 | |
| Born: | June 15, 1895 Grand Rapids, Michigan, U.S. |
|---|---|
| Died: | April 1973 Hopkins, Minnesota, U.S. |
| Career information | |
| Position(s) | Guard |
| College | Michigan |
| Career history | |
| As player | |
| 1916, 1919 | Michigan |
Alvin E. Loucks (June 15, 1895 – April 1973) was an American football player and coach. He played college football at the University of Michigan (1916, 1919) and professional football for the Detroit Heralds (1920). He later served as the football coach at Duluth Junior College (1927–40).
Loucks was a native of Grand Rapids, Michigan and the son of James C. Loucks. [1] He attended Union High School in Grand Rapids, Michigan before enrolling at the University of Michigan. He played guard for the Michigan Wolverines football team in 1916 and 1919. [2] [3]
After leaving the University of Michigan, Loucks played professional football for the Detroit Heralds in 1920. [4] In 1920, the Heralds played in the inaugural season of the American Professional Football Association -- renamed the National Football League in 1922. The 1920 Heralds compiled a 1–3 record, while inclement weather eliminated their November schedule. The cancellations were financially devastating, and the team folded.
In 1921, after a brief stint as a teacher in Pontiac, Michigan, Loucks was hired as the physical education director for the public schools in Escanaba, Michigan. [5] He also served as the head football coach at Escanabla, where his 1922 football team won the football championship of the Upper Peninsula. [6]
In 1927, Loucks moved to Duluth, Minnesota, where he became one of the original faculty members at the Duluth Junior College. Loucks was assigned to serve as a physical education instructor and to organize and coach every athletic team at the new college, including football, basketball and wrestling. [7] He was described by students as "rough, gruff and rawboned", but having a "heart of gold." [8] In the first year, Loucks' team lost every game, but in 1928 his team compiled an undefeated record and won the conference championship with victories over teams from Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan (including the Michigan School of Mines). [9]
In 1940, the football team was short of players. Only 18 players reported, with only six lettermen returning from the prior year. In November 1940, the student body voted to abolish intercollegiate football and replace it in 1941 with six-man intramural football. [10]
In 1941, Loucks became employed as the head football coach at Duluth Central High School, where he remained until his retirement in 1963. [11]
Loucks was married to Evelyn Loucks (born c. 1901), and they had two daughters, Joan Loucks (born c. 1926) and Sally Loucks (born c. 1931). [12] Loucks lived in Hopkins, Minnesota in his later years. He died in 1973 at age 75. [13]
The Minneapolis Marines were an early professional football team that existed from 1905 until 1928. The team did not play in 1918 or 1925 to 1926 and was later resurrected from 1929 to 1930 under the Minneapolis Red Jackets name. The Marines were originally owned by the Marine Athletic Club of Minneapolis and later by Minneapolitans John Dunn and Val Ness. The Marines played their earliest games in the sandlots of Minneapolis and at Minnehaha Park. They made their first appearance at Lexington Park in 1909 and Nicollet Park in 1910. From 1912 to 1914, the team rented the North Minneapolis Athletic Association grounds at 25th Avenue North and Washington Avenue in Minneapolis, a site now overrun by Interstate 94. The Marines moved to Nicollet Park in 1915 and played there until they disbanded as the Red Jackets in 1930. The Minneapolis Marines were the first Minnesota-based team to join the National Football League, predating the Duluth Eskimos (1923) and Minnesota Vikings (1961).
Fielding Harris Yost was an American college football player, coach and athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach at: Ohio Wesleyan University, the University of Nebraska, the University of Kansas, Stanford University, San Jose State University, and the University of Michigan, compiling a coaching career record of 198–35–12. During his 25 seasons as the head football coach at Ann Arbor, Yost's Michigan Wolverines won six national championships, captured ten Big Ten Conference titles, and amassed a record of 165–29–10.
Fred Warren Green was an American politician who served as the 31st governor of Michigan from 1927 to 1931, and he was the mayor of Ionia, Michigan, from 1913 to 1916. Active in athletics during his time as a student at Michigan State Normal School, and at the University of Michigan, Green earned a varsity letter playing for the Michigan State Normal football team in 1895 and is credited as the team's head coach during the 1896 season in which they were declared champions of the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association. Green served as a delegate to the 1932 and 1936 Republican National Conventions.
Harry George Kipke was an American football, basketball, and baseball player and coach. He was the head football coach at Michigan State College in 1928 and at the University of Michigan from 1929 to 1937, compiling a career record of 49–30–5. During his nine-year tenure as head coach at Michigan, Kipke's teams compiled a 46–26–4 record, won four conference titles, and captured two national championships in 1932 and 1933. He is one of only three coaches, along with Fielding H. Yost and Bo Schembechler, in Michigan football history to direct teams to four consecutive conference championships. Kipke was also the head baseball coach at the University of Missouri for one season 1925 while he was an assistant football coach at the school. He was inducted into of the College Football Hall of Fame as a player in 1958.
Frank Wallder Steketee was an American football player.
Franklin C. "Cappy" Cappon was an American college football and college basketball player and coach. He played football and basketball at Phillips University and the University of Michigan and coached at Luther College (1923–1924), the University of Kansas (1926–1927), the University of Michigan, and Princeton University (1938–1961).
Dennis Keene Fitzpatrick was an American track coach, athletic trainer, professor of physical training and gymnasium director for 42 years at Yale University, the University of Michigan, and Princeton University (1910–1932). He was considered "one of the pioneers of intercollegiate sport".
