Richard Matthew Trachok (December 27, 1925''Dick Trachok: Memories of a Life in Sports'', University of Nevada, Reno, 2014. – August 2, 2020) was an American university

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 and ...

and

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

coach. He served as the head coach at the

University of Nevada, Reno The University of Nevada, Reno (Nevada, the University of Nevada, or UNR) is a public land-grant research university in Reno, Nevada. It is the state's flagship public university and primary land grant institution. It was founded on October 12, ...

from 1959 to 1968. He amassed a 40–48–3 record during his tenure. Trachok served as the University of Nevada athletic director until 1986. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, he served in the

United States Army Air Corps The United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) was the aerial warfare service component of the United States Army between 1926 and 1941. After World War I, as early aviation became an increasingly important part of modern warfare, a philosophical r ...

. He then attended the

, where he played on the

football team A football team is a group of players selected to play together in the various team sports known as football. Such teams could be selected to play in a match against an opposing team, to represent a football club, group, state or nation, an All-st ...

as a halfback from 1946 to 1948. Trachok coached the

Reno High School Reno High School (RHS) is a public secondary school in Reno, Nevada, United States. It is a part of the Washoe County School District. The school's teams are known as the Reno Huskies, and the school colors are red and blue. History Reno High wa ...

football team, where the ''

Deseret News The ''Deseret News'' () is the oldest continuously operating publication in the American west. Its multi-platform products feature journalism and commentary across the fields of politics, culture, family life, faith, sports, and entertainment. Th ...

'' described him as "one of Nevada's most successful high school gridiron coaches."Keep Grid Patterns Simple, Coaches Told
''The Deseret News'', April 26, 1957. During a coaching clinic held in 1957 at the

University of Utah The University of Utah (U of U, UofU, or simply The U) is a public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah. It is the flagship institution of the Utah System of Higher Education. The university was established in 1850 as the University of De ...

, he recommended that coaches keep their offenses and defenses simple. In April 1959, Nevada hired Trachok as its head coach.Trachok New Coach Of Nevada's Eleven
''The New York Times'', April 12, 1959. In November 1960, Trachok canceled a six-hour flight to

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

in favor of a 32-hour bus ride after a plane crash killed sixteen players from California Polytechnic.Team Cancels 6-Hour Flight For Bus Ride
''The Palm Beach Post'', November 16, 1960. The Nevada flight had been booked with Arctic-Pacific, the same carrier that Cal Poly had used. Trachok finished his coaching tenure with a 40–48–3 record, and took over as Nevada's

. He held that post until 1986.Nevada Athletics Hall of Fame
, University of Nevada, Reno, October 25, 2010. In 1975, the university inducted Trachok into the Nevada Athletics Hall of Fame. Trachok died on August 2, 2020, at the age of 94.Beloved Nevada icon and Wolf Pack's No. 21, Dick Trachok has died
/ref>

Head coaching record

College

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Trachok, Dick 1925 births 2020 deaths American football fullbacks American football halfbacks Nevada Wolf Pack athletic directors Nevada Wolf Pack football coaches Nevada Wolf Pack football players High school football coaches in Nevada People from Somerset County, Pennsylvania Military personnel from Pennsylvania Coaches of American football from Pennsylvania Players of American football from Pennsylvania Players of American football from Reno, Nevada