[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 166 (Monday, November 17, 2003)]
[House]
[Pages H11187-H11188]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  CONGRATULATING JOHN GAGLIARDI ON OCCASION OF HIS BECOMING ALL-TIME 
            WINNINGEST COACH IN COLLEGIATE FOOTBALL HISTORY

  Mr. KLINE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the 
resolution (H. Res. 438) congratulating John Gagliardi, football coach 
of St. John's University, on the occasion of his becoming the all-time 
winningest coach in collegiate football history.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                              H. Res. 438

       Whereas John Gagliardi began his coaching career in 1943 at 
     the age of 16 when his high school football coach was drafted 
     and John Gagliardi asked to take over his position;
       Whereas John Gagliardi won four conference titles during 
     the six years he coached high school football;
       Whereas John Gagliardi graduated from Colorado College in 
     1949 and began coaching football, basketball, and baseball at 
     Carroll College in Helena, Montana, winning titles in all 
     three sports;
       Whereas John Gagliardi took over the football program at 
     St. John's University in Collegeville, Minnesota, in 1953 and 
     the football team won the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic 
     Conference title in his first year as coach;
       Whereas by the end of the 2002 season, John Gagliardi had 
     won three national championships, coached 25 conference title 
     teams, appeared in 45 post-season games and compiled a 400-
     114-11 record during his 50 years at St. John's University;
       Whereas under the leadership of John Gagliardi, St. John's 
     University has been nationally ranked 37 times in the past 39 
     years, and the university set a record with a 61.5 points per 
     game average in 1993;
       Whereas over 150 students participate in the St. John's 
     University football program each year and every player 
     dresses for home games;
       Whereas John Gagliardi's coaching methods follow the 
     ``Winning with No's'' theory: no blocking sleds or dummies, 
     no whistles, no tackling in practices, no athletic 
     scholarships, and no long practices;
       Whereas John Gagliardi has coached over 5,000 players 
     during his 50 years at St. John's University, and no player 
     has failed to graduate and most have graduated in four years;
       Whereas, in 1993, the John Gagliardi trophy was unveiled, 
     and it is given each year to the most outstanding Division 
     III football player;
       Whereas on November 1, 2003, John Gagliardi tied Grambling 
     University coach Eddie Robinson's record of 408 wins with a 
     15 to 12 victory over the University of St. Thomas;
       Whereas on November 8, 2003, John Gagliardi broke Eddie 
     Robinson's record with a 29 to 26 victory over Bethel 
     College;
       Whereas John Gagliardi is admired by his players, as well 
     as by the students, faculty, and fans of St. John's 
     University for his ability to motivate and inspire;
       Whereas students who take his course, Theory of Football, 
     credit John Gagliardi for teaching them more about life than 
     about football;
       Whereas those closest to John Gagliardi will tell you that 
     football is only part of his life--he values the time he 
     spends with Peg, his wife of 47 years, and their four 
     children; and
       Whereas the on- and off-the-field accomplishments of John 
     Gagliardi have placed him in an elite club that includes the 
     best coaches in history: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the House of Representatives congratulates 
     John Gagliardi, football coach of St. John's University in 
     Collegeville, Minnesota, on becoming the all-time winningest 
     coach in collegiate football history.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Minnesota (Mr. Kline) and the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Woolsey) 
each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Kline).


