RIP Jack Mildren

RIP...great player...
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So sorry to hear this terrible news. He was a great Wishbone QB at ou - highly recruited out of Abilene Cooper HS I believe.

RIP Jack Mildren.
 
Passed away at MD Anderson this afternoon. F'ing cancer. Doesn't care who you are a fan of. Did his radio show yesterday RIP
 
This is the guy that when Barry Switzer was recruiting him, Barry literally rented an apartment around the corner from Mildren's house and either Barry or another OU coach stayed there and saw and talked to Mildren every single day. It was before significant "contact" limitations or they ignored the minor ones in place. They just overwhelmed him.
 
Though they did not win the NC, that 71 team with Mildren at the helm was the best triple option offensive machine I have ever seen.
 
bevo barry - that is an interesting observation.

The '68-'70 Horns, imo, ran the triple option as well as (and maybe better than) anyone else in the history of major-college football -- winning 30 straight games and two MNCs in the process. Despite his impressive individual stats in the '71 season (as contrasted to the problems he encountered in the RRS in the two previous seasons), Jack Mildren arguably did not possess the quickness, skill at handling the football, and clutch passing ability of either James Street or Eddie Phillps -- both of whom also arguably ran with the football just as well as or better than Mildren with all the chips on the table. In addition, it is arguable, imo, that Mildren did not rank with James or Eddie as a selfless team leader at QB.

Jack was 1-2 vs. Texas in the RRS, losing to the Horns when we were running the triple-option attack with Street (1969) and Phillips (1970) at the helm for Texas. Mildren won in his third try in the RRS when Phillips was injured.

Jack Mildren's recruitment by Oklahoma is another interesting subject, but one that obviously is not an appropriate discussion topic under these unfortunate circumstances.

Those were interesting times in virtually every respect, and one of the most memorable games in Texas HS football history came on December 16, 1967, in Fort Worth at TCU's stadium ... when Austin Reagan defeated Abilene Cooper (and Mildren), 20-19, for the Texas Class 4A State Championship.

Cooper was on the Reagan one-yard line (with enough time remaining for one more play) and Merrill Green, the Cooper coach, tried to send in John Villareal to kick "the winning field goal" ...

... but Mildren waved him off the field and, instead, called his own number on a QB sneak that was stopped a foot short by the Reagan defense on the last play of the game.

Austin Reagan, coached by Travis Raven, was an 18-point underdog in the game.

For some folks, that was the defining moment in Mildren's football career, which continued to fall just short (e.g., the losses to Texas in '69 and '70, and to Nebraska in 1971) during his Oklahoma playing career.

After his playing days with the Sooners ended, Mildren continued to live in Oklahoma, where he reportedly was involved with a car dealership and in Oklahoma state politics -- and eventually also in banking and radio endeavors.

Reportedly, he also enjoyed (later on in his life) occasional visits to Austin.

Hook 'em.
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That is too bad. Was a great QB in HS and then had the pleasure of being OU's first Wishbone QB having to play Texas in 1970 when we were at our peak. By the next year they were fully dialed in with it and started recruiting RB's to fit it. Mildren will go down as a legend in Oklahoma.

RIP
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Hook'em!!!
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RIP Jack. I hate it, but you were the best option QB I ever watched. I was at the OU-USC game in Norman in 1971, I think that is the only time OU has ever beaten SC in Norman. Was also present the following weekend in the Cotton Bowl. OU had scored 31 by halftime. It looked like they were running downhill.

Mildren was active in Democractic politics serving two terms as Lt. Governor. He was the nominee for Governor in 1994 and lost in a three way race when a former congressman ran as an Independent.

Prayers to the family.
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Jack was a really fine guy. Those of you who are listing his accomplishments are missing a few major items....like after ou he played for the Baltimore Colts for a few years, and a while after that he became the Lieutenant Governor of Oklahoma.

His time as a wishbone QB was certainly not his major accomplishment in life.
 
Sad news. Went to high school with Jack, knew him well, and he was a great guy. I'll never forget his senior year when CHS had such a great team. Reckon those memories are one way he will never be completely gone. By the way, I'll believe till the day I join him that he scored on that last play vs. Reagan. For Jack and all you CHS alumni, Aaa-eee.
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From what I gather in the news, this was totally unexpected. He was going in for some routine cancer treatment and they were going to keep him overnight. Most of his family wasn't even there. As another poster said, he even did his radio show that day.

F cancer and RIP Jack Mildren.
 
