Tirrel Burton Tirrel Burton ( born c . 1930 ) is a former American football player , coach , and radio broadcaster . He played halfback for Ara Parseghian ' s championship teams at Miami University in 1954 and 1955 and led the undefeated , untied 1955 team in rushing , scoring , pass interceptions , kickoff returns and punt returns , while breaking the university ' s all - time single - season scoring record . He played one year of professional football in 1956 for the Ottawa Rough Riders of the Canadian Football League . He was an assistant football coach at Central State University ( 1968 ) , Miami University ( 1969 ) and the University of Michigan ( 1970 – 1991 ) . He became a radio announcer for Michigan Wolverines football games on WUOM radio in 1994 . Biography . Athlete at Miami University . After three - and - a - half years of military service , Burton enrolled at Miami University in Oxford , Ohio . Miami ' s head football coach at the time , Ara Parseghian , recruited Burton to Miami . Parseghian recalled , " He had tremendous speed and we were anxious to have him . He could break the line . That ' s what every coach looks for . " Burton became a two - sport star at Miami , lettering three years each in both football and track from 1953 to 1955 . As a halfback on Parseghian ' s football teams , Burton helped lead Miami to Mid - American Conference championships in both 1954 and 1955 . The 1955 team compiled a perfect 9 - 0 record , and Burton led the team in rushing ( 722 yards in 82 carries ) , scoring ( 84 points ) , pass interceptions ( 4 ) , kickoff returns ( 3 for 68 yards ) and punt returns ( 14 for 216 yards ) . Burton ' s 84 points in 1955 ( 14 touchdowns in nine games ) broke the school ' s single - season scoring record . At the conclusion of the 1955 season , Burton received more votes than any other player on the All - Mid - American Conference team . He was also selected by Associated Press for its second - team All - Midwestern team behind first - team selection Howard " Hopalong " Cassidy . Despite its undefeated , untied record , the 1955 Miami football team was not invited to a post - season bowl game , leading the university ' s president , John D . Millott , to state publicly that he believed " Southern ' social customs ' " may have blocked a post - season football bowl bid . An anonymous university of official stated , " That ' s a roundabout way of saying we weren ' t chosen because we have colored boys on our squad . " Burton ' s career rushing total at Miami was 1 , 298 yards on 157 carries for an average of 8 . 3 yards per carry . His career scoring total at Miami was 151 points . In track , Burton won Mid - American Conference championships in the low hurdles three consecutive years and also placed in the high jump and 100 - yard dash . As a senior , he placed second in the low hurdles at the national AAU meet and third at the national NCAA meet . Ottawa Rough Riders . After graduating from Miami in 1956 , Burton played one year of professional football for the Ottawa Rough Riders in the Canadian Football League . After a November 1956 win over the Hamilton Tiger - Cats , the " Ottawa Citizen " described Burton as one of Ottawa ' s stars : " Burton , one of Ottawa ' s stars , played a leading role in the 95 - yard drive which brought the Riders their game - winning field goal . He took a long , 40 - yard pass from Ledyard at center field and scurried like a scared rabbit to the Hamilton 27 before being nailed . " In his one season of professional football , Burton led the league with eight interceptions . He scored four touchdowns ( three rushing , one receiving ) , and had 155 rushing yards ( 29 carries for 5 . 34 yards per carry ) , 319 receiving yards ( 14 receptions for 22 . 79 yards per reception ) , and 175 kickoff return yards ( 11 returns for 15 . 91 yards per return ) . Coaching career . After retiring as a player , Burton returned to Miami where he studied physical education and received a master ' s degree in education in 1962 . Burton also worked for nine years as a coach and teacher in the public schools of Cincinnati , Ohio . He was the head coach of a Cincinnati high school football team for two years . Burton credited his college coach for inspiring him to be a coach : " Ara Parseghian was a great coach , ahead of his time as a teacher of all aspects of football . Because of him , I wanted to be a coach . " Burton began a long career as a college football coach in 1968 , accepting a position as an assistant football coach at the historically black Central State University in Wilberforce , Ohio . In 1969 , Burton ' s former Miami University teammate , Bill Mallory , was hired as the head football coach at Miami , replacing Bo Schembechler who had accepted the head coaching job at the University of Michigan . Mallory asked Burton to join his coaching staff at Miami , and Burton agreed . Mallory later recalled : " I ' d known him back when we were students . I always had great respect for him . He was a darn good coach . I knew he ' d be the kind of person I would want on my staff . I knew he would be a good teacher of the game . " Burton became the first African - American coach in any capacity at Miami . After one season at Miami , Bo Schembechler offered Burton an assistant coaching position at Michigan , and Burton accepted . Despite his strong ties to Miami , Burton recalled that he could not pass on the opportunity to coach at Michigan : " I left Miami to coach at Michigan because of the challenge and an upward move in the profession . " Burton began a long career at the University of Michigan as the coach of the 1970 freshman football team and took over responsibility for the offensive ends in 1972 . Burton coached Jim Smith to All - American honors in 1976 and remained an assistant football coach at Michigan for 22 years from 1970 to 1991 . Burton reported that coaching under Schembechler had been a huge honor : " Bo Schembechler was a great coach . He was from the same mold as Ara [ Parseghian ] . . . Bo was demanding of his coaches and his players . I learned most of what I know about football from Bo . " Later years and honors . After retiring as a coach , Burton remained employed by the University of Michigan as an assistant director of licensing for the athletic department . In 1994 , Burton was teamed with Tom Hemingway , who had been announcing University of Michigan football games since 1963 , as the radio announcers for Michigan Wolverines football games on WUOM radio . Burton was inducted into the Miami University Hall of Fame in 1974 .