                             General Leave

  Mr. KLINE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks on 
H. Res. 438.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Minnesota?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. KLINE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of House Resolution 438. I would 
like to thank my colleague, the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Kennedy), 
for bringing this resolution forward. Mr. Speaker, this resolution 
recognizes the achievement of Coach John Gagliardi of St. John's 
University for becoming the all-time winningest coach in collegiate 
football history.
  Coach Gagliardi--John to his players, colleagues and friends--has 
long been a force in college athletics and in life. In his 51 years at 
St. Johns, John has found great success on the field, leading St. 
John's to 23 conference titles and the winningest record in Division 
III history.
  His performance as a coach is impressive, but it tells only one side 
of the story of this great man. John has invested in thousands of lives 
over his career in the coaching business. The success earned by the St. 
John's team reflects the dedication he inspires in each player. John's 
investment in these young lives is, to him, the most important 
contribution he can make, and to them the most important reward they 
will receive.
  I extend my congratulations to Coach John Gagliardi on this important 
day for him and for the St. John's community. I am happy to join my 
colleagues in honoring a great man and wishing him continued success.
  I ask my colleagues to support this resolution.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. WOOLSEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H. Res. 438. This resolution honors 
John Gagliardi, the football coach at St. Johns University. Coach 
Gagliardi is the winningest coach in college football history. This 
month he overtook the legendary Eddie Robinson by winning the 409th 
football game of his career. This record puts Coach Gagliardi at the 
very top of his profession. It should come as no surprise that the 
students, the student athletes, the faculty and fans of St. John's 
University greatly admire Coach Gagliardi. Fortunately, we are not only 
honoring Coach Gagliardi for his winning ways but also his commitment 
to his school, his team and, most importantly, his players and their 
education.
  Coach Gagliardi has coached over 5,000 players during his 50 years at 
St. John's. Over that time, none of his players have failed to graduate 
and most have graduated within 4 years.

                              {time}  2000

  This is an amazing feat in today's world of college athletes. Coach 
Gagliardi more than deserves the honor we are bestowing on him today. 
Mr. Speaker, I urge all Members of the House to support this 
resolution.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. KLINE. Mr. Speaker, I yield 10 minutes to the gentleman from 
Minnesota (Mr. Kennedy).
  Mr. KENNEDY of Minnesota. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for 
yielding me this time, and I rise today to honor St. John's 
University's Coach John Gagliardi for becoming the winningest college 
football coach ever. After beating archrival St. Thomas to tie Eddie 
Robinson's record of 408 wins at Grambling, Coach Gagliardi's Johnnies 
set a new record by defeating nationally ranked Bethel in a hard-fought 
game before over 13,000 fans in the natural bowl of Clemens Stadium. 
That is quite a crowd, since the stadium only seats 5,500.
  As a graduate of St. John's, I was honored to be able to join John at 
the White House today where the President rightly praised both his 
achievement and his character. Both St. John's University and Coach 
John Gagliardi are quite special; and as one might expect from a 
relationship stretching over half a century, they are special for many 
of the same reasons. Indeed, the similarities begin with both the 
university and the coach being named ultimately after St. John.
  St. John's, with 1,900 male students, is one of the oldest 
universities in the State of Minnesota, having been founded by 
Benedictine monks in 1856. It sits on a beautiful campus of 2,400 acres

[[Page H11188]]

