But master is what is and it's been a path he's treaded ever since the late 1940s and '50s after he was born in a place called Hawkins County, Tenn.
His family ended up, however, in Riverview, Mich., a few years later, and this kid was already a star. He was an all-state signal-caller at Riverview High, so good, in fact, that he went to Missouri where he was in a backup role on a team that won the Sugar Bowl in 1966. After three years of being a Tiger, however, he went home and finished out at Northern Michigan. And yes, he played ball there, too. So good the Wildcats went undefeated during his final season.
Armed with a bachelor's in education and a master's in education administration, he did the only thing one could do with such degrees -- he became a football coach. Football, you see, is where his heart has lived his entire life. He became an assistant at Nativity High in Detroit in 1968, then moved to Belleview (Mich.) High and stayed till 1973 as its head coach. Following one more stint at another high school, this grand man got his big collegiate break at Eastern Michigan in 1976.
After that, there was Illinois. But Blue was the color when 1980 rolled around. Blue, as in Maize and Blue. The legendary Bo Schembechler hired him on his staff in that year as defensive secondary coach. He then became a defensive coordinator for eight seasons and assistant head coach for five years -- all the while he was at Michigan.
Success? Look at what a powerhouse the Michigan teams have remained over the years that this fellow was associated with them.
"I don't want to speak about myself," he once said when a reporter was asking him about the Wolverines. "I do think this team has answered questions about its spirit, its determination and its enthusiasm."
That's class.
On May 16, 1995, he hit center stage in a league where winning is everything, especially if you are in Ann Arbor or Columbus or State College. That was when the Wolverines named him to succeed Gary Moeller.
Yep, Lloyd Carr. Age 52. Six kids, a great job and now, in 1997, one of the greatest Michigan teams of the past 20 years.
He will march his Blue into the Rose Bowl come January as the No. 1 team in the nation. Will he win the national championship?
Something most people don't understand is that Carr, like all the rest of the Big Ten coaches, really might not care. After all, when his club beat the Buckeyes, 20-14 on Nov. 22 and won the conference crown, he had already achieved something that means more in the Midwest than all the straw polls of sports writers and coaches combined.
"For us, it's a dream season," Carr said. "We never played when we didn't play hard. The chemistry has been really tremendous among these kids."
FAIR IS FAIR: OK, so now we should say one word about the opposing coach -- Mr. John Cooper. And here it is: Yeeech.
Cooper takes all the credit for the Buckeyes until the big games and yet when he chokes, he continually looks as though it is his players who screwed him. Yeah, right. Hash up, motormouths! You could coach Ohio State to a 9-2 record, given the size of the school, the facilities and tradition that lures players and the certain weaknesses below the top three teams in the league.
All Coop can do is show us that "caught in the headlights" look every time he gets out-coached. He's had national championship teams that didn't win the national championship because he blew it on the field. Why do you think so many of those young players, sophomores like "Big Daddy" Dan Wilkerson, bolt? Would you want to spend four years with this guy? Yeeech!
WASHED OUT: When I was a young Irishman, growing up in the mean streets of Bridgeport, Conn., Alabama was a school that simply mauled the opposition (even Woody Hayes' Buckeyes). And Tide was the kind of soap powder mom tossed on my ragged jeans to get them clean.
Today, Tide is still a soap powder and that other Tide, the Crimson one in Tusc-a-lose-ah is washed up too. Geez. What a year for this proud team.
Hey, now why can't something like that fall on Ohio State for a while. Just a season or two so everyone would not feel bad when they fired Cooper.
BYE, GEORGE: Who in the Green world of Ireland's sports is Shannon Briggs? Hash up, motormouths. I'll tell ya who he is: He is the last guy to whip George Foreman, the bout occurring when the Texan was losing in Vegas and the Ohioans were losing in Ann Arbor.
Old George says this is his last dance on the canvas. Guess he is got a burger franchise in his future, eh?
I think I know this one ... the answer is NO! Tyson became a boxer as a kid, never attending Villanova. (I think.) Besides, does Villanova even play football? Here's some trivia: How do you pronounce the last name of Wolfpack
basketball freshman Inge?
From a Keither lost in Florida, looking for his Stomper.com in the sand.
Heck, Mr. J., it is good to hear from you again, and I am pleased to report that yes, you did get the daily question right. Mike Tyson never did play college football at Villanova. In fact, he never got through high school. And as for your return question, I know that answer -- Inge is pronounced "Arghhhh!" (which is what he will be saying after he sees how bad Duke and UNC beat the Wolfpack this year).
Dear Mike: Who is the youngest sports figure in history to make over $3,000,000 in one year?
From Joann, counting her blessings at an equitable.com
I would love to tell you, Joann, that I do not know the answer to that one since money can be counted in oh-so-many ways. None of those guys really make what the news stories say since there are incentives, delays, and so forth. But really, I think I do know the answer. The youngest guy to make that much was the first-born of Michael Jordan. And he'll just get richer as the years roll on..
I think you are a cruel, mean man
From J. Cooper, now moving to a mud.net.
If ya wanted kindness, Johnny boy, you should have became a volunteer at a city mission and not the coach of the Buckeyes. Speaking of which, here's hoping you find that bread line real soon.
1) Wayne Woodrow Hayes, an Ohio native from the eastern part of the state, took over the Buckeyes in what year? Give up?
2) During the 1970s, they first began to play a famous 1960s rock song with words specifically about Ohio State's grand coach. What was the song and what were the words? Give up?
3) In 1974, what monster fullback scored three touchdowns for the Buckeyes against Southern Cal in the Rose Bowl? Give up?
4) What was the very first bowl game Ohio State ever played in and when? Give up?
5) What does John Cooper share in common with Michigan's Lloyd Carr? Give up?
Mike Emmett has been kicking around sports departments in newspapers and online operations around the U.S. for years. Got something to say to the Irishman? Email him with a click here.
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