Jackie Sherrill
Encyclopedia
Jackie Sherrill is a former American football
player and coach. He served as the head coach at Washington State University
(1976), the University of Pittsburgh
(1977–1981), Texas A&M University
(1982–1988), and Mississippi State University
(1991–2003), compiling a career college football
record of 180–120–4. Sherrill is currently a studio analyst for Fox Sports Net
's college football coverage and a writer for Texags.com.
under Bear Bryant
from 1962 to 1965, helping the Crimson Tide
win two national championships.
in 1976. During his one season at the Pullman
campus, the Cougars
won three games and lost eight.
from 1977 to 1981. Before going to Washington State, Sherrill had served as an assistant at Pittsburgh under head coach Johnny Majors
. When Majors left Pittsburgh to return to his alma mater
at the University of Tennessee
, Sherrill returned to become the head coach of the Panthers
. He is credited with grooming quarterback
Dan Marino
, who went on to a prolific Hall of Fame
career in the NFL
after being Sherrill's last quarterback at Pitt, from 1979–1982. During his tenure, Sherrill's coaching staff included future NFL head coaches Jimmy Johnson
and Dave Wannstedt
. In Sherrill's five seasons at Pittsburgh, the Panthers won 50 games, lost nine, and had one tie.
When asked about retirement, Joe Paterno
once said that he would not, because it would leave college football in the hands of "the Jackie Sherrills and the Barry Switzer
s". Paterno apologized to Switzer for the comment, but wrote in his book that he "didnt give a damn about what Sherrill felt." Paterno later said that the comment was made off-the-record and in jest during a party at Paterno's house, but it was printed anyway. Sherrill and Paterno have since become friends, and Sherrill and his wife were guests of the Paternos in State College in 2004. Notably, Sherrill went 2–3 in five games leading Pitt against Penn State, including a 48–14 loss in 1981 that destroyed Pitt's chances at a second national championship in five years.
, signing a record six-year contract over $1.7 million. Sherrill was the head coach at Texas A&M University
from 1982 to 1988. While head coach at A&M Sherrill started the tradition of the "12th Man Kickoff Team
", this tradition is still observed by A&M today only in a significantly scaled back form, including a single walk-on rather than an entire return team unit. In his seven seasons as the coach of the Aggies
, Texas A&M won 52 games, lost 28, and had one tie. Texas A&M won three consecutive Southwest Conference championships under Sherrill, in 1985, 1986 and 1987. As a result, the Aggies played in the Cotton Bowl Classic at the end of each season, defeating Auburn University
36–16 on January 1, 1986 and Notre Dame
35–10 on January 1, 1988, and losing to Ohio State University
28–12 on January 1, 1987. He is also one of the few coaches to leave Texas A&M with a winning record against the Longhorns
, winning his last five against The University of Texas after losing his first two.
In 1988, Sherrill's Aggies were put under probation by the NCAA
for a period of two years. Violations included improper employment, extra benefits, unethical conduct and lack of institutional control. Sherrill was not personally found guilty of any infractions. However, in December 1988, Sherrill resigned.
in 1991. He took over a program that hadn't had a winning season since 1986 (and had won a total of 14 games in that stretch) and hadn't had a winning record in Southeastern Conference
play since 1981. Sherrill began his Mississippi State career with an upset victory over a familiar foe from his A&M days, the Texas Longhorns (who were the defending Southwest Conference champions).
In thirteen seasons in Starkville, Sherrill coached the Bulldogs
to a record of 75–75–2. His 75 wins are the most in school history. He led the team to an SEC West title in 1998, and a berth in the Cotton Bowl Classic. A year later, he notched a 10–2 record and #12 final ranking. That #12 ranking was the highest final ranking achieved by any NCAA Division I-A school in Mississippi in over 30 years. Sherrill, along with Bill Snyder
of Kansas State
, were among the first to use the rich JUCO systems of their respective states to help their programs progress.
Although Sherrill won only eight games in his last three seasons, he built Mississippi State into a consistent winner despite playing in the same division as powerhouses like Alabama, Auburn and LSU
. He also finished with a winning record against in-state rival Ole Miss (7–6). Under Sherrill, the Bulldogs went to six bowl games; before his arrival they'd only been to seven bowls in 96 years of play.
Sherrill also achieved notoriety by castrating a bull during a team practice as a motivational technique prior to a game versus Texas. Unranked Mississippi State subsequently beat the #13 ranked Longhorns.
Sherrill retired after the 2003 season, which was followed by the NCAA levying probation for four years on the program. Despite a prolonged 3 year investigation by the NCAA, Mississippi State was not found guilty of any major violations, and Sherrill was never personally found guilty of any NCAA rules violations at either Mississippi State or Texas A&M.
