Earl Blaik
Encyclopedia
Earl Henry "Red" Blaik was an American football
player, coach, college athletics administrator, and United States Army
officer. He served as the head football coach at Dartmouth College
from 1934 to 1940 and at the United States Military Academy
from 1941 to 1958, compiling a career college football
record of 166–48–14. His Army football
teams won consecutive national championships in 1944 and 1945. Blaik was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame
as a coach in 1964.
, the son of William Blaik, a blacksmith
and carriage
maker who emigrated from Glasgow, Scotland in 1883. In 1901 the family moved to Dayton, Ohio
, where his father became a contractor.
He played college football for three seasons at Miami University
in Oxford, Ohio
under Chester J. Roberts
, George Rider
and George Little
and two seasons at the United States Military Academy at West Point where he became a third-team All-American
. Following his graduation in 1920, Blaik served in the United States Cavalry
for two years. After his military service, Blaik married and worked in the construction business with his father.
. For a few months in 1926, he accepted a coaching position on the staff of University of Wisconsin–Madison
head football coach George Little. In 1927, Blaik became a part-time coach at the United States Military Academy
until 1930 when he was accepted on the staff as a full-time assistant coach.
In 1934, Blaik was hired as head football coach at Dartmouth College
. At Dartmouth he coached for seven seasons and compiled a record of 45–16–4, his Dartmouth teams had a 22-game unbeaten streak from 1934 to 1937. He coached one Hall of Fame player at Dartmouth, Bob MacLeod
.
In 1941, Blaik was tapped to be head football coach for the United States Military Academy. Army had suffered two consecutive losing seasons in 1939 and 1940, a first since 1906, and dropped its requirements for its coach to be a serving graduate and that all players meet restrictive height-to-weight limitations. The latter was a condition Blaik made as a requirement for him to accept the position, believing Army to be severely handicapped in the size of its linemen. The United States Naval Academy
did not have the same restrictions and the Army surgeon general was persuaded to drop the requirement for football players.
At West Point, Blaik coached for 18 seasons compiling a 121–32–10 record. Blaik's Army teams had a 32-game unbeaten streak from 1944 to 1947, won consecutive national titles in 1944 and 1945, and finished second in the nation in 1946 with their record blemished only by a scoreless tie with rival Notre Dame
at Yankee Stadium. In 1946, Blaik was selected as the AFCA Coach of the Year
. In 1948, he became one of the first college coaches to implement a two-platoon system, using players strictly for offense or defense. Blaik was also one of the first coaches to analyze the game play-by-play, charting a team’s tendencies on every down with the use of game film.
During his tenure at West Point, Blaik coached three Heisman trophy
winners, Doc Blanchard
in 1945, Glenn Davis
in 1946 and Pete Dawkins
in 1958, as well as a total of 11 Hall of Fame players. Twenty of his former assistant coaches became head coaches in their own right: Paul Amen
, George Blackburn
, Clarence Boston
, Eddie Crowder
, Paul Dietzel
, Bobby Dobbs
, Sid Gillman
, Jack Green, Andy Gustafson
, Dale Hall
, Tom Harp
, Herman Hickman
, Stu Holcomb
, Frank Lauterbur
, Vince Lombardi
, John Sauer
, Richard Voris
, Murray Warmath
, Bob Woodruff, and Bill Yeoman
. Legendary fighter pilot Colonel Robin Olds
also served as an assistant coach to Blaik. Dietzel, while at LSU
, and Murray Warmath
, while at Minnesota
, won national championships as head coaches. Gillman, while head coach of the San Diego Chargers
won an AFL
championship. Lombardi, as head coach of the Green Bay Packers
, won five NFL
titles and the first two Super Bowl
s.
During Blaik's tenure, the Army team adopted the nicknames "Black Knights" and "Black Knights of the Hudson", which has now come to refer to all intercollegiate athletic teams at West Point.
Among his West Point players, Blaik was known for being a stern and disciplined coach. They nicknamed him "The Colonel."
. His alma mater, Miami University honored him by induction into the university's Athletic Hall of Fame in 1969. Blaik received the Presidential Medal of Freedom
from President Ronald Reagan
in 1986.
