John Gagliardi John Gagliardi ( ; born November 1 , 1926 ) is a former American football coach . He was the head football coach at Saint John ' s University in Collegeville , Minnesota from 1953 until 2012 . From 1949 to 1952 , he was the head football coach at Carroll College in Helena , Montana . With a career record of 489 – 138 – 11 , Gagliardi has the most wins of any coach in college football history . His Saint John ' s Johnnies teams won four national titles : the NAIA National Football Championship in 1963 and 1965 , and the NCAA Division III National Football Championship in 1976 and 2003 . Gagliardi was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2006 . Early life . Born to Ventura and Antoinetta Gagliardi , John Gagliardi began coaching football in 1943 at the age of 16 when his high school coach was called into service during World War II . He was a player - coach his senior year of high school and continued to coach high school football while obtaining his college degree at Colorado College . College coaching career . At the age of 22 , with six years of high school coaching , Gagliardi was hired at Carroll College in Helena , Montana . In four seasons as head coach at Carroll , Gagliardi compiled a 24 – 6 – 1 record , winning three Montana Collegiate Conference championships . After the 1952 season , Gagliardi left Carroll for the Saint John ' s University in Collegeville , Minnesota . In 60 seasons coaching the Saint John ' s Johnnies , Gagliardi won a school and conference record 27 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference ( MIAC ) titles and four national championships : in 1963 ( at the Camellia Bowl ) , 1965 , 1976 , and 2003 . His record at Saint John ' s was 465 – 132 – 10 , bringing his career college football mark to 489 – 138 – 11 . On November 8 , 2003 , Gagliardi broke the record for career coaching wins with his 409th victory , passing Grambling State University ' s Eddie Robinson . The 13 , 107 fans who witnessed the victory over Bethel at Saint John ' s Clemens Stadium were the largest crowd in NCAA Division III history . The win also gave Saint John ' s its 23rd MIAC championship and an automatic berth in the NCAA Division III playoffs . The Johnnies went on to win the national championship with a 24 – 6 victory over Mount Union . In 1993 , Jostens and the J Club of St . John ' s University began awarding the Gagliardi Trophy annually to the most outstanding player in NCAA Division III . On August 11 , 2006 , Gagliardi and Florida State ' s Bobby Bowden became the first active head coaches to be enshrined in the College Football Hall of Fame . Nevada ' s Chris Ault was inducted in 2002 and returned to coaching two years later . Gagliardi is known for his unique coaching approach , which he called " Winning with No ' s . " He instructed his players not to call him " coach " , did not use a whistle or blocking sleds , prohibited tackling in practices , did not require his players to lift weights , and limited his team practices to 90 minutes . After a disappointing 8 – 8 conference record over two seasons in 2011 and 2012 , Gagliardi announced his retirement from coaching on November 19 , 2012 . Awards . In 2003 , Gagliardi received the Amos Alonzo Stagg Coaching Award from the United States Sports Academy .