University of Richmond Athletics
Reid Named State Coach of the Year
02/14/2001 | Football
December 10, 2000
UNIVERSITY OF RICHMOND, Va. - University of Richmond head football coach Jim Reid was named Coach ofthe Year in Division I in the state of Virginia by the Virginia Sports Information Directors (VaSID). Senior offensive lineman Eric Beatty and junior defensive lineman Josh Spraker were named to the Division I All-State Football Team.
The Spiders completed the 2000 campaign with a 10-3 mark, setting a school record for wins in a season. Richmond won a share of the Atlantic 10 championship and earned an at-large bid to the NCAA I-AA Playoffs. The Spiders were the #8 seed and defeated #9 seed Youngstown State 10-3 in the first round of the playoffs. Richmond lost in the quarterfinals at top-seeded Montana 34-20. The Spiders were ranked #6 in the final Sports Network poll, their highest final ranking in school history.
Reid was also State Coach of the Year in 1998. He earned conference Coach of the Year honors for the fifth time in his 12 years as a head coach and for the third time in his six-year tenure with the Spiders. Reid was Yankee Conference Coach of the Year in 1988 and 1990 at Massachusetts and in 1995 at Richmond. He was Atlantic 10 Coach of the Year in 1998 as well as this season. Reid has a 38-28-1 mark in his six years at Richmond and a 74-57-3 record in 12 seasons as a head coach.
A native of North Easton, Mass. and a 1996 graduate of Oliver Ames High School, Beatty was a captain for the Spiders this season. He was named to the Coaches All-America Team and was selected Second Team All-America by Associated Press and by The Sports Network. He was named First Team All-Atlantic 10 for the second consecutive year. Beatty was first team all-conference as a junior and third team as a sophomore. He was named to the Atlantic 10 All-Academic Team. Beatty (6-4, 295) anchored an offensive line that set a school record with 2,932 rushing yards during the regular season. The Spiders led the Atlantic 10 and were 10th in the nation in rushing offense, averaging 266.5 yards per game on the ground. Richmond led the league in time of possession (34:58) and Spider quarterbacks were sacked just eight times this season, the top mark in the conference.
Spraker is a native of Harmony, Pa. and a 1997 graduate of Seneca Valley High School. He was named Second Team All-America by Associated Press. Spraker was First Team All-Atlantic 10 and was named to the Academic All-Conference team. Spraker (6-2, 255) was fourth on the team with 80 tackles and had 40 unassisted tackles. He led the Spiders and was fourth in the Atlantic 10 with 16 tackles for loss. Spraker was second on the team and sixth in the league with 6.5 quarterback sacks. He also has one interception, two forced fumbles, six pass breakups and 17 quarterback hurries.
