COACH JACK ALLEN, 80, of Lake Leon, TX passed away
May 27, 2016, in Fort Worth, TX, with interment in
Desdemona Cemetery at Desdemona, TX.
Coach Allen was born on July 28, 1935, in Ranger, TX
to the late Robert & Bea Needham Allen. He married the
love of his life, Linda Ann Greenhaw, in July of 1966.
Jack attended Ranger High School in the Class of 1953.
He graduated from Sam Houston State University earning
his Bachelor of Science in 1963 and a master's in 1973.
Jack's coaching career began in 1963 at Ranger Jr. College
where he coached for 23 years earning numerous awards,
including two national championships in 1973 and 1978.
His 1975 team finished fifth and his 1976 team finished
third in the nationals. Jack also won seven regional
championships and nine conference titles. Coach Allen
was elected into the 1986 Junior College Baseball Coaches
Hall of Fame, and NJCAA and the ABCA Baseball Coach of
the Year in 1973 and 1978.
After retiring from Ranger Junior College, Allen took
three years off before taking over the Tarleton State
University head coach position in 1989. "I missed the
association with the kids and I missed the competition,"
Allen said. He led the Texans to consecutive 40-win
seasons and was named the NAIA District 8 and Area II
Coach of the Year in 1992. Coach Allen earned his 1,000th
career win in 1995 and led Tarleton to its first NCAA II
Regional Playoff. Jack earned many awards while coaching
at Tarleton before his retirement in 2002. Of all the
awards that Coach Allen earned, he will be remembered
as a great coach and father figure to his players whom
he loved and who loved him. Coach Allen was inducted
into the American Baseball Coaches Association Hall of
Fame in 2000 and the Tarleton State Athletics Hall of
Fame Class of 2009.
He was preceded in death by his parents and a sister,
Bobbie Lee Gunn (RHS-1937).
Survivors: Wife of 50 years, Linda Ann Allen of Lake
Leon; mother-in-law, Dorothy Greenhaw of Desdemona;
brother-in-law, Morris Greenhaw and wife, Pat, of
Desdemona; nephew, Brandon Greenhaw and wife, Karen,
of Glen Rose; niece, Diana Greenhaw of San Francisco;
and great-nephews, Evan and Marcus Greenhaw.
Former baseball players of Coach Allen attending his service.
Article in the Ranger Times (2001)-Jack Allen, Head Coach
For Tarleton State head coach Jack Allen, a new baseball
season is simply another challenge to conquer. This season
-- Allen's 36th in coaching and 13th at the Tarleton helm
-- will be no different as he looks to guide the Texans on
their quest for another Lone Star Conference South Division
title.
The veteran skipper, who sees coaching as a challenge similar
to "piecing together a never-ending puzzle," has overcome
plenty of challenges in his coaching career. And, he has the
hardware to prove it.
A longtime junior college coach, Allen has amassed an impressive
1,201-684-3 record in his 35 years, including a 387-285-3 mark
over the past 12 campaigns with the Texans. While at Tarleton,
his teams have won two LSC divisional titles, one Texas Inter-
collegiate Athletic Association championship and one NAIA
District 8 crown, in addition to earning one NCAA regional berth.
Allen, who took over the Tarleton program prior to the 1990
season, put together an enviable record of 814-399 in 23 seasons
with Ranger Junior College. Included in those totals are nine
conference championships, seven regional championships, and
four state championships. Allen coached Ranger's program to
junior college national championships in 1973 and 1978.
Success has been constant at Tarleton ever since Allen arrived,
even though the Texans' program was just two years old at the
time.
Allen, who was inducted into the American Baseball Coaches
Association Hall of Fame prior to the 2000 season, has led the
Texans to eight 30-win seasons, including five in the past
seven years. He turned the young program into a well-respected
NAIA power, and the past seven years have seen him do the same
at the NCAA Division II level.
Tarleton made its big breakthrough in the Division II ranks
in 1998 as Allen led the Texans to the South Central Regional
Tournament. That marked the first-ever NCAA appearance for any
Tarleton team since the school moved its membership
in 1994.
Allen garnered LSC South Division Coach of the Year honors
that season, having led the Texans to a second-place league
finish and postseason appearance. He earned league Coach of
the Year acclaim again in 1999 after guiding Tarleton to the
South Division title and a second-place finish in the LSC
postseason tournament.
In 2000, the Texans again won the South Division crown and
qualified for LSC postseason play for a third straight season,
sending a message to conference opponents that Allen and his
troops were here to stay.
Allen's tenure at Tarleton started in 1990 when he led the
Texans to a 29-20-1 record. That was followed by consecutive
40-win seasons, which resulted in him being named NAIA District
8 and Area II Coach of the Year in 1992.
His 1991 team posted a 41-22 record while winning the TIAA
title and finishing
third in NAIA District 8. The '92 squad enjoyed a first-place
finish in District 8 and was second in Area II after compiling
a 41-27 mark.
The Texans won 36 games and finished as District 8 runners-up
in 1993 before posting a 26-26 record in '94, which remains
Allen's only non-winning season as Tarleton's skipper.
In 1995, he guided Tarleton to a second-place finish in its
initial year in the Lone Star Conference. Also during that
season he became just the 19th collegiate coach to record
1,000 victories.
After going 30-26 in 1996 and 27-24 in '97, the Texans turned
the corner in 1998 and have been a force in the LSC and South
Central region ever since.
During his time at Tarleton, Allen has coached 24 first team
All-Lone Star Conference players and seven All-Americans. He
earned his 300th win at Tarleton with a 3-2 decision over
Texas A&M-Kingsville that put Tarleton in the 1998 LSC Champion-
ship game, and his 1200th overall coaching victory came last
year against Eastern New Mexico.
A native of Ranger, Allen graduated from Ranger Junior College
in 1956 and spent two years playing professional baseball before
earning his bachelor's degree at Sam Houston State in 1963. He
then returned to Ranger as head baseball coach and remained in
that post until 1985.
Allen, who was selected to the National Junior College Athletic
Association Hall of Fame in 1986, received his master's degree
from Sam Houston State in 1971 and his teaching certificate at
Tarleton in 1989. Aside from his coaching duties at Ranger,
Allen has worked as a part-time scout since 1973 with the
Philadelphia Phillies, Chicago Cubs, and San Diego Padres.
He has been a member of the Stephenville Optimist Club and
Ranger Lions Club, he served 10 years on the Ranger City Commis-
sion and he was director of the Ranger Boys Club in addition
to working four years as mayor of the city of Ranger.
In his profession, he is past president of both the Texas
Junior College Baseball Coaches Association and the National
Junior College Baseball Coaches Association, a member of the
Texas High School Baseball Coaches Association, United States
Baseball Federation, American Baseball Coaches Association,
and the Ex-Pro Baseball Players Association of Texas.
He has been honored by Ranger Junior College with its
Distinguished Alumni Award in 1974, by the National Junior
College Athletic Association with a Distinguished Service
Award in 1985, and as Baseball Coach of the Year by the
Texas Sports Writers in 1973, National Junior College
Athletic Association in 1973 and 1978, and the America
Association of College Baseball Coaches in 1973 and 1978.
Jack, 65, and his wife, Linda, reside at Lake Leon, TX.