Bob Sullivan
Head Football Coach, 1979-2000
Head football coach at Carleton from 1979 to 2000, Bob Sullivan retired with 102 wins, more than any Carleton football coach. He took over a struggling program and led the Knights to the 1979 Midwest Conference title game in his first season. When Carleton jumped to the more competitive Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) in 1983, Sullivan again re-tooled the program and led the Knights to five straight upper division finishes from 1986 to 1990. His banner season came in 1992, when the Sullivan-led Knights captured their first MIAC crown of the modern era. That squad also earned Carleton’s first NCAA Playoff bid and Sullivan was named MIAC Coach of the Year. Sullivan coached seven All-Americans, two MIAC most valuable players, and 62 all-conference players. A 1959 graduate of St. John’s University, Sullivan earned a master’s degree in English from the University of Wisconsin, River Falls. He taught and coached for 11 years at Hill High School in St. Paul and for nine seasons at Cooper High School in New Hope. He posted 95 wins during his 20 years in the high school ranks and led Hill to a pair of state Catholic league titles and Cooper to consecutive Lake Conference crowns. He is also a member of the Minnesota High School Football Coaches Association Hall of Fame.