Hall of Fame
- Induction:
- 1972
- Class:
- 1948
Allyn McKeen is one of the legendary figures in the history of Mississippi State football, having served as head coach from 1939-48.
McKeen coached Mississippi State from 1939-1948 after a short stint at West Tennessee State Teachers College (now the University of Memphis), where he posted a perfect 10-0 record in his second and final season. He led the Maroons to immediate success after taking over a program that went 4-6 the year prior. In his second year, after going 8-2, McKeen led State to the only unbeaten season in program history, going 10-0-1 and earning SEC Coach of the Year honors. The Maroons closed the year with an Orange Bowl victory and a final AP ranking of No. 9 – the highest in program history. It was MSU’s first 10-win season, a feat that would not be replicated until 1999, and the first time State went undefeated since going 3-0-2 in 1903.
McKeen’s 1940 squad reeled off three-consecutive wins over ranked opponents to conclude the season – a shutout of No. 11 Ole Miss, a road triumph at No. 17 Alabama and a thrilling win over No. 13 Georgetown in the Orange Bowl. State would not appear in the Orange Bowl again until 2014.
In 1941 he helped lead the Maroons to their only Southeastern Conference championship with an 8-1-1 overall record, a 4-0-1 mark in conference play and a No. 16 final ranking. The Maroons traveled to Oxford for what is perhaps the most consequential Battle for the Golden Egg ever played – the winner clinched the SEC crown. MSU came back home with a 6-0 win over No. 14 Ole Miss. The season concluded with a road win at San Francisco one day before the attack on Pearl Harbor.
McKeen had continued success with an 8-2 record in 1942, but due to World War II the school did not field a team in 1943. McKeen finished his career at Mississippi State with a 65-19-3 record – his .764 winning percentage remains the best of any coach in program history and is seventh all-time in the SEC among those who coached at least nine seasons. He compiled five seasons of eight wins or more, a feat that would not be replicated by an MSU coach until Dan Mullen from 2009-17. He is the only Bulldog head coach to finish ranked in the AP Poll Top 20 three times.
After McKeen’s time at Mississippi State he entered the sporting goods business. Due to his accomplishments as a coach, he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1991. McKeen was also recognized in the Blue Gray Hall of Fame in 1998.
He was married to his wife with two children before he passed away in 1979.
