Dartmouth coach Buddy Teevens, a nationally known advocate for implementing measures to decrease head injuries in football, died Tuesday following injuries from a bicycle accident in March. He was 66 years old.
“Our family is heartbroken to inform you that our beloved ‘coach’ has peacefully passed away surrounded by family. Unfortunately, the injuries he sustained proved too challenging for even him to overcome,” the Teevens family said in a statement released by the school. “Throughout this journey, we consistently relayed the thoughts, memories, and love sent his way. Your kindness and letters of encouragement did not go unnoticed and were greatly appreciated by both Buddy and our family.
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“We are confident and take comfort in the fact that he passed away knowing how much he was loved and admired.”
Teevens, a native of Pembroke, Mass., had his right leg amputated earlier this year and suffered spinal cord injuries after he was struck by a pickup truck on the evening of March 16 while riding a bicycle with his wife on a road in St. Augustine, Fla. He was trying to cross a roadway at the time, the police report said. The report also noted there were "no illuminated lights" observed on the bicycle, that Teevens "was not in a crosswalk or designated crossing area" and he was not wearing a helmet.
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Dartmouth officials issued a statement Tuesday mourning the loss of the longtime football coach.
“This is tragic news for Dartmouth and the entire football world,” President Sian Leah Beilock and Mike Harrity, the Haldeman Family Director of Athletics and Recreation, said in an email to the Dartmouth community. “Buddy not only was synonymous with Dartmouth football, he was a beloved coach and an innovative, inspirational leader who helped shape the lives of generations of students.”
“Buddy’s wife, Kirsten Teevens, their children Lindsay and Buddy Jr., and their four grandchildren are in our thoughts and have our deepest sympathy,” they added, noting that the longtime football coach had welcomed them both to campus with warmth and enthusiasm when their appointments were announced last year. “We know the greater Dartmouth athletic family will join the Teevens family in mourning the loss of this vibrant, energetic, visionary man.”
Harrity and interim head coach Sammy McCorkle met with the football team after practice Tuesday to share the news of Teevens' passing.
Teevens was an Ivy League Player of the Year as quarterback at Dartmouth and later became the football program's winningest coach. He became known nationally for his practice methods to protect players from concussions. Known as the "Dartmouth Way," traditional tackling dummies and robotic "moving" dummies developed in Dartmouth's engineering school are used to practice tackling.
He also hired Callie Brownson, the first full-time female Division 1 football coach, now the assistant wide receivers coach for the NFL's Cleveland Browns.
About a month after his accident, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell recognized Teevens at the NFL draft, saying, “His impact both on college football and the NFL has been enormous. He has been a leader in making our game safer through breakthrough innovations. He is a pioneer in hiring female coaches, two of whom are currently coaching in the NFL.”
Teevens' record at Dartmouth was 117-101-2, and he was honored as the New England Coach of the Year three times, in 1999, 2015 and 2019, and Ivy League Coach of the Year in 2019 and 2021.
The Dartmouth football team will play this weekend's game as scheduled, hosting Lehigh University at home on Saturday at 1:30 p.m. There will be a moment of silence before the game and a gathering of remembrance afterward. Dartmouth also said it also plans to honor Teevens' legacy in the coming weeks and months, with input from his family.
Just last week, the eight Ivy League football teams announced they will wear a decal with Teevens' initials on their helmets this fall.
