ORONO, Maine — Hugo Alvarez, an offensive lineman from Miami, felt out of place when he arrived at the University of Maine in 1991.
The young man of Cuban heritage admits he went there to play football but found he was challenged on the field, by the cold Maine winters and by the cultural climate.
“No one asks me why I stayed in Maine, especially after experiencing my first winter in the Northeast,” said Alvarez, a graduate of UMaine and the Tulane University law school who works as a lawyer in Miami.
He credits Jack Cosgrove, who became the Black Bears’ head coach in 1993, with helping him adapt to life in Orono and excel on and off the field.
“As Coach Cos retires, I realize today I stayed there because he recruited a special nucleus of good players and [provided] strong support that let us all maximize our talents both on and off the field,” said Alvarez, who credits Cosgrove and his staff with creating an environment that fostered the development of all who were willing to take advantage of the opportunity to study and play at UMaine.
“As the head coach he [was] often faced with the daunting task of making sure that different personalities from different cultures assimilate into Maine,” Alvarez said. “You can’t measure that type of work in the win-loss column, but you measure it in the fact that Cosgrove’s players genuinely enjoyed learning the game of football from him as Cosgrove’s passion for both Maine and the game were contagious.”
Tuesday’s announcement was met with surprise and impassioned reactions from former players and coaching peers.
“I’m pretty shocked,” said University of New Hampshire head coach Sean McDonnell who, like Cosgrove, made the progression from player to assistant coach to head coach at his alma mater.
“I’ve admired everything that guy has done with that program,” he said. “These kids, the coaches, everybody that’s up there, they’ve been blessed to have somebody to be a mentor, coach and friend like he has been for the last [23] years.”
Cosgrove and McDonnell actually played against each other in the 1970s, but it was their shared challenge of trying to maintain consistently competitive northern New England programs amid financial challenges, in a conference that increasingly was centered in the mid-Atlantic region, that cemented their bond.
“Beating Division I [Football Bowl Subdivision] teams, getting them to the playoffs like he did and just what he had to do with the resources that he had over the years there is really amazing,” McDonnell said. “We used to talk a lot about what we had and what we don’t have and how he did things and how I do things.”
McDonnell, who this week is preparing New Hampshire for its 12th straight Football Championship Subdivision postseason appearance, has the utmost respect for Cosgrove.
“He did it the right way. He did it with class,” he said.
Jake Eaton was the quarterback on UMaine’s NCAA national quarterfinal teams in 2001 and 2002. He gushed when describing the influence Cosgrove had on him as a player and as a person.
“You won’t find a more loyal, passionate and hardworking leader of men than Jack Cosgrove,” said Eaton, who is a high school athletic director and coach in his home state of Vermont. “Cos is integrity personified. His positive influence and impact on his players reach far beyond the game of football.
“He has successfully developed and built a family atmosphere at UMaine football where hard work, character and camaraderie are the foundations of the program,” Eaton continued. “I feel blessed to have played for and learn from such an amazing and inspirational man. I know I am the man I am today because of the lessons learned from him and my absolutely amazing time spent playing football at UMaine.”
Matt King, a consensus first-team All-American in 2006, played linebacker and defensive end for Cosgrove from 2003 to 2006 and later was signed by the NFL’s New York Jets and Pittsburgh Steelers. He returned to serve as UMaine’s head strength, speed and conditioning coach.
King was shocked to hear that Cosgrove was giving up coaching.
“This guy is Maine football,” said King, who is now a sports performance coach at Columbia University. “I can’t imagine another guy on the sideline next year.”
King, who played at Stoughton (Massachusetts) High School, is among countless prospects whose football potential was recognized only by Cosgrove and his UMaine staff.
That group included Lofa Tatupu, an All-America linebacker for Southern Cal who went on to become the NFC Defensive Player of the Year at Seattle, and defensive lineman Mike DeVito, who plays for the NFL’s Kansas City Chiefs.
“He gave me an opportunity when a lot of other schools thought that I might have been too small or didn’t have good enough grades,” King said. “I’ll forever be thankful for that.”
Despite the fact UMaine seldom was able to attract prized recruits sought by more high-profile Football Championship Subdivision schools, Cosgrove and Co. drew upon longtime coaching connections, a keen eye and persistence to bring in good players.
King said one key dynamic at work at UMaine was the ability to convert players’ potential into success with a program that provided the structure and environment to help them learn and improve.
“He knows how to develop football players and develop men,” King said.
However, the relationship often extended beyond that of player and coach.
“He’s like a second father to me,” King said. “If you mess up, he’ll be quick to tell you that you’re doing something wrong … and he’ll be the first to congratulate you when you do something well.”
Correction: The original version of this story misidentified the position played by Hugo Alvarez.