Dick Sheridan, a former head coach at NC State who was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame, passed away at the age of 81. During his limited seven-year tenure with the team, Sheridan was one of NC State’s most effective coaches.
The former Furman coach moved to Raleigh and produced six successful campaigns, a 52-29-3 overall record, and a 31-18-1 record in the ACC. In addition, from 1986 through 1992, he led NC State to three Top-25 finishes and won both the Peach Bowl and the All-American Bowl.
“The opportunity to improve programs was always important to me,” Sheridan said. “And NC State was not in a real good place right then. It’s always fun to build something and make it better.”
Sheridan revitalized the Wolfpack program, whether it was by bringing the team to a Peach Bowl in his first season, winning the Peach Bowl in 1988, having back-to-back 9-win seasons, or defeating UNC-Chapel Hill in six out of seven games. Despite all of those successes, he claimed that his favourite memory was the victory over the No. 18 Tar Heels in Year 1 that ended a seven-game losing streak.
“The rivalry with North Carolina was — and still is — huge,” Sheridan said. “At that time, North Carolina had won nine out of the last 10, so that made it really big to break that streak. We won six out of seven in that rivalry. So that was fun. …
“The way the fans reacted, the players because we weren’t favoured, of course. North Carolina always out-recruited us. They always out-recruited everybody. They were always ranked first in the ACC. We were down at the bottom.”
Sheridan will be remembered more for the cultures he established at both programs than for the victories and defeats he experienced while playing for the Wolfpack or Furman. And since he brought a certain culture to Raleigh, it would be appropriate to reinstate the diamond logo at some time during the 2023 campaign.
Sheridan, an Augusta, Georgia, native, earned his degree in 1964 from the University of South Carolina. In South Carolina’s high school football leagues, he started his coaching career. As the head coach of a high school, Sheridan amassed a record of 37-8-1 and guided Orangeburg-Wilkinson Senior High School to the Class AAAA state championship in 1971. In 1973, he started working at Furman as the quarterbacks and receivers coach. The 81-year-old Sheridan passed away on July 6, 2023, close to Garden City, South Carolina.
Sheridan, an Augusta, Georgia, native, earned his degree in 1964 from the University of South Carolina. In South Carolina’s high school football leagues, he started his coaching career.
As the head coach of a high school, Sheridan amassed a record of 37-8-1 and guided Orangeburg-Wilkinson Senior High School to the Class AAAA state championship in 1971. In 1973, he started working at Furman as the quarterbacks and receivers coach. The 81-year-old Sheridan passed away on July 6, 2023, close to Garden City, South Carolina.
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