Coach Ron McBride is a former football player and coach, serving as the head coach at the University of Utah from 1990 to 2002, McBride inherited a program that had only had five winning seasons in the previous 16 years and had not posted a winning season in Western Athletic Conference play since 1985. He didn't take long to turn the program around. He took the Utes to six bowl games during his tenure, a noteworthy feat considering the Utes had played in just three bowl games in the previous 97 years. His teams posted bowl wins over USC, Arizona, and Fresno State.
 
A native of Los Angeles, Coach Mac has more than 50 years of coaching experience. But his real passion has always been academics. Having grown up in East Los Angeles in a working-class neighborhood, surrounded by tougher environments, Ron McBride relates easily to the diverse culture of city schools in Utah. His foundation has supported after-school programs that stretch beyond sports, including ceramics, debate, and dance, among other subjects — all designed, to give students “something constructive to do. The stronger we get, the more influence we’ll have. … The more stuff you see, the more it energizes you to do more.”