University by John Peterson Sports Information Director Stockton, next Motta’s student, Phil Johnson, Gene Visscher, who was John- rf son’s assistant after playing for two years under Motta, won two league championships at Weber State and was twice named Coach-of-the-Year not only of the Big Sky Conference, but for the entire NCAA District 7. McCarthy comes to the job well prepared to be the head man. He was in his fourth season as an assistant when he was elevated to the position of head coach, and has a strong background behin'c him. 2 Alumnus To Assist a ST nh == SE em EE =o Ea oo In Football by John Peterson Sports Information Director Brent Hancock, a former Weber State quarterback and presently the head coach at Ogden’s Bonneville High School, has been Pacific in Evans’ ap- Frank Evans, assistant Neil was an outstanding junior college basketball player at Vallejo (California) J.C., and lettered for two years at Sacramento State. Following his active playing days, McCarthy pursued his avocation and obtained a Master’s Degree from the University of California at Sacramento. He coached high school for six years in Northern California where he compiled an overall record of 124 wins and 50 losses. His teams, from a small school and often not tall nor quick, were characterized by his particular brand of disciplined offense and tenacious defense. Following his high school stint he came to Weber State where for the past 32 seasons he has been the chief assistant. He has headed up the recruiting program, formulated the defense, and built an ongoing program with the junior varsity teams. Most of the present Wildcat players are McCarthy recruits. McCarthy is widely respected in the coaching community and has had several articles published in national coaching magazines. He selected as a new assistant football coach at Weber State College. Hancock will assume duties on March 1, and his primary coaching responsibility will be in the defensive secondary. “‘T am very happy to have Brent join us on the staff,” said head coach Dick Gwinn in making the announcement of Hancock’s appointment. ‘‘Brent is an excellent on-the-field coach who has proven himself at all levels. He has excellent rapport with athletes. It also adds an important dimension to have him be from his area and with his background at Weber State.” Hancock graduated from Ogden High School and attained an Associate Degree from Weber Junior College in 1968. He at- remains game an avid student of the and continues his research and experimentation into all phases of the sport. Since taking over the head job at Weber State, McCarthy’s teams have won three of their last five games and have moved from last into a solid tie for the fourth place spot in the Big Sky Conference. They are responsible for pulling off the major upset of the year in the league, a 67-59 beating of defending champion Idaho State. It is the only game that the Bengals have lost in Pocatello this season. ‘“‘There are a number of things that I would like to change,”’ Neil stated shortly after being given his new position. ‘Unfortunately, the middle of the season is not the time to make wholesale changes. We will concentrate on our attitude and in executing properly the things we have been doing all year.”’ One of his first actions as new head coach was to hire as his assistant Frank Evans, serving assistant as an who was at the tended Brigham Young University for one year and finished up at Weber State, graduating in 1965. He has furthered his education with graduate work at Utah State, Brigham Young, and the University of Utah. While Junior College an athlete at Weber, season, and Frank is ad- | mirably situated to help us obtain them.” he was an all-conference performer during Weber’s junior college days, and he had the distinction of winning the Standard Examiner gold watch award symbolizing the outstanding student-athlete twice, once in junior college and once as a senior college performer. Hancock’s coaching history has been one of continued success. From 1965 through 1967 he was coach at Wahlquist Junior High The new 29-year old assistant coach was an outstanding basket- ball player at Humboldt State where he graduated in 1968. He also attained a Master’s degree at Eastern Illinois University. His total career coaching mark is 118 wins and 57 losses. Included in this record are five teams which | compiled the best record in their school’s history under his leadership. He has coached at Assumption © Junior College in North Dakota and for two years was head coach at the University of Winnipeg in Canada. He was also player-coach on the Canadian National Men’s Team which toured Mexico, Cuba, and Central America. For the past two seasons he has been an assistant at UOP where his major duties were concerned with scouting and recruiting and with the JV program. Like McCarthy, Evans is highly respected in the field and has been published extensively. Besides several magazine articles, he is presently writing a book on basketball fundamentals for Parker Publishing Company. School where he won two county football championships and a baseball crown. In 1968 he begana four-year stint as assistant football coach at Bonneville High School and for the past three years has been the head football coach of the Lakers. During his tenure at Bonneville, the Lakers | have won four region cham-| pionships and qualified five times for the state playoffs. He has been named Region I) Coach-of-the-Year and was selected to coach the north squad at the Utah High School All-Star football game last year. His wife Diane is a former Weber College cheer leader, and the couple have two sons, Troy and Curt. _ Coach Neil McCarthy ranks. Dick Motta, Wildcat men- is the coach of the second-place team that is pushing Motta’s Bulls the hardest. A likely candidate for Coach-of-the-Year honors in the professional circuit, Johnson was head coach at Weber State for three seasons, winning conference championships each year and compiling a fantastic overall record of 68-16. the pointment became effective in late February, although he plans on remaining in California until after the basketball recruiting season is over. “Frank is a highly qualified coach with an outstanding background in both coaching and recruiting,’ McCarthy stated of his new assistant. “He has extensive knowledge of the California area, both junior college and high school, which will be especially beneficial to Weber State since this is our prime recruiting area. Our needs are for a couple of ‘pure’ shooters for Neil McCarthy has some big shoes to fill. The likeable 35-year old assistant coach became the head man of the Weber State basketball program on Jan. 24, when Gene Visscher, citing his inability to relate to the team, stepped down. In action taken by the Weber State Institutional Council on Feb. 19, McCarthy was assured that he would remain at the post through the 1975-76 season as well. In becoming the fourth basketball coach in the 13-year history of Weber State, McCarthy inherits a winning tradition and a job that has historically been a major stepping-stone in the coaching tor for six seasons as a four-year school, is presently one of the most successful coaches in the National Basketball Association, with his Chicago Bulls leading the pack in the league’s toughest division. of California.