(MSU Fight Song plays) - Hi, I'm Al Martin, Host of WKAR'S "Current Sports," and today, it's a pleasure and privilege to sit down with a true Michigan State University icon, trailblazer, and 2022 MSU Homecoming Grand Marshal, the great Coach Jim Bibbs.

Now among a host of accomplishments, Coach Bibbs is widely known for being the first Black Head Coach at MSU and first Black Head Track Coach in the Big 10 conference.

Coach Bibbs, first of all, it is so delightful to have you sitting down with me today.

How are you doin'?

- I'm doin' fine, and I'm happy be sittin' down here with you.

- I wanna start with the Grand Marshal Honor.

Where were you when you got the call that you were going to be this year's Homecoming Grand Marshal for Michigan State University?

- I was home, and I think Virginia Cross called me.

And told me, and I said, "Me?"

(both laugh) And so, I was surprised, pleasantly surprised and highly honored, because you know what, I bleed green, so I think Michigan State is one of the best schools in the country, and I think I did a pretty good job with everything.

But I didn't expect to be Grand Marshal because there's so many great people come from Michigan State.

So I was very, very honored and still thrilled to tell you the truth.

- Well, you definitely did more than a good job, Coach Bibbs.

First of all, what does that mean for you?

When you hear Jim Bibbs, 2022 MSU Homecoming Grand Marshal, what does that statement mean to you?

- It means that I must have did a pretty good job, but basically, just like you just said a few minutes ago, I'm just doin' my job and doing it to the best of my ability, and it means a lot because Michigan State is such a big institution, and I think so much of Michigan State.

I tell people that just the name Coach of Michigan State gives me a lotta instant credibility, and sometimes I think people overrate me because I work for Michigan State.

Makes people look at me and say, "Hmm, he must be somebody."

- You definitely are somebody, Coach Bibbs.

Your journey to Michigan State.

I wanna go back for a second, because I know that you were quite the athlete yourself, Coach Bibbs.

You actually tied the great Jesse Owens when it came to that world record 60 yard dash.

I also know that you had an offer to be a member of the Class A affiliate for the New York Yankees.

Why did you turn it down, Coach Bibbs?

- I didn't, my dad did.

(both laugh) - It was pops who did it.

- I only ran track in high school one year.

I played baseball three years in high school, so baseball is my thing.

I never even saw a track meet that much when I was growing up.

It's baseball and football, naturally, went there.

And so I played baseball a lot, and I thought I was a pretty good baseball player, and I had a little try-out with the St. Louis Browns.

That's where I met Satchel Paige, which were my thrills, when I met Satchel.

And so when they made a little offer, I came back and told my dad about it.

They offered me something like $500 a month.

- $500 a month.

- Yeah.

- To play for the Class A affiliate of the New York Yankees at the time.

- Some money, and my dad, he said, "No, you goin' back to college."

And I didn't care my dad, when my dad said somethin', case was closed.

I didn't need to debate with him, because my dad went to fourth grade, my mother went to the sixth grade, but I had the kind of dad that his dream was that I go to college.

And I guess beyond that, that dream was that I graduate from college, and that's what they wanted.

Baseball to them.

They loved them.

He come see me play and all that and like that.

But to them, baseball's a hobby, baseball is somethin' to do, but my job was to go to school and get good grades.

That was my job.

Now when I finished that, then he didn't care how much baseball I played, and.

- Do you ever think about what could have been, if you did go and take the baseball route and play the game?

- Well, when I think about it, I think my dad made the right choice.

I think I would've been good enough to play for the Lugnuts level.

And I might've even made it to Triple A, but when I think about it, and these guys throwin' that ball 100 miles an hour now, I said Daddy might've been right, 'cause when I was hittin', they wasn't throwin' the ball 100 miles an hour.

- [Al] Right, right.

- And second, the game's changed so much.

Everybody, you know when I played, singles and doubles, you supposed to hit the ball with aim, but now, everybody go up there tryin' to hit home runs, and hittin' home runs is all or nothin', 'cause that's where the money is.

But home run hitters and stuff, and you see I'm not that big now.

I couldn't hit that many home runs, so I think my dad was right, I think.

But it was a combination of the Lord and my dad.

I think the path I took, and the fact I'm sitting here talkin' to you, the path I took was probably the right path.

- You wouldn't be sittin' here with me, 'cause who knows what life would've brought about, if you did take that route, right.

- I wouldn't have been Willie Mays or nobody.

And like you say, I was lucky enough to tie Jesse Owens' record.

So, if I made it, and that's why I try tellin' these kids, if you make it, your career's over at 30 somewhere.

