McMurry Names Mumme as New Football Coach
4/15/2009 11:54:35 AM
ABILENE, Texas – McMurry University athletic director Ron Holmes announced Hal Mumme as the 20th coach in McMurry football history Wednesday morning (april 15) at a press conference. Mumme and his new staff of McMurry assistant coaches are set to begin their respective coaching duties on Thursday.
“Hal Mumme’s track record of turning struggling football programs around was a strong factor in our hiring decision,” McMurry president Dr. John Russell said. “He is a Texas native with strong ties all over the state as well as throughout the nation. We feel his hiring rejuvenates the McMurry football program and brings excitement to the McMurry family and Big Country football fans.”
“Coach Mumme’s impressive resume stood out when we were filing through the applicants,” Holmes said. “He has extensive coaching experience in nearly all levels of collegiate football.”
Mumme is known as an offensive innovator who rewrites offensive record books wherever he coaches. His famed “Air Raid” attack has been successful at every level of college football and will most certainly be a change of pace for a McMurry football program that last year finished last in the American Southwest Conference in points scored (13.0 points per game average), last in total offense (253.1 yards per game), and last in passing yards per game (111.4).
Mumme comes to McMurry from Division I New Mexico State, where he spent four years at the helm of the Aggies. In his first season as the Aggies’ head coach in 2005, Mumme led the NMSU’s passing attack into national prominence, as the Aggies finished 24th in passing offense in the nation with 266 passing yards a game. The Aggies also broke school records for passing attempts in a season (547), most completions in a season (310) and most completions in a game (40 vs San Jose State 11/19).
In 2006, Mumme once again showed that he is the mastermind behind the Air Raid offense as he led the Aggies to break several school records including most net yards gained (5,702), most touchdowns (50), most pass completions in a game (50), most pass completions in a season (420), most passing yards gained in a season (4,792), most touchdowns thrown in a season (34), longest pass completion for a touchdown (96), and most points scored in a season (374). He also earned his 100th career victory with a 42-20 win over Utah State (11/25).
Nationally, the Aggies ranked second in passing offense per game (399.3), third in total offense per game (475.2), third in opponent third-down conversion percentage (28.1%), fifth in punt return yardage (15.33), sixth in net punting (38.3), 15th in scoring offense per game (31.2) and 16th in passing efficiency (150.24). In his third season with the Aggies, NMSU finished 35th in the nation in total offense (423.5 ypg), and the Aggie offense had its second best year in school history.
Mumme’s coaching career began as the offensive coordinator at Foy H. Moody High School in Corpus Christi, Texas, from 1976 through 1978. In 1979 he was the head coach at Aransas Pass High School. Mumme was an assistant coach (quarterbacks and receivers) under Bill Yung at West Texas State University in 1980 and 1981, offensive coordinator also under Yung at University of Texas at El Paso from 1982 through 1985, and head coach at Copperas Cove High School from 1986 through 1988.
During his time as a high school and college assistant coach, Mumme developed an unorthodox, pass-oriented offensive attack that proved very successful at moving the ball, gaining yardage and scoring points. The unusual attack, utilizing short passes to multiple receivers and backs out of the backfield, allowed Mumme’s teams to compete against more talented and athletic opponents. Legendary Brigham Young University head coach LaVell Edwards was a major influence on Mumme’s offensive strategy.
Mumme became head coach at Iowa Wesleyan College in 1989, a year after the program went 0-10. Mumme inherited a roster of only three returning players, but was still able to achieve unexpected success with a 7-4 record in his first year. He continued his streak of success at Iowa Wesleyan with an 8-4 mark in 1990 and 10-2 record in 1991. The 1991 squad was the first in school history to make the national playoffs, losing in the national quarterfinals. Mumme’s 1990 team led the nation in passing offense and the 1989 and 1991 squads finished second nationally in that category. Mumme finished at Iowa Wesleyan with a 25-10 record and was the NAIA District Coach of the Year in 1989 and 1991.
Mumme took over as head coach at Division II Valdosta State University in 1992 and led the team to records of 5-4-1 in 1992, 8-3 in 1993, 11-2 in 1994, 6-5 in 1995 and 10-3 in 1996. Mumme’s record at Valdosta State was 40-17-1. In both 1994 and 1996 he led the team to the NCAA Division II playoff quarterfinals; Valdosta State had never made the playoffs previously. The team was consistently ranked in the Division II top 20 and was ranked No. 1 in the nation in Division II for part of the 1996 season when they won their first Gulf South Conference championship. In 1994 Valdosta State defeated the University of Central Florida 31-14, an upset over the team picked by Sports Illustrated in the preseason to win the NCAA Division I-AA national football championship. Quarterback Chris Hatcher won the Harlon Hill Award as player of the year in NCAA Division II football.
In 1997 the University of Kentucky hired Mumme. For three years at Kentucky, Mumme’s Air Raid offense was one of the most explosive in Southeastern Conference history. Under Mumme, the Kentucky offense set six NCAA records, 41 Southeastern Conference records and 116 school records in 22 games. The Kentucky offense featured the talented Tim Couch, who passed for 4,611 yards and 38 touchdowns as a junior before being drafted No. 1 overall in the 1999 NFL Draft by the Cleveland Browns.
After an 18-month hiatus, Mumme returned to football as the 12th head coach for the Southeastern Louisiana Lions in Hammond, Louisiana. Mumme was in charge of restarting a Southeastern Louisiana State program that had been dormant for 18 years. Under his direction, the Lions finished their first season 5-7 and posted a 7-4 mark in 2004. Southeastern Louisiana ranked first among NCAA Division I-AA teams in total offense per game (537.1 yards) and passing offense per game (408 yards) in 2003. He then moved on to New Mexico State after his two-year successful run at Southeastern Louisiana.
In 18 seasons as a head coach, Mumme has a record of 108-102-1 and has taken teams to the postseason seven times.
-Courtesy McMurry University Sports Information Department