Summerville's John McKissick enters his 63rd season with 613 wins. That easily leads the active coaching victories list.
Photo by Ronald Roper
Four of the all-time winningest high school football coaches retired following the 2013 season, but longtime Summerville coach John McKissick wasn't one of them.
John Curtis is No. 2 on the active list.
Photo by Roddy Johnson
The all-time winningest high school football coach with 613 victories, McKissick is set to begin his 63rd year at the only school that he has ever coached. He will turn 88 on Sept. 25.
McKissick's record is listed at 612 wins in the
National Federation of State High School Associations Record Book, as well as other sources, however a loss to Goose Creek during the 2012 season was later deemed a forfeit win after it was determined that Goose Creek had used an ineligible player.
The four coaches who retired after last season include Larry Campbell of Lincoln County (Lincolnton, Ga.), Al Fracassa of Brother Rice (Bloomfield Hills, Mich.), Ken Netherland of Lausanne (Memphis, Tenn.) and Jack Johnson of C.M. Russell (Great Falls, Mont.).
Campbell retires as the third all-time winningest coach with 477 victories, while Fracassa ranks seventh all-time with 430 victories. Netherland is No. 32 all-time with 368 wins while Johnson is No. 41 overall with 362 wins.
Three coaches went over the 400-win milestone last year. John Herrington of Harrison (Farmington Hills, Mich.) is now at 402 while Robert Hyland of St. Mary's Springs (Fond du Lac, Wisc.) has 401 and Phil Danaher of Calallen (Corpus Christi, Texas) has 400.
Top 25 Winningest Active High School Football Coaches
1. 613 - John McKissick,
Summerville (S.C.), 1952-2013 (613-151-13)
2. 530 - John T. Curtis,
Curtis (River Ridge, La.), 1969-2013 (530-56-6)
3. 444 - Mike Smith,
Hampton (Va.), 1971-2013, (444-77-2)
4. 437 - George Curry,
Berwick (Pa.), 1967-2008, 2012-13 (437-96-5)
5. 434 - Charles "Corky" Rogers,
Bolles (Jacksonville, Fla.), 1971-2013 (434-77-1)
6. 413 - Dick Tighe,
St. Edmond (Fort Dodge, Iowa), 1954-2013 (413-155-8)
7. 402 - John Herrington,
Harrison (Farmington Hills, Mich.), 1970-2013 (402-94-1)
8. 401 - Robert Hyland,
St. Mary's Springs (Fond du Lac, Wis.), 1971-2013 (401-102-2)
9. 400 - Phil Danaher,
Calallen (Corpus Christi, Texas), 1974-2013 (400-98-4)
10. 385 - Larry "Bud" Wright,
Sheridan (Ind.), 1964-2013 (385-173-2)
11. 382 - Jack Henzes,
Dunmore (Pa.), 1966-2013 (382-154-8)
11. 382 - Bob Milloy,
Our Lady of Good Counsel (Olney, Md.), 1970-2013 (382-111-1)
11. 382 - Curt Bladt,
Harlan (Iowa), 1978-2013 (382-45-0)
14. 379 - Bill Castle,
Lakeland (Fla.), 1976-2013 (379-82-0)
15. 378 - Jerry Pezzetti,
Ankeny Centennial (Iowa), 1962-2013 (378-146-1)
16. 375 - Jim Render,
Upper St. Clair (Pa.), 1970-2013 (375-119-7)
16. 375 - Philip Haywood,
Belfry (Ky.), 1975-2013 (375-124-0)
18. 371 - C.J. Hamilton,
Silver Lake (Kan.), 1976-2013 (371-84-0)
19. 367 - Jim Hightower,
St. Thomas More (Lafayette, La.), 1974-2013 (367-114-1)
20. 363 - Jerry Sinz,
Edgar (Wis.), 1975-2013 (363-74-0)
21. 362 - Bob Raczek,
Pacelli (Stevens Point, Wis.), 1961-2013 (362-172-2)
22. 360 - Jim France,
Manchester (Akron, Ohio), 1971-84, 1986-2013 (360-103-3)
23. 358 - Sid Otton,
Tumwater (Wash.), 1968-2013 (358-128-0)
24. 356 - Bill Hurst,
Centreville Academy (Miss.), 1976-2013 (356-97-0)
25. 355 - Ron Stolski,
Brainerd (Minn.), 1962-2013 (355-156-5)
List compliments of football historian Steven Floyd of Corpus Christi, Texas.
