The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
Longhorn legend Bob McKay recognized for induction into College Football Hall of Fame
10.10.2017 | Football
Bob McKay was a tall, rangy offensive lineman from a small town in West Texas when Coach Darrell K Royal recruited him to play for Texas in 1966. Nearly 50 years later, he is widely remembered as one of the all-time greats.
By James Rodriguez
Bob McKay stood on the field at Darrell K Royal – Texas Memorial Stadium on Saturday evening and surveyed the vast expanse of burnt orange in the stands above him. Music pulsed through the stadium's speakers, mixing with the roar of the crowd. From McKay's vantage point on the sideline, the sound was deafening.
McKay, wearing a long sleeve burnt orange shirt and blue jeans, gestured to the thousands of Longhorn faithful in attendance and broke into a smile.
"This is what you came to The University of Texas for," McKay said. "This right here."
The scene was a far cry from his humble beginnings in Crane, a small oil and ranching town in West Texas that he left in 1966 to play football for Coach Royal at Texas.
More than forty years have passed since McKay last suited up at Texas, but the stadium still carries reminders from his time at Texas. There's the trophy commemorating the 1969 national championship, which he and his teammates won in the midst of a golden era for Texas football. There's his portrait in the Longhorn Hall of Honor, which he joined in 1990. And now there will be another gilded plaque to line the halls of Texas: an award proclaiming McKay's induction into the College Football Hall of Fame.
McKay is the 18th Longhorn player (alongside two coaches) to be inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame since its creation in 1951. He joined Steve Hatchell, president and CEO of the National Football Foundation, and Men's Athletic Director Mike Perrin on the field during Saturday's game against Kansas State to be recognized in front of the home crowd.
"What Bob represents is excellence in football," Hatchell said. "The time he played at Texas was huge. He represents leadership, great success and something that was special for football. It wasn't a matter of if he was going to get in — it was a matter of when."
When McKay arrived on campus in 1968, he stood six-feet-four-inches tall and weighed 220 pounds. In the words of Perrin, who played alongside McKay during those years, he was "a big, tall, rangy West Texas youngster who came in here and worked really hard."
"You're 18 years old, you think you're bullet proof," McKay said. "I was stupid enough to think I could come here to play football. It worked out and it's been a wonderful, wonderful experience."
McKay steadily packed on muscle as an offensive tackle in Royal's famed "wishbone offense," and helped clear the way as Texas outscored opponents 435-119 en route to claiming the 1969 national title. He earned First Team All-American honors that year, and by the end of the season he was an imposing six-foot-five, 260 pounds.
On a roster that is now widely recognized as one of the greatest football teams in Texas history, McKay stood out. He is the first player from that 1969 championship team to be inducted into the Hall of Fame.
"Just to be here with people that you know and the people that you played with, and to be recognized — it's very humbling to be picked out of the crowd," McKay said. "It's hard to figure out how you could pick one out of that bunch."
The Longhorns went 20-1-1 with two Southwest Conference championships during McKay's time at Texas. In 1970, the Cleveland Browns selected him in the first round of the draft with the 21st overall pick. He went on to play six years with the Browns before joining the New England Patriots for three seasons.
"For him to receive this recognition now from the College Football Hall of Fame, is validation of what a lot of us tried to do a long time ago," Perrin said. "I'm so proud of him."
To this day, McKay goes on hunting and fishing trips with members of that 1969 team, counting several of them among his best friends. For McKay, The University of Texas still holds the same appeal as it did when he was just an 18-year-old boy from Crane.
"This is where it all started," McKay said. "It's the most amazing thing in the world, and it's really appreciated."
