The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1177236
NOVEMBER 2019 ■ 125 ■ PACK PAST Both coaches were part of the glory days of Wolfpack athletics, each contributing an ACC title to go with the multiple national and conference championships won by men's and women's basketball, baseball, swimming and cross country. Rein parted with Holtz for one year, go- ing to Arkansas in 1975 to be Frank Bro- yles' offensive coordinator, then returning one year later when Holtz left college foot- ball for the NFL's New York Jets. Rein coached the Wolfpack for four sea- sons, through the bulk of the careers of sev- eral NC State legends, including running back Ted Brown, offensive lineman Jim Ritcher and linebacker Bill Cowher. He had a deep bench of young coaches, including defensive coordinator Chuck Amato and offensive coordinator Darrell Moody. It seemed everything the former half- back, shortstop and young coach touched turned to gold, which is why LSU athletics director Paul Dietzel had his eye on Rein when it came time for the Tigers to say goodbye to longtime coach Charlie Mc- Clendon at the end of the 1979 season. However, Rein never coached a game for the Bayou Bengals. So busy were his final days — which included Christmas visits to his home state of Ohio and his home in Raleigh, a weeklong trip to Hawai'i as an assistant coach for the 34th annual Hula Bowl and a couple of trips to Baton Rouge to complete his coaching staff — Rein never even had a team meeting with his new players. He died in a plane crash while return- ing to Baton Rouge from a recruiting trip, just three weeks after Rein accepted the LSU job, leaving Ohio, North Carolina and Louisiana in both shock and mourning. It was the ultimate college football trag- edy, similar to the plane crash took the life of Notre Dame legend Knute Rockne in 1931 or the one that wiped out the Marshall and Wichita State programs in separate crashes during the 1970 season. Williams was able to meticulously recre- ate Rein's final day, which took the coach and one of his assistants, former NC State defensive back Greg Williams, from Baton Rouge to Shreveport on what was then a typical offseason recruiting trip. It started with Rein's morning run with assistant coach Bobby Morrison, and con- tinued with five recruiting visits Rein and Greg Williams made on the three-and-a- half-hour drive to the northwest corner of the state. "Bo wanted Greg to fly back with them, but it had been a long day," Williams ex- plained. "Greg decided to drive back the next day so he could visit with some more recruits the next day." • Lush, verdant landscaping • Nationally accredited, locally owned, not-for-profit • Dedicated to independence, security and peace of mind y p LIFESTYLES CREATED ONE PERSON AT A TIME. • A 42-acre urban oasis LIFESTYLES CREATED ONE PERSON AT A TIME. S pringmoor is 1500 Sawmill Road 1500 • Raleigh, NC 27615 C 27615 CALL 919-848-7252 FOR YOUR FREE INFORMATION KIT WP