Tradition and excellence are synonymous words used to describe the Pittsburg State University football program. Those same words clearly defined the coaching tenure of former Gorillas head football coach Dennis Franchione.
 
The Pitt State and MIAA Hall of Fame coach passed away following a courageous battle with cancer Tuesday (Oct. 6). He was 75. Memorial services will be held Monday, Oct., 19, 2026, at 2 p.m. at The Worship Place, 811 Sun City Blvd, Georgetown, Texas. [Click Here for Obituary]
 
Widely regarded throughout the sport as one of the game's great offensive minds, Franchione's 40-year college coaching career was highlighted by leading teams to nine conference titles, four NCAA Division I bowl victories, and five NAIA and NCAA Division II postseason playoff berths. His 30-year tenure as a head coach started at Pittsburg State in 1985 an ended at (Southwest) Texas State in 2015. He compiled a 213-135-2 career record.
 
"We lost one of the greats today," Pitt State president Thomas Newsom said Tuesday. "Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and all those in Gorilla Nation and across the country whose lives he touched."
 
Coach Fran returned to his alma mater to become the school's 12^th head football coach in 1985, after serving as offensive coordinator for two years at Tennessee Tech University. He inherited a Pitt State program seeking to return to its historic past glory after the Gorillas had posted 6-4 and 5-4 records the previous two seasons. And that's exactly what he did.
 
During his five seasons leading the Gorillas, from 1985 to 1989, coach Fran led Pitt State to an amazing 53-6 record, including a 37-1 mark in conference play. He guided the Gorillas to five straight conference titles – four in the Central States Intercollegiate Conference and the final one in the MIAA - and five consecutive trips to the national playoffs.
 
He twice was named NAIA National Coach of the Year and he tied the school record with 11 victories three times – in 1986, 1987 and 1988 – before leading the Gorillas to a new program record 12 wins in Pitt State's first season as a member of the MIAA and NCAA Division II in 1989.
 
"Dennis Franchione understood winning!" said former Pitt State All-America offensive lineman Sam Valentini, who played on Coach Fran's first two Gorillas squads in 1985 and 1986. "Work hard on and off the field; recruit young men with some talent that are willing to be coached up! They call that a winning attitude.
 
"There have been several former players who went on to coach high school and college football. Everyone brought a piece of Fran's attention to detail and hard work to build that winning attitude."
 
His 1986, 1987 and 1988 squads all posted 11-1 records and all reached the semifinals of the NAIA national playoffs. In 1989, the Gorillas handled the transition from the NAIA to NCAA Division II in grand fashion, posting an undefeated regular season that included a sweep of MIAA competition as well as a 34-13 road win over NCAA Division I member Arkansas State on Nov. 4.
 
Coach Fran's 1986 and 1987 squads led NAIA Division I in scoring, rushing and total offense both seasons. The 1986 team, which advanced to the national semifinals before falling to Cameron University, 17-6, at Lawton, Okla., averaged 43.5 points, 387.5 rushing yards and 490.7 total yards. The 1987 team, which ultimately fell in the national semifinals, 20-10, in Pittsburg to Cameron, posted division leading totals of 47.1 points, 438.4 rushing yards and 517.0 total yards.
 
On the other side of the ball, his 1987 squad also led the NAIA by allowing just 7.4 points and 63.2 rushing yards per game.
 
Following the 1989 season in which Pitt State advanced to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Division II playoffs, before falling to Angelo State, 24-21, in Pittsburg, Coach Fran accepted the head coaching job at NCAA Division I Southwest Texas State.
  John Roderique came to Pitt State as a freshman in 1985 and wrapped up his stellar linebacking career as the school's all-time tackles leader and a Kodak All-America selection as a redshirt senior in 1989. He served on the Pitt State coaching staff for seven seasons (1990-96), before embarking upon one of the most decorated high school coaching careers for his alma mater, Webb City (Mo.) High School. His 26-year tenure at WCHS produced 15 state title appearances, 13 state championships, 22 straight district crowns and multiple conference championships.
 
"Coach Fran's impact on Pitt State went far beyond football," Roderique said. "He established a standard of excellence, toughness, discipline and pride that became part of the Gorilla identity. He influenced countless players, showing them not only how to play the game, but how to lead and influence others, especially those who went on to become coaches. His legacy lives on through the players and coaches who carry those lessons forward.
 