Now I tell 'em, if you finish at 30 and make it pretty good, and you die at 35 or so, you've had a great life, but you do the math.

Now, if I finished baseball at 35, and I'm 90, that's a lotta years, and I would not have made enough money to last me, you gotta have a good Plan B.

- That's right.

- And if I'd have left college, if I'd have gone back, might not have gone back.

So I think I've been blessed, I can't complain about my path.

- Your journey to Michigan State really began, Coach Bibbs, when you were the Head Coach, the Head Track Coach, at Ecorse High School, which you called, you've said this many times, I remember when we had you on the show a few years ago, you called that a dream of yours.

And you were there for four years.

You guys won back-to-back State Championships with you at the helm, and then you got a call from Clarence "Biggie" Munn, former Michigan State Head Football Coach, who at the time, he was the Head Athletic Director.

He called you up to offer you this job.

Can you take me to that moment, when you were livin' your dream, winning State Championships at Ecorse High School, and then Michigan State calls you?

- He changed my dream.

(both laugh) - He changed the dream for you.

- He changed the dream.

Well, I was little thrilled to be able to coach.

See I went to Ecorse High, I graduated from Ecorse High.

I was born in Ecorse and grew up in Ecorse, and so I thought that was my dream to be, it wasn't a dream actually, but once I got there I said, "Well, that's it.

"I'm here, Coach of Ecorse High."

So I was real satisfied and everything and fortunate to have success.

But then he called, and I hate to say it quite that way, but the riot was in '67.

Detroit Riot was in '67, and I say I got hired in '68 because Black people still had matches.

(both laugh) So next step, after trying to burn up Detroit, was gonna be up the road to Michigan and Michigan State.

And at the same time, I think, the athletes started askin' for Black coaches and Black trainers and so forth, and I happened to be in the right place, right time, and timing was right.

And they say, "Timing is everything," and so, I happened to be the one Biggie called.

So when he called, as much as I love Ecorse, once he convinced me he was Biggie, I didn't really think he was Biggie to start with, I thought just somebody calling me, but once he convinced me he was Biggie and ask me to come up there and see him, like I say, made me an offer I couldn't refuse.

You know, Ecorse is great, but Michigan State University.

- It's a little better, huh?

- Sounds a little better.

So I came up here and talked to Biggie.

- And Coach, you mentioned the Detroit Riots in '67.

Now, correct me if I'm wrong, but you were out of the country coaching the Pan American Games when that was taking place, right?

- I missed most of the riot.

- You missed the riot 'cause you were there coachin', but you understood, of course, the gravity of that situation, and then you get the call from Biggie Munn offering you the job.

So, a lot goin' on there.

When you get that call and knowing the racial strife that is happening right here in this state, what's going through your mind just as a Black man?

- I just thought I was blessed to be coming to Michigan State.

And I know I'm Black, but I just think of myself more as a track coach and coaching on the college level than just bein' a Black man, 'cause like I tell people, I was the first Black coach at Ecorse High.

- Wow.

- So at that time, everything you did, you probably was first.

'Cause didn't many of us get any opportunities at all, And so, I thought I was surprisingly blessed to have opportunity to come to Michigan State and coach and get paid to do the same thing I'm doin' at Ecorse High.

- Knowing that you were going to be the first Black head coach in the university's history and also the first Black head coach in the Big 10 Conference track and field's history.

- I mean, I wasn't head coach.

I came up here as Assistant Coach.

- Assistant coach, right, right.

Well, the first Black coach period though.

Was there any pressure?

- Not really, because just like you, we all do the best job we can do.

So I'm gonna work, I'm gonna do the same thing here that I did at Ecorse High.

The only thing I had to do is put my mind how good is good.

- In high school, 49 is good in the quarter.

In college, 47 is good, so I had to adjust my thinking and so forth.

But I didn't feel no extra, I mean, I wouldn't say pressure.

I'm gonna try to do the best job I can do, and Biggie even asked me at the time, would I like to be head coach one day?

And I told him "Yeah."

And he said, "Good."

He says, "I don't even like to hire nobody "that don't aspire to be a head coach, "be the best."

'Cause he know, if I aspire to be a head coach, he know I'm gonna do the best job I can at what I'm doin' now.

- Just about doin' the best job.

- Just do the best job I can, whether I'm Black or White or whatever.

Because like I said, I've never, I'm sittin' here now, I've never had a Black coach, never had a Black teacher.

And the coach I really admire was my college coach, and if anything, I wanted to be like him.

And I tell people, the first few years I started coachin', and mostly, George Marshall was his name, and I was George Marshall once removed, because I really admired how he coached and how he handled me, because he not only coached me, he kinda nurtured me.

