Coach Fisher DeBerry statue
unveiled at Falcon Stadium
During a special statue dedication at Falcon Stadium Sept. 11, a crowd of nearly 500 people, including U.S. Air Force Academy leaders, former players and fans, celebrated Fisher DeBerry's extraordinary impact on Air Force football and the countless cadet-athletes he coached and mentored throughout his storied career.
The U.S. Air Force Academy Association & Foundation and the Air Force Academy’s Department of Athletics honored Coach DeBerry, the winningest football coach in Air Force Academy history, with a statue of him celebrating a Falcon touchdown. The statue, prominently located on the east side of the stadium, is part of ongoing efforts to help sustain the Air Force Academy football program and its annual needs through the Fisher DeBerry Football Excellence Endowment.
Lt. Gen. Paul Moga, superintendent of the Air Force Academy and a 1995 graduate, highlighted Coach DeBerry’s importance in the lives of his players and on the careers they had after graduation.
“He didn't just build winning football teams. He built patriotic men out of boys, and he built teammates out of individuals. He created officers, leaders, mentors and citizens dedicated to service with a deep, deep love of their country, and that impact will go on in perpetuity,” Gen. Moga said.
Throughout his remarks, Coach DeBerry alternated between coaching yells, sayings that have become part of his lore among players, and humility.
“Today, I proudly accept this honor on behalf of every player, coach and support staff who wore the blue and silver of the United States Air Force Academy and contributed to the success of the Falcon football program,” he said. “No coach anywhere is any better, I guarantee you, than his staff, and I was so blessed to have had the greatest staff in America during my years.”
Coach DeBerry served as head coach at Air Force for 23 years, retiring on Dec. 15, 2006. His mark on the program, the Academy and college football is unmistakable. He led 17 of his 23 teams to winning records. His teams won 14 Commander-in-Chief’s trophies, and 12 teams appeared in bowl games. His career record of 169-109-1 is the best in Academy history in terms of games won. He was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame as a coach in 2011.
In his remarks, Coach DeBerry said all Division I programs need an endowment to meet the demands and changing nature of college football.
“I encourage each of us to consider the needs and cost of this great football program, and for it to be competitive. Like you, I'm very proud of our heritage, but to move forward, we must seek different avenues,” he said. “That's why I'd encourage each of us to consider contributing to the football endowment fund.”
Mark Hille, president and CEO of the U.S. Air Force Academy Association & Foundation and a 1997 graduate of the Academy, told the gathered crowd that 155 donors had already committed $2.3 million to the fund.
“Former players, fellow coaches, graduates and friends stepped forward to give back, both in honor of Coach and to make the kind of difference that was modeled in his career,” Hille said. “We expect the effort will soon exceed our initial goal of $2.5 million.”
Coach DeBerry’s influence on so many cadets and athletes is a major reason for this generosity.
“Over the course of 23 seasons as head coach and four prior as assistant, Coach DeBerry prepared his teams to battle a determined adversary on the field, week after week, and in doing so, to develop the capacities of character and commitment that would ready them for other adversaries on other fields around the globe, which is an especially timely statement today, as we reflect on the 25th anniversary of 9/11 and the heroic service by many here that followed,” Hille said.
Coach DeBerry’s ability to make everyone feel important was a recurring theme throughout the ceremony.
“Coach, for those of us who were never on your official roster, you had an amazing ability to make us all feel, no matter how large or small our role was on game day, that we were an important part of your team, and you made us feel very special to be a part of the Falcon football family. Thank you so much for that,” said Dr. Nancy Hixson, interim director of athletics and CEO of the Air Force Academy Athletic Corporation.
Current Air Force head football coach Troy Calhoun, who played for Coach DeBerry from 1985 to 1989, succeeded him in 2007. He spoke directly to Coach DeBerry for much of his remarks at the statue unveiling.
“I can't tell you how precious, just how special it is, the qualities that you taught each and every one of us. The work ethic, the toughness to never give up, to get up one more time than you were knocked out, knocked down. How many times we still share with our current players that brothers are hard to beat,” Calhoun said.
The Bolt Brotherhood that Coach DeBerry helped create showed up in force for the ceremony. Former players were asked to wear their football jerseys. While it was an official class reunion weekend at the Academy, the statue unveiling was an unofficial football reunion. After the official program, all former players in attendance joined Coach DeBerry and his wife, Lu Ann, for a Bolt Brotherhood team photo.
In addition to the bronze statue of Coach DeBerry, the base the statue highlights his Air Force career accomplishments and immortalizes one of the sayings he is most known for: “Have you ever seen a turtle on a fencepost? If so, you know it didn’t get there by itself.”
