Pop McKale
| Sport(s) | Football, basketball, baseball, track |
|---|---|
| Biographical details | |
| Born |
June 12, 1887 Lansing, Michigan |
| Died | June 1, 1967 (aged 79) Tucson, Arizona |
| Playing career | |
| Football | |
| 1906–1909 | Albion |
| Baseball | |
| 1907–1910 | Albion |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| Football | |
| 1914–1930 | Arizona |
| Basketball | |
| 1914–1921 | Arizona |
| Baseball | |
| 1915–1919 | Arizona |
| 1922–1949 | Arizona |
| Administrative career (AD unless noted) | |
| 1914–1957 | Arizona |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 81–32–6 (football) 49–12 (basketball) 304–118–7 (baseball) |
| Bowls | 0–1 |
James Fred "Pop" McKale (June 12, 1887 – June 1, 1967) was an American football and baseball player, coach of football, basketball, baseball, and track, and college athletics administrator. He is best known for his four-decade association with the University of Arizona. He served as athletic director at U of A from 1914 to 1957. He served as Arizona's head football coach from 1914 to 1930, compiling a record of 81–32–6. McKale was also the head basketball coach at Arizona from 1914 to 1921, tallying a mark of 49–12, and the head baseball coach at the school from 1915 to 1919 and again from 1922 to 1949, amassing a record of 304–118–7. McKale was inducted into the Arizona Sportsmen Hall of Fame in 1959 and was a charter member of the Arizona Sports Hall of Fame, inducted in 1976. The McKale Center, the University of Arizona's home basketball venue, was opened in 1973 and named in McKale's honor.
McKale was born in Lansing, Michigan to William H. and Clara (Bateman) McKale on June 12, 1887. He graduated from Lansing High School in 1905. While enrolled at Albion College, McKale competed in baseball, football, and long jump. McKale was named a two-time All-State athlete in both football and baseball at Albion College. He helped the football team win a Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association championship in 1908 and served as the team's captain in 1908 and 1909. A four-year varsity letter winner in both baseball and football, McKale served as the student president of the MIAA in 1909–10. He graduated with a degree in history and chemistry in 1910.
As a student, McKale was offered a minor league baseball by the Minneapolis Millers. He instead decided to become a teacher and accepted a position in Superior, Wisconsin. The next year, McKale saw an advertisement for a teaching position at Tucson High School in Tucson, Arizona. The school principal, Harold Steele, was a fellow Albion alum and he hired McKale by telegram.
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