Willis Ireland (April 29, 1927 – July 31, 2007) was an American

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

and

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

coach in

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a landlocked state in the Western United States. It borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the seventh-most extensive, th ...

. He was the first head coach of the

UNLV Rebels football The UNLV Rebels football program is a college football team that represents the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV). The team is a member of the Mountain West Conference, which is a NCAA Division I, Division I Bowl Subdivision (formerly Divisio ...

team, UNLV

athletic director An athletic director (commonly "athletics director" or "AD") is an administrator at many American clubs or institutions, such as colleges and universities, as well as in larger high schools and middle schools, who oversees the work of coaches a ...

and founder of the Battle for the Fremont Cannon. Additionally, he was head baseball coach at the

University of Nevada, Reno The University of Nevada, Reno (Nevada, the University of Nevada, or UNR) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Reno, Nevada, United States. It is the state's flagship public university and prim ...

. Ireland was born in remote

McGill, Nevada McGill is a census-designated place (CDP) in White Pine County, Nevada, United States. The population was 1,148 at the 2010 census. History In 1872, John Cowger established a ranch in the Steptoe Valley and acquired the water rights for the are ...

, east of

Reno, Nevada Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada–California border. It is the county seat and most populous city of Washoe County, Nevada, Washoe County. Sitting in the High Eastern Sierra foothills, ...

. As the coach of the 1966 Wolf Pack baseball team, he managed Fred Dallimore, who later coached the UNLV baseball team, and is the father of former

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...

player Brian Dallimore. In 1967 Chub Drakulich hired Ireland to start the UNLV football program. During their inaugural 1968 season, the Rebels were undefeated until the last game of the season. The Rebels lost their first match against their in-state rival, the Nevada Wolf Pack. Ireland, wanting an award to symbolize the rivalry, obtained a replica of the

Howitzer The howitzer () is an artillery weapon that falls between a cannon (or field gun) and a mortar. It is capable of both low angle fire like a field gun and high angle fire like a mortar, given the distinction between low and high angle fire break ...

John C. Fremont John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second ...

had brought with him in his expedition to Nevada. The first Battle for the Cannon, with UNLV avenging their loss and evening the series. After a disappointing 1–10 record in 1972, Ireland resigned his coaching position. In 1973, Ireland became the athletic director of UNLV. In this position he hired

Jerry Tarkanian Jerry Tarkanian (August 8, 1930 – February 11, 2015) was an American basketball coach. He coached college basketball for 31 seasons over five decades at three schools. He spent the majority of his career coaching with the UNLV Runnin' Reb ...

as the UNLV basketball coach. He was also instrumental in the construction of both the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas and the

Lawlor Events Center Lawlor Events Center is northern Nevada's largest multi-purpose arena. It is located in Reno, Nevada at the intersection of North Virginia Street and 15th Street on the University of Nevada, Reno campus. It is named after former athletic director, ...

in Reno. In 1990, his wife Jeanne Ireland was the Democratic Party's candidate for lieutenant governor; she lost by 15%. Ireland was a member of both the UNLV and the University of Nevada, Reno Halls of Fame. On October 8, 2012,

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

Brian Sandoval Brian Edward Sandoval ( ; born August 5, 1963) is an American politician, academic administrator, and former federal judge who served as the 29th Governor of Nevada from 2011 to 2019. A graduate of the University of Nevada, Reno, Sandoval began ...

announced that one student-athlete a year from the University of Nevada, Reno will receive the "Bill Ireland Award."

Head coaching record

Football

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ireland, Bill 1927 births 2007 deaths Baseball coaches from Nevada Coaches of American football from Nevada Nevada Wolf Pack baseball coaches Nevada Wolf Pack baseball players Nevada Wolf Pack football coaches People from White Pine County, Nevada UNLV Rebels athletic directors UNLV Rebels football coaches