John McKenna (November 12, 1914 – March 31, 2007) was an American football player, coach, and college athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach at the Virginia Military Institute (VMI) for 13 seasons, from 1953 until 1965, compiling a record of 62–60–8. McKenna's teams won four Southern Conference championships and his 62 wins are the most of any coach in VMI Keydets football history. McKenna died on March 31, 2007, at his home in Decatur, Georgia.[1]
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| Biographical details | |
|---|---|
| Born | November 12, 1914 Lawrence, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Died | March 31, 2007 (aged 94) Decatur, Georgia, U.S. |
| Playing career | |
| 1935–1937 | Villanova |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 1946 | Malvern Prep (PA) |
| 1947–1948 | Villanova (assistant) |
| 1949–1951 | Loyola (CA) (assistant) |
| 1952 | VMI (assistant) |
| 1953–1965 | VMI |
| Administrative career (AD unless noted) | |
| 1972–1979 | Georgia Tech (associate AD) |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 62–60–8 (college) |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| 4 SoCon (1957, 1959–1960, 1962) | |
He was inducted into the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame in 2007.
Head coaching record
College
| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | AP# | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| VMI Keydets (Southern Conference) (1953–1965) | |||||||||
| 1953 | VMI | 5–5 | 3–3 | T–5th | |||||
| 1954 | VMI | 4–6 | 4–3 | 5th | |||||
| 1955 | VMI | 1–9 | 1–6 | 9th | |||||
| 1956 | VMI | 3–6–1 | 2–3–1 | 5th | |||||
| 1957 | VMI | 9–0–1 | 6–0 | 1st | 20 | ||||
| 1958 | VMI | 6–2–2 | 2–2–1 | 4th | |||||
| 1959 | VMI | 8–1–1 | 5–0–1 | 1st | |||||
| 1960 | VMI | 7–2–1 | 4–1 | 1st | |||||
| 1961 | VMI | 6–4 | 4–2 | T–3rd | |||||
| 1962 | VMI | 6–4 | 6–0 | 1st | |||||
| 1963 | VMI | 3–5–2 | 3–1–2 | 3rd | |||||
| 1964 | VMI | 1–9 | 1–4 | T–8th | |||||
| 1965 | VMI | 3–7 | 3–2 | 4th | |||||
| VMI: | 62–60–8 | 44–27–5 | |||||||
| Total: | 62–60–8 | ||||||||
| National championship Conference title Conference division title or championship game berth | |||||||||
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