Grambling
picks Spears to continue as head football coach
January 20, 2005
GRAMBLING, La. – The Grambling State University athletics
department named Melvin Spears as
the permanent head football coach during a press conference
at the Robinson Stadium Support Facility on Thursday morning. He
spent the past season as the interim head football coach in
which he replaced Doug Williams who left the university to become the
Personnel Executive with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in February
2004.
During Spears' first season as the head coach, the Tigers
posted a 6-5 overall record along with a 3-4 mark in the Southwestern
Athletic Conference’s Western Division in 2004.
 |
| L-R: GSU President Dr. Horace A. Judson,
Melvin Spears and Director of Athletics Willie Jeffries |
Prior to his appointment, Spears spent the previous six seasons
as the assistant head coach and offensive coordinator with
the Tigers’ coaching staff.
The Clinton, Louisiana native got his start in coaching in
1992 as the assistant head football coach and defensive coordinator
at Casa Grande Union High School in Casa Grande, Arizona. Spears
also served as the head wrestling coach at Casa Grande Junior
High School. While on the staff, he helped a program that had
not won more than two games in a single season since 1958 advance
to the state quarterfinals.
In 1995, Spears accepted a position as the assistant head
football coach and defensive coordinator at Morgan State University
in Baltimore, Maryland. During his tenure at Morgan State,
he helped to develop one of the most dominant defenses among
the NCAA Division I-AA ranks.
Also in 1995, Spears accepted a position as the conditioning
specialist with the Future Athletic System Training in Phoenix.
He was responsible for training professional, college and high
school athletes while specializing in physical conditioning,
plyometrics and bio-mechanics along with the rehabilitation
of injuries.
In 1997, Spears moved back to his home state of Louisiana
to take on the position of assistant head coach and offensive
coordinator at Grambling State. He was instrumental in the
Tigers’ three consecutive National Black College and
SWAC Championship title runs. Spears’ offensive units
have been among the leaders in the SWAC in several offensive
categories during his time as the G-Men’s offensive coordinator.
During the 2002 season, the Tigers’ offense was nationally
ranked in several NCAA Division I-AA statistical categories.
Spears’ offensive unit was ranked first in the nation
in both passing offense and scoring offense while being ranked
second in total offense. His offensive unit also produced two
statistical champions in quarterback Bruce Eugene and wide
receiver Tramon Douglas. Eugene led the nation in both total
offense and points responsible for while Douglas led the nation
in both total receiving yards and receiving yards per game.
In addition, both players set a total of three SWAC single
season records, with Eugene setting league marks in most offensive
plays (680) and passing attempts (543) while Douglas broke
Jerry Rice’s single season receiving yards record with
1,704 yards.
Also during that same year, Spears’ offensive unit broke
14 Grambling State single season records. The records are games
won in a season (11); consecutive games won in a season (10);
points scored (506); passing yards (4,661); passing yards in
a game (532 vs. Texas Southern); passing attempts (574); passes
completed (277); passes attempted in a game (59); most passes
completed in a game (31); average passing yards per game (358.5);
total offense (6,168); most yards of total offense in a game
(745); most offensive plays in a season (970) and most first
downs in a season (315).
As a direct result his efforts during that season, Spears
was named the 2002 Division I-AA Offensive Coordinator of the
Year by American Football Monthly magazine.
During this past season, the G-Men offense picked up a pair
of NCAA Division I-AA statistical titles. The Tigers as a team
won the Division I-AA passing title, while Eugene won the total
offense title for the second straight year.
The team finished the 2003 season averaging 321.8 passing
yards per game en route to a 9-3 season. This marked the second
straight year that the team has won the national passing title.
Eugene led the nation in total offense by averaging 351.7 yards
per game. He completed 285 of 528 passes for 3,805 yards including
34 touchdowns while rushing 94 times for 412 yards along with
six scores.
In addition to Spears’ duties as the offensive coordinator,
he has also implemented a strength and conditioning program
along with creating fund raiser opportunities for the football
program.
Spears was a standout quarterback and wide receiver during
his playing days at Alcorn State where he received his Bachelor
of Science degree in both computer science and applied mathematics
in 1983. He attended the business management school at Motorola
University in 1988 while receiving his teaching certificate
from the state of Arizona in 1992. He also earned his Master’s
degree in Educational Leadership from Northern Arizona University.
Prior to coaching, Spears spent 13 years working in corporate
America for such Fortune 500 companies as Honeywell, Control
Data and Motorola, Incorporated. He was the senior software
quality engineer with the Government Electronics Group division
of Motorola, Incorporated in Scottsdale, Arizona. He was responsible
for monitoring the software developing process and design for
that particular division of Motorola from 1987 to 1992.
Coach Spears firmly believes that education is the real key
to growth and development in today’s society. "I
think that athletics is an extension to the process of developing
the total person which includes a path leading to corporate
America and good citizenship."
Spears is the proud father of four children, Sean, Seana,
Kulmoris and Jerome. Jerome is a tight end on the Tigers football
team.
|
