Coleman "Buck" McPhail (December 25, 1929 – March 4, 2005) was an

American football American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, field with goalposts at e ...

fullback and

placekicker In gridiron football, the placekicker (PK), or simply kicker (K), is the player responsible for attempts at scoring Field goal (football), field goals and extra points. In most cases, the placekicker also serves as the team's kickoff specialist ...

in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). McPhail played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

College career

McPhail played fullback and punter at Oklahoma. He rushed 19 times for 102 yards as a sophomore during the Sooners' national championship season in 1950. As a junior, he rushed for 875 yards and four touchdowns and set a national record with 8.56 yards per carry and was named first-team All- Big Seven Conference. As a senior, McPhail rushed for 1,018 yards on 161 carries (6.3 yards per carry) and was named first-team All-Big Seven and an All-American by the

American Football Coaches Association The American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) is an association of over 11,000 American football coaches and staff on all levels. According to its constitution, some of the main goals of the American Football Coaches Association are to "mainta ...

. McPhail also served as the lead blocker for

Heisman Trophy The Heisman Memorial Trophy ( ; also known simply as the Heisman) is awarded annually since 1935 to the top player in college football. It is considered the most prestigious award in the sport and is presented by the Heisman Trophy Trust followin ...

winner

Billy Vessels Billy Dale Vessels (March 22, 1931 – November 17, 2001) was an American football player at the halfback position. He played college football for the Oklahoma Sooners, winning a national championship in 1950 and being awarded the Heisman Trop ...

and the pair became the first college football backfield to have two 1,000 rushers in the same season. He also averaged 39.8 yards per punt. McPhail finished his collegiate career with 1,995 rushing yards.

Professional career

McPhail was selected by the

Baltimore Colts The Baltimore Colts were a professional American football team that played in Baltimore from 1953 to 1983, when owner Robert Irsay moved the franchise to Indianapolis. The team was named for Baltimore's history of horse breeding and racing. It w ...

in the third round of the

1953 NFL draft The 1953 National Football League draft was held on January 22, 1953, at Bellevue-Stratford Hotel in Philadelphia. Selections made by the folded Dallas Texans were assigned to the Baltimore Colts, since the Dallas team had moved to Baltimore. ...

. He occasionally played running back but primarily served as the team's kicking specialist during Baltimore's inaugural season. McPhail finished the season with 138 yards on 53 carries and ten receptions for 38 yards while making two of five field goal attempts and 21 of 23 extra point attempts. McPhail was drafted into the Army in 1954 and was stationed at

Fort Sill Fort Sill is a United States Army post north of Lawton, Oklahoma, about 85 miles (137 km) southwest of Oklahoma City. It covers almost . The fort was first built during the Indian Wars. It is designated as a National Historic Landmark a ...

, where he was a member of the base's football team and was named the most valuable player among Army football players in 1955.

Coaching career and later life

After his discharge from the Army McPhail became the backfield coach at the University of California. After three seasons with the Golden Bears he joined the coaching staff at Illinois. In 1963 McPhail was interviewed to replace

Bud Wilkinson Charles Burnham "Bud" Wilkinson (April 23, 1916 – February 9, 1994) was an American football player, coach, broadcaster, and politician. He served as the head football coach at the University of Oklahoma from 1947 to 1963, compiling a record of ...

as the head coach at Oklahoma, but his alma mater ultimately chose

Gomer Jones Gomer Thomas Jones (February 26, 1914 – March 21, 1971) was an American football player, coach, and college athletics administrator. He played college football as a center at Ohio State University from 1933 to 1935. After serving as an assista ...

. McPhail left Illinois after seven years to work for a business in Florida before moving to California in 1972 to take a job with Levi Strauss & Co. McPhail died on March 4, 2005.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McPhail, Buck 1929 births 2005 deaths Players of American football from Oklahoma City American football fullbacks American football placekickers American football punters Oklahoma Sooners football players Baltimore Colts players Coaches of American football from Oklahoma California Golden Bears football coaches Illinois Fighting Illini football coaches United States Army officers