Sark Arslanian

Sarkis "Sark" Arslanian (February 4, 1924 – December 11, 2016) was an American college football coach. He served as the head football coach at Weber State College—now known as Weber State University—from 1965 to 1972 and Colorado State University from 1973 to 1981, compiling a career college football head coaching record of 95–73–6 (.563). Arslanian was also the head football coach at Dixie Junior College—now known as Utah Tech University—from 1955 to 1964.

Arslanian was born on February 4, 1924, in Fresno, California, to Kevork and Freida (Aposhian) Arslanian, immigrants from Armenia. He graduated in 1941 from Granite High School in South Salt Lake, Utah. Arslanian served in the United States Navy in the South Pacific during World War II.^[1] After the war, he attended Dixie Junior College, where received all-conference honors in football, basketball, and track and field before graduating in 1949.^[2]

Arslanian began his coaching career in 1952 at Central Junior High School in Salt Lake City. In 1954, he was the head football coach at Union High School in Roosevelt, Utah, leading his team to a record of 9–1–1 in his lone season there.^[2]

Beginning in 1955, Arslanian spent ten seasons as the head football coach at Dixie Junior College. His 1963 Dixie team went undefeated, and his 1964 team had a record of 9–1. Arslanian also served as the athletic director at Dixie.^[3]

In 1965, he was hired as the head football coach the at Weber State College in the Big Sky Conference, where he coached through 1972 and was the winningest coach in school history. He left Weber State in 1973 for Colorado State University of the Western Athletic Conference (WAC). is 1977 Colorado State Rams football team was one of the most successful in school history, finishing 9–2–1 and receiving votes in the final AP poll. Arslanian was fired fix games into the 1981 season. The team defensive coordinator, Chester Caddas, was appointed interim head coach for the remainder of the season.^[4]

After a long and successful career as a football coach at the collegiate and professional levels, he helped establish a winning tradition at Pine View High School in St. George, Utah. After a bypass surgery, he resigned as head coach of Pine View and began coaching eighth graders at Pine View Middle School. As of 2007, Arslanian was the oldest active football coach in the United States. An Armenian-American, Arslanian once traveled to Armenia to establish an American football league in his ancestral country.

Arslanian's son, Dave Arslanian, was the head footoball coach at Weber State from 1989 to 1997, assisted by his brother, Paul Arslanian.^[5] On September 14, 2013, the field at Hansen Stadium on the campus of Dixie State University was named Sark Arslanian Field. Arslanian died on December 11, 2016, at the age of 92.^[6][7]

• Sark Arslanian at Find a Grave