Edliff Slaughter
Encyclopedia
Edward Ratliff "Butch" Slaughter, Sr. (February 26, 1903 – June 30, 1985), also known as Edliff Slaughter, was an American football
player, athletic coach and professor of physical education. He played guard
at the University of Michigan
from 1922–1924 and was chosen as a first-team All-American in 1924
. Slaughter served as an assistant football coach at the University of Wisconsin
, North Carolina State
, and the University of Virginia
. He was also a member of the faculty at the University of Virginia, and held a variety of positions, including Chairman of the Department of Physical Education and Director of Intramural Sports, from 1931 until his retirement in 1973.
in 1903 and was an exceptional athlete. He played center
and was the captain of the 1920 football team at Louisville Male High School
in Louisville, Kentucky
.
in 1921 and played on Fielding H. Yost's football team as a guard
from 1922 to 1924. Yost later credited Slaughter with "the greatest play in football I ever saw." The play took place in the last 18 seconds of the 1923 Michigan-Wisconsin game. Wisconsin had the ball at its own 35-yard line and needed to gain 65 yards for a score. A Wisconsin player caught a pass and appeared to be heading to a game-winning touchdown. Yost described Slaughter's "diving shoe-string tackle" as follows:
Slaughter's play preserved an undefeated season for the 1923 team
and helped them win the national football championship
. At the end of the 1923 season, sports writer Lawrence Perry selected Slaughter as a first-team All-American at the guard position.
In the 1924 season
, Michigan overcame a late 6–0 deficit to win, 16–6, against Ohio State
. Slaughter scored a touchdown in the game to help George Little win his only game as coach against Ohio State.
At the end of the 1924 season, Slaughter was selected as a first-team All-American
by Walter Camp
for Collier's Weekly
, Norman E. Brown, and Lawrence Perry. on the last All-American team selected by Walter Camp
. In announcing his choice of Slaughter as an All-American, Walter Camp wrote:
Sports columnist Norman E. Brown wrote, "Slaughter is one of the greatest defensive guards the Big Ten has had in recent years. ... On offense Slaughter could be counted on not only to open up a hole but "carry through" with the play." Life
magazine wrote 25 years later that Slaughter had been "famous and feared for vicious tackling at Michigan."
Slaughter graduated from the University of Michigan with a bachelor of science degree in engineering.
football team. Slaughter coached the Wisconsin linemen under head coach George Little, who had coached Slaughter at Michigan. His former Michigan teammate, Irwin Uteritz
, was also hired by Little as an assistant coach to work with the Wisconsin backfield players. Slaughter remained the line coach at Wisconsin for the 1925 and 1926 college football seasons.
In September 1926, reports were published indicating that Slaughter had signed to play professional football with Red Grange
. However, Slaughter turned down the offer, noting that he would be barred from coaching in the Big Ten Conference
if he signed as a professional football player.
. During the 1927 season, Slaughter handled the linemen, while Tebell worked with the backfield players.
In 1928, Slaughter was hired as the line coach at Michigan State University
but failed to report for the job. When the Spartan squad assembled for practice on September 10, 1928, Slaughter was not on hand. Coach Harry Kipke gave him the benefit of the doubt, assuming the Spartans used the same early practice date as the Big Ten, September 15. When Slaughter failed to arrive on that date, Kipke sent him several telegrams but received no response. North Carolina State announced on September 20, 1928 that Slaughter had been retained for another year as its line coach. Slaughter continued serving as line coach for the North Carolina State Wolfpack through the 1930 football season.
, where he was put in charge of the linemen under new head coach Fred Dawson
. Slaughter was an assistant coach under Lawson from 1931 to 1933. In 1934, Gus Tebell took over as the head coach at Virginia, and Slaughter stayed on as the line coach under Tebell through the 1936 season. When Frank Murray
replaced Tebell as head football coach in February 1937, Slaughter was kept on line coach.
