There were few places Eugene F. “Buddy” Teevens III '79 knew or loved more than Memorial Field. Memorial Field was a fitting venue for the game as more than 1,500 family members, former players, teammates, classmates and fans gathered Saturday. Celebrate his accomplishments and thank him for the profound difference he made in their lives.
Stephens, who died in September at the age of 66, was a compassionate man who was committed to Dartmouth, developing team members, recruiting and training young coaches, and helping to make soccer safer for players across the country. He is remembered as a relentless motivator.
“Some people approach competition with a fundamental intensity, while others approach human kindness with the same heartfelt passion. Few people excel at either. Buddy is truly phenomenal at both. ” said Peggy Epstein Tanner ’79, a board member emeritus, friend and “forever fan” of Teevens.
“He cared deeply about the values on which people build their lives, because he knew that it is our values that get us through the adversity that sport and life inevitably bring. ” said pastoral resident and former player Abram McQuarters ’17. The ceremony was held at the Church of Christ our Savior in Hannover with reflection and prayer.
big family
One of Buddy's younger brothers, Sean Teevens '82, shared vivid memories of growing up with his family and nine children in an old colonial farmhouse in Pembroke, Massachusetts. Their mother, Mary, was in the audience along with Teevens' wife, Kirsten. , his daughter Lindsay, son Buddy, and his grandchildren were all thanked by speakers for the love and support they showed Teevens throughout his career.
The family of Buddy Teevens '79, including his mother Mary and wife Kirsten (center), listens to the eulogy at Memorial Field. (Photo provided by Katie Lenhart)
“Buddy had a knack for convincing all of us that his idea was a good idea,” said Sean, who said Buddy coaxed another brother to jump off a bridge into Duxbury Bay near his home. I talked about how it was. “He was a motivator…He knew how to push our buttons to get the most out of us.”
Teeven's assertions of greatness as well as goodness resonated again and again, and close friends remembered his acts of kindness, big and small, in good times and bad.
dear friends near me
“He's a better coach than I am, and I learned more from him than anyone from a young age,” said Tim Murphy, a childhood friend who coached the Harvard University football team for 30 years before retiring this year. He was a unique person and I am so grateful to have him in my life. He was my friend, teammate, role model, and wingman. He was fun-loving and the fiercest competitor I have ever known.”
Quote
We can never succeed in his shoes, but we should all strive to follow in his footsteps.
attribution
Tony Pastors '10, Vice President, Los Angeles Rams
Stephens' colleagues say the drive to win was there from the beginning. As a collegiate quarterback, he led the Big Green to the Ivy title in his 1978 year. He coached at Dartmouth, Maine, Tulane, and Stanford, among others, before returning to Dartmouth in 2005, where he had an overall record of 117 wins and 101 losses. He has two wins, including 83-70-1 in the Ivy League. During his time at Dartmouth, Stephens head football coach Robert L. Blackman was named New England Coach of the Year in 1990, 2015, and 2019, and Ivy League Coach of the Year in 2019 and 2021. Was chosen. He led Dartmouth to fifth place in the Ivy League. He won titles and is the winningest coach in the football program.
And along the way, he worked with the Thayer School of Engineering to create a robotic tackling dummy to reduce concussions during practice, hired Division I football's first female assistant football coach, and brought Dartmouth to national attention. did.
Carrie Brownson, the first woman to coach in Division I football, talks about his influence when she worked with Stephens at Dartmouth. Brownson is currently an assistant coach with the Cleveland Browns. (Photo provided by Katie Lenhart)
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said Stevens made him “see beyond the limits” of unprecedented ways to protect players from injury. “We don't make tackles in practice. What's going to happen to that?” Goodell recalled asking. “The game is safer and better because of him. Robot tackling dummies. Yeah, that's right. The doubters were there. He didn't care. In fact, he made sure that people I think he took pleasure in proving people wrong, and he did that over and over again.”
break the mold
Teevens helped found the Manning Passing Academy with former NFL quarterback Archie Manning, father of football greats Peyton and Eli. “They say that when you really love someone and you lose them, grief is the price you pay for loving them,” Manning said. “There's no escaping the grief. But it proves how much Buddy meant to all of us who knew him and loved him.”
Carrie Brownson agreed. After meeting her at Manning Academy, Teevens brought her to Dartmouth as football's first full-time Division I female coach.
More than 1,500 people, including family, friends, former players and teammates, attended a celebration of the life of football coach Buddy Teevens '79 on Saturday at Memorial Field. (Photo by Eli Burakian '00)
“I am grateful every day for having Coach Stevens,” she said. “I'm grateful for the time I spent with him, the things I learned from him, and how much I grew just by being in his orbit. I never felt like I had enough time. Probably not. But I take comfort in the fact that he lives on through the impact he left on my life. And so do all of you here.”
