Murray State University Athletics
Beamer Named To OVC Hall of Fame
5/6/2016 2:44:00 PM | Football, Hall of Fame
Former Murray State football coach Frank Beamer has been elected into the Ohio Valley Conference Hall of Fame. Beamer, along with former Austin Peay Faculty Athletics Representative Dr. Gaines Hunt and former Jacksonville State President Dr. William Meehan, will be officially inducted at the annual OVC Honors Brunch which will be held Friday, June 3 at the DoubleTree Hotel in downtown Nashville.
The Ohio Valley Conference Hall of Fame was organized in 1977 with the intent of honoring the coaches, administrators, faculty and staff that have been associated with the OVC for at least five years and provided extensive and outstanding service to the Conference. With the induction of this year's class, the membership will reach 79.
Beamer is now the 11th Murray State coach or administrator to be enshrined in the OVC Hall of Fame. He joins Racer greats Roy Stewart (1977), J. D. Rayburn (1979), Johnny Reagan (1988), Bennie Purcell (1990), Dr. Kala Stroup (1997), Cal Luther (2000), Bill Cornell (2005), Steve Newton (2007), Elvis Green (2008) and Margaret Simmons (2014) as members of the elite club.
"I'm very happy that the OVC has chosen to recognize Coach Beamer with his induction into the Hall of Fame," said Murray State Director of Athletics Allen Ward. "Coach Beamer is one of the all-time great coaches in college football and certainly at the top of the list when it comes to coaches with impeccable integrity and class. It's an honor to have him forever connected to Murray State and we will always be grateful for his remarkable contributions to our program."
Beamer helped put the Murray State football program on the map in the 1980s, spending two years as the defensive coordinator and six years as head coach before leaving to guide his alma mater, Virginia Tech, to 238 victories over 29 seasons before retiring this past year. Beamer was hired by Mike Gottfried in 1979 and introduced the wide tackle six defense to the Ohio Valley Conference. It immediately made the Racers a national contender as the squad ranked second in the nation in rush defense and fourth in scoring defense his first season; that team ended up being one of four selected to the I-AA playoffs. A year later that defense allowed a nation's-best 9.1 points per game.
As the program's head coach he compiled a 42-23-2 overall record and numerous appearances in the nation's Top 25 polls including a streak of 22-consecutive weeks ranked in the Top 20. During his final season Beamer guided MSU to 6-1 record in the OVC, a regular season co-championship and berth in the playoffs. Overall Beamer finished his coaching career with a combined 280-143-4 record (making him the 15th winningest coach in college football history), 22 bowl appearances and eight conference championships.
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The Ohio Valley Conference Hall of Fame was organized in 1977 with the intent of honoring the coaches, administrators, faculty and staff that have been associated with the OVC for at least five years and provided extensive and outstanding service to the Conference. With the induction of this year's class, the membership will reach 79.
Beamer is now the 11th Murray State coach or administrator to be enshrined in the OVC Hall of Fame. He joins Racer greats Roy Stewart (1977), J. D. Rayburn (1979), Johnny Reagan (1988), Bennie Purcell (1990), Dr. Kala Stroup (1997), Cal Luther (2000), Bill Cornell (2005), Steve Newton (2007), Elvis Green (2008) and Margaret Simmons (2014) as members of the elite club.
"I'm very happy that the OVC has chosen to recognize Coach Beamer with his induction into the Hall of Fame," said Murray State Director of Athletics Allen Ward. "Coach Beamer is one of the all-time great coaches in college football and certainly at the top of the list when it comes to coaches with impeccable integrity and class. It's an honor to have him forever connected to Murray State and we will always be grateful for his remarkable contributions to our program."
Beamer helped put the Murray State football program on the map in the 1980s, spending two years as the defensive coordinator and six years as head coach before leaving to guide his alma mater, Virginia Tech, to 238 victories over 29 seasons before retiring this past year. Beamer was hired by Mike Gottfried in 1979 and introduced the wide tackle six defense to the Ohio Valley Conference. It immediately made the Racers a national contender as the squad ranked second in the nation in rush defense and fourth in scoring defense his first season; that team ended up being one of four selected to the I-AA playoffs. A year later that defense allowed a nation's-best 9.1 points per game.
As the program's head coach he compiled a 42-23-2 overall record and numerous appearances in the nation's Top 25 polls including a streak of 22-consecutive weeks ranked in the Top 20. During his final season Beamer guided MSU to 6-1 record in the OVC, a regular season co-championship and berth in the playoffs. Overall Beamer finished his coaching career with a combined 280-143-4 record (making him the 15th winningest coach in college football history), 22 bowl appearances and eight conference championships.
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