 35, Notre Dame 28 • 2005 Conference USA Coach of the Year 1999 Gator Miami 28, Georgia Tech 13 • 2005 CBSSports.com National Coach of the Year 2000 Peach LSU 28, Georgia Tech 14 • 2005 SportsIllustrated.com National Coach of the Year 2001* Seattle Georgia Tech 24, Stanford 14 • 2005 Eddie Robinson National Coach of the Year finalist 2005 Sheraton Hawaii Nevada 49, UCF 48 (OT) • 2005 Paul “Bear” Bryant National Coach of the Year finalist 2007 AutoZone Liberty Mississippi State 10, UCF 3 • 2000 Bobby Dodd National Coach of the Year 2009 St. Petersburg Rutgers 45, UCF 21 • 2000 Atlantic Coast Conference Coach of the Year • 1998 Atlantic Coast Conference Coach of the Year (years as head coach in bold) • 1998 AFCA Region I Coach of the Year * coached Georgia Tech for its first 12 games of the 2001 season, but did not coach • 1998 Eddie Robinson National Coach of the Year finalist the Yellow Jackets in the Seattle Bowl
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UCF SUCCESS UNDER GEORGE O’LEARY
Conference Championship Appearances The Knights have played in a pair of Conference USA Championship Games since joining the 12-team league in 2005. UCF hosted the title contest in 2007, defeating Tulsa at Bright House Networks Stadium. The Knights also hosted Tulsa in 2005 at the Florida Citrus Bowl.
Bowl Trips UCF has made trips to three bowl games under O’Leary. After winning the C-USA title in 2007, the Knights faced Mississippi State in the AutoZone Liberty Bowl. The program also participated in the 2005 Sheraton Hawaii Bowl and the 2009 St. Petersburg Bowl.
National Award Winners Under O’Leary, UCF players have received several national accolades. Joe Burnett was an All-America pick in 2008 as a kick returner. The previous season, tailback Kevin Smith earned consensus All-America honors after his recordbreaking 2007 campaign.
NFL Draft Picks Seven Knights have been selected in the National Football League Draft since the 2005 campaign, including three in 2008. The list of UCF players who have been picked includes Joe Burnett, Brandon Marshall, Mike Sims-Walker, Josh Sitton, Kevin Smith and Torell Troup.
Academic Excellence The Knights have also excelled off the field during O’Leary’s tenure, setting team grade-point average records on several occasions. UCF has had two Academic All-Americans under O’Leary. After the 2008 season, safety Sha’reff Rashad (above) was awarded a Conference USA Postgraduate Scholarship.
National Spotlight UCF has appeared on national television 31 times since O’Leary took over the program before the start of the 2004 season. In 2008, seven of the team’s games were aired on national television. Five of those games were shown on the ESPN family of networks.
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