Winningest Pac-10 Coach Left His Mark

In 1964, a scrawny 20-year-old from Notre Dame High in Sherman Oaks and Valley College strolled onto the UCLA football field with hopes of playing defensive end for the Bruins.

A year later he was a starter. Twelve years later he was the team’s head coach. And in December 1995, a teary-eyed Terry Donahue resigned from UCLA as the winningest coach in school and Pac-10 Conference history.

During his 20-year reign as head coach of the Bruins, the longest tenure of any UCLA football coach, Donahue undoubtedly left his mark.

He had a career record of 151-74-8. He won five Pac-10 titles, three Rose Bowls and twice was named Pac-10 Coach of the Year. He recruited and coached NFL stars past and present, including Kenny Easley, Jerry Robinson, Troy Aikman, Ken Norton Jr. and Steve Bono, among others.

But what Bruin fans will remember most about Donahue is how he exited the game.

In the final regular season game of the 1995 season, the Bruins defeated rival USC, 24-20. The victory gave Donahue his fifth consecutive victory over the Trojans, a streak unmatched by any other coach in the 65-year rivalry.

The victory was also Donahue’s 98th career Pac-10 victory, breaking a tie for the top spot with Don James of the University of Washington. Donahue, 53, left the Bruins with three years remaining on his contract to pursue a career in television broadcasting. He is currently the lead analyst for CBS college football broadcasts.

He left behind a dream fulfilled, with a new dream bouncing around his head.

At his retirement news conference Dec. 11, 1995, Donahue himself put it best: “It’s been a wild and emotional ride. It’s been more than anyone should ever get in a lifetime. It’s a very difficult and emotional decision for me, but one I felt strongly had to be made. A dream of mine is coming to an end.”