Blaik died in 1989 at age 92 in Colorado Springs, Colorado
. On September 25, 1999, the football field at West Point's Michie Stadium
was named Blaik Field in his honor.
produced a television film called Code Breakers about the honor code
scandal that plagued Blaik's 1951 team. In the film, Blaik is portrayed by actor Scott Glenn
.
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
player, coach, college athletics administrator, and United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
officer. He served as the head football coach at Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College is a private, Ivy League university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. The institution comprises a liberal arts college, Dartmouth Medical School, Thayer School of Engineering, and the Tuck School of Business, as well as 19 graduate programs in the arts and sciences...
from 1934 to 1940 and at the United States Military Academy
United States Military Academy
The United States Military Academy at West Point is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located at West Point, New York. The academy sits on scenic high ground overlooking the Hudson River, north of New York City...
from 1941 to 1958, compiling a career college football
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
record of 166–48–14. His Army football
Army Black Knights football
The Army Black Knights football program represents the United States Military Academy. Army was recognized as the national champions in 1944, 1945 and 1946....
teams won consecutive national championships in 1944 and 1945. Blaik was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame
College Football Hall of Fame
The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and museum devoted to college football. Located in South Bend, Indiana, it is connected to a convention center and situated in the city's renovated downtown district, two miles south of the University of Notre Dame campus. It is slated to move...
as a coach in 1964.
Early life and playing career
Blaik was born in Detroit, MichiganDetroit, Michigan
Detroit is the major city among the primary cultural, financial, and transportation centers in the Metro Detroit area, a region of 5.2 million people. As the seat of Wayne County, the city of Detroit is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan and serves as a major port on the Detroit River...
, the son of William Blaik, a blacksmith
Blacksmith
A blacksmith is a person who creates objects from wrought iron or steel by forging the metal; that is, by using tools to hammer, bend, and cut...
and carriage
Carriage
A carriage is a wheeled vehicle for people, usually horse-drawn; litters and sedan chairs are excluded, since they are wheelless vehicles. The carriage is especially designed for private passenger use and for comfort or elegance, though some are also used to transport goods. It may be light,...
maker who emigrated from Glasgow, Scotland in 1883. In 1901 the family moved to Dayton, Ohio
Dayton, Ohio
Dayton is the 6th largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County, the fifth most populous county in the state. The population was 141,527 at the 2010 census. The Dayton Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 841,502 in the 2010 census...
, where his father became a contractor.
He played college football for three seasons at Miami University
Miami University
Miami University is a coeducational public research university located in Oxford, Ohio, United States. Founded in 1809, it is the 10th oldest public university in the United States and the second oldest university in Ohio, founded four years after Ohio University. In its 2012 edition, U.S...
in Oxford, Ohio
Oxford, Ohio
Oxford is a city in northwestern Butler County, Ohio, United States, in the southwestern portion of the state. It lies in Oxford Township, originally called the College Township. The population was 21,943 at the 2000 census. This college town was founded as a home for Miami University. Oxford...
under Chester J. Roberts
Chester J. Roberts
Chester Joseph Roberts was an American football player and coach of football and basketball in the early 1900s. He was a 1912 graduate of Lawrence College in Appleton, Wisconsin where he played football. After graduation he served as a member of the faculty at several colleges in the Midwest...
, George Rider
George Rider
-External links:* * * at College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com...
and George Little
George Little (football coach)
George Edkin Little was an American football player and coach of football and basketball coach. He served as the head football coach at the University of Cincinnati , Miami University , the University of Michigan , and the University of Wisconsin–Madison , compiling a career college...
and two seasons at the United States Military Academy at West Point where he became a third-team All-American
College Football All-America Team
The College Football All-America Team is an honor given annually to the best American college football players at their respective positions. The original usage of the term All-America seems to have been to the 1889 College Football All-America Team selected by Casper Whitney and published in This...
. Following his graduation in 1920, Blaik served in the United States Cavalry
United States Cavalry
The United States Cavalry, or U.S. Cavalry, is the designation of the mounted force of the United States Army. The role of the U.S. Cavalry is reconnaissance, security and mounted assault. Cavalry has served as a part of the Army forces in every war in which the United States has participated...
for two years. After his military service, Blaik married and worked in the construction business with his father.
