Jacksonville Jaguars to add Tom Coughlin to ring of honor

Nov. 9 (UPI) -- Former front-office executive and coach Tom Coughlin will be inducted into the Jacksonville Jaguars ring of honor in 2024, the franchise announced Thursday afternoon.

"It means a great deal to me, it really does," Coughlin said in a video posted by the Jaguars.

Coughlin, 77, was the first coach of the Jaguars, who played their first season in 1995. He later returned to the franchise in 2017 to serve as executive vice president of football operations, a role he held until 2019.

Coughlin led the Jaguars to a 68-60 record over eight seasons, which included four postseason runs. The Jaguars fired Coughlin in 2002. He went on to post a 102-90 record in 12 seasons with the New York Giants, a tenure that featured two Super Bowl titles.

"The story of the Jaguars' cannot be told without Tom Coughlin and the influence he had on our expansion team and new fan base here in North Florida," Jaguars legend Tony Boselli, the first draft pick in Jaguars history, said in a news release.

"He is our foundational figure and the initial architect. He built our football operation and set it up for sustained success. Beyond all the remarkable on-field achievements, he also showed everyone how an NFL team could win off the field by positively impacting the communities surrounding us."

Coughlin is the Jaguars' all-time winningest coach. Boselli, inaugural owners Wayne and Delores Weaver, running back Fred Taylor, quarterback Mark Brunnell and wide receiver Jimmy Smith are also in the franchise's ring of honor, known as the Pride of the Jaguars.

The Giants inducted Coughlin into their ring of honor in 2016.