On the same day the CU football program honored two of its most recent greats, the school announced it would soon honor one from its distant past, too.
The university announced Saturday that it will erect a bronze statue of the late Bill McCartney, who led the Buffaloes to their only football national title, outside Folsom Field this fall.
The statue will be placed on the east side of the stadium and be unveiled before a to-be-announced game. It will stand 8.5 feet tall atop a granite base. Brian Hanlon of Hanlon Sculpture Studios will design the statue. Hanlon also designed a statue of Ralphie and her handlers that now stands outside the UC Health Champions Center. It will be the second statue in the 101-year history of Folsom Field, with the first a bust of Fred Folsom on the stadium’s south side.
A scholarship endowment in Coach Mac’s name will also be established and awarded to generations of future students.
“Coach Mac’s imprint on this university transcends his incredible accomplishments on the football field,” CU athletic director Rick George said in a statement. “This statue and the scholarship created in his honor will stand as a permanent monument to those accomplishments and the many lives he touched during and after his time as head football coach. It also further demonstrates our ongoing commitment to honoring CU football’s illustrious past.”
On Saturday, current head coach Deion Sanders vowed to honor McCartney by wearing his iconic hat and jacket during the Buffs’ season opener against Georgia Tech in August. Two of Sanders’ former players, Heisman Trophy winner Travis Hunter and quarterback and son Shedeur Sanders, had their numbers retired before Saturday’s spring game at Folsom Field.
McCartney led the Buffs to three Big 8 conference titles and a school-record 93 wins during his 13 years in Boulder, including the national-title-winning season in 1990 that culminated with an Orange Bowl win over Notre Dame. He died on Jan. 10 after a long battle with dementia at age 84.
Donations for the statue and scholarship endowment can be made to the CU Buff Club. To donate or for more information, visit CUBuffs.com/CoachMac.
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