Remembering Skip Prosser and Bill Walsh

Before the era of Bill Belichick, there was one of the truly great NFL coaches of all time—the 49ers' Bill Walsh.

During the era of Dean Smith, Coach K, and Billy Donovan, there was a coach who went overlooked in many college basketball circles—Wake Forest's Skip Prosser.

Within the span of a week, the sports world lost two of its great teachers. Here's a tribute to the legends from Wake and San Fran.

King Deacon: Skip Prosser (1950-2007)

Prosser led the Wake Forest Demon Deacons to multiple NCAA and NIT tournament appearances. He took them as far as the Sweet 16 in 2004, and helped them achieve the first and only No. 1 ranking in school history during the 2004-05 season.

But Prosser was more than just a coach to his players: He was a second father to some, and a teacher to all.

Prosser posted a 291-146 lifetime record, including a 126-68 mark at Wake. His career included nine NCAA Tournament berths, four regular season conference championships, two conference tournament championships, and a 2003 ACC Coach of the Year award.

On Thursday, after taking his midday jog, Skip Prosser died of an apparent heart attack. The impact of his passing was felt in both the college and professional ranks. Prosser is responsible for the molding of such future NBA stars as Chris Paul and Josh Howard. His legacy is etched in stone, but his memory is etched even deeper.

He will never be forgotten.

Keeper of the Golden Gate: Bill Walsh (1931-2007)

He was the man who made believers out of the naysayers. He was a legend even after he left the game. He was the reason Madden NFL video games were invented.

He was Bill Walsh, and with his passing the NFL lost one of its seminal figures.

A native of Los Angeles, Walsh made Northern California the birthplace of modern football. Without his genius, the game as we know it would not exist.

Walsh introduced the world to what is now called the West Coast Offense. The system ultimately made the 49ers one of the great dynasties of all time, on par with the Dallas Cowboys and Pittsburgh Steelers.

Walsh tutored several future Hall of Famers during his time in San Francisco, including a brash youngster named Joe Montana, a no-name backup called Steve Young, and a Division I-AA wide receiver—Jerry Rice—who no one else would take a chance on.

Walsh posted a 34-24-1 record while head coach at Stanford, then went 102-63-1 with three Super Bowl championships during his 10 seasons in the NFL. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1993.

Leukemia took a legend from this Earth, but it won't affect the legacy he left behind. All hail the King of the Bay Area, Bill Walsh.

Any Deacons or Niners fans are welcome to share their thoughts here.

 

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