Summerville, SC (WLTX) - John McKissick, the winningest head coach in high school football history, has announced he's retiring after 63 seasons on the job at Summerville High School.
McKissick made the announcement Tuesday morning at the school, saying that age--he's 88--was catching up with him. He added that the district superintendent said he could have stayed on as long as he wanted if he liked.
He thanked his staff and said he'd been the "luckiest guy in the world' for having this job.
There has been speculation that years that McKissick was nearing the end of his legendary run, but over the weekend word began leaking out that a final decision was imminent.
McKissick had been the coach at Summerville since 1952, leading the team to 620 wins and 10 state championships. The 620 wins are more than any football coach has ever won in history at any level.
A successor hasn't been named, but McKissick said he'd like to see his grandson, Joe Call, take over. Call is currently the offensive coordinator for the team.
While McKissick did indicated that preference, he said he would not get involved in the decision-making.
University of South Carolina head football coach Steve Spurrier released the following statement regarding his retirement:
"Coach McKissick is one of the nicest gentleman I know. He's a smart coach and a good coach - outstanding in everything he did. I'm going to certainly miss seeing him when I go by Summerville High School. I've made it a point every year to try to go by there during recruiting season and say 'hello' to Coach McKissick. He's well-respected, admired, a friend of all. We're going to miss him, but we certainly understand when the time's right, as he feels it is, it's time to go do something else, and he'll be doing something else."
Clemson head football coach Dabo Swinney also released a statement on McKissick:
"First, I want to congratulate Coach John McKissick on an incredible career and the contributions he has made to this profession. He has had such a positive impact on the lives of so many coaches and players dating to when he started in 1952.
I played and coached at the University of Alabama, a school whose history includes Bear Bryant. Coach McKissick won nearly twice as many games as Coach Bryant. That is almost impossible to comprehend.
Each year I have had the privilege of spending some time with Coach McKissick and I have learned so much from him. I want him to know that we will all miss him on the sidelines, but understand that we will always appreciate what he has contributed.
The commitment he has made to the sport and to that community is unprecedented. One thing that stands out to me took place my first year as a head coach at Clemson. I was asked to speak at the state high school clinic and as I started my talk I noticed Coach McKissick sitting on the front row taking notes.
Here he was over 80 years old and he was still setting a great example. His presence told me that you can never stop improving, never stop striving to get better, and never be satisfied with your past accomplishments."
