The University of Delaware is where Mr. Flynn met his wife, Frances Bennett, Class of 1959; where he and she served as founding members of UD’s Catholic campus ministry, the St. Thomas More Oratory; and where he devoted his life and career to coaching student-athletes in track and field, and football.

“Coach Flynn personified the definition of a Blue Hen,” said Athletic Director Chrissi Rawak. “He cared deeply about UD, Delaware Athletics, our student-athletes, coaches and staff. He was a team player who led with championship aspirations and a great tradition of excellence.”

Known for his candor, humor and endless treasure trove of stories, Mr. Flynn was a longtime member and past president of the Blue Hen Touchdown Club, a social club with modest, $60 annual dues to support Delaware Football. At the group’s fall luncheons, guests and former players often clamored for a seat at Mr. Flynn’s table. 

“He was warm, genuine, full-of-life; always laughing, always making you laugh,” remembered friend and colleague Jerry Oravitz. “And Coach had the best stories. Even the ones he told over and over and over.”

There was Mr. Flynn’s infamous budget fight with former head football coach David Nelson. When Coach Nelson threatened to fire him, Mr. Flynn apparently quipped, “You can’t! You don’t pay me enough!” 

Then, there was the lesser-known time Mr. Flynn and his Sigma Nu fraternity brothers lured a cow from the agricultural farm to the steps of Memorial Hall. “He was proud of that one,” former Athletic Director Edgar Johnson recalled with a smile (though it was a story his children only learned after his passing). 

Well into his late 80s, Mr. Flynn remained a Newark staple, walking 5 miles a day up until the last months of his life. He could be found at every home football game, at Alumni Weekend, even at the Twilight Induction Ceremony for first-year students.

“If UDairy was handing out ice cream, he’d be there,” his daughter Tracey Gianforcaro said, laughing.

Of his six children—five boys and one girl—Gianforcaro was the “only smart one” who graduated from UD, the 1991 alumna joked. Much to their grandfather’s delight, her children, George, Class of 2019, and Katie, Class of 2020, would continue the Blue Hen tradition. 

Growing up, the Fynns spent many family dinners talking about Delaware Football. When they weren’t discussing games, they were selecting “Kid of the Week,” whom their father would choose by asking each of his six children, “What did you do today to make the world a better place?”

“He held us, himself, his players to a higher standard,” Gianforcaro said. “He expected the best.”

As a coach, he was relentless. He taught perseverance and instilled confidence. “But he also made you understand that playing well was more important than winning,” his daughter said.

As a father, “he made each of his six children feel like they were his favorite,” added son-in-law George Gianforcaro, Class of 1991. “How remarkable is that?”

According to Johnson, this extraordinary trait extended to Flynn’s eclectic coaching style.

“You got 60 kids on a track team with 18 different events. Distance runners are different from sprinters. He gave each kid what they needed.”

Alvin Turner, one of the first Black students to attend the University of Delaware in the 1960s, recalls how Mr. Flynn approached him after a race against a fellow student, a star athlete who was older than Turner and well known by everyone on campus.

“He said, ‘Mike only beats you because you don't believe you can win. He beats you even when he runs slower than your best time,’” Turner recalled. “I realized then the power of our minds to create reality, and the importance of using others as mirrors to assist us in defining this reality. Coach Flynn taught me to run my best race regardless of the competition and to believe in myself each time.

“Coaches are somewhat like fathers,” Turner continued. “They have inexplicable power to influence attitudes, perceptions and behavior, even when not speaking. Those of us who have been coached by good coaches understand the power of this relationship, and Jimmy Flynn was a good coach.”

Mr. Flynn lost his own father as a senior in high school. His children and close friends believe that UD coaches David Nelson and Milo Lude would soon become father figures in his life.

“He loved UD because UD was home,” said Tracey Gianforcaro. “That’s why he was there almost 70 years.”