Warren Powers
Encyclopedia
Warren Anthony Powers (born February 19, 1941) is a former American football
coach. He was the head coach of the Missouri Tigers
football program from 1978 to 1984. Prior to coming to Missouri, Powers was an assistant coach under both Bob Devaney
and Tom Osborne at Nebraska
. He was an all-state high school quarterback from Kansas City, Missouri
, and also played on Devaney's first team at Nebraska in 1962, earning three letters as a Husker.
Powers played safety for six years with the American Football League
's Oakland Raiders
. He started for the 1967 AFL Champion Raiders and in the second AFL-NFL World Championship game.
He had a one-year stint as head coach at Washington State
before leaving to join the Tigers.
After leaving Nebraska, Powers took an unranked Washington State team into Lincoln, Nebraska and knocked of the 15th ranked Huskers. The following year he went to Lincoln with another unranked team, the Missouri Tigers and he pulled off a victory over a #2 ranked Nebraska team. The Missouri Tigers would lose 25 straight games to Nebraska before their next victory over the Huskers, prompting Tiger fans to wonder what might have been had he stayed at Missouri.
During his tenure at Mizzou, Powers compiled a 46-33-3 (.579) record, including four straight bowl appearances from 1978 to 1981. His best seasons came in 1980 and 1981, where he posted back-to-back 8-4 records. In addition, his Tiger football teams went 3-2 in bowl games, defeating LSU
in the 1978 Liberty Bowl, South Carolina
in the Hall-Of-Fame Bowl in 1979, and Southern Miss
in the 1981 Tangerine Bowl. Mizzou also played in the 1980 Liberty Bowl, a loss to Purdue
and the 1983 Holiday Bowl
, losing to a BYU Cougars
squad, led by a then-future National Football League
MVP for the Super Bowl XXIX
winning San Francisco 49ers
, Steve Young.
On October 24, 1979, the NCAA's Committee on Infractions publicly reprimanded MU for a violation of NCAA Constitution 3-2 related to a failure to exercise institutional control. The violation was in regard to the use of a fund established outside the university for the purpose of paying Powers for debt he assumed while negotiating to become MU's head coach. NCAA regulations require the university's involvement when its coach receives a cash supplement related to duties he is performing on the institution's behalf, and the NCAA found that MU had failed to do so in this case.
Since leaving the Tigers, Powers worked in a variety of sales and administrative jobs. For the past several years, he has been in executive sales at Bommarito Automotive in St. Louis
. He should not be confused with Warren Powers (defensive end)
who once played with the Denver Broncos and who currently heads the "One Nation" team as a Regional Vice President at Primerica Financial Services.
In 2002, Powers was head coach of the Show Me Believers, a National Indoor Football League
team that played its games at the Family Arena
in St. Charles, Missouri, about 20 miles west of St. Louis.
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...
coach. He was the head coach of the Missouri Tigers
University of Missouri
The University of Missouri System is a state university system providing centralized administration for four universities, a health care system, an extension program, five research and technology parks, and a publishing press. More than 64,000 students are currently enrolled at its four campuses...
football program from 1978 to 1984. Prior to coming to Missouri, Powers was an assistant coach under both Bob Devaney
Bob Devaney
Robert S. "Bob" Devaney was an American football player and coach. He served as the head football coach at the University of Wyoming from 1957 to 1961 and at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln from 1962 to 1972, compiling a career college football record of 136–30–7...
and Tom Osborne at Nebraska
Nebraska
Nebraska is a state on the Great Plains of the Midwestern United States. The state's capital is Lincoln and its largest city is Omaha, on the Missouri River....
. He was an all-state high school quarterback from Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
, and also played on Devaney's first team at Nebraska in 1962, earning three letters as a Husker.
Powers played safety for six years with the American Football League
American Football League
The American Football League was a major American Professional Football league that operated from 1960 until 1969, when the established National Football League merged with it. The upstart AFL operated in direct competition with the more established NFL throughout its existence...
's Oakland Raiders
Oakland Raiders
The Oakland Raiders are a professional American football team based in Oakland, California. They currently play in the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
. He started for the 1967 AFL Champion Raiders and in the second AFL-NFL World Championship game.
He had a one-year stint as head coach at Washington State
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...
before leaving to join the Tigers.
