J. T. King was an American football

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 football coach of the Texas Tech Red Raiders

Texas Tech Red Raiders football

Texas Tech Red Raiders football program is a college football team that represents Texas Tech University . The team competes, as a member of the Big 12 Conference, which is a Division I Bowl Subdivision of the National Collegiate Athletic Association...

 from 1961 to 1969. He amassed a 44–45–3 record.

Born in Wilmot, Arkansas

Wilmot, Arkansas

Wilmot is a city in Ashley County, Arkansas, United States. The population was 786 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Wilmot is located at ....

, King graduated from Houston Reagan High School. Collegiately, he played offensive guard under coach Dana X. Bible

Dana X. Bible

Dana Xenophon Bible was an American football player and coach. He served as the head football coach at Mississippi College , Louisiana State University , Texas A&M University , the University of Nebraska , and the University of Texas...

 at Texas

Texas Longhorns football

The Texas Longhorns football program is the intercollegiate football team representing The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas. The team currently competes in the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision as a member of the Big 12 Conference which is a Division I Bowl Subdivision of the National...

. He later served as an assistant coach at his alma mater from 1950–52 and from 1954-56.

King was appointed head coach at Texas Tech on November 29, 1960, after DeWitt Weaver

DeWitt Weaver

DeWitt Thompson Weaver, Sr. was the head football coach of the Texas Tech Red Raiders from 1951 to 1960.He was the first head football coach at Texas Tech to win a bowl game during his first season—an accomplishment unmatched at Texas Tech until Tommy Tuberville's first season, in 2010-2011.In...

 resigned to enter private business in Alabama

Alabama

Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...

. King was the Texas Tech athletic director from 1970 until 1978.

King was inducted to the University of Texas

University of Texas at Austin

The University of Texas at Austin is a state research university located in Austin, Texas, USA, and is the flagship institution of the The University of Texas System. Founded in 1883, its campus is located approximately from the Texas State Capitol in Austin...

Men's Athletics Hall of Honor in 1981.