VILLANOVA, Pa.—An All-American in the mile and a member of six Halls of Fame who went on to a decades-long career as a collegiate head coach, Villanova alum Fred Dwyer '54 passed away last week at the age of 94. He is a member of the Villanova University Varsity Club Hall of Fame and was a four-time IC4A mile champion for the Wildcats. Known as "Champ" by his family and friends, Dwyer is remembered for his smile, quick wit and his embrace of his Irish heritage.
Family and friends are invited to visit on Tuesday, January 20, 2026, from 5:00-8:00pm at the Garrett Jones Memorial Home (at Farmer Funeral Home), 45 Roseland Avenue, Roseland, N.J. (973-228-7925). The funeral mass will be celebrated on Wednesday, January 21, 2026, at 10:30 am at Saint Aloysius R.C. Church, 219 Bloomfield Avenue, Caldwell, N.J. The interment will follow at Prospect Hill Cemetery in Caldwell. In lieu of flowers, donations are welcomed to Seton Hall Preparatory High School, 120 Northfield Ave., West Orange, N.J. 07052.
Competing in an era before the start of the indoor NCAA Championships, Dwyer was the runner-up in the mile outdoors in 1953. It was the best-ever finish at the time by a Villanova miler at the NCAA Championships, and Dwyer would hold that distinction until Wildcats legend Ron Delany won the first of his back-to-back NCAA outdoor titles in the mile in 1957. Dwyer helped recruit Delany to come to Villanova as one of the early members of the Irish Pipeline of Wildcats track & field athletes.
During those years, the IC4A Championship was on par with the NCAA meet and considered a de facto national championship of its own. Dwyer swept the indoor and outdoor IC4A titles in the mile in 1951 and went on to capture three consecutive indoor titles from 1951-53. He was inducted into the Varsity Club Hall of Fame in 1982.
Frederick Anthony Dwyer, Jr., was born July 19, 1931, in Brooklyn, N.Y. and was raised in East Orange, N.J. He graduated from Villanova in 1954 and served in the US Army after college while training for the Olympics. He was married to Jane Anne Callaghan for 67 years and the couple raised five children, all of whom are alums of Manhattan University where Dwyer was the longtime head track & field and cross country coach.
In addition to earning All-America honors during his collegiate career, Dwyer is the last runner to win all five mile runs in the Millrose, New York Athletic Club, New York Knights of Columbus, National AAU, and IC4A in the original Madison Square Garden. He competed internationally in track & field and appeared numerous times in Sports Illustrated for his athleticism and was a guest on the Ed Sullivan Show for the same recognition. Dwyer was invited to dine at the White House by President Eisenhower for the honor of Outstanding Athlete in Track and Field.
Dwyer and his wife, Jane, lived in Milwaukee, Wis., and Glen Ridge, N.J., before eventually settling in Caldwell, N.J. in 1966. He was employed for many years as a top salesman and in management with Norcross Greeting Cards in Milwaukee. His track & field roots stayed close to him however, and Dwyer coached track & field at Essex Catholic High School before embarking on a long and successful collegiate head coaching career.
In 1969, Dwyer was named the Head Coach of Track and Field at Manhattan University and led the cross country team to a 7-0 campaign. One year later, his distance medley relay squad of John Lovett, Mike Kenny, Al Novell and Tom Donahue won the NCAA indoor title.
Manhattan would eventually build one of the richest track & field traditions on the East coast under Dwyer. He guided the Jaspers to the 1973 NCAA indoor title, four IC4A championships and 19 Metropolitan Championships. Manhattan's DMR team of Lovett, Ray Johnson, Joe Savage and Tony Colon set a then world record of 9:43.8.
Dwyer was the NCAA Coach of the Year in 1973 when the Jaspers won the NCAA indoor title and his cross country squad won an IC4A championship. In 1974, Dwyer coached his 4xMile relay team of Pete Squires, Matt Centrowitz, Savage and Colon to the US Outdoor Record of 16:14.4.
Dwyer coached at Manhattan until 1993, producing 41 All-Americans and four Olympians. His athletes established world and national records in addition to breaking approximately 250 school records during his head coaching career. Dwyer is the longest-tenured track & field coach in Manhattan history. He is a member of the Manhattan University Athletics Hall of Fame, the Essex Catholic High School Hall of Fame, the Seton Hall Preparatory High School Hall of Fame, the New York Athletic Club Hall of Fame and the City of Newark Hall of Fame.
Dwyer's children Fred '82, Jane '85, Jim '86, Joe '87 and Tara '92 are all Manhattan graduates. He is survived by his beloved wife of 67 years, Jane Anne Dwyer; devoted children and their spouses, Frederick and Barbara Dwyer, Jane and James Lee, James and Tracey Dwyer, Joseph and Donna Dwyer, Tara and Scott Weinfield; dear brothers, Eugene and Christopher Dwyer and a loving sister, Catherine Cole; cherished grandchildren, Candace, Jack, Matthew, Mary, John, Callaghan, Sean, Caroline and Gavin Dwyer, Sarah and Jane Weinfield. In addition to his parents, he was predeceased by his infant angels, Mary Anne and John, and sisters, Winfred Mahoney and Janet Duggan.
