Red Hickey
Encyclopedia
Howard Wayne "Red" Hickey (February 14, 1917 — March 30, 2006) was an American
football
player and coach who played for two teams and served as head coach for the San Francisco 49ers
, where he was most famous for creating the shotgun formation
in 1960.
A native of Clarksville, Arkansas, he attended the University of Arkansas
, competing as a member of the football and basketball
teams, where he won All-Conference accolades in both sports. In 1941, he was a forward on the Razorback team that reached the Final Four
teams, even though the tournament format was different from today and didn't end in a four team final.
with both the Pittsburgh Steelers
and the Cleveland Rams
,
then missed the next three years while serving as a U.S. Navy
gunnery officer during World War II
. Upon his return, he was part of the 1945 Rams championship squad, then shifted with the team to Los Angeles to play from 1946 to 1948. During his first season back, he also married his high school sweetheart, Cecelia Surina.
as the team's second-leading receiver with 30 catches for 509 yards and seven touchdowns, Hickey retired and joined the Rams' coaching ranks on April 20, 1949 as wide receivers coach. He remained in that capacity with the team for six seasons until resigning on December 12, 1954 along with his fellow assistants. The departure had been the end result of continued conflicts with head coach Hamp Pool
.
Just over two weeks after leaving the Rams, Hickey was hired as a 49ers assistant under new head coach Red Strader
, but after the team struggled during the 1955 NFL season
, Strader was replaced in favor of former 49er quarterback Frankie Albert
. Hickey stayed as an assistant during the three years Albert handled sideline duties for the team, and in 1957, helped quarterback Y.A. Tittle and wide receiver R.C. Owens develop what became known as the "Alley-Oop" pass. The play was designed to take advantage of Owens's phenomenal leaping abilities and proved to be a success.
When Albert resigned following the 1958 NFL season
, citing the constant fan abuse heaped on not only him, but his family, Hickey was promoted to head coach on December 16 and received a three-year contract.
During that first season, they put up a stiff challenge to the defending champion Baltimore Colts
, managing a tie for the Western Conference lead with two games to play. However, on December 5, the Colts broke the deadlock with a 34-14 victory and went on to capture another NFL title.
The following season saw the team battle inconsistency for the first two-thirds of the campaign until Hickey unveiled his innovative new offense on November 27, with the 49ers were facing the favored Colts. Hickey sought to find a way to combat the Colts' strong pass rush and reasoned that having a quarterback stand seven yards back from the line of scrimmage would give the signal caller more time to throw, as well as force adjustments by Baltimore. The end result was a shocking 30-22 upset, with third-string quarterback Bob Waters
surprisingly using the formation to aid the team's running game. The team won three of its final four games to again finish 7-5 and seemed ready to challenge for greater things in 1961, with Hickey in place for the expected surge with a new three-year contract.
Hickey then made a dramatic change in the chemistry of the team during the offseason when he traded Tittle. The veteran's absence appeared to make no difference when the season began with the team using the quarterback trio of John Brodie
, Waters and rookie Billy Kilmer
. After winning four of their first five games, including shutout wins over the Rams and Detroit Lions
, the magic disappeared on October 22, when the Chicago Bears
blanked the 49ers, 31-0.
The Bears had moved linebacker Bill George
from his regular spot up to the line of scrimmage, where he and his teammates were able to develop a strong pass rush, essentially putting an end to the formation. The absence of a true leader behind center was magnified when Tittle led his new team, the New York Giants
, to the first of three consecutive berths in the NFL Championship game.
After the team's 7-6-1 campaign during the 1961 NFL season
, the 49ers dropped slightly the following year, finishing 6-8. When the team lost its first three games in 1963, the last coming in a 45-14 thrashing by the Minnesota Vikings
, Hickey resigned on September 30, and two weeks later was hired as a Rams' scout for the remainder of the year.
, but the post was given to Green Bay assistant Norb Hecker
on January 26, 1966. Just six weeks later, Hickey resigned his coaching position and asked to join the Cowboy scouting staff.
Hickey spent the next two decades as a Cowboys scout and watched with pride when his team dusted off his old offense in 1975, using it only in specific situations, but popularizing a strategy that remains to this day.