Coaching career
During the 1924 and 1925 seasons, Blaik worked as a part-time assistant coach for Miami UniversityMiami University
Miami University is a coeducational public research university located in Oxford, Ohio, United States. Founded in 1809, it is the 10th oldest public university in the United States and the second oldest university in Ohio, founded four years after Ohio University. In its 2012 edition, U.S...
. For a few months in 1926, he accepted a coaching position on the staff of University of Wisconsin–Madison
University of Wisconsin–Madison
The University of Wisconsin–Madison is a public research university located in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. Founded in 1848, UW–Madison is the flagship campus of the University of Wisconsin System. It became a land-grant institution in 1866...
head football coach George Little. In 1927, Blaik became a part-time coach at the United States Military Academy
United States Military Academy
The United States Military Academy at West Point is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located at West Point, New York. The academy sits on scenic high ground overlooking the Hudson River, north of New York City...
until 1930 when he was accepted on the staff as a full-time assistant coach.
In 1934, Blaik was hired as head football coach at Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College is a private, Ivy League university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. The institution comprises a liberal arts college, Dartmouth Medical School, Thayer School of Engineering, and the Tuck School of Business, as well as 19 graduate programs in the arts and sciences...
. At Dartmouth he coached for seven seasons and compiled a record of 45–16–4, his Dartmouth teams had a 22-game unbeaten streak from 1934 to 1937. He coached one Hall of Fame player at Dartmouth, Bob MacLeod
Bob MacLeod
Robert Frederick MacLeod was an American football halfback. He was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame in 1977.MacLeod also played professional basketball for the Chicago Bruins of the National Basketball League....
.
In 1941, Blaik was tapped to be head football coach for the United States Military Academy. Army had suffered two consecutive losing seasons in 1939 and 1940, a first since 1906, and dropped its requirements for its coach to be a serving graduate and that all players meet restrictive height-to-weight limitations. The latter was a condition Blaik made as a requirement for him to accept the position, believing Army to be severely handicapped in the size of its linemen. The United States Naval Academy
United States Naval Academy
The United States Naval Academy is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located in Annapolis, Maryland, United States...
did not have the same restrictions and the Army surgeon general was persuaded to drop the requirement for football players.
At West Point, Blaik coached for 18 seasons compiling a 121–32–10 record. Blaik's Army teams had a 32-game unbeaten streak from 1944 to 1947, won consecutive national titles in 1944 and 1945, and finished second in the nation in 1946 with their record blemished only by a scoreless tie with rival Notre Dame
1946 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team
The 1946 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team represented the University of Notre Dame during the 1946 college football season. The Irish, coached by Frank Leahy, ended the season with 8 wins and 1 tie, winning the national championship. The 1946 team became the fifth Irish team to win the...
at Yankee Stadium. In 1946, Blaik was selected as the AFCA Coach of the Year
AFCA Coach of the Year
The AFCA Coach of the Year award is given annually to a college football coach by the American Football Coaches Association . The award has had several different sponors over the years, including Eastman Kodak Corporation, and thus also been named the Kodak Coach of the Year Award.-Football Bowl...
. In 1948, he became one of the first college coaches to implement a two-platoon system, using players strictly for offense or defense. Blaik was also one of the first coaches to analyze the game play-by-play, charting a team’s tendencies on every down with the use of game film.
During his tenure at West Point, Blaik coached three Heisman trophy
Heisman Trophy
The Heisman Memorial Trophy Award , is awarded annually to the player deemed the most outstanding player in collegiate football. It was created in 1935 as the Downtown Athletic Club trophy and renamed in 1936 following the death of the Club's athletic director, John Heisman The Heisman Memorial...
winners, Doc Blanchard
Doc Blanchard
Felix Anthony "Doc" Blanchard is best known as the college football player who became the first ever junior to win the Heisman Trophy, Maxwell Award and was the first ever football player to win the James E. Sullivan Award, all in 1945. He played football for the United States Military Academy at...
in 1945, Glenn Davis
Glenn Woodward Davis
Glenn Woodward Davis was an American football halfback famous in the 1940s. A graduate of the Class of 1947 at the United States Military Academy at West Point, Davis initially played college football for the Cal Poly Pomona Broncos...
in 1946 and Pete Dawkins
Pete Dawkins
Peter Miller Dawkins is a Heisman Trophy winner, Rhodes Scholar, U.S. Army Brigadier General, and Republican candidate for Senate. He is the former vice chairman of Citigroup Private Bank.-Early life, education and athletic career:...
in 1958, as well as a total of 11 Hall of Fame players. Twenty of his former assistant coaches became head coaches in their own right: Paul Amen
Paul Amen
-External links:* *...
