Thursday, Oct. 31, 1956 University Daily Kansan
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Mather and his assistants came here with two strikes against them and the gentleman from Massillon finally succumbed to pressures which mounted to a peak last year, then subsided but not for long.
In his home Wednesday night Mather sat relaxed and said he felt much better now that there was no more pressure. He talked of how much he had enjoyed Kansas and added that he certainly had no regrets over coming here.
Chuck Mather's resignation as the University football coach, a move characterized by graciousness and courage, seemed to put to a final end here the little thought of concept that football should be played for the sake of the sport and that winning should not be overly emphasized.
Another football era ends here as Chuck Mather bows out. It was generally accepted at first that he might be the miracle man to bring football glory to Kansas.
Now the search is on again for the man with the magic touch.
The Board of Regents, pressured by alumni who had even asked that Mather resign last year, decided last Friday that Kansas should have a new coach and Chuck Mather knew of this decision.
Mrs. Mather was charming and relaxed and at one point asked a Daily Kansan photographer if he would like to help do the dishes.
He commented briefly on coaching in general and pointed out some of the hazards and the many rewards which far over shadow the discouragements.
This was the coach who, in the last three years, often worked late into the night to give Kansas a successful football team. Here was the man who constantly studied new and old methods of offense and defense.
But four years have passed now and Jack Mitchell, if he is one of the candidates, is certainly more expensive.
Gamma Phi, AOPi Win Cage Games
Gamma Phi Beta sorority defeated Phi Beta Phi sorority 25-19 in a women's intramural basketball game Wednesday.
Donna Bowman with 13 points and Marilyn Evans with 11 points led the Gamma Phi's scoring and Ellen Proudfit was high scorer for the Pi Phi's with 13 points.
In other games played the Jayettes defeated Gertrude Sellards Pearson Hall freshmen No. 2, 45-35. Douthart Hall defended the Corbin-North College Hawks 19-15, Alpha Omicron Pi sorority defeated Alpha Phi sorority 25-23 and Gertrude Pearson Hall upperclassmen defeated Alpha Chi Omega sorority 52-12.
'Good Workout' Mather Says
KU's football squad held what Coach Chuck Mather described as a "good workout" Wednesday after Mather and five of his assistants announced their resignations.
the players held a heavy serimimage in preparation for Saturday's game against Nebraska at Lincoln. Today's practice will be a light affair.
Pressure Is Penalty Coach Must Pay,Says Phog Allen
In the uproar over the resignation of head football Coach Chuck Mather, a man who-is synonymous with coaching at KU, retired basketball coach Dr. F. C. (Phog) Allen, expressed his own ideas on coaching and what it will take for a winning football team at Kansas.
"In all the years I've coached I've felt that pressure is the penalty one must pay for his job," he said. "You've got to win. You might as well be frank about it. I've always had my tongue in cheek when any administration told me my job was safe because I knew if I lost, I was out. As long as there's a man like Bud Wilkinson around, the administration won't be happy with a losing team."
"In the coaching game you have to fight like hell. Don't start a fight, but when they get on your back, scrape them off. This race belongs to the strong," he said.
About the pressure from the alumni, Dr. Allen had this to say: "I think the Kansas alumni are much more reasonable than many other alumni. An alumni is just like a 12 year old child. When you get licked, you just can't face the music.
Only For Strong
"When a new coach comes in, he has a honeymoon period. They say leave him alone, let him prove himself. However, the honeymoon is soon over."
It's our tendency not to settle for mediocrity."
"Kansas has never paid coaches any big salary," he said. "That's what Kansas is famous for. I think Kansas stands at the lower rung as far as Big Eight coaching salaries are concerned. If you're going to get a top coach, you've got to go out and spend a lot of money. You should look to some big college for a coach and pay the money for him."
"You don't want to be a doormat for anything, whether it be football, basketball, law, medicine, journalism, etc. You've got to have a certain amount of pride in all you do."
"Coaching is a hazardous position. If you lose games you're out. A professor isn't in a hazardous position. Unless he does something unethical, his job is safe. Let's quit kidding ourselves about that," Dr. Allen said.
Coaching Hazardous
Hhe then ended the interview with the typical Phog Allen statement: "I am retired," he said "I have no desire to meddle into the muddle."
'No Comment' From Jack Mitchell
Mitchell, who was head coach at Wichita in 1954, is now at Arkansas and although it is definitely known that some Kansas alumni have talked to him, his only comment Wednesday night was "no comment" to questions about his status as a possible candidate for the KU job.
Jack Mitchell, a native son or Kansas who was considered the No.1 candidate for the head football coaching job at Kansas in 1954, today was the center of attention as a possible successor to Coach Chuck Mather.
There are reports that Kansas
would offer Mitchell or another coach a long-term contract and $15,-000 a year, more than any other coach at Kansas.
Mitchell now has a long-term contract to honor at Arkansas and his team has lost only one game.
Reports that Kansas was interested in him were branded as "shocking" and "ridiculous" by Mitchell Tuesday. He said he had not been contacted by any Kansas alumni.
Mitchell is 33 and a native of Arkansas City. He was one of Oklahoma's top quarterbacks, playing there in 1946.
He became head football coach at
Wichita in 1953 and had a 4-4-1 record that year. He shocked the football world with a 9-1 record the following year.
Previously he was head coach at Blackwell, Okla. high school and had a 9-1 record for the one season he was there. He then went to Tulsa University where he was line coach one year and followed that with two years as line coach at Texas Tech.
Missouri's 1956 all-opponent selections listed six Oklahoma players on the starting lineup. Only two of the starters were from out of the conference.
Iowa Seeks Grid Crown
ANN ARBOR, Mich. — (BU)—Unbeaten Iowa, ranked third in the nation and shooting for a second straight Big Ten crown, tries before a national television audience Saturday to accomplish what it hasn't been able to do since 1924—defeat Michigan.
The 12th-ranked Wolverines spoiled the Hawkeyes' unbeaten season last year with a rallying 17-14 victory. The loss especially rankles Iowa Coach Forrest Evashevski who gained fame nearly 20 years ago as the blocking back for Tom Harmon at Michigan.
The Hawks' 1957 team is said to be stronger than the Rose Bowl championship team.
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