 Pilney began his college football coaching career in 1942 when he was hired as backfield coach at Washington University in St. Louis.His final game at Tulane on November 25, 1961 resulted in a 62–0 loss to rival LSU at Baton Rouge, Louisiana.Pilney's successor, Tommy O'Boyle, also lost his final game at the helm of the Green Wave in 1965 to LSU by the same score, 62–0 in Baton Rouge.