After leaving Nebraska, Powers took an unranked Washington State team into Lincoln, Nebraska and knocked of the 15th ranked Huskers. The following year he went to Lincoln with another unranked team, the Missouri Tigers and he pulled off a victory over a #2 ranked Nebraska team. The Missouri Tigers would lose 25 straight games to Nebraska before their next victory over the Huskers, prompting Tiger fans to wonder what might have been had he stayed at Missouri.
During his tenure at Mizzou, Powers compiled a 46-33-3 (.579) record, including four straight bowl appearances from 1978 to 1981. His best seasons came in 1980 and 1981, where he posted back-to-back 8-4 records. In addition, his Tiger football teams went 3-2 in bowl games, defeating LSU
Louisiana State University
Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, most often referred to as Louisiana State University, or LSU, is a public coeducational university located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The University was founded in 1853 in what is now known as Pineville, Louisiana, under the name...
in the 1978 Liberty Bowl, South Carolina
University of South Carolina
The University of South Carolina is a public, co-educational research university located in Columbia, South Carolina, United States, with 7 surrounding satellite campuses. Its historic campus covers over in downtown Columbia not far from the South Carolina State House...
in the Hall-Of-Fame Bowl in 1979, and Southern Miss
The University of Southern Mississippi
The University of Southern Mississippi, informally known as Southern Miss, is a large public research university located in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, United States. It is situated north of Gulfport, Mississippi and northeast of New Orleans, Louisiana...
in the 1981 Tangerine Bowl. Mizzou also played in the 1980 Liberty Bowl, a loss to Purdue
Purdue University
Purdue University, located in West Lafayette, Indiana, U.S., is the flagship university of the six-campus Purdue University system. Purdue was founded on May 6, 1869, as a land-grant university when the Indiana General Assembly, taking advantage of the Morrill Act, accepted a donation of land and...
and the 1983 Holiday Bowl
Holiday Bowl
The Holiday Bowl is a post-season NCAA-sanctioned Division I-A college football bowl game that has been played annually at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, California, since 1978. Beginning with the 2010 playing the bowl will officially be known as the Bridgepoint Education Holiday Bowl after...
, losing to a BYU Cougars
Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University is a private university located in Provo, Utah. It is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and is the United States' largest religious university and third-largest private university.Approximately 98% of the university's 34,000 students...
squad, led by a then-future National Football League
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...
MVP for the Super Bowl XXIX
Super Bowl XXIX
Super Bowl XXIX was an American football game played on January 29, 1995 at Joe Robbie Stadium in Miami, Florida to decide the National Football League champion following the 1994 regular season...
winning San Francisco 49ers
San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers are a professional American football team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the West Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team was founded in 1946 as a charter member of the All-America Football Conference and...
, Steve Young.
On October 24, 1979, the NCAA's Committee on Infractions publicly reprimanded MU for a violation of NCAA Constitution 3-2 related to a failure to exercise institutional control. The violation was in regard to the use of a fund established outside the university for the purpose of paying Powers for debt he assumed while negotiating to become MU's head coach. NCAA regulations require the university's involvement when its coach receives a cash supplement related to duties he is performing on the institution's behalf, and the NCAA found that MU had failed to do so in this case.
Since leaving the Tigers, Powers worked in a variety of sales and administrative jobs. For the past several years, he has been in executive sales at Bommarito Automotive in St. Louis
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
. He should not be confused with Warren Powers (defensive end)
Warren Powers (defensive end)
Warren Powers is a former American football defensive end in the National Football League for the Denver Broncos, the Los Angeles Rams and the Los Angeles Raiders...
who once played with the Denver Broncos and who currently heads the "One Nation" team as a Regional Vice President at Primerica Financial Services.
In 2002, Powers was head coach of the Show Me Believers, a National Indoor Football League
National Indoor Football League
National Indoor Football League was a professional indoor football league in the United States. For their first six years, the league had teams in markets not covered by either the Arena Football League or its developmental league, af2, however, that changed briefly with their expansion into AFL...
team that played its games at the Family Arena
Family Arena
The Family Arena is a multi-purpose arena in St. Charles, Missouri, built in 1999. The arena seats 9,643 for hockey, 9,755 for football, 10,467 for basketball, 6,339 for half-house concerts and up to 11,522 for end-stage concerts...
in St. Charles, Missouri, about 20 miles west of St. Louis.