In July 1940, Slaughter left the football team to assume a faculty position as an instructor in Virginia's physical education department and was replaced by another University of Michigan All-American Ralph Heikkinen
as the Cavaliers' line coach. Slaughter continued to serve on Virginia's faculty, becoming an assistant professor in 1944 and an associated professor in 1950. He also served as a member of the University Senate, Chairman of the Department of Physical Education, and Chairman of the Processions Committee and received the IMP Society Faculty Award in 1965.
Slaughter also took over as the coach of Virginia's golf team in 1940. In his first year as the coach of the golf team, one of his athletes, Dixon Brooke, won the NCAA Division I Men's Golf Championships
. Slaughter also served as the chairman of the ACC
Golf Coaches Association. He coached the Cavaliers' golf team from 1940 through at least the 1958 season.
From 1946 to 1948, he also returned to football coaching as an assistant football coach under Arthur Guepe
, the fourth Virginia head coach for whom Slaughter served as line coach.
Slaughter also served as the Director of the Department of Intramurals at the University of Virginia from 1957 to 1973. Slaughter retired from the University of Virginia in 1973. In November 1982, the Slaughter Recreation Center, a new intramural athletic center on the University of Virginia campus, was dedicated in honor of Slaughter.
, captain of Virginia's 1951 football team said: "I best remember Butch Slaughter as a prince among men. Above all else he expected his players to play fair both on and off the field. The players all loved him. He is one in a million."
Slaughter's daughter, Mary Slaughter, became the first woman to play a varsity sport at the University of Virginia in 1954. There were no women's athletic teams at Virginia at that time, and she joined the men's tennis team and won the Women's Eastern Intercollegiate title. Slaughter's son, Edward R. Slaughter, Jr., became a lawyer and served in 1978 as the president of the Virginia Bar Association
.
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, athletic coach and professor of physical education. He played guard
Guard (American football)
In American and Canadian football, a guard is a player that lines up between the center and the tackles on the offensive line of a football team....
at the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
from 1922–1924 and was chosen as a first-team All-American in 1924
1924 College Football All-America Team
The 1924 College Football All-America team consists of American football players selected to the College Football All-America Teams selected by various organizations in 1924.-Key:*WC = Collier's Weekly as selected by Walter Camp*AAB = All-America Board...
. Slaughter served as an assistant football coach at the University of Wisconsin
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...
, North Carolina State
North Carolina State University
North Carolina State University at Raleigh is a public, coeducational, extensive research university located in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States. Commonly known as NC State, the university is part of the University of North Carolina system and is a land, sea, and space grant institution...
, and the University of Virginia
University of Virginia
The University of Virginia is a public research university located in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, founded by Thomas Jefferson...
. He was also a member of the faculty at the University of Virginia, and held a variety of positions, including Chairman of the Department of Physical Education and Director of Intramural Sports, from 1931 until his retirement in 1973.
Early years
Slaughter was born in Louisville, KentuckyLouisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
in 1903 and was an exceptional athlete. He played center
Center (American football)
Center is a position in American football and Canadian football . The center is the innermost lineman of the offensive line on a football team's offense...
and was the captain of the 1920 football team at Louisville Male High School
Louisville Male High School
Louisville Male Traditional High School is a public secondary school serving students in grades 9 through 12 in the southside of Louisville, Kentucky, USA. It is part of the Jefferson County Public School District....
in Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
.
