Fisher DeBerry announces retirement as head coach at Air Force

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U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. (AFPN) --  Air Force head football coach Fisher DeBerry announced his retirement Friday, ending over a quarter-century at the Air Force Academy.

DeBerry just completed his 23rd season as the head football coach and 27th overall at Air Force. DeBerry has guided the Falcons to 17 winning seasons since taking over in 1984. He's guided the Academy to three conference championships. Air Force won the Western Athletic Conference title in 1985 and again in 1995. In 1998, DeBerry guided the team to its first out-right title and a championship game win over Brigham Young. His 1998 team matched the school record with a 12-1 season while earning him his third coach of the year award.

The Cheraw, S.C., native has done it all at Air Force. He is the winningest coach in school history with a 169-107-1 mark. He stands second in Mountain West Conference history in career wins with 100, trailing only close friend and former BYU coach LaVell Edwards. He has also beaten Notre Dame three times, including a 20-17 overtime thriller against the eighth-ranked Irish in South Bend in 1996.

DeBerry has dominated service academy football. In 1999, DeBerry became the winningest coach in service academy football history when AFA knocked off Washington in Seattle. He is an amazing 35-11 against Army and Navy in his career and has led the Academy to 14 of its 16 Commander-in-Chief's trophy titles.

DeBerry is a 1960 graduate of Wofford College in Spartanburg, S.C., where he lettered in football and baseball. After six years of coaching and teaching in the South Carolina high school ranks, DeBerry returned to Wofford, where he stayed two years as an assistant when the school won 21 consecutive games and was ranked No. 1 nationally. It was during a nine-year stop at Appalachian State in Boone, N.C., where his work with the option offense began to blossom. Appalachian State ranked in the top 10 nationally three times (1975, '78, '79) in rushing, total offense or scoring offense under DeBerry.

Former Air Force head coach Ken Hatfield hired DeBerry in 1980 as the quarterbacks coach at Air Force. DeBerry was promoted to offensive coordinator in 1981. When Hatfield left Air Force after the 1983 season, DeBerry became the school's fifth head coach.

DeBerry and his wife, LuAnn, are active in community affairs. The coach gives motivational speeches and has worked tirelesly with several local and national charities. The couple started the Fisher DeBerry Foundation recently, which is an organization to benefit single-parent families in Colorado Springs. DeBerry is also active with the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and in 2001 authored a book "For God and Country" with the proceeds going to the FCA.

The coach has received several regional and national awards for his work off the field. He was honored with the State Farm Coach of Distinction Award for his efforts on and off the field in 2001. This past summer, DeBerry was inducted into the Colorado Springs Sports Hall of Fame. He is also a member of the South Carolina Sports Hall of Fame.

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