Joe King's teams made the NCAA playoffs four times,
including a national semifinals appearance in
2003. RPI athletics photo |
Joe King, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute’s winningest
head football coach of all time, has announced he is stepping down
from the position he has held for the past 22 seasons.
King’s resignation is immediate and a national search to find
Rensselaer’s next head football coach will be undertaken
right away.
“It is time for me to move on to the next chapter of my
life,” said King, who was named head coach in 1989.
“Working at RPI and coaching all the kids I have for so many
years has been a tremendously rewarding experience that has
impacted me and my family incredibly.
“I want to thank my wife, Gail, my boys, Joey and Kevin, and
the rest of my family for their support. I also thank the players
who worked so hard to improve themselves for the betterment of the
teams. I also cannot speak highly enough about the assistant
coaches I had the privilege to work with.”
During his tenure, King compiled a 152-59-2 record for a .718
winning percentage, making him the most successful coach in terms
of both wins and percentage in the 123-year history of Rensselaer
football. He led his teams to two perfect regular seasons, five
league championships, four NCAA playoff appearances, highlighted by
a trip to the national semifinals in 2003, and nine ECAC bowl
games, eight of which were victories.
In his 22 years as the head coach, King led the Engineers to 19
winning seasons, including eight-or-more wins 12 times. His teams
had five seasons of just one loss and nine with only two defeats.
In comparison, in the 99 years of Rensselaer football prior to King
being named the head coach, there were 21 winning seasons with no
team winning at least eight games. “What Joe King
accomplished as the football coach at Rensselaer is nothing short
of astounding,” said Rensselaer athletics director Jim
Knowlton. “He has given tremendously to the Institute and our
student-athletes. Clearly RPI athletics would not be the same
without his passion and dedication and we are forever
thankful.”
King, who was named the league’s Coach of the Year five
times, 20 All-America selections (including seven
D3football.com selections as well as Rensselaer’s first
American Football Coaches Association First Team All-America) and
countless All-Region and All-Conference honorees. All nine of the
program’s First Team National Academic All-Americas have
suited up for King.
The highlight of King’s tenure came in 2003 when he led the
Engineers to a school-record 11 wins (11-2) and a spot in the
Division III national semifinals for the first time in school
history. Among the team’s victories were wins in three trophy
games – the Shot Glass, Transit and Dutchman Shoes –
and the school’s first three NCAA Tournament wins. The
Engineers were listed in the top 10 in each of the final national
polls, earned the ECAC Division III Upstate Team of the Year Award
and captured the prestigious Lambert Meadowlands Trophy.