Legendary Virginia Military Institute football coach John McKenna died Saturday night in Atlanta. He was 92.
Last December, Mr. McKenna was selected to the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame. The induction ceremony for the 2007 class is April 28 in Portsmouth.
Born Nov. 12, 1914 in Lawrence, Mass., Mr. McKenna was hired at VMI in January 1953 and ompiled a 62-60-8 record from 1953-65.
His best stretch came from 1957-60, when he guided the Keydets to a 30-5-5 mark. In 1957, the Keydets were 9-0-1, winning the Southern Conference championship and finishing 13th in the final Associate Press poll. The only other season VMI went undefeated was 1920, when the Keydets went 9-0.
In all, Mr. McKenna claimed four conference championships (the others coming in'59,'60 and'62) and was named SC coach of the year in 1957 and'59.
Mr. McKenna, an honorary VMI alumnus, left the school after the 1965 season for Georgia Tech, where he was the assistant athletic director under Bobby Dodd and also worked with the freshman players.
Richmond native Bobby Ross, who won a share of the
national championship as Georgia Tech's coach in 1990, credits Mr. McKenna with being the major influence on his coaching career.
His mentor was complimentary in return, according to a profile on Ross on the Georgia Tech Web site.
"I'll sum him up for you," said Mr. McKenna on the day Ross assumed his duties at Tech. "If all the coaches in the country could be pooled for a draft, any school would do well to look at Bobby Ross closely and carefully. He's the best."
In 1978, the Coach John McKenna Scholarship was created by fellow players and assistant coaches at VMI. It provides assistance to upperclass football players who best exemplify the traits Mr. McKenna demanded of his players.
Upon retiring from Georgia Tech in 1980, Mr. McKenna was hired as a scout by the New England Patriots. He evaluated pro players for the NFL team until 1984.
Last December, Mr. McKenna was selected to the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame. The induction ceremony for the 2007 class is April 28 in Portsmouth.
Born Nov. 12, 1914 in Lawrence, Mass., Mr. McKenna was hired at VMI in January 1953 and ompiled a 62-60-8 record from 1953-65.
His best stretch came from 1957-60, when he guided the Keydets to a 30-5-5 mark. In 1957, the Keydets were 9-0-1, winning the Southern Conference championship and finishing 13th in the final Associate Press poll. The only other season VMI went undefeated was 1920, when the Keydets went 9-0.
In all, Mr. McKenna claimed four conference championships (the others coming in'59,'60 and'62) and was named SC coach of the year in 1957 and'59.
Mr. McKenna, an honorary VMI alumnus, left the school after the 1965 season for Georgia Tech, where he was the assistant athletic director under Bobby Dodd and also worked with the freshman players.
Richmond native Bobby Ross, who won a share of the
national championship as Georgia Tech's coach in 1990, credits Mr. McKenna with being the major influence on his coaching career.
His mentor was complimentary in return, according to a profile on Ross on the Georgia Tech Web site.
"I'll sum him up for you," said Mr. McKenna on the day Ross assumed his duties at Tech. "If all the coaches in the country could be pooled for a draft, any school would do well to look at Bobby Ross closely and carefully. He's the best."
In 1978, the Coach John McKenna Scholarship was created by fellow players and assistant coaches at VMI. It provides assistance to upperclass football players who best exemplify the traits Mr. McKenna demanded of his players.
Upon retiring from Georgia Tech in 1980, Mr. McKenna was hired as a scout by the New England Patriots. He evaluated pro players for the NFL team until 1984.
Legendary Virginia Military Institute football coach John McKenna died Saturday night in Atlanta. He was 92.
Last December, Mr. McKenna was selected to the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame. The induction ceremony for the 2007 class is April 28 in Portsmouth.
Born Nov. 12, 1914 in Lawrence, Mass., Mr. McKenna was hired at VMI in January 1953 and ompiled a 62-60-8 record from 1953-65.
His best stretch came from 1957-60, when he guided the Keydets to a 30-5-5 mark. In 1957, the Keydets were 9-0-1, winning the Southern Conference championship and finishing 13th in the final Associate Press poll. The only other season VMI went undefeated was 1920, when the Keydets went 9-0.
In all, Mr. McKenna claimed four conference championships (the others coming in'59,'60 and'62) and was named SC coach of the year in 1957 and'59.
Mr. McKenna, an honorary VMI alumnus, left the school after the 1965 season for Georgia Tech, where he was the assistant athletic director under Bobby Dodd and also worked with the freshman players.
Richmond native Bobby Ross, who won a share of the
national championship as Georgia Tech's coach in 1990, credits Mr. McKenna with being the major influence on his coaching career.
His mentor was complimentary in return, according to a profile on Ross on the Georgia Tech Web site.
"I'll sum him up for you," said Mr. McKenna on the day Ross assumed his duties at Tech. "If all the coaches in the country could be pooled for a draft, any school would do well to look at Bobby Ross closely and carefully. He's the best."
In 1978, the Coach John McKenna Scholarship was created by fellow players and assistant coaches at VMI. It provides assistance to upperclass football players who best exemplify the traits Mr. McKenna demanded of his players.
Upon retiring from Georgia Tech in 1980, Mr. McKenna was hired as a scout by the New England Patriots. He evaluated pro players for the NFL team until 1984.
Last December, Mr. McKenna was selected to the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame. The induction ceremony for the 2007 class is April 28 in Portsmouth.
Born Nov. 12, 1914 in Lawrence, Mass., Mr. McKenna was hired at VMI in January 1953 and ompiled a 62-60-8 record from 1953-65.
His best stretch came from 1957-60, when he guided the Keydets to a 30-5-5 mark. In 1957, the Keydets were 9-0-1, winning the Southern Conference championship and finishing 13th in the final Associate Press poll. The only other season VMI went undefeated was 1920, when the Keydets went 9-0.
In all, Mr. McKenna claimed four conference championships (the others coming in'59,'60 and'62) and was named SC coach of the year in 1957 and'59.
Mr. McKenna, an honorary VMI alumnus, left the school after the 1965 season for Georgia Tech, where he was the assistant athletic director under Bobby Dodd and also worked with the freshman players.
Richmond native Bobby Ross, who won a share of the
national championship as Georgia Tech's coach in 1990, credits Mr. McKenna with being the major influence on his coaching career.
His mentor was complimentary in return, according to a profile on Ross on the Georgia Tech Web site.
"I'll sum him up for you," said Mr. McKenna on the day Ross assumed his duties at Tech. "If all the coaches in the country could be pooled for a draft, any school would do well to look at Bobby Ross closely and carefully. He's the best."
In 1978, the Coach John McKenna Scholarship was created by fellow players and assistant coaches at VMI. It provides assistance to upperclass football players who best exemplify the traits Mr. McKenna demanded of his players.
Upon retiring from Georgia Tech in 1980, Mr. McKenna was hired as a scout by the New England Patriots. He evaluated pro players for the NFL team until 1984.
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