ATLANTA -- Bill Lewis, named the United Press International Coach of the Year after taking East Carolina to an 11-1 record this season, Monday was hired as head coach of Georgia Tech.
Lewis, 50, returns to Georgia Tech, where he served as secondary coach from 1971-72. He replaces Bobby Ross, who resigned Dec. 31 to become head coach of the San Diego Chargers.
'This is one of the happiest days of my life,' said Lewis, who guided the Pirates to a 37-34 victory over North Carolina State in the Peach Bowl. 'This opportunity is one of the remaining goals of my career, to coach at an institution that believes in the concept of the student-athlete.
'Georgia Tech has been a national leader in that area for a long time and I believe that collegiate athletics in the nineties are headed in that direction.'
In three seasons at East Carolina, Lewis compiled a 21-12-1 record. His first Pirate team finished 5-5-1 in 1989, the first non-losing season for East Carolina since 1983. His second ECU team posted a 5-6 mark, and this year's club set a record for wins (11), earned its first bowl invitation since 1978 and was ranked No. 9 in the final UPI poll.
'Bill Lewis is an excellent choice as Tech's ninth head football coach,' Georgia Tech athletic director Dr. Homer Rice said. 'Bill has an outstanding football background. His record speaks for itself. But what really sold me was his ability to communicate.'
Prior to arriving at East Carolina, Lewis served as secondary coach at the University of Georgia for nine years. He was also the Bulldogs' defensive coordinator for the final eight years of his stay.
Lewis was also the head coach at Wyoming, where he had a 13-21-1 record in three years. He has worked as an assistant at Arkansas, Wake Forest, Pittsburgh and East Stroudsburg - his alma mater.
Lewis will take over a program which has enjoyed a great amount of success over the last three seasons. Georgia Tech was 7-4 in 1989, before Ross led the Yellow Jackets to an 11-0-1 record and the UPI national title in 1990. Georgia Tech was 8-5-1 this season, including a victory over Stanford in the Aloha Bowl.
