Marshall, Mo.
(May 27,
2009)-Archie Manning, chairman of the National Football Foundation and College
Hall of Fame, has announced Volney C. Ashford, legendary Missouri Valley College
football coach and MVC alumnus, will be inducted posthumously into the College
Football Hall of Fame.
From 1941-47, MVC
reeled off a 41-game winning streak with Ashford at the helm. Ashford coached
the Vikings for 34 years from 1937 to 1971. According to the research of the
NCAA and the NAIA records, the MVC win streak ranks 5th all-time for
all divisions of college football.
Ashford graduated from MVC in 1931
and became head coach of the Vikings in 1937. Following the 41-game winning
streak, Ashford led the Vikings to unanimous national acclaim as the number one
small college team in the country in 1949.
He was named
Little All-American Coach of the Year in 1950 and twice received the NAIA
Award of Merit. In 1959, he was named NAIA Coach of the Year, and
his overall record of 197-55-12 ranks him in the top 10 of all-time college
coaches.
In addition to
being an MVC alumnus, Ashford is a 1927 graduate of Marshall High School and a
1949 graduate of University of Missouri-Kansas City. In 1971, Ashford retired
and took over as vice-president of development for MVC.
"Coach Ashford's
legacy has made a tremendous impact on the entire Missouri Valley College
family," said Bonnie Humphrey, MVC President. "I am so pleased that this
outstanding Viking is being recognized and thankful to the National Football
Foundation for honoring such an accomplished man."
Ashford is a
member of the MVC Athletic Hall of Fame, the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame, the
Helms Foundation Coaches Hall of Fame, and the Helms Foundation National
Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics Hall of Fame. He helped found
the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and received the Rockne Award for his
contribution to athletics. Ashford passed away in 1973.
Ashford and the
other members of the 2009 Divisional College Football Hall of Fame Class, which
considers players and coaches from the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision
(formerly I-AA), Divisions II, III, and the NAIA for induction, will be inducted
during the Enshrinement Festival July 17-18 in South Bend,
Ind.
Other 2009
inductees include players: Roger Brown, Maryland-Eastern Shore, DT, 1956-59;
Fred Dean, Louisiana Tech, DT, 1971-74, Sam Mills (deceased), Montclair State
(N.J.), LB, 1977-80; and Rod Smith, Missouri Southern State, WR, 1988, 1990-93;
and coaches Ashford and Jim Donnan (104-40-0/.722, Marshall, 1990-95; Georgia,
1996-2000).
"We are very proud
to announce the 2009 Divisional Class of Hall of Famers," said Manning, a 1989
Hall of Fame inductee from Ole Miss. "Each of these men have defined excellence
in our sport, and we are happy to reward their respective careers by inducting
them in college football's ultimate shrine."