Sorry to hear of Mildren's passing. He was a great option quarterback, no matter what color of uniform he wore. He also did some very good things with his life after football. Condolences to his family.
 
I also graduated - along with my friend Zappa - from Cooper w/ Jack, He was a nice guy, not pretentious at all. A super athlete, he starred in football, basketball, and track, and was all-state in all three. Jack was also a bright guy, GTE scholar athlete HOF. I know why he went to OU in 1968, but I never understood why he stayed.... even Abilene is better than all of Oklahoma. But he had a successful life if too brief.

RIP Mister M


His personal records at OU:

•Rushing yards in a season: 1,289 in 1971
Rank: No. 10 overall, No. 1 among quarterbacks

•Rushing attempts in a season: 223 in 1971
Rank: No. 9 overall, No. 1 among QBs

•Rushing attempts in a career: 541
Rank: No. 10 overall, No. 1 among QBs

•Rushing touchdowns in a season: 20 in 1971
Rank: No. 5 overall, No. 1 among QBs

•Rushing touchdowns in a career: 32
Rank: No. 10 overall, No. 3 among quarterbacks

•100-yard rushing games in a season: 8 in 1971
Rank: No. 8 overall, No. 1 among quarterbacks

He was also a helluva passer which made him the dual threat and got him so much rushing yardage. I agree that Mildren was the best wishbone qb ever to play.
 
RIP JACK MILDREN

I am listening to the 'Animal here in Ok. and they are spending the great bulk of the four hours on him as they should.

Met Jack one time at an indian art show in Broken Arrow and seemed like a nice guy.

Loved listening to him on the 'Animal as he was more objective than some of the others on the air, concerning Texas vs OU.



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Great player! I think of his (OU) wishbone was built on speed and ours was brut force (Worster, Bertlesen, and Koy), Either way both were damned effective. What was the little WR's name that he threw to. He was from Texas too and maybe even Abilene Cooper. He weighed like 160, but could get open and catch like crazy. May Jack RIP-class guy!
 
Sometimes you can find the true measure of a man by listening to those who used to compete against him. Larry Jacobson, a Nebraska All-American defensive tackle in 1971, had this to say:

"I was saddened by the news. I just remember what a classy guy Jack Mildren was. In the Game of the Century, both teams were as high as we could get, and it's unfortunate somebody had to lose. Even though he had to be disappointed, I remember him coming over and shaking every hand he could on our team. That says a lot about him, and, I think, explains why he went on to do so many good things in life."
 
First, allow me to express my gratefulness to the many Horn fans who have shared such kind thoughts toward Jack Mildren. Your words and sentiments are a powerful reminder to me of how my attitude toward UT and other Sooner rivals, while spirited, should always remain cheerful and respectful. That is one of the lessons of Jack's life too. As a previous poster mentioned, he had a daily sportstalk radio show up here in Oklahoma. Despite his many accomplishments and talents, and his larger-than-life stature at least in Oklahoma, the one attribute that most struck me about him was his recognition of the dignity and worth of every person. Many was the time he had opportunities to mock or belittle callers who gave unwise opinions and I never once heard him do it.

Regarding the Texas Longhorns, Jack talked both about winning and losing against y'all, but again, always in a cheerful, nostalgic tone laced with respect and thankfulness at having had the privilege to participate in such an awesome rivalry. It may seem foolish to you, but the Sooner nation is collectively grieving as though we had all lost a beloved family member. Though I rarely post, I do often come on Horn Fans and read. You can be sure that the next time y'all lose one of your heroes, I and many other Sooners will have a heightened respect and empathy for your feelings.

By the way, here is what I posted on the Jack Mildren "Guest Book" at the Oklahoman newspaper's website (as of today, there are 23 pages representing hundreds of such comments):

Thanksgiving Day 1971, I was a high school sophomore in Duncan. What I saw Jack Mildren accomplish that day, even in heartbreaking defeat, left a mark on me for the rest of my life about never quitting, even when the odds are great, and if you go down, to go down defiant, fighting every inch of the way. Through my tears, I wrote a poem in the solitary confines of my room after that long-ago game. All I remember of it is the title--"Sooner Song"--and that it was a tribute to courage and heart. I have written many other things since then, but I doubt that more of my heart ever went into any of them. Thank you, Jack Mildren, for being the truest sort of sports hero, one that boys could once look up to and aspire to emulate.
 
Thanks,JaneAnn-Jon Harrison was indeed the little WR that seemed always open and always made the "big" plays in the passing game. Do you think that being from the same HS, old Jack knew where to look for "little" Jon?
 
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