Vermeil to Take Center Stage for National Football Foundation

The National Football Foundation (NFF) announced Monday that distinguished NFL and former UCLA coach Dick Vermeil will emcee the 2012 NFF Chapter Awards Luncheon, presented by Under Armour, at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York City on Dec. 4 from 8:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. PST. The event will mark the second time that Vermeil, who has coached at Hillsdale High and College of San Mateo, has taken the NFF stage at the lunch, having previously emceed the affair in 2009.

“We are extremely excited that Coach Vermeil has agreed to lend his talents again to emcee this high-profile NFF event, which highlights the best and brightest from our chapter network,” said NFF President & CEO Steve Hatchell. “Coach Vermeil has built a reputation as one of the most-respected coaches to ever walk the sidelines, and his presence significantly enhances our efforts to engage leaders in grassroots activities that strengthen our sport for future generations. We are particularly grateful to Under Armour for their support and making the event happen.”

The event will include the presentation of the NFF National High School Scholar-Athlete Awards. Selected from the 450,000 high school football players covered by the NFF Chapter Network, the five high scholar-athletes were chosen as the best in the nation for their combined athletic, academic and leadership skills. The Chapter Leadership Awards will also be presented at the event, recognizing five individuals, one from each region, for their efforts in fulfilling the NFF’s mission at the local level.

Stanford's Sam Yules, from Moses Brown School in Providence, R.I., and the Emo DiNitto/Rhode Island Chapter in the Northeast Region, will be among the NFF chapter leadership award recipients.

Vermeil has the rare distinction of being named "Coach of the Year" on four levels: high school, junior college, NCAA Division I and the NFL. And he posted major wins in both college and the NFL, leading UCLA to a Rose Bowl victory after the 1975 season and the Rams to the Super Bowl title after the 1999 season.

A native of Calistoga, Vermeil graduated in 1959 with an M.A. from San Jose State University, where he was the backup quarterback. After serving as assistant coach for San Jose's Del Mar High School football team for one season and for Hillsdale High School in nearby San Mateo, he then went to Foothill College with coach Bill Walker. In 1965, he coached Stanford University's freshman football team.

Vermeil was hired as the NFL's first ever Special Teams coach by George Allen's Los Angeles Rams in 1969. Except for 1970, when he was an assistant coach with UCLA, he would remain with the Rams until 1974 when he was named as head coach by UCLA.

Vermeil compiled a 15-5-3 record in two seasons (1974-1975) as head coach at UCLA, including a 9-2-1 record in 1975 when Vermeil led the Bruins to their first conference championship in 10 years, and a win in the Rose Bowl over an undefeated and top ranked Ohio State.

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