Fun read, worth the read.
http://www.wyomingnews.com/articles/2010/04/12/sports/19sports_04-12-10.txt
Joe Glenn enjoying his "semi-retirement"
The former Wyoming football coach is trying to decide what to do next in his life.
By Bob Hammond
[email protected]
LARAMIE -- Joe Glenn isn't sure where he's headed. But wherever it is, he's not in a big hurry to get there.
The former University of Wyoming football coach says he still is considering his options some 16 months after leaving the school. And he adds that he is enjoying his semi-retirement as he tries to decide what next to do with his life.
Glenn spent six years at UW. His teams were 30-41 overall, 15-31 in the Mountain West Conference.
While his record wasn't good enough to keep his job, his teams provided some big moments, highlighted by a 24-21 victory over UCLA in the 2004 Las Vegas Bowl.
"That was my most memorable moment at Wyoming, on the field after the Las Vegas Bowl. That's about as high as I have been after a win," Glenn said in a phone conversation from his home in north Phoenix.
"You try, win or lose, not to show much emotion. But that was such a huge win and such a Kodak moment. I think for anybody that was a Wyoming Cowboy, whether you were a player, a coach or a fan, that was a moment to remember."
There also were back-to-back victories over Mississippi in 2004 and 2005, marking the first time UW had ever beaten a Southeastern Conference team.
There was a dominating 23-3 season-opening win in 2007 over a Virginia team that ended the season in the Top 25. And also the 13-7 stunner at Tennessee in 2008, marking the first time the Vols had lost at home to a school from a non-automatic qualifying conference in 22 years.
When Glenn left UW, he took with him a 24-year record as a head coach of 188-92-1 and a conference mark of 114-71-1.
The first thing Glenn and his wife, Michele, did after leaving UW was to rent a condo in the Phoenix area for six months while looking for a permanent place.
"I was coaching at (Northern Arizona University) in 1974-75 and was on a recruiting trip down here in the valley," Glenn recalled. "I went back to Michele and said, 'Someday we are going to live down there.' It took darn near 40 years, but here we are.
"We love it. We have a pool, a hot tub and a little fire pit, so we have entertained a lot of family and friends who have come to see us. It hasn't been very dull."
Glenn said when he and Michele decided to head to the Southwest, the only thing he had on his mind was finding a place to live.
"We came down here with no agenda. I always have my ears on, looking for something to do," he said. "I haven't really nailed it down yet what I'm going to do."
In the meantime, Glenn has been busy with speaking engagements, traveling and entertaining family and friends.
Glenn and his wife have spent a fair amount of time on road, something he has been unable to do for the last 37 years.
Most recently the Glenns were in Laramie to visit their son, Casey, and his wife, Shannon, to see the newest addition to the family -- a grandson, Donovan Joseph.
"He's a tall drink of water with big feet," Glenn said with a laugh. "We had Shannon in a three-point stance about a week before she had the baby so he would feel the kinesthetic awareness of an offensive lineman."
In their spare time, the Glenns play golf at least once a week and exercise on a daily basis.
"When we walk, we hike the mountains or else we spend an hour walking the streets," Glenn said.
One of Glenn's former UW assistants, wide receivers coach and recruiting coordinator Ron Wisniewski, recently took the football coaching job at Red Mountain High in Mesa, Ariz. Of course, Glenn will be involved.
"It's one of the largest high schools in Arizona," he said. "I'm not going to take a position, but I'm going to go over and help Wiz get started this spring. It's a chance to give back to the game and help Ron out a bit."
With everything Glenn has been doing since leaving UW, did he have a chance to follow the Cowboys this past fall?
"Are you kidding me? I get the Mtn. I watched every chance I could," he said. "I was prouder than heck of our guys. I thought they did just a sensational job and competed at a very high level. I was so happy for them."
Glenn went on to say that he has nothing but good thoughts about the six years he spent at UW.
"There were many, many wonderful memories of all the things," he said. "It just wasn't the coaching but the people and the beauty of the state.
"And even though we have moved on, I do stay in touch. I get quite a few calls from (the players) and the parents. I think we still have eight kids starting on either side of the ball, guys that we recruited. The only thing we didn't get was the quarterback."
Which brought up the subject of current quarterback Austyn Carta-Samuels. He guided UW to a 7-6 record and a win over Fresno State in the New Mexico Bowl.
"That guy is good," Glenn said. "He jumps right off the screen. He's special, man oh man. And he's a competitor.
"I've coached a few guys like that. Corte McGuffey (at Northern Colorado) was one of them. He had the same qualities. The higher the pressure in the game got, the better he performed."
Just what the future holds for Glenn, only time will tell. He's looking for something, but he doesn't know exactly what that is.
"I've been asked, 'What am I going to do?' Well, I don't know," he said. "I've got my ears on. I'm waiting for the right thing."
And what would that be?
"I don't know. I can't answer that," he continued. "I can't see jumping into something full time again unless it was somebody I knew and loved and trusted."
So another head coaching job most likely wouldn't be in his future?
"I didn't say that," he responded with a laugh. "You evaluate every situation for what it is.
"I do know that the athletic director thing doesn't appeal to me. I've had several calls from schools that I've been a part of in the past, and they have hinted they might be interested at some point, but I haven't pursued that at all. That isn't who I am, in my mind anyway or in my heart."
After Glenn was let go at UW, he was approached to see if he had any interest of staying on in some other capacity. The answer at that time was no. Would he entertain thoughts of returning in some capacity down the road?
