James Benton Hickey (January 22, 1920 – December 27, 1997) was an American football and basketball player, coach of football, and college athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach at Hampden–Sydney College from 1951 to 1955 and at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill from 1959 to 1966, compiling a career college football record of 63–56–4. Hickey was the athletic director at the University of Connecticut from 1966 to 1969.[1]
 Hickey pictured in Yackety Yack 1967, North Carolina yearbook | |
| Biographical details | |
|---|---|
| Born | January 22, 1920 Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Died | December 27, 1997 (aged 77) Southern Pines, North Carolina, U.S. |
| Playing career | |
| Football | |
| 1938–1941 | William & Mary |
| Basketball | |
| 1940, 1942 | William & Mary |
| Position(s) | Wingback, tailback (football) Guard (basketball) |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 1951–1955 | Hampden–Sydney |
| 1956–1958 | North Carolina (assistant) |
| 1959–1966 | North Carolina |
| Administrative career (AD unless noted) | |
| 1951–1955 | Hampden–Sydney |
| 1966–1969 | Connecticut |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 63–56–4 |
| Bowls | 1–0 |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| 3 Virginia Little Six/Seven (1952–1953, 1955) 2 Mason-Dixon (1953–1954) 1 ACC (1963) | |
| Awards | |
| ACC Coach of the Year (1963) | |
Education and career
editHickey graduated from The College of William & Mary in 1942 and played wingback and tailback on the football team and guard on the basketball team. He was inducted into the William & Mary Athletics Hall of Fame in 1971. He served as a Lieutenant (junior grade) in the United States Navy during World War II. He coached football at Hampden–Sydney College for five years before joining the staff of Jim Tatum at the University of North Carolina in 1956 as an assistant. After Tatum's death in the summer of 1959, he accepted the position of head coach. Hickey was dismissed after the 1966 season and Bill Dooley succeeded him as North Carolina's head coach.[2]
Family
editHickey was the son of William and Cora Hickey. He married Agnes Pauline Small Pardue on November 14, 1976, in Sanford, North Carolina. He died at the age of seventy-seven on December 27, 1997 and was buried at the Buffalo Cemetery in Sanford.[3][4]
Head coaching record
edit| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | Coaches# | AP° | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hampden–Sydney Tigers (Mason-Dixon Conference / Virginia Little Six/Seven Conference) (1951–1955) | |||||||||
| 1951 | Hampden–Sydney | 4–3–2 | 1–1–2 / 1–1–1 | 3rd / T–2nd | |||||
| 1952 | Hampden–Sydney | 5–3–1 | 2–1–1 / 2–0–1 | 2nd / 1st | |||||
| 1953 | Hampden–Sydney | 5–1–1 | 3–0–1 / 3–0 | 1st / 1st | |||||
| 1954 | Hampden–Sydney | 5–3 | 3–1 / 2–1 | 1st / 2nd | |||||
| 1955 | Hampden–Sydney | 8–1 | 3–1 / 2–1 | 2nd / T–1st | |||||
| Hampden–Sydney: | 27–11–4 | 15–6–4 | |||||||
| North Carolina Tar Heels (Atlantic Coast Conference) (1959–1966) | |||||||||
| 1959 | North Carolina | 5–5 | 5–2 | 2nd | |||||
| 1960 | North Carolina | 3–7 | 2–5 | T–6th | |||||
| 1961 | North Carolina | 5–5 | 4–3 | 2nd | |||||
| 1962 | North Carolina | 3–7 | 3–4 | T–4th | |||||
| 1963 | North Carolina | 9–2 | 6–1 | T–1st | W Gator | 19 | |||
| 1964 | North Carolina | 5–5 | 4–3 | T–3rd | |||||
| 1965 | North Carolina | 4–6 | 3–3 | T–5th | |||||
| 1966 | North Carolina | 2–8 | 1–4 | 8th | |||||
| North Carolina: | 36–45 | 28–25 | |||||||
| Total: | 63–56–4 | ||||||||
| National championship Conference title Conference division title or championship game berth | |||||||||
| |||||||||
References
edit- ^ "Jim Benton Hickey" (obituary). Raleigh, North Carolina: The News & Observer, December 28, 1977, p. 33 (subscription required).
- ^ "Jim Benton Hickey" (obituary), The News & Observer, December 28, 1977.
- ^ "James B. Hickey" (funeral notice). Greensboro, North Carolina: News & Record, December 28, 1997, p. 17 (subscription required).
- ^ "Jim Benton Hickey" (obituary), The News & Observer, December 28, 1977.