Today, after 39 years as a head coach, 26 of them at the same university (all of which were winning seasons), 598 career wins, and one national championship (that was also a record-setting undefeated season), my father announced his retirement from coaching.

Apparently, when my sister, Julie, told her sons that their grandfather wasn't going to be "the coach" anymore, Ty cried. So Dad called him on the phone to cheer him up and explained that they'd still get to go to the games. "But now I'll be able to come up into the stands and sit next you."