(KYTX) — Clarence 'Bo' McMichael (1920-2015) was more than simply a coaching legend in East Texas. He was an American hero and Texas trailblazer.
Born in 1920, McMichael was drafted into the U.S. Army during World War II while attending Texas College. He was one of the first African-Americans to serve in combat during the war and won three medals with the 77th Field Artillery Battalion.
After returning home, he played football for Texas College, winning an NAIA championship in the process.
After graduation, McMichael became a teacher and football coach at E.J. Campbell High School at a time when high schools were segregated across the state.
The team saw immediate success and continued that success for nearly three decades.
In 1971, when schools were finally integrated, McMichael would take over as athletic director of the junior high school that would eventually bear his name. In addition to this, he served as an assistant head coach at Nacogdoches High School.
In 1984, he was inducted into the Texas High School Coaches Association Hall of Fame.
In 2015, after a lifetime of service to the Nacogdoches and East Texas community, McMichael died at the of 95.
