John Mackovic
Biographical details | |
---|---|
Born | Barberton, Ohio, U.S.[1] | October 1, 1943
Playing career | |
1962–1964 | Wake Forest |
Coaching career ( United States national team | |
2014–present | Italy national team |
Administrative career (AD unless noted) | |
1988–1991 | Illinois |
Head coaching record | |
Overall | 95–82–3 (college) 30–34 (NFL) 4–0 (international play) |
Bowls | 2–6 |
Tournaments | 4–0 ( Big Ten Coach of the Year (1988–1989) Coach of the Year (1995)SWC |
John Mackovic (born October 1, 1943)
Coaching career
Mackovic's coaching career began at Miami University in Ohio as a graduate assistant in 1965. He then served stints as offensive coordinator at San Jose State University and the University of Arizona before serving as offensive coordinator and assistant head coach at Purdue University in 1977.
Mackovic earned his first head coaching job in college football, taking over at Wake Forest from 1978 to 1980. Prior to his arrival, the Demon Deacons went 1–10; Mackovic led his teams to a 14–20 record, including their first bowl game in 30 years. In 1979, he was named the Coach of the Year by the Walter Camp Football Foundation.
In 1981, Tom Landry hired Mackovic as assistant head coach and quarterback coach with the Dallas Cowboys, with whom he spent two seasons before accepting a head coaching job with the Kansas City Chiefs in 1983. Mackovic would later name himself his offensive coordinator, a position he held all four seasons with the Chiefs. Mackovic's first three Chiefs teams missed the playoffs. In his final season, the Chiefs made the playoffs as a wild card, their first playoff appearance in 15 years and only their second since the AFL–NFL merger. However, owner Lamar Hunt fired Mackovic only days after they were eliminated in the first round due to a lack of chemistry. He had a year remaining on his contract and he had been offered an extension prior to the firing. This came in the wake of departures of defensive coordinator Walt Corey leaving for Buffalo and special team coach Frank Gansz resigning to look for a job as offensive coordinator. [2] The catalyst behind Mackovic's dismissal was a meeting between Hunt and eight of the most prominent Chiefs. Days later, Ganz was hired to replace Mackovic.[3] Mackovic's record with the Chiefs was 30–34.[4]
Following a year off, Mackovic resumed his coaching career when he was hired as the head football coach and
Mackovic's previous success of turning around college programs led him to the
Following his firing at Texas, Mackovic became a college football analyst for ESPN in 1998 for whom he worked until January 2001, when he accepted the head coaching job for the University of Arizona. Frustrated by an offense that was perceived as too conservative, Arizona hired Mackovic as head coach to replace Dick Tomey, who had resigned; however, Mackovic never posted a winning record in two and one-half seasons in Tucson, with a 10–18 record (a .357 winning percentage).
