Former Pitt head football coach Carl A. DePasqua dies

PITTSBURGH — Former Pitt head football coach Carl A. DePasqua, 93, of Castle Shannon, formerly of Williamsport, Whitehall and Greensburg, passed away on Sept. 15.

DePasqua starred in three sports at Williamsport High School, earning all-state honors in football and basketball, and being drafted by the Detroit Tigers for baseball.

Following high school, DePasqua starred for the University of Pittsburgh football team as a single wing fullback and defensive back, holding the record for career interceptions until 1976. He was named MVP of the 1949 Blue-Gray Football Classic in Mobile, Alabama.

DePasqua was drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1950 but opted instead to serve his country as a medic in the United States Army during the Korean War, where he, of course, also played military football. After being honorably discharged, DePasqua joined the Pitt coaching staff in 1952-53. He then coached in Canada for several years before returning to Pittsburgh to join John Michelosen’s Pitt staff from 1958-1965 as defensive coordinator.

After a year coaching defensive line on Bill Austin’s Steelers staff, DePasqua became head coach of his beloved Pitt Panthers in 1969. DePasqua’s Pitt teams will be remembered for their character and sportsmanship, their difficult schedules, their upset of #15 UCLA in the 1971 opener on the road and most of all for their 5–1 start in 1970 that included a 36-35 comeback victory over West Virginia after trailing 35-8 at halftime, a game many Pitt fans still consider one of the greatest in Pitt’s rich football history.

After stepping down as coach at Pitt following the 1972 season, DePasqua served two years on the Pennsylvania Horseracing Commission. He then returned to western Pennsylvania in 1975 to become the president and general manager of the Latrobe Bulletin newspaper, where he remained until his retirement in 1999.

Outside of family and football, DePasqua was an avid golfer and was formerly a member of both South Hills Country Club and Latrobe Country Club.

Friends are welcome from 2-4 and 6-8 p.m. on Wednesday at William Slater II Funeral Service (412-563-2800), 1650 Greentree Road, Scott Township, 15220. The Mass of Christian Burial will occur 10 a.m. Thursday in Resurrection Parish, St. Thomas More Catholic Church, 126 Fort Couch Road, across from South Hills Village Mall. The burial will be private for family only in the National Cemetery of the Alleghenies, Bridgeville, Pennsylvania.

Due to the recent uptick in breakthrough COVID-19 cases, the family requests that masks be worn during visitation.

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