On an individual level, he was elected to the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame in 1968, while his son, Mike, followed him into the world of scouting, working for the New England Patriots
and New York Jets
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
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...
player and coach who played for two teams and served as head coach for the San Francisco 49ers
San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers are a professional American football team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the West Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team was founded in 1946 as a charter member of the All-America Football Conference and...
, where he was most famous for creating the shotgun formation
Shotgun formation
The shotgun formation is a formation used by the offensive team in American and Canadian football. This formation is used mainly for passing plays, although some teams use it as their base formation. In the shotgun, instead of the quarterback receiving the snap from center at the line of scrimmage,...
in 1960.
A native of Clarksville, Arkansas, he attended the University of Arkansas
Arkansas Razorbacks
The Razorbacks, also known as the Hogs, are the names of college sports teams at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville, Arkansas. The term Arkansas Razorbacks properly applies to any of the sports teams at the university. The Razorbacks take their name from the feral pig of the same name...
, competing as a member of the football and basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
teams, where he won All-Conference accolades in both sports. In 1941, he was a forward on the Razorback team that reached the Final Four
Final four
Final Four isa sports term that is commonly applied to the last four teams remaining in a playoff tournament, most notably NCAA Division I college basketball tournaments. The term usually refers to the four teams who compete in the two games of a single-elimination tournament's semi-final round...
teams, even though the tournament format was different from today and didn't end in a four team final.
NFL playing career
That fall, Hickey advanced to play in the NFLNational Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
with both the Pittsburgh Steelers
Pittsburgh Steelers
The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional football team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The team currently belongs to the North Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Founded in , the Steelers are the oldest franchise in the AFC...
and the Cleveland Rams
St. Louis Rams
The St. Louis Rams are a professional American football team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are currently members of the West Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Rams have won three NFL Championships .The Rams began playing in 1936 in Cleveland,...
,
then missed the next three years while serving as a U.S. Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
gunnery officer during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. Upon his return, he was part of the 1945 Rams championship squad, then shifted with the team to Los Angeles to play from 1946 to 1948. During his first season back, he also married his high school sweetheart, Cecelia Surina.
NFL coaching career
Despite having finished the 1948 NFL season1948 NFL season
The 1948 NFL season was the 29th regular season of the National Football League. During the season, Halfback Fred Gehrke painted horns on the Los Angeles Rams' helmets, making the first modern helmet emblem in pro football. The season ended when the Philadelphia Eagles defeated the Chicago...
as the team's second-leading receiver with 30 catches for 509 yards and seven touchdowns, Hickey retired and joined the Rams' coaching ranks on April 20, 1949 as wide receivers coach. He remained in that capacity with the team for six seasons until resigning on December 12, 1954 along with his fellow assistants. The departure had been the end result of continued conflicts with head coach Hamp Pool
Hamp Pool
Hampton John "Hamp" Pool was a football player, coach and scout who was part of two National Football League championship teams during his playing career and served as head coach for three professional teams....
.
Just over two weeks after leaving the Rams, Hickey was hired as a 49ers assistant under new head coach Red Strader
Red Strader
Norman "Red" Strader was a football player and coach who served in both capacities at the collegiate and professional levels. In the college ranks, he spent two years as head coach at St...
, but after the team struggled during the 1955 NFL season
1955 NFL season
The 1955 NFL season was the 36th regular season of the National Football League. NBC paid $100,000 to replace DuMont as the national television network for the NFL Championship Game...
, Strader was replaced in favor of former 49er quarterback Frankie Albert
Frankie Albert
Frank Cullen "Frankie" Albert was an American football player. He played as a quarterback with the San Francisco 49ers in the National Football League...
. Hickey stayed as an assistant during the three years Albert handled sideline duties for the team, and in 1957, helped quarterback Y.A. Tittle and wide receiver R.C. Owens develop what became known as the "Alley-Oop" pass. The play was designed to take advantage of Owens's phenomenal leaping abilities and proved to be a success.
When Albert resigned following the 1958 NFL season
1958 NFL season
The 1958 NFL season was the 39th regular season of the National Football League.The Baltimore Colts defeated the New York Giants, 23–17, in the first sudden-death overtime in an NFL Championship Game...
, citing the constant fan abuse heaped on not only him, but his family, Hickey was promoted to head coach on December 16 and received a three-year contract.
During that first season, they put up a stiff challenge to the defending champion Baltimore Colts
Indianapolis Colts
The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. They are currently members of the South Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League ....