"I feel fortunate to have been one of those influenced by the standard Coach Fran set. He didn't just coach football at Pitt State—he helped shape what it meant to be a Gorilla, and the foundation he built continues to be felt today."
 
Chuck Broyles served two years under Franchione as defensive coordinator, in 1988-89, and assumed the head coaching responsibility at his alma mater upon Coach Fran's departure for Texas.
 
Broyles led the Gorillas to a 12-1 record and a semifinal finish in the 1990 NCAA Division II playoffs, with the Gorillas falling to eventual national champion North Dakota State. His 1991 squad overcame injuries and a 2-1-1 start to the year to win their final 11 games and capture the school's first NCAA national crown. Broyles' decorated 20-year tenure as head coach included 198 victories, the '91 national title, three national runner-up finishes (1992, 1995, 2004) and nine MIAA Championships.
 
Broyles counts himself among Coach Fran's earliest friends, with each growing up in the area and playing baseball for the Mulberry Mules long before the duo launched their coaching careers.
 
"Fran and I have always been friends," Broyles said. "We had great years coaching together and stayed in touch through the years. He was a really hard worker, and he expected the same from everyone around him. He loved the competition. We had great times together."
 
Following PSU, Coach Fran spent two seasons in San Marcos, Texas and began a highly successful 23-year odyssey in the NCAA Division I coaching ranks. He continued his career at New Mexico, from 1992 to 1997; TCU, from 1998 to 2000; Alabama in 2001 and 2002; and Texas A&M, from 2003 to 2007; before returning to Texas State (formerly Southwest Texas State) for a second stint, from 2011 to 2015.
 
Coach Fran led New Mexico for six seasons, twice earning WAC Coach of the Year honors (1993, 1997). His 1997 squad posted a 9-4 record, securing the Lobos the WAC Mountain Division crown and a berth in the Insight.com Bowl, the program's first bowl appearance since 1961.
 
In 1998, Coach Fran led a TCU squad that went 1-10 the year before to a 7-5 record that included a Sun Bowl victory over USC to punctuate the turnaround. His 2000 TCU squad ended the season 10-2 and ranked No. 21 in the AP Top 25, the program's first appearance in the final poll since 1959. The Horned Frogs won a pair of conference titles and made bowl appearances in each of his three seasons in Fort Worth.
 
In 2002, Coach Fran guided Alabama to a 10-3 record, finishing first in the SEC West. The Crimson Tide, serving out sanctions for violations committed by the previous coaching staff, were ineligible for postseason play that year.
 
Coach Fran directed Texas A&M to a Cotton Bowl berth in 2004 and a Holiday Bowl appearance in 2006, when the Aggies finished with a 9-4 overall record. He spent three years in broadcasting, between 2008 and 2010, before closing out his coaching career by returning to San Marcos to coach Texas State in 2011. He retired from the game following the 2015 campaign.
 
Tim Beck played for Coach Fran as a defensive back in 1985 and 1986. He served as a graduate assistant coach in 1987 and 1988 before being hired full-time by his mentor in 1989.
 
Beck then served 20 years as an assistant under Broyles, from 1990 to 2009, before ascending to the head coach role himself in 2010. His 10-year tenure as head coach (2010-19) was highlighted by capturing the 2011 NCAA Division II National Championship and multiple Division II Coach of the Year accolades that year.
 
"As a player, I vividly remember Coach Fran's organization and his vision for what he wanted our program to look like," Beck said. "He was ahead of his time in so many aspects of the game. I remember so many former players at Pitt State saying that about Carnie Smith back in the 1950s and 1960s; and I certainly feel the same way about Coach Fran. He was very innovative. He wanted his teams to have fun, but be very businesslike on the field. Coach Fran coached a tough, physical style of football."
 
Beck, a Broyles Award national semifinalist each of the past two seasons, is currently in his third year as offensive coordinator at Vanderbilt in the SEC. After leaving Pitt State he served under former Coach Fran protégés Gary Patterson, as an offensive analyst at TCU (2021), and Jerry Kill, as offensive coordinator at New Mexico State (2022, 2023), before joining Clark Lea's staff in Nashville in December 2023.
 
"I just feel very fortunate to have been part of the Pittsburg State coaching tree from Fran to Coach Broyles; and with Coach Kill and Gary Patterson who also coached under Coach Fran. They all are coaches who have been so successful. I just feel really blessed to be part of his coaching tree."