OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Former University of Oklahoma football coach Chuck Fairbanks is battling brain cancer and says he's about to undergo treatment at the Mayo Clinic in Phoenix.
The 79-year-old Fairbanks says that he was diagnosed in late August will begin 42 days of radiation and chemotherapy treatment on Monday.
Fairbanks was named OU head coach in 1967 after the death of coach Jim Mackenzie and led the Sooners to a 52-15-1 record and three Big Eight titles in six seasons.
He left OU after the 1972 season to become head coach of the NFL's New England Patriots and was replaced by then-offensive coordinator Barry Switzer, who later won a Super Bowl in the NFL with the Dallas Cowboys.
Fairbanks later coached both the University of Colorado and the USFL's New Jersey Generals.