Hall of Fame
Position: Coach
Years: Memphis (1937-38), Mississippi State (1939-48)
Place of Birth: Fulton, KY
Date of Birth: Jan. 26, 1905
Place of Death: Montgomery, AL
Date of Death: Nov. 13, 1978
Allyn McKeen played guard for Tennessee from 1925 to 1927, also lettered in tennis, track and boxing and was senior class president. He was head coach 1937-38 at West Tennessee State (now Memphis), then at Mississippi State 1939-42 and 1944-48 (The school had no team in 1943). His 1940 team went 9-0-1 and beat Georgetown in the Orange Bowl. His 1941 team won the Southeastern Conference, the only Southeastern Conference football championship won by Mississippi State. His career record was 78-25-3. After he left coaching, he was a director of the Blue-Gray game in Montgomery, Alabama. Allyn McKeen was born in 1905 in Fulton, Kentucky, he died in 1978 in Montgomery. There is a poignant ending to the McKeen story. His widow, Susan, was seriously ill when notified Allyn had been elected to the Hall of Fame. "The news was given her January 25, 1991, and made her very happy," reports the family. "She died the next day."