Angus Gerald "Gus" Goetz was an American football player who played four years with the Michigan Wolverines from 1917 to 1920. He also played professional football for the Buffalo All-Americans (1922) and the Columbus Tigers (1923).
The 1916 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the 1916 college football season. In his 16th year as head coach, Fielding H. Yost led Michigan to a 7–2 record, as the Wolverines outscored their opponents by a combined score of 253 to 56. Michigan held its first five opponents to a combined total of three points and won its first seven games by a combined score of 227 to 23. The team then lost its final two games, each game by a margin of only three points, against Cornell and Penn.
The 1936 Michigan Wolverines football team was an American football team that represented the University of Michigan in the 1936 Big Ten Conference football season. In their eighth season under head coach Harry Kipke, the Wolverines compiled a 1–7 record, finished last in the Big Ten, and were outscored by opponents by a total of 127 to 36. They ranked 127th of 131 teams in major college football with an average of 4.5 points scored per game.
The 1920 Michigan Wolverines football team was an American football team that represented the University of Michigan in the Big Ten Conference during the 1920 college football season. In its 20th season under head coach Fielding H. Yost, the team compiled a 5–2 record, finished sixth in the Big Ten, and outscored opponents by a total of 121 to 21.
The 1919 Michigan Wolverines football team was an American football team that represented the University of Michigan in the Big Ten Conference during the 1919 college football season. In its 19th season under head coach Fielding H. Yost, the Wolverines compiled a 3–4 record – the only losing season in Yost's 30-year career as a head football coach. The team was outscored by a total of 102 to 93 and finished in a tie for seventh place in the Big Ten. After winning three of four games to start the season, the team lost its final three games against Chicago, Illinois, and Minnesota.
Edwin J. Mather was an American football and basketball player and coach. He was selected as an All-Western football player while playing for Lake Forest University in 1909 and went on to a coaching career at Kalamazoo College (1911–1916), Lake Forest (1916–1918), and the University of Michigan (1919–1928).
James Edward "Ed" Johns was an American football player. Johns attended Central High School in Lansing, Michigan. He was the center on the 1918 Lansing football team that was selected in 1952 as Michigan's all-time greatest high school football team. The 1918 Lansing team defeated Owosso 81-0, Battle Creek 85-0, Grand Rapids South 59-0, and Jackson 96-0. Matched against the Michigan Aggies, now known as the Michigan State Spartans, Lansing won by a score of 40-0. Three players from the 1918 Lansing team, Harry Kipke, Ed Vandervoort, and Johns went on to play for Fielding H. Yost's Michigan Wolverines football teams. Johns enrolled at the University of Michigan in 1919 and played on the freshman football team. He played guard and tackle for the Wolverines varsity football teams from 1920 to 1922. Johns later played professional football for the Cleveland Indians in 1923 and Minnesota Marines in 1924. Johns died in 1984 at age 84 while living in Columbus, Ohio.
Elmer Ellsworth Beach was an American football player and lawyer. He played college football for the University of Michigan from 1882 to 1883. He later became a lawyer in Chicago, established the Beach & Beach law firm, and practiced law from 1887 until his retirement in the 1930s. He was also grand master of the grand lodge of Illinois Ancient Free and Accepted Masons.
Milo Frederick Sukup was an American football player and coach. He played college football for the University of Michigan from 1938 to 1940, where he was the running guard and a key blocker for Heisman Trophy winner Tom Harmon. He sustained a head injury late in his senior year that ended his football career. He was the head football coach and athletic director at Union High School in Grand Rapids, Michigan from 1942 to 1971.
George Campbell "Bottles" Thomson was an American football player, lawyer and banker. He played fullback and also handled punting for the University of Michigan from 1910 to 1912. He was Michigan's leading scorer for two consecutive years, totaling 35 points for the 1911 Michigan Wolverines football team and 49 points for the 1912 team. He was also selected as a first-team All-Western fullback in 1911 and as the captain of the 1912 team. After receiving a law degree from Michigan, Thomson practiced law in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He later became affiliated with the Michigan Trust Company and served as the company's president from 1933 to 1956. Following a merger with Old Kent Bank, Thomson served as chairman of the board of the new company from 1956 to 1960.
Alfred J. Julian Jr. was an American football player and coach. He was a starting defensive back for the New York Titans during their inaugural 1960 season and led the team with six interceptions in 14 games. He played college football for the University of Michigan from 1957 to 1959 and was the leading rusher on the 1959 Michigan team.
The History of Michigan Wolverines football in the Yost era covers the period from the hiring of Fielding H. Yost as head coach in 1901 through Yost's firing of Tad Wieman as head coach after the 1928 season. The era includes the brief head coaching tenures of George Little and Tad Wieman. Wieman was head coach during the 1927 and 1928 seasons but contended that he had never truly been allowed to take control of the team with Yost remaining as an assistant coach and athletic director.
Roy William Johnson, nicknamed "Old Ironhead," was an American football player, coach of football, basketball, and baseball, and college athletics administrator. He served in various capacities in the athletics program at the University of New Mexico for nearly 40 years. He was the university's athletic director from 1920 to 1949, head football coach from 1920 to 1930, and head basketball coach from 1920 to 1931 and 1933 to 1940. He also coached New Mexico's track and tennis teams. In 1957, the university named the newly built Johnson Gymnasium in his honor.