ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, November 21, 1996 TAG: 9611210030
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DANIEL UTHMAN STAFF WRITER
JOE BUSH wishes to devote more time to his duties as Hampden-Sydney's AD.
A day after Lou Holtz resigned as the football coach at Notre Dame, Hampden-Sydney coach Joe Bush stepped down citing similar reasons.
``It's the right time to do this,'' Bush said.
Specifically, Bush wants to devote more time to his athletic director duties, which he assumed in 1992. He said he will stop coaching American football and begin watching more of what the rest of the world calls football - soccer. Bush, a 1961 graduate of William Fleming High School and a 1965 VMI graduate, also said he told his wife, Kitty, that next fall will be the first time in 27 years he can take her up to the Blue Ridge Parkway.
Hampden-Sydney's recent record made Bush's decision easier. The Tigers finished last in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference and haven't had a winning season since 1993.
``From a football standpoint, we've struggled the last couple years,'' he said. ``We need a change.''
Bush, a former VMI assistant coach, called his decision a good career move and a good move for his department. He steps aside with a 61-48-1 record in 11 seasons, two ODAC Coach of the Year awards and one ODAC title. He will continue to chair the Division III football committee through 1999.
Like Holtz, he did not say he would never coach again. But Bush said that is where the coincidence ends.
``I'm not coming away with a big bundle of money like he is,'' Bush joked.
LENGTH: Short : 36 linesby CNB