Former Steelers coach Bill Cowher will be inducted into the NC State Wolfpack Football's Ring of Honor this year.
Cowher, who was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2020, will be honored when NC State plays Louisville on Friday, Sept. 29.
Cowher played at NC State where he was a star linebacker for the Wolfpack from 1975-78. He currently ranks seventh in school history with 371 career tackles and his 195 tackles in 1978 is a school single-season record.
"Bill Cowher has left an indelible mark on the game of football and is certainly beloved by Wolfpack Nation," said Boo Corrigan, the school's Director of Athletics. "It is an absolute privilege to recognize his remarkable contributions and celebrate his outstanding career."
Following a five year playing career and coaching stints with the Cleveland Browns and Kansas City Chiefs, Cowher became the 15th coach in Steelers history on Jan. 21, 1992 when he was hired to replace Chuck Noll as the second man to hold that job since the 1970 NFL-AFL merger.
In Cowher's rookie season as coach, he took what had been a talented team that finished a disappointing 7-9 in 1991 and turned it into an 11-5 AFC Central Division champion that entered those playoffs as the AFC's No. 1 seed. In Cowher's 15 seasons as coach, the Steelers won eight division titles, made the playoffs 10 times during which they participated in 21 playoff games. Those 21 playoff games included six appearances in AFC Championship Games and two trips to the Super Bowl, in which the Steelers were 1-1.
Cowher finished his career as one of only six coaches in NFL history with at least seven division titles, and he joined Paul Brown as the only coaches in history to take their teams to the playoffs in each of their first six years as coach.
"What a tremendous honor it is to be inducted to the Ring of Honor in Carter-Finley Stadium," said Cowher. "It is a legendary list of past honorees. I came to NC State as a boy from Crafton, PA, and left four years later a man. Thanks to the tutelage and guidance of so many - Lou Holtz, Bo Rein and Chuck Amato, to name a few. This is a very special recognition."
