National Football Foundation

Position: Coach
Years: Carroll [MT] (1949-52), Saint John's [MN] (1953-2012)
Place of Birth: Trinidad, CO
Date of Birth: Nov. 1, 1926
Place of Death: Collegeville, MN
Date of Death: Oct. 7, 2018

John Gagliardi is college football's all-time winningest coach.
 
Gagliardi began his college coaching career from 1949 to 1952 at NAIA Carroll College in Helena, Mont., and he then spent the six decades (1953-2012) at Division III Saint John's University in Collegeville, Minn. He retired with a record of 489-138-11, which included four national titles with the Johnnies (1963, 1965, 1976 and 2003). His teams also made the 2000 national title game, advanced to the national semifinals six other times, and earned a total of 24 post-season appearances. His teams won 30 conference championships, including 27 at SJU, during his 64 years as a head coach.
 
Gagliardi became the first active coach ever inducted into the Hall in the summer of 2006 as a member of the Divisional Class. In December during the Division I-A inductions, he was joined by Bobby Bowden (Samford, West Virginia, Florida State) and Joe Paterno (Penn State) as the three active coaches in the Hall. Recognizing the incredible accomplishments of the three men, the NFF Honor Court amended its rules to allow for the induction of active coaches over the age of 75. Previously, the rules required a coach to be retired for consideration. In 2015, Bill Snyder (Kansas State) joined the elite group as the only four active coaches ever inducted.
 
During his tenure, Saint John's produced 113 All-Americans, 22 Academic All-Americans and two NFF National Scholar-Athletes and William V. Campbell Trophy finalists: Chris Palmer (1995) and Matt Hawn (2005).
 
"John Gagliardi was not only an extraordinary coach, he was also an educator of young men and builder of character, " said Saint John's President Michael Hemesath in a statement. "John inspired deep and enduring loyalty and passion among his players across the decades because he taught them lessons through the medium of football that served them well in their personal and professional lives long after graduating from Saint John's University. His is a legacy any educator would be extremely proud of."
              
Born in Trinidad, Colorado, Gagliardi began his coaching career as a teenager when his coach at Colorado Catholic High School in Trinidad was drafted into Word War II. In six years of high school coaching he won four conference titles. He graduated from Colorado College in 1949 and took the head-coaching job at Carroll College. Before he took the job the school was thinking about dropping football because of losing seasons and dropping interest.
              
At Carroll, Gagliardi won three conference titles and also coached basketball and baseball. His 24-6-1 record in four years caught the attention of Saint John's University (MN) as it need a coach to succeeded Johnny "Blood" McNally, a charter member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
 
Upon taking the job, McNally warned, nobody could win at Saint John's. In his first year with the Johnnies,  he won the 1953 conference title and added a league crown in the spring with the track team. In the winter, Gagliardi coached hockey for five seasons compiling the best coaching record in school history. In 1962, Gagliardi, who refused to be called coach, had his first undefeated team. The undefeated streak continued through the next season as he won his first NAIA Championship, a feat he repeated with another undefeated squad in 1965.
 
Two more undefeated title teams followed in 1976 and in 2003. On November 8, 2003 Gagliardi surpassed Eddie Robinson on the all-time win list with his 409th victory. In 1993, the Gagliardi Trophy (named in his honor) was introduced as the Division III version of the Heisman Trophy.

His insights on strategy, success and motivation have been the subject of four books. But his success is attributable to more than strategy and tactics. He is an astute judge of talent and creates and environment of fun and high expectations. His approach is one of concentration and flawless execution that is accomplished through a practice regimen that emphasizes fundamentals and repetition.

Perhaps the most unique aspect of his coaching philosophy are his series of "Winning with No's," a list of more than 50 items that encapsulated his philosophy for team building. In addition to not being referred to as coach, Gagliardi's "No" list included not using a whistle, no blocking sleds, no weight lifting, no captains, no scholarships, no tackling in practice and no practices of more than an hour and a half.
 
Gagliardi received the 2009 American Football Coaches' Association Amos Alonzo Stagg Award; the 2007 Liberty Mutual Division III Coach of the Year; and the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics Hall of Fame in 2006. Gagliardi received the National College Football Awards Association's (NCFAA) Contributions to College Football Award in 2013 on ESPN. He was inducted into the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame in 2015 and as the first member of Saint John's University's J-Club Hall of Honor in 2018.

He passed away Oct. 7, 2018. He was 91.