- What's it been like, Coach Bibbs, to see the evolution of the track and field athlete from your day when you were coachin' to now?

- Well actually, when I set that record, tied that record, that was 1951, so better tracks, better shoes, better techniques, everything has been improvement.

- Now, I won't ask you to do this, Coach Bibbs, because a few years ago, when I had you on "Current Sports" TV, you wouldn't, because all your athletes are like your children, right.

It's hard to pick your favorites.

You don't wanna do that, so I'll take another route, and I'll ask you this.

Your favorite moments as Head Coach, Coach period, of Michigan State track and field.

What are some of the moments that really stand out in the front of your memory?

- My favorite moment was the Michigan State Relays.

I'm not sure what year it was, but Herb Washington broke the world record in the 60 yard dash.

That's one of my thrills there, that I was able to get a piece of the world record at 60 yards, and then coach somebody that broke the world record.

So that in itself was a thrill, then half an hour later, Marshall Dill broke the record in 300 yard dash.

So we had two world records that night in Michigan State Relay right here.

And then, they combined with a couple of guys, and we missed the world record in the sprint medley relay by two or three tenths a second.

So that's probably my favorite moment as coach at Michigan State.

- I had a feeling you were gonna choose those moments.

That's pretty good.

Historic moment in Michigan State Track and Field.

- And people come down out the stands, and the fans, Jenison Field House I was rockin'.

- (laughs) Right, and the fact that it took place right here in East Lansing.

- Right.

- [Al] Oh that's special stuff.

- So, that's my favorite moment.

- I love that Coach.

I wanna talk about your late great wife, Martha Bibbs.

I know she passed away, it'll be two years later on this month, but she was remarkable, and you guys were quite the team.

She was actually the first Black and first woman to hold the title of Civil Service Director here in the state of Michigan.

- Right.

- Getting this honor, as 2022 Homecoming Grand Marshal, I know that she has to be on your mind for sure.

- Oh, I just, that's the only thing that seems to be missin'.

I wish she could see this.

She'd be very proud, 'cause she knew I was proud of every honor and everything she got, and she was proud of every honor and anything I got.

So, that's the only thing missin' is her.

- Can you just put in perspective, just how amazing of a team you guys were and what she meant to you, briefly?

- We basically, and people would not believe me, but we never had a real argument.

We disagreed on things, but we always met halfway.

And usually, it's her givin' in and trying to do things my way or me givin' in, trying to do things her way.

- Pointin' to 50 years of marriage.

- In 50 years.

- You guys never had an argument.

- Never had a big argument.

- What?

Wow.

What's the secret sauce to that?

- Just, if you really love somebody you'd like for them to be happy, and I think we both loved one another.

And I always said this, we always said this, the only things we should argue over is cheatin' on one another or money.

Those are the only two things worth arguin' over.

Now, so most of these other things, we are more important than them other things.

So why argue?

Just like when we got married, and they tell you, we had two ministers, I was Methodist, and she's Baptist, and we had both our ministers there.

And she was a better Baptist than I was a Methodist.

So I came up here and joined Pilgrim Rest Baptist Church, so and she was probably better Christian than me.

So we didn't have, so we had nothin' that was really important enough to argue over.

Any big decision we made we always kicked around with one another.

- [Al] Yeah.

- And things of that type.

And so, and I don't know why people have so much trouble, 'cause what's worth arguing over?

As I say, money and unfaithfulness.

- [Al] Right, right.

- And we didn't get caught up in that, so therefore.

And once we had money, it was our money.

- [Al] Yeah, exactly.

- It didn't matter, 'cause when I married her, I was makin' a little money, and she wasn't makin' nothing.

And then at some point, she's makin' more than me, but it was always our money, it didn't matter.

- Boy oh boy, I hope people are takin' notes right now.

- We never had no argument over this is your money or this is my money.

Hey, once we get married, it's we.

- Yeah.

- And it's ours.

And, so we never really found nothin' worth arguin' over.

I even told her one day that she turned out with all the people, like Herbert Marshall, and all them people.

But she, I told her, she turned out to be my best recruit.

- (laughs) I like that.

- And I told Herb Washington that one day.

He said, "I know that's right."

He said, "I stayed with you four years, "she stayed with you 50."

- (laughs) Very well put.

And, I know you guys were big into giving back as well, right, to the community and to the youth, right.

- Well, we love kids, and she was Chairman of Ele's Place for a minute, and that was shortly after we lost a couple of our kids.

And then also, she was a Black Child Family.

So I loved kids and athletics, and she loved kids and she learned to love athletics.

- [Al] Yeah.

- And so that works out.

We just, we love to help anybody, but especially the youth.