Teevens also leaves behind many athletes shaped by his life lessons.
“Success was about making us better: better students, better members of the Dartmouth community, better leaders, better sons, better husbands, and better fathers,” Los Angeles -Tony Pastors, Rams vice president of football and business administration. . “We can never succeed in his shoes, but we should all strive to follow in his footsteps.”
“Coach T gave me an opportunity. He changed lives, he changed cultures, he opened doors, he taught lessons, and he just happened to win some football games in the middle of that,” Rams said. said Matt Shearin '19, manager of football administration.
In addition to hosting Saturday's Celebration of Life, Dartmouth will commemorate Buddy Stevens Stadium at Memorial Field on Oct. 5, when the Big Green and Penn play in the first Ivy League home game of the 2024 season. It is planned to be dedicated.
“When we talk about competitiveness, the drive to win that defines our community, I can’t think of a better example than Buddy because he believes that competitiveness is about more than just the scoreboard. Because I knew that the goal was to push myself to achieve. These are all timeless values,” said President Xian Lee Beilock, who said Teevens was one of the first people to call and welcome Dartmouth when he was elected president. .
From left: Nick Howard '23, Macklin Ayers '24, Nick Sani '24, Gavin Muir '24, Dario Arazzi '24, Quinten Alello '23, Tyler Green '24, Josh Green '23 , Sam Koshaw ’23, Tyson MacLeod ’24, Danny Cronin ’24, and Jace Henry ’24 were among hundreds of Dartmouth football players past and present who stood and sang in memory of Teevens on Saturday. I was inside. (Photo provided by Katie Lenhart)
As another lasting tribute to a family that forever changed the athletic world at Dartmouth and beyond, the university established the Kirsten and Eugene F. “Buddy” Teevens ’79 Scholarship Fund..
Looking back on the past and the future
Stephens loved the music of the time, and popular songs by his favorite musicians punctuated the ceremony. Ben Reilly '79 wrote and performed his own moving lyrics to Jimmy Buffett songs. Change in latitude, change in attitudeand Dartmouth football players past and present stood and sang team favorites. As the Bucks Go Tearing By and Glory to Dartmouth.
After the ceremony, several current players gathered to reflect on what they had heard and consider how they would like to honor a coach who meant so much to so many. “What drew me to Dartmouth was how open and honest he was about Dartmouth and what he expected from us,” Texas running back Christian Benson '25 said in a phone call from Stephens. That’s why.”
Benson has stated that she aims to follow “the 'Teens Way' by being very honest with herself, being true to herself, and being very honest with others.” .
Or as former teammate, special assistant to the head coach, and longtime friend Kurt Oberg ’78 recalls: Be a great student during your studies and always be a great person. ”
what they also said
Abm McQuarters '17, former player
“Coach T was all about the little moments in the moment.”
Sian Leah Beilock, Dartmouth President
“I saw him embody everything we want at Dartmouth.”
Peggy Epstein Tanner '79, Trustee Emeritus, Classmate
Kirsten Teevens was “the love of my life and my favorite teammate.”
Mike Harrity, Haldeman Family Director of Athletics and Recreation
“And that was Buddy. Always trying to help someone.”
Sean Teevens '82, brother
“He was a pillar of our strength. He set the standard for all of us early on.”
Tim Murphy, former Harvard football coach and childhood friend
“He was our fiercest competitor and, most importantly, our most loyal friend.”
Doug Van Citters ’99, Thayer ’03, ’06, Associate Professor of Engineering
“When Buddy was excited about something, you were excited about something.”
The Dartmouth caps handed out at the celebration of life included a tribute to Teevens based on the way he signs his text messages and emails. (Photo provided by Katie Lenhart)
Roger Goodell, National Football League Commissioner
“Coach T suggested solutions to make the game safer and ultimately better.”
Marie Bowden '71, All-American, College Football Hall of Famer
“He always had an open mind…His life had meaning, purpose and impact.”
Archie Manning, Manning Academy, former NFL quarterback
“He was kind and polite and always tried to do the right thing.”
Reggie Williams '76, NFL Man of the Year 1986, College Football Hall of Famer
“He always encouraged us to stand firm in what we believed in and to have an indomitable spirit.”
Carrie Brownson, Cleveland Browns Assistant Coach, First Division I Women's Football Coach
“It was Buddy's statement to the football world that times are changing. If you love this game, you deserve to be in it. This has put so many women on their dream list to become a Division I soccer coach. It opened the door for me to add to my dream of becoming.”
Kurt Oberg '78, special assistant to the head coach and former teammate
“He was a maker of memories that will last a lifetime.”