Sherrill has an ongoing lawsuit against the NCAA, Rich Johanningmeier (the principal NCAA investigator in the MSU probation), and Julie Gibert (a female Ole Miss booster), alleging 18 counts of wrongdoing. Among the allegations include charges that the NCAA defamed him and conspired to drive him out of coaching, that Johanningmeier was unethically influenced by the female Ole Miss booster in his investigation of MSU, and that they conspired to fabricate NCAA charges against him.
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
player and coach. He served as the head coach at Washington State University
Washington State University
Washington State University is a public research university based in Pullman, Washington, in the Palouse region of the Pacific Northwest. Founded in 1890, WSU is the state's original and largest land-grant university...
(1976), the University of Pittsburgh
University of Pittsburgh
The University of Pittsburgh, commonly referred to as Pitt, is a state-related research university located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded as Pittsburgh Academy in 1787 on what was then the American frontier, Pitt is one of the oldest continuously chartered institutions of...
(1977–1981), Texas A&M University
Texas A&M University
Texas A&M University is a coeducational public research university located in College Station, Texas . It is the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System. The sixth-largest university in the United States, A&M's enrollment for Fall 2011 was over 50,000 for the first time in school...
(1982–1988), and Mississippi State University
Mississippi State University
The Mississippi State University of Agriculture and Applied Science commonly known as Mississippi State University is a land-grant university located in Oktibbeha County, Mississippi, United States, partially in the town of Starkville and partially in an unincorporated area...
(1991–2003), compiling a career college football
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
record of 180–120–4. Sherrill is currently a studio analyst for Fox Sports Net
Fox Sports Net
The Fox Sports Regional Networks, or simply Fox Sports Net , are a collection of cable TV regional sports networks in the United States owned and operated by News Corporation.- Beginnings :...
's college football coverage and a writer for Texags.com.
Playing career
Sherrill played football at the University of AlabamaUniversity of Alabama
The University of Alabama is a public coeducational university located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States....
under Bear Bryant
Bear Bryant
Paul William "Bear" Bryant was an American college football player and coach. He was best known as the longtime head coach of the University of Alabama football team. During his 25-year tenure as Alabama's head coach, he amassed six national championships and thirteen conference championships...
from 1962 to 1965, helping the Crimson Tide
Alabama Crimson Tide football
|TeamName = Alabama football |Image = Alabama Crimson Tide Logo.svg |ImageSize = 110 |Helmet = Alabama Football.png |ImageSize2 = 150 |CurrentSeason = 2011 Alabama Crimson Tide football team...
win two national championships.
Washington State
Sherrill was the head coach at Washington StateWashington State University
Washington State University is a public research university based in Pullman, Washington, in the Palouse region of the Pacific Northwest. Founded in 1890, WSU is the state's original and largest land-grant university...
in 1976. During his one season at the Pullman
Pullman, Washington
Pullman is the largest city in Whitman County, Washington, United States. The population was 24,675 at the 2000 census and 29,799 according to the 2010 census...
campus, the Cougars
Washington State Cougars football
The Washington State Cougars football team is the intercollegiate football team of Washington State University. The team is a member of the Pacific-12 Conference...
won three games and lost eight.
Pittsburgh
Sherrill was the head coach at the University of PittsburghUniversity of Pittsburgh
The University of Pittsburgh, commonly referred to as Pitt, is a state-related research university located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded as Pittsburgh Academy in 1787 on what was then the American frontier, Pitt is one of the oldest continuously chartered institutions of...
from 1977 to 1981. Before going to Washington State, Sherrill had served as an assistant at Pittsburgh under head coach Johnny Majors
Johnny Majors
Johnny Majors is a former American football player and coach. A standout halfback at the University of Tennessee, he was an All-American in 1956 and a two-time winner of the Southeastern Conference Most Valuable Player award, in 1955 and 1956. He finished second to Paul Hornung in voting for...
. When Majors left Pittsburgh to return to his alma mater
Alma mater
Alma mater , pronounced ), was used in ancient Rome as a title for various mother goddesses, especially Ceres or Cybele, and in Christianity for the Virgin Mary.-General term:...
at the University of Tennessee
Tennessee Volunteers football
The Tennessee Volunteers football team are an American college football team at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville . The NCAA Division I team is also a member of the Southeastern Conference ....
, Sherrill returned to become the head coach of the Panthers
Pittsburgh Panthers football
Pittsburgh Panthers football is the intercollegiate football team of the University of Pittsburgh, often referred to as "Pitt", located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Traditionally the most popular sport at the university, Pitt football has played at the highest level of American college football...