Midway through the 2002 season, Mackovic told tight end Justin Levasseur that he was a disgrace to his family. This and other incidents led 40 players (including future Pro Bowler Lance Briggs) to hold a secret meeting with school president Peter Likins. The players complained about Mackovic's constant verbal abuse, such as an ugly tirade after a loss to Wisconsin. Mackovic offered a public apology to his players, the university and fans.[3][8] However, whatever goodwill that he'd managed to restore quickly evaporated a season later; quarterback Nic Costa said that despite a very talented roster, many players had lost their love for the game due to Mackovic's brusque manner. Five games into the 2003 season, Mackovic was fired and replaced by defensive coordinator Mike Hankwitz. School officials said they had to act because it was obvious the Wildcats would not win with Mackovic at the helm.[9]
In 2006, Mackovic again returned to coaching when he was named as the head coach of the
Head coaching record
College
Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | Coaches# | AP° | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Wake Forest Demon Deacons (Atlantic Coast Conference) (1978–1980) | |||||||||
1978 | Wake Forest | 1–10 | 1–5 | 6th | |||||
1979 | Wake Forest | 8–4 | 3–2 | 4th | L Tangerine | ||||
1980 | Wake Forest | 5–6 | 2–4 | T–4th | |||||
Wake Forest: | 14–20 | 6–11 | |||||||
Illinois Fighting Illini (Big Ten Conference) (1988–1991) | |||||||||
1988 | Illinois | 6–5–1 | 5–2–1 | 3rd | L All-American | ||||
1989 | Illinois | 10–2 | 7–1 | 2nd | W Florida Citrus | 10 | 10 | ||
1990 | Illinois | 8–4 | 6–2 | T–1st | L Hall of Fame | 24 | 25 | ||
1991 | Illinois | 6–5* | 4–4 | 5th | John Hancock* | ||||
Illinois: | 30–16–1 | 22–9–1 | *John Hancock Bowl coached by Lou Tepper | ||||||
Texas Longhorns (Southwest Conference) (1992–1995) | |||||||||
1992 | Texas | 6–5 | 4–3 | T–2nd | |||||
1993 | Texas | 5–5–1 | 5–2 | T–2nd | |||||
1994 | Texas | 8–4 | 4–3 | T–1st | W Sun† | 23 | 25 | ||
1995 | Texas | 10–2–1 | 7–0 | 1st | L Sugar† | 14 | 14 | ||
Texas Longhorns (Big 12 Conference) (1996–1997) | |||||||||
1996 | Texas | 8–5 | 6–2 | 1st (South) | L Fiesta† | 23 | 23 | ||
1997 | Texas | 4–7 | 2–6 | T–4th (South) | |||||
Texas: | 41–28–2 | 28–16 | |||||||
Arizona Wildcats (Pacific-10 Conference) (2001–2003) | |||||||||
2001 | Arizona | 5–6 | 2–6 | 8th | |||||
2002 | Arizona | 4–8 | 1–7 | T–9th | |||||
2003 | Arizona | 1–4** | 0–1** | ||||||
Arizona: | 10–18 | 3–14 | **Fired after 5 games | ||||||
Total: | 95–82–3 | ||||||||
National championship Conference title Conference division title or championship game berth | |||||||||
|
NFL
Team | Year | Regular Season | Postseason | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Won | Lost | Ties | Win % | Finish | Won | Lost | Win % | Result | ||
KC | 1983 | 6 | 10 | 0 | .375 | 5th in AFC West | – | – | – | – |
KC | 1984 | 8 | 8 | 0 | .500 | 4th in AFC West | – | – | – | – |
KC | 1985 | 6 | 10 | 0 | .375 | 5th in AFC West | – | – | – | – |
KC | 1986 | 10 | 6 | 0 | .625 | 2nd in AFC West | 0 | 1 | .000 | Lost to New York Jets in AFC wild card game. |
KC Total | 30 | 34 | 0 | .469 | 0 | 1 | .000 | |||
Total | 30 | 34 | 0 | .469 | 0 | 1 | .000 |
References
- ^ a b "Player Bio: John Mackovic - University of Arizona Wildcats Official Athletic Site". Archived from the original on July 27, 2011. Retrieved October 1, 2010.
- ^ Mackovic released. New York Times, January 9, 1987.
- ^ a b Fish, Mike: "Apologies or No Apologies, Mackovic Has Had It", CNNSI.com, November 15, 2002.
- ^ "Mackovic Says Firing Caught Him by Surprise". Los Angeles Times. 10 January 1987.
- ^ "Former Kansas City Chiefs Coach John Mackovic was named".
- ^ Chris Foster, UCLA at Texas, and memories of 'Rout 66', Los Angeles Times, September 24, 2010, Accessed September 25, 2010.
- ^ Jim Hodges, UCLA Takes Rout 66, Los Angeles Times, September 14, 1997, Accessed July 17, 2008.
- ^ Arizona's Mackovic vows to change after player uprising Archived August 25, 2009, at the Wayback Machine. Associated Press, November 15, 2002.
- New York Times, September 30, 2003.