Francis Henry Kimbrough (June 24, 1904 – February 4, 1971) 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 ...

player, coach of football 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 ...

, and college athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach at

Hardin–Simmons University Hardin–Simmons University (HSU) is a private Baptist university in Abilene, Texas, United States. It is affiliated with the Baptist General Convention of Texas. History Hardin–Simmons University was founded as Abilene Baptist College in 189 ...

(1935–1940),

Baylor University Baylor University is a Private university, private Baptist research university in Waco, Texas, United States. It was chartered in 1845 by the last Congress of the Republic of Texas. Baylor is the oldest continuously operating university in Te ...

(1941–1942, 1945–1946), and West Texas State University—now

West Texas A&M University West Texas A&M University (WTAMU or WT) is a public university in Canyon, Texas, United States. It is the northernmost campus of the Texas A&M University System and accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, Southern Associat ...

(1947–1957). Kimbrough was also the head basketball coach at Hardin–Simmons from 1936 to 1941, tallying a mark of 29–50. He was the brother of

Texas A&M Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, TA&M, or TAMU) is a public university, public, Land-grant university, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas, United States. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of ...

star football player

John Kimbrough John Alec Kimbrough (June 14, 1918 – May 8, 2006) was a college athlete, a member of the Texas Legislature, the star of two western movies and a rancher. His older brother Frank Kimbrough served as head football coach for the Baylor Bears an ...

. Kimbrough began his college coaching career at Hardin–Simmons in 1935. After finishing the 1940 season with a perfect 9–0 record, Kimbrough—at age 37—was hired by Baylor, replacing Morley Jennings. With mediocre results in his first three seasons, Kimbrough resigned after Baylor went 1–8 in 1946. In the middle of his Baylor tenure, Kimbrough served as the head coach for the North Carolina Pre-Flight School team in 1943 and led the Cloudbusters to an overall record of 2–4–1. He was immediately hired by West Texas A&M, where he coached the following 11 years. In 1950 his team went 10–1, including a

Sun Bowl The Sun Bowl is a college football bowl game that has been played since 1935 in the southwestern United States at El Paso, Texas. Along with the Sugar Bowl and Orange Bowl, it is the second-oldest bowl game in the country, behind the Rose Bowl. ...

win over

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...

. Kimbrough retired in 1957 to become the school's

athletic director An athletic director (commonly "athletics director" or "AD") is an administrator at many American clubs or institutions, such as colleges and universities, as well as in larger high schools and middle schools, who oversees the work of coaches a ...

Kimbrough Memorial Stadium Happy State Bank Stadium, formerly known as Kimbrough Memorial Stadium, is a stadium in Canyon, Texas. It is owned by Canyon Independent School District and is primarily used for American football. It is the home stadium for Canyon High School ...

Canyon, Texas Canyon is a city in and the county seat of Randall County, Texas, United States. The population was 14,836 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is part of the Amarillo, Texas, Amarillo metropolitan area, metropolitan statistical area ...

, West Texas A&M's football field, is named in his honor.

Head coaching record

Football

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kimbrough, Frank 1904 births 1971 deaths Baylor Bears football coaches Hardin–Simmons Cowboys basketball coaches Hardin–Simmons Cowboys football coaches Hardin–Simmons Cowboys football players North Carolina Pre-Flight Cloudbusters football coaches West Texas A&M Buffaloes athletic directors West Texas A&M Buffaloes football coaches