London named male coach of the year over Tomlin

The honors for the University of Richmond football team continue as the Black Coaches & Administrators have named Mike London Male Coach of the Year.

London, whose team won the 2008 Football Championship Subdivision title, said he had been pleasantly surprised when Floyd Keith, the executive director of BCA, notified him. He said he felt honored and blessed to win this award after his first year as a head coach and was thankful for the help he had received from the administration, the assistant coaches and the players.

"The BCA stands for giving opportunity for minority coaches," London said. "I know that Jim Miller had discussed my candidacy with them."

Miller said he usually contacted the BCA when hiring a head coach to ask for the names of potential candidates for the job. Miller contacted Keith because he was interviewing London, a member of the BCA, and was pleased to hear that London had received this award.

"It keeps our name in the media and in front of the people," he said. "I've had a number of people comment about it and it just continues to be another positive impression about the university, our athletic program and our football program."

One week ago, London watched two of his players, defensive end Lawrence Sidbury and running back Josh Vaughan, celebrate their departure for the National Football League. The coach of the 2008 Super Bowl Champion Pittsburgh Steelers, Mike Tomlin, was the runner-up for London's award.

London was the defensive line coach at the College of William & Mary from 1990 to 1993 and Tomlin was a wide receiver for the Tribe from 1991 to 1994. The two have also seen each other in the NFL - in 2005, London was the defensive line coach for the Houston Texans and Tomlin was the defensive backs coach for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. London said he would have been just as happy if Tomlin had won the award.

"We've stayed in contact with each other the last couple years," London said. "Mike's a great person too. I'm in pretty good company."

Nominees for the award are judged on several factors, including team success during the most recent season, team improvement from the previous season, fulfillment of team potential and professional manner and attitude, according to the BCA's Web site.

"Each of the awardees exemplifies the values and mission of the BCA," Keith said in a statement. "Our honorees are not just successful professionals, but they are also outstanding people."

London and his fellow recipients - Female Coach of the Year Beverly Kearney of the University of Texas, administrator of the year Derrick Gragg of Eastern Michigan University and High School Coach of the Year Kathy Richey-Walton of Southwest DeKalb High School, Decatur, Ga. - will be honored at an awards banquet May 29, 2009, in Indianapolis, Ind., as part of the BCA National Convention and Expo.

In January, London was named the American Football Coaches Association's Football Championship Subdivision Coach of the Year. He is the first Richmond coach to win this award, and is the first African American head coach to win the FCS title since Rudy Hubbard led Florida A&M to the first FCS (then Division I-AA) title in 1978.

"You want to have an opportunity to be judged on being a football coach and I was afforded that opportunity," London said. "I thank Dr. Ayers and Jim Miller for giving me that opportunity."

THIS STORY WILL BE UPDATED.

Contact staff writer Jimmy Young at jimmy.young@richmond.edu and staff writer Barrett Neale at barrett.neale@richmond.edu