Published: February 14, 2006 12:32 am            

Sycamores name Blair Hrovat new football offensive coordinator

Blair Hrovat was announced Monday as the new offensive coordinator for the Indiana State University football team, which could add a few new wrinkles to the spread offense the Sycamores used last fall.

“We’ll still be a spread offense, but that’s defined differently for different people,” Hrovat — who has his own Web site promoting the wing-T offense — told the Tribune-Star on Monday afternoon. “I’ll just try to help build on what I think is a good foundation. I saw some very good things happening on offense here.”

“I think he’ll be a great addition for us,” Coach Lou West said. “He brings stability and continuity.”

Hrovat replaces former offensive coordinator Charley Molnar, who left in mid-December to become receivers coach at Central Michigan.

“I interviewed [Hrovat] for the same job last year,” West said Monday, “and he came in second. Charley and I had coached together before.

“But some of the things he wanted to do and some of the things I wanted to do [offensively] seemed to mesh,” the Sycamore coach added.

“It always is a major advantage when you can get someone with previous head coaching experience on your staff.”

Hrovat was offensive coordinator and quarterback coach at San Francisco State for three years, and assistant head coach and offensive coordinator at the University of South Dakota from 1992-98, leading an offense that broke 10 school records in his seven seasons.

He then was head coach at Allegheny College from 1998 to 2002, compiling a 26-14 record in the Division III ranks. His teams averaged more than 35 points and 435 yards per game, broke 15 team records and had the school’s all-time rushing, scoring, receiving and touchdown reception leaders during his stay.

He resigned from Allegheny following the 2002 season because of a discrepancy on his academic resume.

He is a 2003 graduate of Edinboro University, where he was elected to the school’s athletics hall of fame in 2005. As a quarterback there, he ranked second in the nation among Division II quarterbacks in passing, throwing for 49 touchdowns during his senior season, and was named the school’s top senior athlete in 1984.

“I’d like to put that behind me,” Hrovat said Monday when asked about his absence from coaching. “I didn’t have to take a single class, just complete some paperwork [to get his 2003 degree]. The situation was a mistake which I addressed.

“My career has been successful wherever I’ve been,” he concluded, “and I’m excited to get started [at Indiana State].”



Sports Editor Todd Golden contributed to this report.

        

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