with four lakes on campus. Their sister school, St. Benedict's, with 
2,000 students, was founded by Benedictine nuns in 1913.
  The Benedictines live according to the Rule of St. Benedict with an 
emphasis on faithfulness, community, study, work, prayer, and humility. 
They have infused these values into the culture of St. John's and St. 
Ben's as well. Community is important to Johnnie and Bennie alumni, who 
are among the most loyal anywhere.
  Coach Gagliardi has personified these values. After coaching 4 years 
at Carroll College in Helena, Montana, John has coached at St. John's 
for the last 51 seasons. That record of faithfulness has been matched 
with 47 years of marriage to the partner of his life, his wife, Peggy.
  The Gagliardi family has been intertwined with the St. John's 
community. They live on campus, and all four of their children have 
attended St. John's or St. Ben's. I attended St. John's with their son 
John, Jr. Their son Jim is one of St. John's assistant coaches and 
joined him today at the White House. Since he is assistant coach there 
at St. John's, the President said that he appreciated sons following in 
their father's footsteps.
  Consistent with John's commitment to community, he cuts no one from 
games, from coming out for football, and over 150 players regularly 
suit up for home games. In fact, St. John's was recently penalized for 
having two players with the same number on the field, a penalty few 
teams ever have to worry about. And while Gagliardi is acclaimed for 
his perennial success on the football field, he is equally loved and 
admired at St. John's for his commitment to making sure that his 
players get a quality education.
  Consistent with his commitment to study, I am proud to say that no 
player has ever failed to graduate in John's over a half century of 
coaching. Every class of graduating football players includes those who 
go on to graduate, law, or medical school. St. John's and St. Ben's, 
which are ranked as among the best Catholic national liberal arts 
colleges in the country by ``U.S. News and World Report,'' match 
Gagliardi's commitment to educational excellence. The Benedictine monks 
have long stressed work and in their early days were almost entirely 
self-sufficient, growing and building most of what they needed. Coach 
Gagliardi's personal work ethic is reflected in his intent to continue 
coaching even after he has achieved this important milestone.
  Yet John has a nontraditional view towards work in the form of 
practice. His practices involve no blocking sleds, no dummies, no 
whistles, no pads, no tackling, and no mandatory weight training. John 
does not conduct spring practices, and he gives his team the day off if 
it is too cold, too hot, or there are too many mosquitos, as is often 
the case in Minnesota.
  But where Gagliardi asks his players to work is on game day. They 
work and they win. In over 55 years of coaching, he has now had 410 
wins and only 114 losses. My son Peter recently commented that it is 
impossible to be a fair-weather fan of St. John's because they always 
win. Gagliardi's teams have won 26 conference titles, appeared in 45 
post-season games, and won three national championships. Their most 
recent national championship was in 1976, while I was a student at St. 
John's, when they beat Towson State of Maryland, a school 10 times its 
size.
  Playing bigger schools is not unusual for St. John's with its 1,900 
students. I fondly remember sitting at a playoff game with St. John's 
president, Brother Dietrich Reinhart, in Dayton, Ohio, against the 
University of Dayton. They were playing St. John's in football, but 
Michigan State in basketball that evening.
  According to St. John's folklore, prayer is vitally important to 
their football success. The St. John's abbey is the largest Benedictine 
abbey in the world. As the saying goes, if the team gets it close, they 
will pray it in.

  Despite John's unmatched record of success, he remains amongst the 
most humble people one will ever meet. His news director, Michael 
Hemisch, has a hard time getting him to speak to the press. John avoids 
the limelight and wears a coat during games that everyone is happy to 
see has now been contributed to the College Football Hall of Fame, so 
he will not wear it anymore. But he said it is the only coat that will 
keep him warm enough for Minnesota falls.
  Some were surprised that he accepted President Bush's invitation to 
come to the White House today. When the press asked him what was the 
secret of his success, he answered: talented players, luck, and 
prayers.
  Certainly, the many players that have played for Coach Gagliardi 
should be congratulated on this achievement. John took no credit for 
himself but would be happy to ascribe some of the credit to his current 
coaching staff and his coaching staff over the years, three of whom 
joined him: his son Jim, Jerry Haugen, and Gary Fasching. He would also 
give credit to the monks, including athletic director Father Tim 
Backous, who joined him as well at the White House. Father Tim and I 
sang together at men's chorus at St. John's. And John likes to joke 
that the monks said they would always be with him, win or tie.
  Though John is humble, my fellow alumni at St. John's and St. Ben's, 
including 13 of my family members, have great pride not just in his 
success as the winningest college football coach ever but the way his 
life has modeled the Benedictine values of faithfulness, community, 
study, work, prayer, and humility.
  I appreciated the Johnnies who joined John at the White House and the 
many that came out to the reception this afternoon here in Washington 
to honor John, including Senator Dave Durenberger; Al Eisele, editor of 
``The Hill,'' David Rehr from the Beer Wholesalers; and Tom Super, 
whose wife, Kathy, works for President Bush, Sr.
  I encourage my fellow Members to join me in honoring his achievement.
  Ms. WOOLSEY. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I 
yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. KLINE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  I thank the gentlewoman for her very kind remarks on this occasion, 
and I thank the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Kennedy) for bringing 
this forward. I encourage all of my colleagues to vote for this, with a 
hearty congratulations to Coach John Gagliardi.
  Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back 
the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Neugebauer). The question is on the 
motion offered by the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Kline) that the 
House suspend the rules and agree to the resolution, H. Res. 438.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the resolution was agreed to.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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