If you really love your wife, and she loved me, if you really love your spouse, what's to argue about, what's more important to her?

She's number one.

- [Al] That's right.

- So with number one, ain't nothin' to argue about.

- (laughs) Love conquers all, right, Coach Bibbs, I love that.

- I'm satisfy her.

I told the Lord, two people I gotta worry about is my wife and my boss.

I gotta worry about my boss 'cause he sign my pay, he or she sign my paycheck, I gotta satisfy him.

And I got satisfy my wife, 'cause I live with her, and I want her happy.

- [Al] That's right.

- And nobody else, I don't worry about.

Like Jack Ebbling asked me one day about, what I think about some people not wantin' me to be a Black coach.

I said, "If they confront me, that would be one problem, "but I don't worry about people talkin' behind my back, "'cause I don't hear 'em, that's their problem."

If they don't like this, if they don't bring it to me, it's not my problem.

If they let themselves be unhappy 'cause I'm a coach, that's not my problem.

That's their problem.

- And that's how you add years on your life, Coach Bibbs.

And, I wanna ask you this to bring it home here, 93 years young, what's the key to living 90 plus years?

'Cause it is certainly a blessing.

- Keep on livin', I don't know.

- (laughs) That's good advice.

Keep on livin', right.

- Yeah, I don't know no key.

One, I'm blessed.

I just consider myself blessed, and I don't have no formal formula as to why I'm livin' this long.

But I think part of it is I've been able to deal with other people problems without internalizing them myself, without making them my problems and still can give them advice and so forth.

So, and I think I'm flexible enough to be able to take the bitter with the sweet.

I try to adapt to whatever situation I find myself in.

I don't do a lotta unnecessary worrying.

- [Al] Love that, yeah.

- Because, and I think, I don't know a whole lotta prayers, but I do know the Serenity Prayer, accept things I can't change.

Like, I can't worry about what's going over here on your job.

That's your job.

I don't know enough about the inside of your job and all that stuff.

Now, if you have made the problem with me, I try to give you all the advice I can give you, but I can't worry about it.

I accept the things I can't change and change the things I can change.

But like I say, and have enough wisdom to choose between the two.

There are some things that I have no control over.

- [Al] That's right.

- And so, why worry about it?

I can't have nothing to do.

You know, I even hear about the news and all this stuff, but I can't worry about too much what's goin' on in Washington, DC, 'cause I'm not president.

- [Al] That's right, that's true.

That's true.

- So therefore, all I do is hear the news, listen to it, and say it's bad.

But I can't take it, I can't take it to bed with me.

I can't sit up and lose no sleep.

- Well, I tell you what, Coach Bibbs, this weekend, we're treatin' you like the president because you are the Grand Marshal.

- They are treatin' me.

- [Al] What are you lookin' forward to the most this weekend, man?

- Don't fall out of the car.

(both laugh) - [Al] Don't fall out of the car, 'cause you will be in that convertible, right, as the Grand Marshal, wavin' at people.

That's the number one concern, huh.

- And I'm having Andy to go with me and sit right beside me and make sure don't he don't let me fall out.

But that's all.

But I'm looking forward, and I'm gonna see people, hope I can see a lotta people.

And so, I'm just looking forward to good, halfway good weather and everything go well.

And I hope we'll win.

- Right, let's hope they get a win on Saturday against Wisconsin, right.

- And it'll be a nice weekend, I think.

- 2022 MSU Homecoming Grand Marshal, Jim Bibbs.

That sounds pretty good, doesn't it?

- A long way from Ecorse.

- Long way from Ecorse.

- I was just little boy with knickers, little pants I used to wear.

So I was a little boy in Ecorse.

And I tell you, at one, I'm gonna tell you this, I had a bad semester at Eastern Michigan.

I went to Eastern Michigan, I had a bad semester.

The Dean of Men called me over there, and I had a good track season, but I had a bad academic year.

He told me, "Jim, you're a little boy from a little town "that can do big things, but you got to get those books.

I said, "Yes sir, Dean."

And I never had to talk to him again about that.

So, I'm just a little boy from Ecorse that's been blessed.

I'm a Phys Ed major, and now, if nothing happen, I'm gonna be at a luncheon with the president of the university.

- Coach Bibbs, it has been an absolute pleasure.

Please soak up the weekend and thank you for taking some time out your busy schedule to sit down with me.

It's been a pleasure.

- Well thank you for giving me opportunity to take my time.

I'm proud to be able to take this time to talk to you and proud of you.

- Thank you, oh, that means a lot, Coach Bibbs.

It truly does.

The one, the only, Jim Bibbs.

(MSU Fight Song plays) (chimes ring)