Mike Pecarovich Michael J . " Mike " Pecarovich ( September 23 , 1898 – March 23 , 1965 ) was an American college football coach , lawyer , and actor . He served as the head coach at Loyola Marymount University in 1928 and 1939 , Gonzaga University from 1931 to 1938 , and the University of San Diego from 1960 to 1961 . Pecarovich also coached two professional teams , the Los Angeles Angels of the Pacific Coast Professional Football League and the San Francisco Clippers of the California - based American Football League . Early life . A native of Spokane , Washington , Pecarovich attended Santa Clara University , where he played on the football team from 1919 to 1921 as a guard and an end . Pecarovich then transferred to Gonzaga University , where he played football as a quarterback under head coach Gus Dorais . He graduated from Gonzaga in 1922 , and the following season served as an assistant coach to Dorais . In 1924 , Pecarovich earned a law degree and passed the bar exam . Coaching career . After graduating law school , Pecarovich coached the Gonzaga High School football team for two years . He then coached the Los Angeles Angels , a football team in the Pacific Coast Professional League , until 1928 . That year , Pecarovich took over as head football coach at Loyola Marymount , where he installed the Knute Rockne system . The Lions amassed a 5 – 3 record in 1928 . In 1929 and 1930 , he coached Cathedral High School in Los Angeles , California . Pecarovich returned to his alma mater , Gonzaga , in 1931 as the replacement for former head coach Ray Flaherty . While there , Pecarovich appointed Bing Crosby , a friend and former classmate , as an assistant coach . Pecarovich made appearances in several movies alongside Crosby . He remained at Gonzaga through 1938 and compiled a 31 – 35 – 5 record . In 1939 , Pecarovich returned to coach Loyola Marymount , which gave him a three - year contract ; the Gonzaga administration agreed to release him from the two years remaining on his contract . His second stint with Loyola was not successful , his team earning a 2 – 5 – 1 record , and he was replaced by Marty Brill . In 1941 , he applied for the head coaching position at the University of Idaho , but was not hired despite being considered a strong candidate . In 1944 , Pecarovich coached the San Francisco Clippers in the short - lived American Football League of the Pacific Coast . He led the franchise to a second - place finish with a 7 – 3 record in the eight - team league ' s only season . He later served as an assistant coach under Ray Flaherty with the New York Yankees professional football team . He worked as a teacher at St . Anthony High School in Long Beach , California for ten years in the 1950s . On April 27 , 1960 , the University of San Diego announced it had signed Pecarovich to a two - year contract as its head football coach . He led the Toreros to a 6 – 13 – 1 record over two seasons . However , after the 1961 season , the school disbanded its football program . Later life . Pecarovich earned a reputation as a skilled after - dinner speaker , and he provided many lectures in his later life . He also used his oration skills during halftime pep talks , and people who knew both men compared him to Knute Rockne , who had been a famed motivator as the Notre Dame coach . Pecarovich died of a heart attack on March 22 , 1965 in his home in Rolling Hills , California . He served as the namesake for Pecarovich Field at Gonzaga , a $ 25 , 000 baseball venue which was built several months after his death . The facility was later renamed August / ART Stadium and eventually razed . The Gonzaga Athletic Hall of Fame inducted Pecarovich in its class of 1991 .