Richard
Basil No Longer Interim Head Football Coach at Savannah State
December 10, 2003
Savannah State University has named Richard Basil as head football
coach effective immediately.
He had been interim head coach since the fifth game of the 2003 season.
A Savannah State alum, Basil began his career in 1993
as quarterbacks
and receivers coach under Joe Crosby. The following year he
went to Tennessee State where he was quarterbacks coach under
Bill Davis.
Two years later he accepted an assistant coaching position
at Johnson C. Smith University under Daryl McNeill. In 1997,
Basil returned to SSU, following McNeill’s appointment
as head coach.
After McNeill left to join the staff at South Carolina State,
Basil remained at his alma mater coaching quarterbacks and
kickers for Steve Wilks in 1999 and for Bill Davis from 2000-2001.
In 2002 and into this season,
Basil coached defensive backs for Ken Pettiford until being
named as his replacement.
Basil was an outstanding quarterback in the glory years of
Tiger football. The Demopolis, Alabama native transferred to
Savannah State from East Central Community College and quarterbacked
the Tigers to an 8-2 season in 1988 and an 8-1 season in 1989.
In his two seasons as a Tiger player, he rushed for 18 touchdowns
and passed for 3,645 yards and 44 TDs. He was named SIAC Offensive
Players of the Year and the George H. Hopson Offensive Back
of the Year in 1988. In 1989, he led NCAA Division II in passing
percentage, completing 57 percent of his tosses.
Basil is married to the former Mary Daise of St. Helena, SC.