, managing a tie for the Western Conference lead with two games to play. However, on December 5, the Colts broke the deadlock with a 34-14 victory and went on to capture another NFL title.
The following season saw the team battle inconsistency for the first two-thirds of the campaign until Hickey unveiled his innovative new offense on November 27, with the 49ers were facing the favored Colts. Hickey sought to find a way to combat the Colts' strong pass rush and reasoned that having a quarterback stand seven yards back from the line of scrimmage would give the signal caller more time to throw, as well as force adjustments by Baltimore. The end result was a shocking 30-22 upset, with third-string quarterback Bob Waters
Bob Waters
Robert Lee Waters was a successful American football coach and athletics director, best known for his contributions to athletics at Western Carolina University. Waters coached the football Catamounts for 20 football seasons , and performed the dual roll of athletic director from 1971–1986...
surprisingly using the formation to aid the team's running game. The team won three of its final four games to again finish 7-5 and seemed ready to challenge for greater things in 1961, with Hickey in place for the expected surge with a new three-year contract.
Hickey then made a dramatic change in the chemistry of the team during the offseason when he traded Tittle. The veteran's absence appeared to make no difference when the season began with the team using the quarterback trio of John Brodie
John Brodie
John Riley Brodie is a former professional American football quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers, and had a second career as a Senior PGA Tour professional golfer.-Early years and education:...
, Waters and rookie Billy Kilmer
Billy Kilmer
William Orland Kilmer, Jr. was an American football quarterback in the National Football League for the San Francisco 49ers, the New Orleans Saints and the Washington Redskins...
. After winning four of their first five games, including shutout wins over the Rams and Detroit Lions
Detroit Lions
The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League , and play their home games at Ford Field in Downtown Detroit.Originally based in Portsmouth, Ohio and...
, the magic disappeared on October 22, when the Chicago Bears
Chicago Bears
The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
blanked the 49ers, 31-0.
The Bears had moved linebacker Bill George
Bill George
William J. George was a professional football player, playing linebacker, for the Chicago Bears and the Los Angeles Rams....
from his regular spot up to the line of scrimmage, where he and his teammates were able to develop a strong pass rush, essentially putting an end to the formation. The absence of a true leader behind center was magnified when Tittle led his new team, the New York Giants
New York Giants
The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in East Rutherford, New Jersey, representing the New York City metropolitan area. The Giants are currently members of the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
, to the first of three consecutive berths in the NFL Championship game.
After the team's 7-6-1 campaign during the 1961 NFL season
1961 NFL season
The 1961 NFL season was the 42nd regular season of the National Football League. The league expanded to 14 teams with the addition of the Minnesota Vikings, after the team's owners declined to be charter members of the new American Football League. The schedule was also expanded from 12 games per...
, the 49ers dropped slightly the following year, finishing 6-8. When the team lost its first three games in 1963, the last coming in a 45-14 thrashing by the Minnesota Vikings
Minnesota Vikings
The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Vikings joined the National Football League as an expansion team in 1960...
, Hickey resigned on September 30, and two weeks later was hired as a Rams' scout for the remainder of the year.
Scouting and later life
On February 1, 1964, he joined the Cowboys as an assistant coach, serving for two years. He had been a strong candidate to become head coach of the expansion Atlanta FalconsAtlanta Falcons
The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta, Georgia. They are a member of the South Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
, but the post was given to Green Bay assistant Norb Hecker
Norb Hecker
Norbert Earl Hecker was an American football player and coach who was part of eight National Football League championship teams, but may be best remembered as the first head coach of the NFL's Atlanta Falcons....
on January 26, 1966. Just six weeks later, Hickey resigned his coaching position and asked to join the Cowboy scouting staff.
Hickey spent the next two decades as a Cowboys scout and watched with pride when his team dusted off his old offense in 1975, using it only in specific situations, but popularizing a strategy that remains to this day.
On an individual level, he was elected to the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame in 1968, while his son, Mike, followed him into the world of scouting, working for the New England Patriots
New England Patriots
The New England Patriots, commonly called the "Pats", are a professional football team based in the Greater Boston area, playing their home games in the town of Foxborough, Massachusetts at Gillette Stadium. The team is part of the East Division of the American Football Conference in the National...
and New York Jets
New York Jets
The New York Jets are a professional football team headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey, representing the New York metropolitan area. The team is a member of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
.