HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 404 Offered February 27, 2006 Commending Dave Clawson. ----------
Patrons-- Waddell, Albo, Fralin, Hall, Hamilton, Hull, Janis, Johnson, McClellan, O'Bannon and Tata
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WHEREAS, University of Richmond head football coach Dave Clawson, in just his second season as coach of the Spiders, was named National Coach of the Year by I-AA.org; and

WHEREAS, Coach Dave Clawson led the Spiders to the biggest turnaround in Richmond football history, from a record of 3-8 in 2004 to a 9-4 mark in 2005, a season that also included a share of the Atlantic 10 Conference championship and a berth in the quarterfinals of the NCAA I-AA football playoffs; and

WHEREAS, under the leadership of Dave Clawson, the 2005 Richmond Spiders scored 349 points, the largest single-season total in school history, and ran up a school-record 4,957 yards of total offense; and

WHEREAS, after starting the 2005 season by winning only one of their first four games, the Spiders caught fire, winning their final seven regular season games, then traveling to Hampton to play the only undefeated I-AA team in the country, the Pirates of Hampton University; and

WHEREAS, the Spiders' convincing 38-10 victory over Hampton University propelled them to the quarterfinals of the Division I-AA tournament and was their eighth consecutive victory; and

WHEREAS, in recognition of his role in the success of the Richmond Spiders, Coach Dave Clawson was named the 2005 Atlantic 10 Conference Coach of the Year, the 2005 Richmond Touchdown Club's Virginia Coach of the Year, and the Virginia Sports Information Directors Association's 2005 Coach of the Year; and

WHEREAS, previously a winner of national coach of the year honors for his success with the football program at Fordham University, Coach Dave Clawson brought his recipe for football success to the University of Richmond, to the delight of Spider football fans across the Commonwealth; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly hereby commend and congratulate Coach Dave Clawson on his outstanding success as head of the football program at the University of Richmond; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to Coach Dave Clawson as an expression of the General Assembly's appreciation and admiration for his coaching achievements.