, George Blackburn
George Blackburn
George "Blackie" Blackburn was an American football coach. He served as the head coach at Miami University , the University of Cincinnati , and the University of Virginia , compiling a career college football record of 61–60–7...
, Clarence Boston
Clarence Boston
-External links:...
, Eddie Crowder
Eddie Crowder
Eddie Crowder was an American football player and coach. He was an All-American quarterback and safety at the University of Oklahoma in the early 1950s and a successful head coach and athletic director at the University of Colorado in the 1960s and 1970s.He is quoted as saying "Life is boring...
, Paul Dietzel
Paul Dietzel
Paul Dietzel is a former American football player, coach, and college athletics administrator. He served as the head coach at Louisiana State University , the United States Military Academy , and the University of South Carolina , compiling a career record of 109–95–5...
, Bobby Dobbs
Bobby Dobbs
Robert Lee “Bobby” Dobbs was an American football fullback and coach.-Early years:After graduating from high school in Frederick, Oklahoma in 1941, Bobby entered University of Tulsa to play football for coach Henry Frnka. A fullback, Dobbs played in Tulsa's first ever bowl game; the 1943 Sugar Bowl...
, Sid Gillman
Sid Gillman
Sidney "Sid" Gillman was an American football player, coach, executive, and innovator. Gillman's insistence on stretching the football field by throwing deep downfield passes, instead of short passes to running backs or wide receivers at the sides of the line of scrimmage, was instrumental in...
, Jack Green, Andy Gustafson
Andy Gustafson
-External links:...
, Dale Hall
Dale Hall
-External links:*...
, Tom Harp
Tom Harp
-External links:...
, Herman Hickman
Herman Hickman
Herman M. Hickman was a Hall of Fame college football player for the University of Tennessee and later a head football coach for Yale University. He played pro football for the NFL's Brooklyn Dodgers. He later was a TV and radio analyst and broadcaster, a writer and a professional wrestler.-...
, Stu Holcomb
Stu Holcomb
Stuart K. Holcomb was an American football and basketball coach best known for serving as head football coach for Miami University and Purdue University . Before coaching, Holcomb was a starting halfback at Ohio State University and the captain of the 1931 Buckeyes football team...
, Frank Lauterbur
Frank Lauterbur
Francis X. Lauterbur is a former American football player and coach. He served as the head coach at the University of Toledo from 1963 to 1970 and at the University of Iowa from 1971 to 1973, compiling a career college football record of 52–60–3...
, Vince Lombardi
Vince Lombardi
Vincent Thomas "Vince" Lombardi was an American football coach. He is best known as the head coach of the Green Bay Packers during the 1960s, where he led the team to three straight league championships and five in seven years, including winning the first two Super Bowls following the 1966 and...
, John Sauer
John Sauer
John Edward "Johnny" Sauer was an American football player, coach, and broadcaster.A Dayton, Ohio native, Sauer was a multi-sport athlete in high school. From 1943-46 he attended the United States Military Academy at West Point, where he played and coached for Army in a number of sports...
, Richard Voris
Richard Voris
Richard Voris was the head coach of the Virginia Cavaliers football program from 1958 to 1960. He is regarded as one of the worst college football coaches of all time, having a career record of 1-29 . A wide majority of the games he lost were by double digits, and his one win came against Duke with...
, Murray Warmath
Murray Warmath
Murray Warmath was an American football player and coach. He served as the head football coach at Mississippi State University from 1952 to 1953 and at the University of Minnesota from 1954 to 1971, compiling a career college football record of 97–84–10...
, Bob Woodruff, and Bill Yeoman
Bill Yeoman
Bill Yeoman is a former American football player and coach in the United States. Starting in 1962, he was the University of Houston's head coach, holding the position through 1986. In his tenure, he became the winningest coach in school history, with an overall record of 160–108–8...
