Ex-Buffs Johnson, Williams talk Bill McCartney’s Alzheimer’s diagnoses

As news that former University of Colorado head coach Bill McCartney had been diagnosed with late-onset dementia/Alzheimer’s, former players –– including 104.3 The Fan’s Alfred Williams and Charles Johnson –– offered insight on the Buffs legend.

During “The Drive with Big Al & DMac” Monday, Williams and Johnson expressed how Coach Mac is more than just the coach that delivered a consensus national championship to CU in 1990, he’s a champion off the field as well.

“I’ve never met a guy who just won’t quit on you,” Williams said. “No matter if you’ve had a down day or a down moment or maybe a lapse in judgement, he knows that you are a redeemable person. I think that’s a characteristic that very few people have.”

Both Johnson and Williams also counted McCartney among the key male figures in each of their lives.

“I’m hard pressed to find, whose name is not Charles Johnson Sr., who had as big an impact,” Johnson said.

Said Williams: “He’s been the strongest man that I’ve known, and he’s had the biggest impact on my life of any man outside of my high school coach. It’s been a wonderful time for me to visit with him, to sit down and talk with him, and to look for guidance.”

McCartney’s family revealed the diagnosis through the university’s athletics department Monday, in part to ask that people who deal with him out in public to have “understanding and patience.”

“This is a frustrating and confusing disease, and if he appears disconnected or unknowing, please don’t take it personally,” the family said in the release.

Johnson and Williams noted that McCartney, who turns 76 in just a few weeks, is still quite active –– the former coach rides bikes and goes on walks.

“He is still the same Coach Mac –– biking, golfing, supporting the Buffs and being an active member of his Church,” McCartney’s family said in the release.

Johnson echoed a similar sentiment: “There’s a lot of life left in Bill McCartney. He’s right here, he’s battling this disease, but he is the man I’ve always known and loved.”

McCartney is receiving treatment for the degenerative neurological disease, according to his family, who hope it “slows the progression of the disease.”

The Buffs coach from June 1982 until he retired following the 1994 season as the CU’s winningest football coach, McCartney garnered a record of 93-55-5.

After his retirement, McCartney worked for Promise Keepers Men’s Ministry, a Christian organization with a mission to “ignite and unite men to become warriors who will change their world.”

Digital content producer Johnny Hart covers sports for 104.3 The Fan. Follow him on Twitter: @johnnyhart7.