"I have no idea, but I never say never," he said. "I just take every day as it comes and enjoy life, which is what I've always done. What I can say is that my semi-retirement has been fun, and it's been a nice change."
http://www.wyomingnews.com/articles/2010/04/12/sports/19sports_04-12-10.txt
Joe Glenn enjoying his "semi-retirement"
The former Wyoming football coach is trying to decide what to do next in his life.
By Bob Hammond
[email protected]
LARAMIE -- Joe Glenn isn't sure where he's headed. But wherever it is, he's not in a big hurry to get there.
The former University of Wyoming football coach says he still is considering his options some 16 months after leaving the school. And he adds that he is enjoying his semi-retirement as he tries to decide what next to do with his life.
Glenn spent six years at UW. His teams were 30-41 overall, 15-31 in the Mountain West Conference.
While his record wasn't good enough to keep his job, his teams provided some big moments, highlighted by a 24-21 victory over UCLA in the 2004 Las Vegas Bowl.
"That was my most memorable moment at Wyoming, on the field after the Las Vegas Bowl. That's about as high as I have been after a win," Glenn said in a phone conversation from his home in north Phoenix.
"You try, win or lose, not to show much emotion. But that was such a huge win and such a Kodak moment. I think for anybody that was a Wyoming Cowboy, whether you were a player, a coach or a fan, that was a moment to remember."
There also were back-to-back victories over Mississippi in 2004 and 2005, marking the first time UW had ever beaten a Southeastern Conference team.
There was a dominating 23-3 season-opening win in 2007 over a Virginia team that ended the season in the Top 25. And also the 13-7 stunner at Tennessee in 2008, marking the first time the Vols had lost at home to a school from a non-automatic qualifying conference in 22 years.
When Glenn left UW, he took with him a 24-year record as a head coach of 188-92-1 and a conference mark of 114-71-1.
The first thing Glenn and his wife, Michele, did after leaving UW was to rent a condo in the Phoenix area for six months while looking for a permanent place.
"I was coaching at (Northern Arizona University) in 1974-75 and was on a recruiting trip down here in the valley," Glenn recalled. "I went back to Michele and said, 'Someday we are going to live down there.' It took darn near 40 years, but here we are.
"We love it. We have a pool, a hot tub and a little fire pit, so we have entertained a lot of family and friends who have come to see us. It hasn't been very dull."
Glenn said when he and Michele decided to head to the Southwest, the only thing he had on his mind was finding a place to live.
"We came down here with no agenda. I always have my ears on, looking for something to do," he said. "I haven't really nailed it down yet what I'm going to do."
In the meantime, Glenn has been busy with speaking engagements, traveling and entertaining family and friends.
Glenn and his wife have spent a fair amount of time on road, something he has been unable to do for the last 37 years.
Most recently the Glenns were in Laramie to visit their son, Casey, and his wife, Shannon, to see the newest addition to the family -- a grandson, Donovan Joseph.
"He's a tall drink of water with big feet," Glenn said with a laugh. "We had Shannon in a three-point stance about a week before she had the baby so he would feel the kinesthetic awareness of an offensive lineman."
In their spare time, the Glenns play golf at least once a week and exercise on a daily basis.
"When we walk, we hike the mountains or else we spend an hour walking the streets," Glenn said.
One of Glenn's former UW assistants, wide receivers coach and recruiting coordinator Ron Wisniewski, recently took the football coaching job at Red Mountain High in Mesa, Ariz. Of course, Glenn will be involved.
"It's one of the largest high schools in Arizona," he said. "I'm not going to take a position, but I'm going to go over and help Wiz get started this spring. It's a chance to give back to the game and help Ron out a bit."
With everything Glenn has been doing since leaving UW, did he have a chance to follow the Cowboys this past fall?
"Are you kidding me? I get the Mtn. I watched every chance I could," he said. "I was prouder than heck of our guys. I thought they did just a sensational job and competed at a very high level. I was so happy for them."
Glenn went on to say that he has nothing but good thoughts about the six years he spent at UW.
"There were many, many wonderful memories of all the things," he said. "It just wasn't the coaching but the people and the beauty of the state.
"And even though we have moved on, I do stay in touch. I get quite a few calls from (the players) and the parents. I think we still have eight kids starting on either side of the ball, guys that we recruited. The only thing we didn't get was the quarterback."
Which brought up the subject of current quarterback Austyn Carta-Samuels. He guided UW to a 7-6 record and a win over Fresno State in the New Mexico Bowl.
"That guy is good," Glenn said. "He jumps right off the screen. He's special, man oh man. And he's a competitor.
"I've coached a few guys like that. Corte McGuffey (at Northern Colorado) was one of them. He had the same qualities. The higher the pressure in the game got, the better he performed."
Just what the future holds for Glenn, only time will tell. He's looking for something, but he doesn't know exactly what that is.
"I've been asked, 'What am I going to do?' Well, I don't know," he said. "I've got my ears on. I'm waiting for the right thing."
And what would that be?
"I don't know. I can't answer that," he continued. "I can't see jumping into something full time again unless it was somebody I knew and loved and trusted."
So another head coaching job most likely wouldn't be in his future?
"I didn't say that," he responded with a laugh. "You evaluate every situation for what it is.
"I do know that the athletic director thing doesn't appeal to me. I've had several calls from schools that I've been a part of in the past, and they have hinted they might be interested at some point, but I haven't pursued that at all. That isn't who I am, in my mind anyway or in my heart."
After Glenn was let go at UW, he was approached to see if he had any interest of staying on in some other capacity. The answer at that time was no. Would he entertain thoughts of returning in some capacity down the road?
"I have no idea, but I never say never," he said. "I just take every day as it comes and enjoy life, which is what I've always done. What I can say is that my semi-retirement has been fun, and it's been a nice change."