. Legendary fighter pilot Colonel Robin Olds
Robin Olds
Robin Olds was an American fighter pilot and general officer in the U.S. Air Force. He was a "triple ace", with a combined total of 16 victories in World War II and the Vietnam War. He retired in 1973 as a brigadier general....
also served as an assistant coach to Blaik. Dietzel, while at LSU
LSU Tigers football
The LSU Tigers football team, also known as the Fighting Tigers or Bayou Bengals, represents Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, United States in NCAA Division I FBS college football. Current head coach Les Miles has led the team since 2005. Since 1999 when Nick Saban took over as...
, and Murray Warmath
Murray Warmath
Murray Warmath was an American football player and coach. He served as the head football coach at Mississippi State University from 1952 to 1953 and at the University of Minnesota from 1954 to 1971, compiling a career college football record of 97–84–10...
, while at Minnesota
Minnesota Golden Gophers football
The University of Minnesota Golden Gophers are one of the oldest programs in college football history. They compete in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision and the Big Ten Conference. The Golden Gophers have claimed six national championships and have an all time record of 646–481–44 as...
, won national championships as head coaches. Gillman, while head coach of the San Diego Chargers
San Diego Chargers
The San Diego Chargers are a professional American football team based in San Diego, California. they were members of the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
won an AFL
American Football League
The American Football League was a major American Professional Football league that operated from 1960 until 1969, when the established National Football League merged with it. The upstart AFL operated in direct competition with the more established NFL throughout its existence...
championship. Lombardi, as head coach of the Green Bay Packers
Green Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers are an American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Packers are the current NFL champions...
, won five NFL
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
titles and the first two Super Bowl
Super Bowl
The Super Bowl is the championship game of the National Football League , the highest level of professional American football in the United States, culminating a season that begins in the late summer of the previous calendar year. The Super Bowl uses Roman numerals to identify each game, rather...
s.
During Blaik's tenure, the Army team adopted the nicknames "Black Knights" and "Black Knights of the Hudson", which has now come to refer to all intercollegiate athletic teams at West Point.
Among his West Point players, Blaik was known for being a stern and disciplined coach. They nicknamed him "The Colonel."
Later life and death
Blaik resigned as head football coach of Army on January 13, 1959 to become a vice president at the Avco Corporation. In 1964, he was inducted into the College Football Hall of FameCollege Football Hall of Fame
The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and museum devoted to college football. Located in South Bend, Indiana, it is connected to a convention center and situated in the city's renovated downtown district, two miles south of the University of Notre Dame campus. It is slated to move...
. His alma mater, Miami University honored him by induction into the university's Athletic Hall of Fame in 1969. Blaik received the Presidential Medal of Freedom
Presidential Medal of Freedom
The Presidential Medal of Freedom is an award bestowed by the President of the United States and is—along with thecomparable Congressional Gold Medal bestowed by an act of U.S. Congress—the highest civilian award in the United States...
from President Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
in 1986.
Blaik died in 1989 at age 92 in Colorado Springs, Colorado
Colorado Springs, Colorado
Colorado Springs is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and most populous city of El Paso County, Colorado, United States. Colorado Springs is located in South-Central Colorado, in the southern portion of the state. It is situated on Fountain Creek and is located south of the Colorado...
. On September 25, 1999, the football field at West Point's Michie Stadium
Michie Stadium
Michie Stadium is an outdoor football stadium located on the campus of the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, New York. It is the home field for the Army Black Knights. It opened in 1924 and has a current seating capacity of 38,000....
was named Blaik Field in his honor.
Portrayal in media
In 2005, ESPNESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
produced a television film called Code Breakers about the honor code
Honor code
An honour code or honour system is a set of rules or principles governing a community based on a set of rules or ideals that define what constitutes honorable behavior within that community. The use of an honor code depends on the idea that people can be trusted to act honorably...
scandal that plagued Blaik's 1951 team. In the film, Blaik is portrayed by actor Scott Glenn
Scott Glenn
Theodore Scott Glenn is an American actor. His roles have included Wes Hightower in Urban Cowboy , astronaut Alan Shepard in The Right Stuff ,Emmett in Silverado , Commander Bart Mancuso in The Hunt for Red October , Jack Crawford in The Silence of the Lambs and The Wise Man in Sucker Punch -Early...
.