Mike Holovak Michael Joseph Holovak ( September 19 , 1919 – January 27 , 2008 ) was an American football player , coach , and executive . He played college football at Boston College , where he was named an All - American at fullback in 1942 . Holovak was selected in the first round of the 1943 NFL Draft by the Cleveland Rams . After serving in the United States Navy during World War II , he played in the National Football League with the Rams , who had moved to Los Angeles , in 1946 and with the Chicago Bears in 1947 and 1948 . Holovak served as the head football coach at his alma mater , Boston College , from 1951 to 1959 , compiling a record of 49 – 29 – 3 . In 1960 , he joined the Boston Patriots of the American Football League as an assistant coach under Lou Saban . Holovak took over as head coach after Saban ' s firing midway through the 1961 season and remained as the team ' s head coach through the 1968 season . In 1976 , he served one game as head coach for the New York Jets . He was also the general manager of the Houston Oilers from 1989 to 1993 . Holovak was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame as a player in 1985 . Early life and playing carer . Holovak , one of six children and the youngest of five sons of Czechoslovakia n immigrants , grew up in the coal mining town of Lansford , Pennsylvania . During his high school playing days , he helped defeat a team coached by future legend Vince Lombardi . College career . Playing collegiately at Boston College for three years beginning in 1940 , Holovak was a starter at running back at under head coaches Frank Leahy and Denny Myers , averaging more than five yards per carry . During his sophomore year , the undefeated Eagles competed in the Sugar Bowl . Two years later , Holovak served as co - captain of the Eagles ' squad that entered the final weeks of the 1942 campaign as the top - ranked college team in the country . However , on November 28 they were upset by arch - rival the College of the Holy Cross , a defeat that canceled a victory party that night at Boston ' s Cocoanut Grove hotel . That decision proved to be chillingly wise when a horrendous fire swept through the building that night , killing 492 people and injuring hundreds more . The team regrouped to compete in the 1943 Orange Bowl game , a contest in which he rushed for 158 yards on just 10 carries and scored a record - setting three touchdowns . He earned All - America honors that season and finished fourth in voting for the Heisman Trophy . Professional career . On April 8 , 1943 , the Cleveland Rams , who had earlier announced they were suspending operations for the duration of World War II , selected Holovak in the first round of the NFL Draft . Holovak then enlisted in the United States Navy and attended Officer Candidate School . He went on to command a PT boat that sank nine Japanese ships , and later battling malaria . However , despite his heroics , he was dealt a heavy personal blow when one of his brothers lost his life during the four - year conflict . Holovak officially signed with the Rams on December 29 , 1944 , but didn ' t take the field until 1946 , by which time the franchise had relocated to Los Angeles . During his one season with the team , he gained 211 yards and scored three touchdowns . Traded to the Chicago Bears on January 27 , 1947 , Holovak would lead the pass - oriented Windy City squad in rushing during each of the next two years , also three touchdowns . Prior to the start of his first year with the Bears , Holovak got his first taste of coaching by assisting with the spring practice of University of San Francisco head coach Edward McKeever . After his two years in Chicago , Holovak retired on March 1 , 1949 to become the freshman football coach at his alma mater . After two seasons in which he compiled an undefeated record , he was promoted to head coach at Boston College on December 30 , 1950 , following the resignation of Myers . Coaching career . In his first five years , Holovak compiled a mark of 24 – 16 – 5 , winning Coach of the Year honors in 1954 from New England football writers . Those efforts were good enough to earn him a new four - year contract on November 22 , 1955 , but even after four more winning seasons , he was fired on December 3 , 1959 , after a year in which Eagle fans had subjected him to constant verbal abuse . Two weeks after his dismissal , Holovak signed as a scout with the fledgling Patriots , then was named an assistant under Lou Saban on March 29 , 1960 . After a 5 – 9 record that year and a 2 - 3 start in 1961 , Saban was fired on October 10 and replaced by Holovak . His first game as Patriots coach was a 31 - 31 tie ( the first in Patriots history ) with the Houston Oilers . Finishing with a 9 – 4 – 1 record , Holovak matched that record the following year , earning him a new three - year contract , with an option for another year . In 1963 , the Patriots reached the postseason for the first time , despite only compiling a 7 – 6 – 1 record . They then defeated the Buffalo Bills in an Eastern Conference playoff , but were then pounded in the AFL Championship game , 51 – 10 , by the San Diego Chargers . The next year , Holovak added the duties of general manager to his job description , and after the team improved to 10 – 3 – 1 , he was named AFL Coach of the Year on December 15 , 1964 and received a new five - year contract . However , the veteran unit slipped to 4 – 8 – 2 in 1965 , but rebounded into contention the next season with the addition of rookie running back Jim Nance . Needing only a victory in their final game against the New York Jets on December 17 to reach the AFL title contest , the Patriots instead saw their 1966 season end with an 38 - 28 upset loss . The defeat was softened somewhat when Holovak again won the league ' s Coach of the Year accolade . Age finally caught up with the team over the next two years with the Patriots managing only a 7 – 20 – 1 record . The end result was that Holovak was fired from both positions on January 7 , 1969 , ending his Patriots tenure with a mark of 53 – 47 – 9 . As in his previous stint at Boston College , Holovak saw growing fan discontent , including chants of " Goodbye Mike , " play a role in the decision . He would remain the winningest coach in Patriots history until Bill Belichick passed him in 2005 . He would later coach in one game for the New York Jets , replacing Lou Holtz who had resigned before the last game of the 1976 season . His overall career record as a NFL head coach was 53 – 48 – 9 for . 522 winning percentage . Executive career and later life . After first considering an assistant coaching position with the Oakland Raiders , Holovak instead remained a Patriots scout , but shifted gears somewhat by taking a position with the Massachusetts State Racing Commission . However , just two months later , he left that position to become an assistant with the San Francisco 49ers . Personal tragedy , though , soon intervened when his 18 - year - old daughter Ann , one of two girls , was killed in an auto accident on the night of her senior prom on June 13 . After two years with the 49ers , Holovak remained in the Bay Area by accepting the post of receivers coach with the Raiders on March 6 , 1971 . When the team failed to reach the postseason for the first time in five years , Holovak was let go , but signed as a scout with the New York Jets on July 10 , 1972 . Returning to sidelines the next year as running backs coach , he then moved into the Jets ' front office following the 1974 NFL season as Director of Player Personnel . He remained in that role for two seasons , but when Jets head coach Lou Holtz resigned before the final game of the season , Holovak handled the duties in a 42 – 3 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals on December 12 . He then announced his resignation on May 20 , 1977 , citing personal reasons . In 1980 he was elected to the National Football Foundation ' s College Football Hall of Fame , then returned to football on February 15 , 1981 , when he was named executive vice - president of the Houston Oilers . Rebuilding the team following the departure of popular head coach Bum Phillips , Holovak made his most adept move when he strongly recommended the signing of Canadian Football League quarterback Warren Moon in 1984 . By 1988 , Holovak was being phased out by Oilers ' general manager Ladd Herzeg , with his duties limited to scouting . However , after Herzeg left in a contract dispute after the season , Holovak was named general manager on February 2 , 1989 . He remained in that role until the end of 1993 NFL season , but remained a scout for the franchise , which later shifted to Tennessee , until retiring for good in 1999 . On January 27 , 2008 , Holovak died in Ruskin , Florida from complications from pneumonia . He was 88 years old . He was laid to rest at Florida ' s National Cemetery .