Former Northwestern coach Pont dies at 80

John Pont, former head football coach and director of athletics at Northwestern University, passed away Tuesday morning at the age of 80.

The former long-time college coach and administrator, who owns the distinction as the only coach in Indiana University history to lead the Hoosiers to a Rose Bowl and the last to lead them to a Big Ten title, was NU's head football coach from 1973 through 1977. His best season came in 1973 when he guided Northwestern to a 4-7 overall record and a 4-4 Big Ten mark.

In 1975, he was named Northwestern's director of athletics, and served as both football coach and AD for three seasons. After the 1977 football campaign, he gave up his coaching duties to focus solely on his AD responsibilities. Pont held the AD title until the fall of 1980.

Pont was a star football player at Miami (Ohio) University and became Miami's head coach at the age of 27. Considered one of the pillars among Miami's Cradle of Coaches, Pont coached at four Division I institutions: Miami (1956-62), Yale (1963-64), Indiana (1965-72) and Northwestern (1973-77).

Visitation will be on Sunday from 3 to 6 p.m. in Oxford, Ohio, at the Smith and Ogle Funeral Home, 5086 College Corner Pike. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at St. Mary's Catholic Church in Oxford at 10 a.m. Monday. Burial will be in the Miami University section of the Oxford Cemetery. The public is invited to attend all of the observances.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the McCullough-Hyde Oncology Department (Oxford), The John Pont Scholarship Fund at Miami University, The John Pont Scholarship Fund at Indiana University, and the Athletic Department at the College of Mount Saint Joseph.

For a complete obituary on Pont, visit http://muredhawks.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/070108aad.html