Francis J. "Mickey" McCormick (1903 – August 13, 1958) 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 ...

and

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

player and coach. He served as the head football coach at St. Norbert College from 1934 to 1942 and at Carroll College—now known as

Carroll University Carroll University is a private university in Waukesha, Wisconsin, United States. It was established in 1846 as Wisconsin's first four-year institution of higher learning. The university is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA). History ...

—in

Waukesha, Wisconsin Waukesha ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Waukesha County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 71,158 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Located along the Fox River (Illinois River tributary), Fox River adjacent to th ...

from 1949 to 1957, compiling a career

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 ...

record of 69–57–9. McCormick was also the head basketball coach at St. Norbert from 1934 to 1943 and again during the 1944–45 season, tallying a mark of 62–74. He was one of the more outspoken coaches against the

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

rule change on "free substitution" in 1953.

Early life

McCormick was a 1929 graduate of Antigo High School< in his hometown of

Antigo, Wisconsin Antigo ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Langlade County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 8,100 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Antigo is the center of a farming and lumbering district, and its manufactured prod ...

Playing career

Marquette

McCormick played college football and was a forward on the basketball team at

Marquette University Marquette University () is a Private university, private Jesuit research university in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States. It was established as Marquette College on August 28, 1881, by John Henni, the first Archbishop of the Roman Catholic Ar ...

. The football teams won a victory over

Navy A navy, naval force, military maritime fleet, war navy, or maritime force is the military branch, branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral z ...

by a score of 21–3 in 1924 and completed a 7–2 record in 1925 under

College Football Hall of Fame The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and interactive Tourist attraction, attraction devoted to college football, college American football. The National Football Foundation (NFF) founded the Hall in 1951 to immortalize the players ...

head coach Frank Murray.

Duluth Eskimos

After graduation at Marquette, McCormic went on to be a member of the

Duluth Eskimos The Duluth Eskimos were a professional football team from Duluth, Minnesota in the National Football League (NFL). After spending most of their time as a traveling team, they withdrew from the league after the 1927 season. A distinction of the ...

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).

Coaching career

St. Norbert

McCormick coached at St. Norbert College in

De Pere, Wisconsin De Pere ( ) is a city in Brown County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 25,410 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. It is part of the Green Bay metropolitan area. History When the first European, Jean Nicolet, visited the p ...

starting with the 1934 season until the conclusion of the 1942 season. His record with the Green Knights was a total of 32–26–8 and included a 7–1 season in 1936. Also at St. Norbert, McCormick was the head basketball coach.Antigo Daily Journal
"Phil Kafka, 90, local military figure, dies" November 18, 2008

Carroll

McCormick the 20th head football coach at

Carroll College Carroll College is a private Catholic college in Helena, Montana. The college has 21 buildings on a 63-acre campus, has over 35 academic majors, participates in 15 NAIA athletic sports, and is home to All Saints Chapel. The college motto, in L ...

, serving for nine seasons, from 1949 to 1957. (now called "Carroll University") located in

His record at Carroll College was 37–31–1. Carroll was his last coaching position as he died in August 1958 before the season began, but the school later inducted him into their "Athletic Hall of Fame" for his contributions to the school and athletic programs. Highlights of his coaching at Carroll included a strong offense in the 1951 season. McCormick began the 1949 season with twenty eager players that were considered "strong on talent but weak on depth" with team drills beginning in early September 1949. He felt that his most talented team was 1955, a team he called the best Carroll had in ten years. McCormick was selected to coach the "South" team for the 1951 Upper Peninsula All-Star Football exhibition game.

Free substitution

In 1953, McCormick was outspoken among the small-college football coaches against the idea of ''free substitution'' in college football. Becoming more common in professional football, the idea paved the way of the "specialist athlete" in college football where one person could focus on one position such as

quarterback The quarterback (QB) is a position in gridiron football who are members of the offensive side of the ball and mostly line up directly behind the Lineman (football), offensive line. In modern American football, the quarterback is usually consider ...

or punter. For large colleges and professional teams, the idea of free substitution worked well. McCormick pointed out that smaller colleges would suffer under this rule. Free substitution generally prevented a player from returning to gameplay in the same quarter after he was taken out for a substitute and it required either a very large squad that could handle all the substitutions or a highly talented small squad that would not need to substitute.

Death

McCormick died on August 13, 1958, at St. Joseph's Hospital in

Milwaukee, Wisconsin Milwaukee is the List of cities in Wisconsin, most populous city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Located on the western shore of Lake Michigan, it is the List of United States cities by population, 31st-most populous city in the United States ...

Head coaching record

Football

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McCormick, Francis J. 1903 births 1958 deaths American men's basketball players Basketball coaches from Wisconsin Basketball players from Wisconsin Carroll Pioneers football coaches Duluth Eskimos players Forwards (basketball) Marquette Golden Avalanche football players Marquette Golden Eagles men's basketball players People from Antigo, Wisconsin St. Norbert Green Knights football coaches St. Norbert Green Knights men's basketball coaches