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 Rein,c. 1979 | |
| Biographical details | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1945-07-20)July 20, 1945 Niles, Ohio, U.S. |
| Died | January 10, 1980(1980-01-10) (aged 34) Atlantic Ocean |
| Playing career | |
| Football | |
| 1964–1966 | Ohio State |
| Baseball | |
| 1965–1967 | Ohio State |
| Position(s) | Halfback (football) Shortstop,left field (baseball) |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| Football | |
| 1969–1970 | William & Mary (assistant) |
| 1971 | Purdue (assistant) |
| 1972–1974 | NC State (assistant) |
| 1975 | Arkansas (OC) |
| 1976–1979 | NC State |
| 1980 | LSU[a] |
| Baseball | |
| 1971 | William & Mary |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 27–18–1 (football) 14–13 (baseball) |
| Bowls | 2–0 |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| Football 1ACC (1979) | |
| Awards | |
| Second-teamAll-Big Ten (1966) | |
Robert Edward "Bo"Rein (July 20, 1945 – January 10, 1980) was anAmerican football andbaseball player and football coach. He was a two-sport athlete atOhio State University and served as the head football coach atNorth Carolina State University from 1976 to 1979, compiling a record of 27–18–1. Following the 1979 season, Rein had assumed the role as head coach atLouisiana State University, but was killed in an aircraft accident in January 1980 before he ever coached a game for theTigers. Rein is the namesake of football player awards at Ohio State and NC State.
Rein was born and raised inNiles, Ohio, where he is still remembered as a legendary high school athlete for the Red Dragons ofNiles McKinley High School. Rein played at Niles during their heyday, when the Red Dragons under coach Tony Mason were one of the top big school powerhouses in high school football in Ohio.
Rein played baseball atOhio State University from 1965 through 1967, helping theBuckeyes win the1966 College World Series, the school's onlyNCAA baseball title. Rein playedshortstop andleft field. He led his team instolen bases in 1965 and 1966, and indoubles andruns in 1966. Rein had 49 career stolen bases, which stood as a team record until he was surpassed by Roy Marsh in the early 1990s.
In 1965 and 1966, Ohio State participated in theCollege World Series, and Rein was selected in both years to the All Tournament team. In 1965, the Buckeyes lost the championship game toArizona State. In 1966, Ohio State won the championship, defeatingOklahoma State. In the championship game, Rein contributed a double.
After he finished his college career, Rein was drafted by theCleveland Indians. He was playing for thePortland Beavers, the Indians'Triple-Afarm team, whenAchilles tendon andhamstring problems ended his baseball career.
From 1964 to 1966, Rein was a three-year starter at lefthalfback for theOhio State Buckeyes football team. He led his team in receptions in 1964 and 1965, and in rushing in 1966. Rein finished at Ohio State the team career receptions leader. Following his Ohio State career, Rein was drafted by theBaltimore Colts.
Former teammate, and later Mayor ofColumbus, Ohio,Greg Lashutka said of Rein, "He wasn't the biggest guy, but pound for pound he was tough as they come. He had that inner drive and did everything to the fullest. He could play." A continuing tradition at Ohio State is that at the end of every season, the team votes to award one teammate the "Bo Rein Most Inspirational Player Award."
Lou Holtz, a former assistant coach at Ohio State, had taken the head coaching position atWilliam & Mary in 1969, and Holtz offered an assistant coaching job to Rein. When Holtz accepted an offer fromNorth Carolina State University in 1972, Rein went with him. In 1975, Rein was hired asoffensive coordinator for theUniversity of Arkansas underFrank Broyles and helped theRazorbacks win theSouthwest Conference and the1976 Cotton Bowl Classic.[1]
When Holtz moved on toNew York Jets of theNFL in 1976, Rein became the youngest college football head coach upon his hiring by North Carolina State. Guiding theNC State Wolfpack football team, Rein was an advocate of the coaching philosophy of Ohio State'sWoody Hayes for whom Rein played. During Rein's four years at NC State, he led the team to twobowl games, defeatingIowa State in the1977 Peach Bowl and defeatingPittsburgh in the1978 Tangerine Bowl. In Rein's final year at NC State, his team won the 1979Atlantic Coast Conference championship.[2] However, it did not play in a bowl game, having declined an invitation to the Garden State Bowl–to date, the last power conference champion to decline participation in a bowl game.
Among Rein's top players at NC State wereOutland Trophy winnerJim Ritcher, acenter for the Wolfpack who later started atguard on fourSuper Bowl teams with theBuffalo Bills, andlinebackerBill Cowher, who later coached thePittsburgh Steelers for 15 seasons and wonSuper Bowl XL.
Following every season, the NC State football team awards the "Bo Rein Award" to a player that makes a vital contribution in an unsung role.
Following the 1979 season, Rein was hired away from NC State byLouisiana State University. In January 1980, Rein took a recruiting trip toShreveport, Louisiana. On his January 10, 1980, return trip back toBaton Rouge, Louisiana, his private aircraft crashed, leaving no survivors.[3] Rein, who was hired at the end of November 1979, had been head coach for less than two months.[4]
Rein and experienced pilot Louis Benscotter left Shreveport in aCessna 441 aircraft. The flight was planned to be a 40-minute trip, but when Benscotter rerouted east to avoid a storm, air traffic control lost contact with him. The aircraft climbed to 40,000 ft (12,000 m) and kept heading due east. After being tracked on radar, the aircraft was eventually intercepted byU.S. Air National GuardConvair F-106 Delta Dart fighter aircraft over North Carolina, one thousand miles (1,600 km) off-course and at an altitude of 41,600 ft (12,700 m), 6,600 ft (2,000 m) feet higher than its maximum certified ceiling. The military pilots could not see anyone in the cockpit and the aircraft continued on over the Atlantic Ocean, where it crashed after running out of fuel. A US Coast Guard crew spotted some debris, but no wreckage was ever recovered. The bodies of Rein and Benscotter have never been found.[5]
The cause of the crash is undetermined but was most likely cabin depressurization causinghypoxia, a lack of oxygen,[6] resulting in the occupants losing consciousness as in the1999 South Dakota Learjet crash.[7]
In 1982, Rein's widow, Suzanne Kay, reached an out-of-court settlement for an undisclosed amount after filing a $10 million damage suit against a number of defendants, including theCessna Aircraft Company, Cruse Aviation Inc., who serviced the aircraft, and Nichols Construction Corporation, who owned it.[8]
| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | Coaches# | AP° | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NC State Wolfpack(Atlantic Coast Conference)(1976–1979) | |||||||||
| 1976 | NC State | 3–7–1 | 2–3 | 5th | |||||
| 1977 | NC State | 8–4 | 4–2 | T–3rd | WPeach | 19 | |||
| 1978 | NC State | 9–3 | 4–2 | 3rd | WTangerine | 19 | 18 | ||
| 1979 | NC State | 7–4 | 5–1 | 1st | |||||
| NC State: | 27–18–1 | 15–8 | |||||||
| Total: | 27–18–1 | ||||||||
| National championship Conference title Conference division title or championship game berth | |||||||||
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