Dick MacPherson, a former Syracuse football coach who led the Orange to five bowl games in 10 seasons as head coach, including an undefeated season in 1987, died Tuesday of natural causes. He was 86.
Known as “Coach Mac,” the 2009 College Football Hall of Fame inductee took the helm at SU in 1981. He compiled a 66-46-4 (.586) overall record, including a 3-1-1 mark in bowl games. Syracuse was ranked as high as fourth in a national poll during his tenure.
MacPherson, a Korean War veteran, is known for catapulting the Syracuse program into national prominence, which extended beyond his time as coach, into the 1990s.