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Reason for Success Mitchell Makes Shifts
Thursday, Sept. 17, 1964 University Daily Kansan
One reason for Jack Mitchell's coaching success (career record: 64-40-6-.609) is his courage to make quick personnel changes and tactical innovations.
Mitchell introduced the pigeon-toed T at Wichita, an alignment in which both halfbacks face slightly toward center. He came up with a middle linebacker rover at Arkansas.
John Hadl earned all-conference honors at halfback as a 1959 sophomore. Mitchell didn't hesitate in shifting him to quarterback the following spring practice.
HE OPENED LAST season with Steve Renko, even though the sophomore quarterback owned a total of only one freshman game experience at the position. Renko, a Wyandotte High fullback, started all 10 games and led the Big Eight in total offense for two weeks at mid-season before finishing fifth.
Here, last year, he stacked both ends together to create an unbalanced line, introduced the bounce-pass to stop the clock and now and then waved his field goal kicker, Gary Duff, into action for sideline out-of-bounds placements instead of punting.
And after Hadl earned all-America as man under in 1960, Mitchell didn't hesitate to return him to left half for a short period when his 1961 club got off to a slow start.
Mitchell's college degree? Psychology, not juggling.
He was an all-America quarterback at Oklahoma. Mitchell's first coaching job was at Blackwell, Okla., High, guiding that team to a 9-1-1 record after being picked for last place.
He moved to an assistantship at Tulsa in 1950 under Buddy Brothers, then to Texas Tech in the same capacity for two years. He assumed head coach duties at Wichita in 1953.
After two years there, he moved to Arkansas for a three-year term. He was hired on Thanksgiving Day of 1957. Two years ago he was given a lifetime contract which Mitchell describes as "one of the best, if not the best, contract a coach and his staff ever had."
Coach Mitchell...
Three Special Dates
5 Games Set Here
KU's special football dates this season are Oct. 3, Band Day; Nov. 7, Homecoming, and Nov. 14, Parents Day.
Texas Christian, Wyoming, Okla-
home, Nebraska and Colorado are
KU's five home football opponents in
1964.
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