Pete McCulley (November 29, 1931 – November 25, 1992) was an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...

coach. He served as the head coach of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National ...

for the first nine games of the 1978 season. Winning only one game during that span, he was fired and replaced with Fred O'Connor.

College career

McCulley was a two-year letterman as

quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...

Louisiana Tech Louisiana Tech University (Louisiana Tech, La. Tech, or simply Tech) is a public research university in Ruston, Louisiana. It is part of the University of Louisiana System and classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activi ...

in 1954 and 1955. He began his coaching career as an assistant at

Stephen F. Austin Stephen Fuller Austin (November 3, 1793 – December 27, 1836) was an American-born empresario. Known as the "Father of Texas" and the founder of Anglo Texas,Hatch (1999), p. 43. he led the second and, ultimately, the successful colonization ...

, followed by two years as backfield coach at the

University of Houston The University of Houston (UH) is a public research university in Houston, Texas. Founded in 1927, UH is a member of the University of Houston System and the university in Texas with over 47,000 students. Its campus, which is primarily in s ...

in 1960 and 1961. He was later quarterbacks and receivers coach at both Baylor from

1963 Events January * January 1 – Bogle–Chandler case: Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation scientist Dr. Gilbert Bogle and Mrs. Margaret Chandler are found dead (presumed poisoned), in bushland near the Lane Co ...

to 1969 and on

Rick Forzano Richard Eugene Forzano (November 20, 1928 – January 10, 2019) was an American football coach at the high school, collegiate and professional levels, most prominently as head coach of the National Football League's Detroit Lions from 1974 to 1976 ...

's staff at

Navy A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It in ...

from

1970 Events January * January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC. * January 5 – The 7.1 Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity of X (''Extreme''). Between 10,000 and ...

1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using mean solar tim ...

.Baltimore Colts 1973 Media Guide (profile on page 7).
Retrieved November 20, 2020

Professional career

He entered the NFL as receivers coach on

Howard Schnellenberger Howard Leslie Schnellenberger (March 16, 1934 – March 27, 2021) was an American football coach with long service at both the professional and college levels. He held head coaching positions with the National Football League's Baltimore Colts a ...

's staff with the Baltimore Colts in

1973 Events January * January 1 - The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark 1973 enlargement of the European Communities, enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union. * January 15 – Vietnam War: ...

. He remained with the Colts through the first two years of the Ted Marchibroda era, adding the title of conditioning coach in

1976 Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 ...

. His departure from the Colts was a result of the January 21, 1977 dismissal of general manager Joe Thomas who had lost a power struggle to Marchibroda over player personnel decisions. McCulley joined

George Allen George Allen may refer to: Politics and law * George E. Allen (1896–1973), American political operative and one-time head coach of the Cumberland University football team * George Allen (Australian politician) (1800–1877), Mayor of Sydney and ...

's staff with the

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) N ...

as receivers coach two weeks later on February 4."49ers Name McCulley Coach," ''The Washington Post'', Wednesday, January 11, 1978.
Retrieved November 20, 2020 After a season with the Redskins, he signed a three-year contract as head coach of the

on January 10, 1978, succeeding

Ken Meyer Kenneth W. Meyer (July 14, 1925 – August 14, 2016) was an American football coach at the high school, collegiate and professional levels. He may be best remembered as the head coach of the National Football League's San Francisco 49ers in 1977 ...

who had been fired earlier that day. He was reunited with Thomas who had been appointed 49ers general manager upon Edward J. DeBartolo Sr.'s purchase of the franchise prior to the 1977 season. McCulley had actually been Thomas' first choice just after he had joined the Redskins one year earlier."49ers Name McCulley as New Coach," ''United Press International'' (UPI), Tuesday, January 10, 1978.
Retrieved November 20, 2020 Allen denied Thomas permission to contact McCulley then, but eventually relented with a recommendation. McCulley was the 49ers' fourth different head coach in as many years and the second hired by Thomas. In his introductory press conference, he had stressed the importance of improving the team's passing game. He stated, "You make the big play with a passing game. You win in this league with a passing game." When asked if he was surprised about his abrupt firing by the 49ers, he responded, "No, I haven't been surprised since I found out ice cream cones weren't filled all the way to the bottom." The quote eventually appeared in ''

Reader's Digest ''Reader's Digest'' is an American general-interest family magazine, published ten times a year. Formerly based in Chappaqua, New York, it is now headquartered in midtown Manhattan. The magazine was founded in 1922 by DeWitt Wallace and his wif ...

'' which presented him with a $25 check that he never cashed.Davis, Craig. "You Don't Remember McCulley? You Will," ''Sun-Sentinel'' (Deerfield Beach, FL), Sunday, December 1, 1991.
Retrieved November 21, 2020 He joined

Walt Michaels Walter Edward Michaels (originally Majka) (October 16, 1929 – July 10, 2019) was a professional American football player and coach who was best remembered for his six-year tenure as head coach of the NFL's New York Jets from 1977 to 1982. In 1 ...

' staff with the New York Jets as receivers coach on February 5, 1979, succeeding Dan Henning who had moved on to the

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member team of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team p ...

. His dismissal from the Jets four years later on February 10, 1983, was one of the first acts as new head coach for

Joe Walton Joseph Frank Walton (December 15, 1935 – August 15, 2021) was an American football player and coach who retired after 20 years as the head coach and creator of the football program at Robert Morris University. Walton played eight seasons in t ...

, successor to Michaels whose retirement had been announced the previous day. McCulley was named quarterbacks coach with the

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The ...

on February 17, 1983. In his first season with the ballclub, he played a key role in the development of

Bill Kenney William Patrick Kenney (born January 20, 1955) is an American former quarterback who spent nine years in the National Football League with the Kansas City Chiefs from 1980 to 1988 and a former politician who spent 8 years as a Missouri State S ...

into a

Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (starting in 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's star players. The format has changed thro ...

quarterback. His four years with

John Mackovic John Mackovic (born October 1, 1943) is an American football coach. He is currently the head coach of the Italy national American football team, which was formed to compete in the EFAF European Championship. Previously, Mackovic served as the he ...

's staff ended on January 12, 1987, when new Chiefs coach

Frank Gansz Frank Gansz (November 22, 1938 – April 27, 2009) was an American football coach whose career spanned nearly 40 years. He served as the head coach for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL) from 1987 to 1988, compiling a rec ...

, who replaced the fired Mackovic, elected not to retain him."Basketball" (Transactions), ''Orlando'' (FL) ''Sentinel'', Tuesday, January 13, 1987.
Retrieved November 20, 2020

Later years

McCulley was the head coach of the Finland national American football team when it was

European Championship of American football The European Championship is a continental competition of American football founded in 1983 and contested by the member countries of IFAF Europe. The tournament also serves as a qualifier for the IFAF World Cup. This Championship is also known as ...

finalists in 1989 and 1991. He was to have served in a similar capacity with the Miami Tribe in the Professional Spring Football League.

Head coaching record

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McCulley, Pete 1931 births 1992 deaths American football quarterbacks Baltimore Colts coaches Baylor Bears football coaches Houston Cougars football coaches Kansas City Chiefs coaches Louisiana Tech Bulldogs football players Navy Midshipmen football coaches New York Jets coaches People from Franklin County, Mississippi San Francisco 49ers head coaches Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks football coaches Washington Redskins coaches