. He is credited with grooming quarterback
Quarterback
Quarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the offensive line...
Dan Marino
Dan Marino
Daniel Constantine "Dan" Marino, Jr. is a retired American football quarterback who played for the Miami Dolphins in the National Football League...
, who went on to a prolific Hall of Fame
Pro Football Hall of Fame
The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame of professional football in the United States with an emphasis on the National Football League . It opened in Canton, Ohio, on September 7, 1963, with 17 charter inductees...
career in the NFL
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
after being Sherrill's last quarterback at Pitt, from 1979–1982. During his tenure, Sherrill's coaching staff included future NFL head coaches Jimmy Johnson
Jimmy Johnson (American football coach)
James William "Jimmy" Johnson is an American former NCAA and National Football League head coach. As of 2010, he is currently an analyst for Fox NFL Sunday, the Fox network's NFL pregame show. He was the first football coach whose teams won both an NCAA Division 1A National Championship and a...
and Dave Wannstedt
Dave Wannstedt
Dave Wannstedt is current Assistant Head Coach/Inside Linebackers Coach for the Buffalo Bills in the National Football League. He was most recently head coach of the University of Pittsburgh football team, a position he held for six seasons. Wannstedt is also the former head coach of the Miami...
. In Sherrill's five seasons at Pittsburgh, the Panthers won 50 games, lost nine, and had one tie.
When asked about retirement, Joe Paterno
Joe Paterno
Joseph Vincent "Joe" Paterno is a former college football coach who was the head coach of the Penn State Nittany Lions for 46 years from 1966 through 2011. Paterno, nicknamed "JoePa," holds the record for the most victories by an NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision football coach with...
once said that he would not, because it would leave college football in the hands of "the Jackie Sherrills and the Barry Switzer
Barry Switzer
Barry Switzer is a former football coach, active in the college and professional ranks between 1962 and 1997. He has one of the highest winning percentages of any college football coach in history, and is one of only two head coaches to win both a college football national championship and a...
s". Paterno apologized to Switzer for the comment, but wrote in his book that he "didnt give a damn about what Sherrill felt." Paterno later said that the comment was made off-the-record and in jest during a party at Paterno's house, but it was printed anyway. Sherrill and Paterno have since become friends, and Sherrill and his wife were guests of the Paternos in State College in 2004. Notably, Sherrill went 2–3 in five games leading Pitt against Penn State, including a 48–14 loss in 1981 that destroyed Pitt's chances at a second national championship in five years.
Texas A&M
Sherrill was hired on January 19, 1982 as replacement for Tom WilsonTom Wilson (American football)
-References:...
, signing a record six-year contract over $1.7 million. Sherrill was the head coach at Texas A&M University
Texas A&M University
Texas A&M University is a coeducational public research university located in College Station, Texas . It is the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System. The sixth-largest university in the United States, A&M's enrollment for Fall 2011 was over 50,000 for the first time in school...
from 1982 to 1988. While head coach at A&M Sherrill started the tradition of the "12th Man Kickoff Team
12th Man (football)
The 12th man or 12th player is a term used to describe the fans within a stadium during association football or American football games. This term has a different meaning in cricket, referring to the first substitute player who fields when a member of the fielding side is injured...
", this tradition is still observed by A&M today only in a significantly scaled back form, including a single walk-on rather than an entire return team unit. In his seven seasons as the coach of the Aggies
Texas A&M Aggies football
The Texas A&M Aggies football team represents Texas A&M University in college football. The Aggies have competed in the Big 12 Conference since the conference's inception in 1996. They will join the Southeastern Conference in July 2012. Texas A&M football has earned one national title and 18...
, Texas A&M won 52 games, lost 28, and had one tie. Texas A&M won three consecutive Southwest Conference championships under Sherrill, in 1985, 1986 and 1987. As a result, the Aggies played in the Cotton Bowl Classic at the end of each season, defeating Auburn University
1985 Auburn Tigers football team
The 1985 Auburn Tigers football team represented Auburn University in the 1985 NCAA Division I-A football season.-Season:Bo Jackson rushed for 1,786 yards, which was the second best single-season performance in SEC history behind Herschel Walker's 1,891 rushing yards for the Georgia in 1981...
36–16 on January 1, 1986 and Notre Dame
Notre Dame Fighting Irish football
Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team is the football team of the University of Notre Dame. The team is currently coached by Brian Kelly.Notre Dame competes as an Independent at the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision level, and is a founding member of the Bowl Championship Series coalition. It is an...
