BU Athletics Mourns the Passing of Dick Farley '68
April 7, 2026 | General
A captain in both football and track & field, Farley set records in both sports for the Terriers to become only one of three in department history to receive the Mickey Cochrane Award (1967) as BU's top male athlete and the E. Ray Speare Award (1968) as the top male scholar-athlete. Following his BU Athletic Hall of Fame induction in 1982, he returned to campus eight years later to receive the William French Award for distinguishing himself in the coaching profession at Williams. In 2006, he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame with an all-time record of 114-19-3 (.849), highlighted by 25 shutouts.
Farley won the Harry Agganis Memorial Award as the MVP of the BU football team in 1967 and earned All-New England and All-East recognition before being name to the College Division All-America team. He signed with the San Diego Chargers and played for two seasons before a back injury forced him to retire.
Farley began his Terrier career as a halfback and finished second on the team in scoring (26 points). Then-head coach Warren Schmakel switched him to safety his junior year, and he went on to set program records for interceptions in a season (9), career (14) and in a game (3).
"We needed a fast and agile safety man with good size to protect us deep," Schmakel said of the move. "Even though he was one of our top scorers, I felt that Dick could be of better service on defense."
It was a well-known fact that Farley had speed as he was one of BU's top trackmen. Farley ran the 100-yard dash in 9.9 seconds. It was just one of the 14 different events he competed in while a Terrier.
A co-captain of the 1968 team along with Hall of Famer Dave Hemery '68, Farley set a school record in the triple jump (44'2") and ran the anchor leg on the record-setting mile relay team. As an example of his versatility, Farley ran the intermediate hurdles also and was a finalist at the IC4A meet.
Farley came to BU from St. John's Prep in Danvers. A co-captain of the football team, Farley earned All-Catholic League and All-North Shore honors. He also lettered in track and baseball.
After injury ended his pro football career with the Chargers, Farley joined Williams as the head track & field coach and an assistant football coach. Elevated to head football coach in 1987, he lost his first three games and then went on a streak of 128 consecutive games without losing back-to-back contests. His teams recorded five perfect seasons, including a 23-game winning streak that until 2005 was the longest in NCAA Division III history. In 2019, ESPN listed Farley as one of the top 150 college football coaches of all-time.
"It is a somber moment for the college football community when we lose a figure as impactful as Coach Dick Farley," said NFF Chairman Archie Manning. "He wasn't just a winner, winning 85 percent of his games, but he was a steadfast advocate of the 'scholar-athlete' ideal at the… pic.twitter.com/4WBwBiG1FM
— National Football Foundation (@NFFNetwork) April 2, 2026
