Russell was also head football coach at an orphanage in Fort Worth, Texas, the Masonic Home and School, from 1929 to 1941.
They eventually played in the top class at the time, the "A" leagues in Texas, with schools who had thousands of students.
Building a football program from scratch, Russell guided the Masonic Home's 'Mighty Mites' to a tie versus Corsicana High School in the 1932 state championship game.
Russell's 1941 team was undefeated but he withdrew from the playoffs following his first postseason win after finding he had an ineligible player who was a year older than the family had listed.
He guided a squad that featured Bobby Layne and Doak Walker to an appearance in the 1944 state championship game.
As head assistant coach and responsible for the offense, Russell enjoyed a 32 win 16 loss and 5 tie record, where the Mustangs were nationally ranked, won two Southwest Conference championships, and made two Cotton Bowl appearances in 1947 and 1948.
He held a master's degree in education and was a teacher and principal many of his high school coaching years.
Russell coached a number of NFL players, among them: Kyle Rote, Doak Walker, Bobby Layne, Tex Coulter, Hardy Brown, Herschel Forester, Bill Forester, Paul Page, Raymond Berry, Fred Benners, Pat Knight, Ed Bernet and Forrest Gregg.
Using a complex passing attack, unheard of at the time, Russell is considered one of the forerunners of the spread offense.
He won NCAA National Coach of the week when at SMU, once in 1950 and again in 1951 for his respective wins over Ohio State and Notre Dame.