Al Conover (born 1938) is a former

American football American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, field with goalposts at e ...

player and coach. Most notably, he served as head coach at

Rice University William Marsh Rice University, commonly referred to as Rice University, is a Private university, private research university in Houston, Houston, Texas, United States. Established in 1912, the university spans 300 acres. Rice University comp ...

from 1972 to 1975, compiling a record of 15–27–2 in four seasons before resigning to enter private business. A native of

Largo, Florida Largo is the third largest city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States, as well as the fourth largest in the Tampa Bay area. As of the 2020 Census, the city had a population of 82,485, up from 77,648 in 2010 United States Census, 2010. Larg ...

, Conover attended Largo High School, where he starred on the football squad and earned an

athletic scholarship An athletic scholarship is a form of scholarship to attend a college or university or a private school, private high school awarded to an individual based predominantly on their ability to play in a sport. Athletic scholarships are common in the U ...

Wake Forest University Wake Forest University (WFU) is a private research university in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, United States. Founded in 1834, the university received its name from its original location in Wake Forest, north of Raleigh, North Carolina. The R ...

.. He spent four years on the Demon Deacon squad, protecting

quarterback The quarterback (QB) is a position in gridiron football who are members of the offensive side of the ball and mostly line up directly behind the Lineman (football), offensive line. In modern American football, the quarterback is usually consider ...

Norm Snead Norman Bailey Snead (July 31, 1939 – January 14, 2024) was an American professional football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL). He played for the Washington Redskins, Philadelphia Eagles, Minnesota Vikings, New ...

as tackle under coaches Paul Amen and Billy Hildebrand.. Returning to Largo after graduation, he served as his alma mater's head swimming coach and assistant football mentor. In 1963, he was hired as a graduate assistant by

Florida State University Florida State University (FSU or Florida State) is a Public university, public research university in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preeminent university in the s ...

head coach Bill Peterson, and later became offensive line coach.. After helping the Seminoles to a

Gator Bowl The Gator Bowl is an annual college football bowl game held in Jacksonville, Florida, usually contested on or around New Year's Day. It has been held continuously since 1946, making it the sixth oldest college bowl, as well as the first televise ...

appearance in 1967, Conover was hired by Y C McNease at

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest and Mountain states, Mountain West subregions of the Western United States. It borders Montana and Wyoming to the east, Nevada and Utah to the south, and Washington (state), ...

. When Peterson moved on to

in 1971, he hired Conover as

offensive coordinator An offensive coordinator (OC) is a Coach (sport), coach responsible for a gridiron football team's offense (American football), offense. Generally, the offensive coordinator, defensive coordinator and special teams coordinator represent the second ...

. Peterson left for the

Houston Oilers The Houston Oilers were a professional American football team that played in Houston, Texas, from its founding in 1960 Houston Oilers season, 1960 to 1996 Houston Oilers season, 1996. The Houston Oilers began play as a charter member of the Ame ...

one season later, and Conover was selected as his successor. In his first year as Rice head coach, he guided the Owls to a 5–5–1 record, the program's best since 1963.. Known for his flamboyance, he brought a

coffin A coffin or casket is a funerary box used for viewing or keeping a corpse, for burial, entombment or cremation. Coffins are sometimes referred to as caskets, particularly in American English. A distinction is commonly drawn between "coffins" a ...

onto the practice field to "bury" the Owls' mistakes during the 1973 season. Following a 3–8 season in 1975, Conover resigned to enter private business.

Head coaching record

† 3–8 in 1975 and 15–27–2 overall per NCAA due to forfeit win over Mississippi State.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Conover, Al 1938 births Living people American football offensive tackles Florida State Seminoles football coaches Idaho Vandals football coaches Rice Owls football coaches Wake Forest Demon Deacons football players Sportspeople from Largo, Florida Players of American football from Pinellas County, Florida Coaches of American football from Florida