MyT Oklahoma
12/2/2010, 08:53 PM
Former OU assistant Gene Hochevar dies
By Staff Reports
Published: 12/2/2010 7:08 PM
Last Modified: 12/2/2010 7:08 PM
Former Oklahoma assistant coach Gene Hochevar died Thursday of what a former player said was a heart attack.
“It’s sad,” said former OU coach Barry Switzer. “We lost someone so young in life.” Hochevar, 68, coached offensive line at OU from 1969-77. Switzer recalled Hochevar as a “good coach, great guy (and a) gifted recruiter. He made it fun going to work. I always enjoyed him.”
Switzer said Hochevar “loved his players, they loved him, they played hard for him, he took a lot of pride in his work, did a hell of a job and we won a lot of football games together.”
Hochevar remained actively connected to his former players and staff members, regularly emailing them motivational messages “like he was still coaching us,” said former Sooner quarterback Dean Blevins.
“Coach Hochevar was one of those guys who never seemed to age,” said Blevins, now sports director at KWTV-9 in Oklahoma City. “He was a heck of a coach, but a fantastic man who was so devoted to his family. His outgoing personality made him the epitome of a players’ coach. Coach Switzer called me and was devastated. He and Gene had remained good friends throughout all the years.”
Hochevar grew up in Pueblo, Colo., attended Colorado State Teachers College, and later returned to the state as offensive coordinator at the University of Colorado under Chuck Fairbanks, who hired him at OU in ’69.
Switzer, who is attending College Football Hall of Fame ceremonies in New York, said “Gene and I were close friends” who stayed in touch with regular emails and phone calls. “Just very sad.”
By John E. Hoover, World Sports Writer
http://www.tulsaworld.com/sportsextra/OU/article.aspx?subjectid=92&articleid=20101202_92_0_Former856988
P.S. Thanks for the great memories Coach.
By Staff Reports
Published: 12/2/2010 7:08 PM
Last Modified: 12/2/2010 7:08 PM
Former Oklahoma assistant coach Gene Hochevar died Thursday of what a former player said was a heart attack.
“It’s sad,” said former OU coach Barry Switzer. “We lost someone so young in life.” Hochevar, 68, coached offensive line at OU from 1969-77. Switzer recalled Hochevar as a “good coach, great guy (and a) gifted recruiter. He made it fun going to work. I always enjoyed him.”
Switzer said Hochevar “loved his players, they loved him, they played hard for him, he took a lot of pride in his work, did a hell of a job and we won a lot of football games together.”
Hochevar remained actively connected to his former players and staff members, regularly emailing them motivational messages “like he was still coaching us,” said former Sooner quarterback Dean Blevins.
“Coach Hochevar was one of those guys who never seemed to age,” said Blevins, now sports director at KWTV-9 in Oklahoma City. “He was a heck of a coach, but a fantastic man who was so devoted to his family. His outgoing personality made him the epitome of a players’ coach. Coach Switzer called me and was devastated. He and Gene had remained good friends throughout all the years.”
Hochevar grew up in Pueblo, Colo., attended Colorado State Teachers College, and later returned to the state as offensive coordinator at the University of Colorado under Chuck Fairbanks, who hired him at OU in ’69.
Switzer, who is attending College Football Hall of Fame ceremonies in New York, said “Gene and I were close friends” who stayed in touch with regular emails and phone calls. “Just very sad.”
By John E. Hoover, World Sports Writer
http://www.tulsaworld.com/sportsextra/OU/article.aspx?subjectid=92&articleid=20101202_92_0_Former856988
P.S. Thanks for the great memories Coach.