Dal Shealy was born on August 1, 1938, and he attended high school in Batesburg-Leesville, South Carolina. Shealy was a three sport athlete in high school and earned four varsity letters in each sport. He attended and played football for Carson-Newman College, and he eventually went on to serve his country in the Marines, where he continued playing football. After he left the military, Shealy began his coaching career. He went on to earn Coach of the Year in both 1971 and 1972 and took Carson-Newman to the NAIA championship in 1972.

He helped reinstate the football programs at Mars Hill and Carson-Newman and was later the head coach with the University of Richmond. He also served as Assistant Head Coach and Offensive Coordinator at Baylor, Tennessee, Auburn, and Iowa State. Dal was a pioneer in coaching and football his entire career even developing some of the concepts and techniques now used in the popular spread offense.

In 1989 Dal Shealy joined the FCA in its infancy and helped establish the organization as an international juggernaut. He served as President from 1992 until 2005. Accompanying his long list of accomplishments is Mr. Shealy’s literary success. He has written several books about playing football and coaching. Dal currently lives in Clemson, South Carolina with his wife Barbara, and they have been married over 55 years

Photo courtesy of the FCA.