35–10 on January 1, 1988, and losing to Ohio State University
1986 Ohio State Buckeyes football team
The 1986 Ohio State Buckeyes football team represented the Ohio State University in the college football season of 1986-1987. The Buckeyes compiled a 10–3 record, including the 1987 Cotton Bowl Classic in Dallas, Texas, where they won 28–12 against the Texas A&M...
28–12 on January 1, 1987. He is also one of the few coaches to leave Texas A&M with a winning record against the Longhorns
Texas Longhorns football
The Texas Longhorns football program is the intercollegiate football team representing The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas. The team currently competes in the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision as a member of the Big 12 Conference which is a Division I Bowl Subdivision of the National...
, winning his last five against The University of Texas after losing his first two.
In 1988, Sherrill's Aggies were put under probation by the NCAA
National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association is a semi-voluntary association of 1,281 institutions, conferences, organizations and individuals that organizes the athletic programs of many colleges and universities in the United States...
for a period of two years. Violations included improper employment, extra benefits, unethical conduct and lack of institutional control. Sherrill was not personally found guilty of any infractions. However, in December 1988, Sherrill resigned.
Mississippi State
After three years away from the game, Sherrill was hired as head coach at Mississippi State UniversityMississippi State University
The Mississippi State University of Agriculture and Applied Science commonly known as Mississippi State University is a land-grant university located in Oktibbeha County, Mississippi, United States, partially in the town of Starkville and partially in an unincorporated area...
in 1991. He took over a program that hadn't had a winning season since 1986 (and had won a total of 14 games in that stretch) and hadn't had a winning record in Southeastern Conference
Southeastern Conference
The Southeastern Conference is an American college athletic conference that operates in the southeastern part of the United States. It is headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama...
play since 1981. Sherrill began his Mississippi State career with an upset victory over a familiar foe from his A&M days, the Texas Longhorns (who were the defending Southwest Conference champions).
In thirteen seasons in Starkville, Sherrill coached the Bulldogs
Mississippi State Bulldogs football
The Mississippi State Bulldogs football program represents Mississippi State University in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, competing as a member of the Western Division of the Southeastern Conference. Mississippi State has produced 38 All-Americans, 171 All-SEC selections, and 124...
to a record of 75–75–2. His 75 wins are the most in school history. He led the team to an SEC West title in 1998, and a berth in the Cotton Bowl Classic. A year later, he notched a 10–2 record and #12 final ranking. That #12 ranking was the highest final ranking achieved by any NCAA Division I-A school in Mississippi in over 30 years. Sherrill, along with Bill Snyder
Bill Snyder
Bill Snyder is the head football coach at Kansas State University. He was rehired to the position on November 24, 2008, making Snyder one of the rare college football head coaches to have non-consecutive tenure at the same school. Snyder previously served as head coach at the school from 1989 to...
of Kansas State
Kansas State Wildcats football
The Kansas State Wildcats football program is the intercollegiate football program of the Kansas State University Wildcats. The program is classified in the NCAA's Division I Bowl Subdivision, and the team competes in the Big 12 Conference...
, were among the first to use the rich JUCO systems of their respective states to help their programs progress.
Although Sherrill won only eight games in his last three seasons, he built Mississippi State into a consistent winner despite playing in the same division as powerhouses like Alabama, Auburn and LSU
LSU Tigers football
The LSU Tigers football team, also known as the Fighting Tigers or Bayou Bengals, represents Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, United States in NCAA Division I FBS college football. Current head coach Les Miles has led the team since 2005. Since 1999 when Nick Saban took over as...
. He also finished with a winning record against in-state rival Ole Miss (7–6). Under Sherrill, the Bulldogs went to six bowl games; before his arrival they'd only been to seven bowls in 96 years of play.
Sherrill also achieved notoriety by castrating a bull during a team practice as a motivational technique prior to a game versus Texas. Unranked Mississippi State subsequently beat the #13 ranked Longhorns.
Sherrill retired after the 2003 season, which was followed by the NCAA levying probation for four years on the program. Despite a prolonged 3 year investigation by the NCAA, Mississippi State was not found guilty of any major violations, and Sherrill was never personally found guilty of any NCAA rules violations at either Mississippi State or Texas A&M.
Sherrill has an ongoing lawsuit against the NCAA, Rich Johanningmeier (the principal NCAA investigator in the MSU probation), and Julie Gibert (a female Ole Miss booster), alleging 18 counts of wrongdoing. Among the allegations include charges that the NCAA defamed him and conspired to drive him out of coaching, that Johanningmeier was unethically influenced by the female Ole Miss booster in his investigation of MSU, and that they conspired to fabricate NCAA charges against him.
Head coaching record
External links
- MStateAthletics.com (31 August 2000). "Head Coach Jackie Sherrill". Archived page of 19 November 2003.