Eastern Washington University Athletics

Passionately involved for 26 years as a player, coach and administrator, the name Dick Zornes is synonymous with Eastern Football. From Eastern Washington State College to Eastern Washington University . . . from Savages to Eagles . . . from NAIA to NCAA Division I-AA . . . and from zero wins to national prominence, Zornes played with, coached and watched hundreds of football players in Cheney. Zornes began his playing career at Eastern in 1963 after graduating in 1962 from Hudson's Bay High School in Vancouver, Wash. He played four years as a strong safety and fullback, including in 1965 and 1966 when the team lost just one game each. He was a first team All-Evergreen Conference selection in 1965 and a second team pick in 1966. He also earned All-NAIA District 1 accolades as a junior. In 1962 Eastern was winless, and by 1967 the school was playing for a national championship. A student assistant coach on that squad, Zornes helped the Savages and head coach Dave Holmes win 11-straight games before losing to Fairmont State in the NAIA championship game. He would return in 1971 as a graduate assistant coach, then again in 1979 as head coach as the Eagles began their rise from NAIA to NCAA Division I-AA and membership in the Big Sky Conference. In 15 seasons at the helm, Zornes had an 89-66-2 record with a Big Sky Conference Championship in 1992 and NCAA Division I-AA Playoff berths in 1985 and 1992. His 1985 team beat Idaho in the I-AA Playoffs before finishing 9-3. In 1992 he was selected as the Big Sky Conference Coach of the Year, and in 1985 and 1992 he was the Inland Empire Coach of the Year as selected by the Spokane Sportswriters and Broadcasters. As an administrator, Eastern teams won 30 more games in five seasons with a Big Sky championship and a "Final Four" appearance in the NCAA Division I-AA Playoffs in 1997. In his 26 years of affiliation with Eastern Football, the school was 158-112-3 for a winning percentage of 58.4 percent in that span of 273 games. Zornes was one of the 13 defensive backs on Eastern's "100 for 100" All-Time Football Team released in June 2008 by the EWU Athletic Department. The overall "100 for 100" squad consisted of 100 of the top players in school history to help commemorate the 100th year of football at Eastern. Players were honored on Eastern Athletics Hall of Fame Day on Sept. 27, 2008, in conjunction with EWU's Big Sky Conference football game with Idaho State.