Welcoming Bruce Snyder Back to Sun Devil Stadium
In 1996, he stared down two-time national champion Nebraska and an NFL roster dressed in Ohio State uniforms. But now Arizona State hall of famer Bruce Snyder is in a personal battle that’s comparable to facing “Texas, Alabama and USC all in one day.”
(Photo courtesy East Valley Tribune.)
After seeing how John Cooper was greeted by Sun Devil fans in his return to Tempe earlier this season, it was a pleasure to see former Arizona State football coach Bruce Snyder well received.
The 66-year-old coach, who is battling an aggressive form of skin cancer that claims the life of 90 percent of those stricken within five years, seemed downright giddy to be welcomed back to Sun Devil Stadium so warmly on Saturday.
He was, after all, fired eight years ago after back-to-back 6-6 seasons and only four years removed from the 1997 Rose Bowl. It was quite controversial, and former athletic director Gene Smith whiffed when he named Dirk Koetter his successor.
As we pointed out when we introduced this year’s class of ASU Hall of Famers last week, Snyder is arguably the second most important football coach in ASU history.
He lasted longer than anyone other than Frank Kush, posted a 58-45 record over eight years, and led ASU to one of its two Rose Bowl berths following the ’96 season. Every memory you have of Adam Archuleta, Jake Plummer, Terrell Suggs and Pat Tillman traces back to Snyder convincing them to play for ASU.
Obviously, Snyder’s return to ASU drew coverage from our local news media. The Arizona Republic offered an intimate look at Snyder’s life after breaking bread with him, and the East Valley Tribune collected the thoughts from a number of former players and assistants.
Snyder described his current battle against cancer as facing “Texas, Alabama and USC all in one day.” Obviously, we’re pulling for the upset.
Enjoy this article? Buy us a beer for just $4. (Credit Card / Paypal)More Sun Devil News, Less HassleDon’t fool around with bookmarks or the refresh button. We’ve made it easier to subscribe, so you can have Sun Devil news delivered FREE straight to your inbox.
Good to hear coach Snyder was well received. He certainly had his share of frustrating losses – but he also brought a lot of fun back to SDS.
I always appreciated the good job he did on the Talk To The Coach radio show on Thursday nights. He took time to explain things in such a way that I understood what happened the previous week, and what I could look forward to in the next game. Also, you could tell that he cared about those young men on his team.
Good luck coach. We’re all pulling for you!