Hall of Fame
John Robert Bell served as head football coach and athletic director from 1966 until 1973. While head football coach, Bell coached the Bucs to the only undefeated record in school history in 1969 (10-0-1). That same 1969 team, led by Bell, won the OVC Championship and the NCAA Mid-East regional crown with a 34-14 win over Louisiana Tech in the Grantland Rice Bowl. The 1969 and 1970 teams combined for a 17-1-3 record, the best two year mark ever by ETSU. Bell was selected as OVC Coach of the Year and NCAA District 4 Coach of the Year in 1969. Twenty-seven years after his record setting season, Bell was inducted into the ETSU Athletic Hall of Fame.
