Tuesday: LaVell Edwards Day

PROVO — LaVell Edwards is only 1-2 all time in games played on October 11.

For a coach with 19 conference titles, a Heisman Trophy winner, a national championship and his bust in the College Football Hall of Fame, any kind of losing record just doesn't seem right.

But Tuesday, Oct. 11, 2005, will belong to the legendary coach forevermore, as Provo Mayor Lewis K. Billings will sign a proclamation declaring the day as LaVell Edwards Day in Provo.

"I was surprised," Edwards said. "Being born and raised here, it means that much more. I really appreciate it."

Billings said the proclamation is about properly thanking a man who has done so much for BYU football.

"I thought the local silence when he was being honored so loudly in New York (at the Hall of Fame induction this summer) was sad," Billings said.

All the national recognition was great, Billings said, but it was important for locals to do something, too.

"There's no better place for LaVell to be honored than Cougartown," he said. "In a large measure, he's responsible for that pride we have."

Edwards was hired as BYU's head coach prior to the 1972 season, and went on to compile a 257-101-3 record, making him sixth all-time for wins by a college coach.

After four years at Utah State, a two-year stint in the military and a brief period coaching in Salt Lake, Edwards, an Orem native, said coming back to BYU was like "coming home."

But at that time, he never imagined his career would lead him to the Hall of Fame.

"I never even thought about it," Edwards said. "At that time, I didn't even know they had a College Football Hall of Fame, so it was the farthest thing from my mind. In those days, I was more concerned with how to get a first down."

Billings said he's not sure where the credit goes for the LaVell Edwards Day idea but said it was an instant hit among City Council members.

"There are very few people in this community who have done things that have a broader impact, that are understood and recognized worldwide," Billings said.

The proclamation Billings will sign Tuesday honors Edwards for his tangible achievements, like the Hall of Fame membership and impressive winning record, as well as the intangible ones, like being a positive force in the the lives of his players and elevating the game of football to a higher level.

In the proclamation, Philadelphia Eagles Coach Andy Reid (a former player and assistant to Edwards) said Edwards has done "so much for football, not just at BYU, but for the entire country, elevating and strengthening the game, and exemplifying the integrity that should be in the profession."

Billings will sign the proclamation in Tuesday's City Council meeting at 7 p.m., in Provo City Hall, 351 W. Center.

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E-mail: jtwitchell@desnews.com