Robert Neyland
Robert Reese Neyland (February 17, 1892 – March 28, 1962) was an American football coach. He also served in the United States Army and reached the rank of brigadier general. He is one of the few college football head coaches to coach the same school twice with a break in between the jobs. Neyland holds the record for most wins in University of Tennessee history with 173 wins in 216 games, six seasons without losing a game, nine regular seasons without losing a game, seven conference championships, and four national championships. At Tennessee, he has winning streaks of 33, 28, 23, 19, and 14 games.
| Robert Neyland | |
|---|---|
| Sport(s) | Football |
| Biographical details | |
| Born | February 17, 1892 Greenville, Texas |
| Died | March 28, 1962 (aged 70) New Orleans, Louisiana |
| Playing career | |
| 1913–1916 | Army |
| Position(s) | OL/DL |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 1919-1924 1925 1926–1934 1936–1940 1946–1952 | Army (assistant) Tennessee (assistant) Tennessee Tennessee Tennessee |
| Administrative career (AD unless noted) | |
| 1936–1941 1946–1962 | Tennessee Tennessee |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 173–31–12 |
| Bowls | 2–5 |
| Statistics College Football Data Warehouse | |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships 4 National (1938, 1940, 1950–1951) 2 Southern Conference (1926, 1932) 5 SEC (1938–1940, 1946, 1951) | |
| Awards Amos Alonzo Stagg Award (1957) 4x SEC Coach of the Year (1936, 1938, 1950–1951) | |
| College Football Hall of Fame Inducted in 1956 (profile) | |
Neyland is often referred to as one of the best, if not the best, defensive football coaches ever. Sports Illustrated named Neyland as the defensive coordinator of its all-century college football team in its "Best of the 20th Century" edition.[1] In 112 of his wins, the other team did not score a point. In 1938 and 1939, Neyland's team set NCAA records when they did not allow a point in 17 straight games. His 1939 team is the last NCAA team in history to hold every regular season opponent scoreless.
Neyland Stadium at the University of Tennessee is not only named for "The General", but was designed by him. His plans included all expansions that have brought the stadium to its modern size with an over 100,000 seat capacity. Neyland was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame as a coach in 1956.
Robert Neyland Media
Portrait of Robert Reese Neyland Jr. (1892–1962) at West Point in 1916 from The Howitzer: The Yearbook of the United States Corps of Cadets, 1916, page 126
Statue of Robert Neyland on display at Neyland Stadium
Neyland at Army tossing a pass
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References
- ↑ "CNN/SI - Century's Best - SI's NCAA Football All-Century Team - Wednesday October 06, 1999 03:30 PM". Sportsillustrated.cnn.com. Retrieved 2009-12-28.
Other websites
- College Football Hall of Fame Page Archived 2007-09-30 at the Wayback Machine