Steve Szabo (born September 11, 1943) is a former American football player and coach. He played football and lacrosse for the United States Naval Academy from 1961 to 1965. After four years of military service, Szabo held coaching positions with 18 collegiate and professional football teams from 1969 to 2011. He served as the head football coach at Edinboro University of Pennsylvania from 1985 to 1987, compiling a record of 15–15–1.
| Biographical details | |
|---|---|
| Born | September 11, 1943 |
| Playing career | |
| Football | |
| 1961–1964 | Navy |
| Lacrosse | |
| 1963–1965 | Navy |
| Position(s) | Fullback, defensive back (football) Midfielder (lacrosse) |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| Football | |
| 1969 | Johns Hopkins (DC/DB) |
| 1970 | Toledo (freshmen) |
| 1971–1973 | Iowa (ST/LB) |
| 1974–1976 | Syracuse (DL) |
| 1977–1978 | Iowa State (DL/K) |
| 1979–1981 | Ohio State (DL/K) |
| 1982–1984 | Western Michigan (asst. HC/OC) |
| 1985–1987 | Edinboro |
| 1988 | Northern Iowa (DL) |
| 1989–1990 | Colorado State (DC/LB) |
| 1991–1993 | Boston College (DC/LB) |
| 1994–2002 | Jacksonville Jaguars (LB) |
| 2003 | New England Patriots (volunteer) |
| 2004–2005 | Buffalo Bills (DB) |
| 2006–2007 | Michigan (LB) |
| 2008 | Colgate (DC/LB) |
| 2009 | Eastern Michigan (assoc. HC/LB) |
| 2011 | Illinois State (DC/LB) |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 15–15–1 |
Early years
A native of Chicago, Illinois, Szabo graduated from Mendel High School in Chicago.[1][2] He subsequently attended the United States Naval Academy, graduating in 1965. While attending the Naval Academy, Szabo played college football from 1961 to 1964 and played as a midfielder on Navy's national championship lacrosse teams from 1963 to 1965.[1][3][4] He played as fullback and defensive back on the same Navy football teams with Roger Staubach.[5][6][7] After graduating from the Naval Academy, Szabo served four years in the United States Marine Corps. He was stationed at Marine Corps Base Quantico and served one year in South Vietnam.[8]
Coaching career
Between 1969 and 2011, Szabo held coaching positions with 18 collegiate and professional football teams. These include Johns Hopkins Blue Jays (defensive coordinator and defensive backfield, 1969), Toledo Rockets (freshman coach and chief scout, 1970),[9][10] Iowa Hawkeyes (special teams and linebackers, 1971–1973), Syracuse Orange (defensive line, 1974–1976),[11][12] Iowa State Cyclones (defensive line and kickers, 1977–1978),[2] Ohio State Buckeyes (defensive line and kickers, 1979–1981),[13] Western Michigan Broncos (assistant head coach and offensive coordinator, 1982–1984), Edinboro Fighting Scots (head coach, 1985–1987),[14] Northern Iowa Panthers (defensive line, 1988), Colorado State Rams (defensive coordinator and linebackers, 1989–1990),[15] Boston College Eagles (defensive coordinator and linebackers, 1991–1993),[16][17][18] Jacksonville Jaguars (linebackers, 1994–2002), New England Patriots (volunteer assistant, 2003),[19] Buffalo Bills (defensive backs, 2004–2005),[20] Michigan Wolverines (linebackers, 2006–2007),[5] Colgate Raiders (defensive coordinator and linebackers, 2008),[21] Eastern Michigan Eagles (associate head coach and linebackers, 2009), and Illinois State Redbirds (defensive coordinator and linebackers, 2011),[1][8] Szabo resigned his position at Illinois State in June 2011 for personal reasons.[22]
Head coaching record
| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Edinboro Fighting Scots (Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference) (1985–1987) | |||||||||
| 1985 | Edinboro | 5–4–1 | 3–3 | T–3rd (West) | |||||
| 1986 | Edinboro | 7–3 | 5–1 | 2nd (West) | |||||
| 1987 | Edinboro | 3–8 | 1–5 | 6th (West) | |||||
| Edinboro: | 15–15–1 | 9–9 | |||||||
| Total: | 15–15–1 | ||||||||
References
- ^ a b c "Szabo joins Redbirds football staff". Daily Herald. February 4, 2011.
- ^ a b "Ex-Lauterbur aide Szabo added to Iowa State staff". The Telegraph-Herald. January 25, 1977.
- ^ "New Talent for Tar Ten: Navy Lacrosse team Sets Home Opener Tomorrow". The Baltimore Sun. April 2, 1965.
- ^ "Unbeaten Middies Defeat Army, 9-4". The New York Times. May 31, 1964.
- ^ a b "Carr Announces Assistant Football Coaches". University of Michigan. February 14, 2006.
- ^ "Navy Routs Cornell, 41-0, As Staubach Leads Attack". The New York Times. October 14, 1962.
- ^ Allison Danzig (December 28, 1963). "Navy's Football Captain Is Sure Midshipmen Can Defeat Texas". The New York Times.("Steve Szabo, another fullback, was moved to defensive halfback to relieve the shortage created by the loss of Moore and Hanson.")
- ^ a b "Steve Szabo Bio". Illinois State University Athletics. Archived from the original on 2013-01-24.
- ^ "TU Grid Frosh To Open". Toledo Blade. September 21, 1970.
- ^ "Iowa Expected To Hire Szabo". Toledo Blade. January 9, 1971.
- ^ "Szabo To Syracuse". Toledo Blade. December 17, 1973.
- ^ "Szabo Joins Maloney On Syracuse Staff". Schenectady Gazette. December 19, 1973.
- ^ "Bruce fires three Ohio State coaches". Kingman Daily Miner. January 7, 1982.(Szabo along with Nick Saban and Dennis Fryzel fired by Earl Bruce)
- ^ "untitled". Reading Eagle. November 27, 1987. p. 19.
- ^ "Szabo Leaves CSU for Boston College". Rocky Mountain News. January 18, 1991.
- ^ "Szabo to lead BC defense". Boston Globe. January 19, 1991.
- ^ "Navy Players-Turned-Coaches Match Wits". The Roanoke Times. December 31, 1993. p. B-9.
- ^ "Next: Staff defection? BC assistants may follow". Boston Globe. February 22, 1994. p. 27.
- ^ "Don't Mess Around With Belichick". The Buffalo News. September 29, 2004.
- ^ Leo Roth (August 19, 2004). "Szabo's experience benefits Bills". Rochester Democrat and Chronicle (Rochester, N.Y.). p. D.9.
- ^ "Szabo Named Defensive Coordinator and Linebacker Coach". Colgate Raiders. March 5, 2008.
- ^ "Illinois State assistant resigns". Journal Star. June 27, 2011.