As the one fellow said... you have to have a positive flow of elec. going to the coil so the engine will run... and you need to "trip" the starter to make it turn the engine over. The two are related in starting the engine but work separately from each other in function. If it is a manaul you can put power to the coil and then push or tow it and let out the clutch in 2nd gear to make the engine roll over.

I misplaced the keys to my 67 Camaro so to start the engine w\o a key, I take a jumper wire from the positive side of the battery to the positive side of the coil. Then I take a screwdriver and I arc out hot wire(heavy positive wire from battery)to the ignition lead post on the starter solenoid. Just add fuel and the engine should start. To stop the engine just pull the coil wire out of the coil.

Sources: Many years of experiance.