Michigan
Slaughter enrolled at the University of MichiganUniversity of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
in 1921 and played on Fielding H. Yost's football team as a guard
Guard (American football)
In American and Canadian football, a guard is a player that lines up between the center and the tackles on the offensive line of a football team....
from 1922 to 1924. Yost later credited Slaughter with "the greatest play in football I ever saw." The play took place in the last 18 seconds of the 1923 Michigan-Wisconsin game. Wisconsin had the ball at its own 35-yard line and needed to gain 65 yards for a score. A Wisconsin player caught a pass and appeared to be heading to a game-winning touchdown. Yost described Slaughter's "diving shoe-string tackle" as follows:
"Suddenly, with a great burst of speed, a Michigan man went for him, grabbed him and downed him. I looked for the number of the Michigan man. Lo and behold, it was 'Butch' Slaughter, a guard, who, under ordinary circumstances, would have no more business in that part of the field than I would. Down Harris and Slaughter went on our 20-yard line, and with them went the chance of all chances for Wisconsin, for the whistle which ended the game blew at that moment."
Slaughter's play preserved an undefeated season for the 1923 team
1923 Michigan Wolverines football team
The 1923 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the 1923 college football season. The team's head football coach was Fielding H. Yost. The Wolverines played their home games at Ferry Field.-Schedule:...
and helped them win the national football championship
NCAA Division I FBS National Football Championship
A college football national championship in the highest level of collegiate play in the United States, currently the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I Football Bowl Subdivision , is a designation awarded annually by various third-party organizations to their selection of the best...
. At the end of the 1923 season, sports writer Lawrence Perry selected Slaughter as a first-team All-American at the guard position.
In the 1924 season
1924 Michigan Wolverines football team
The 1924 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the 1924 college football season. The team's head coach was George Little. The Wolverines played their home games at Ferry Field.-Schedule:...
, Michigan overcame a late 6–0 deficit to win, 16–6, against Ohio State
1924 Ohio State Buckeyes football team
The 1924 Ohio State Buckeyes football team represented the Ohio State University in the college football season of 1924-1925. The Buckeyes compiled a 2–3–3 record and were outscored 40-45 by their opponenets.-Schedule:-References:...
. Slaughter scored a touchdown in the game to help George Little win his only game as coach against Ohio State.
At the end of the 1924 season, Slaughter was selected as a first-team All-American
1924 College Football All-America Team
The 1924 College Football All-America team consists of American football players selected to the College Football All-America Teams selected by various organizations in 1924.-Key:*WC = Collier's Weekly as selected by Walter Camp*AAB = All-America Board...
by Walter Camp
Walter Camp
Walter Chauncey Camp was an American football player, coach, and sports writer known as the "Father of American Football". With John Heisman, Amos Alonzo Stagg, Pop Warner, Fielding H. Yost, and George Halas, Camp was one of the most accomplished persons in the early history of American football...
for Collier's Weekly
Collier's Weekly
Collier's Weekly was an American magazine founded by Peter Fenelon Collier and published from 1888 to 1957. With the passage of decades, the title was shortened to Collier's....
, Norman E. Brown, and Lawrence Perry. on the last All-American team selected by Walter Camp
Walter Camp
Walter Chauncey Camp was an American football player, coach, and sports writer known as the "Father of American Football". With John Heisman, Amos Alonzo Stagg, Pop Warner, Fielding H. Yost, and George Halas, Camp was one of the most accomplished persons in the early history of American football...
. In announcing his choice of Slaughter as an All-American, Walter Camp wrote:
"Slaughter is a veteran guard who has always towered in any line of forwards. A big man, extremely active, he provides the pivotal spot upon which a line-plunging attack may rest. He carries his charge through so that he is never shoved back upon his runner. He is never guilty of 'knifing' through. Slaughter has unlimited endurance."
Sports columnist Norman E. Brown wrote, "Slaughter is one of the greatest defensive guards the Big Ten has had in recent years. ... On offense Slaughter could be counted on not only to open up a hole but "carry through" with the play." Life
Life (magazine)
Life generally refers to three American magazines:*A humor and general interest magazine published from 1883 to 1936. Time founder Henry Luce bought the magazine in 1936 solely so that he could acquire the rights to its name....
magazine wrote 25 years later that Slaughter had been "famous and feared for vicious tackling at Michigan."
Slaughter graduated from the University of Michigan with a bachelor of science degree in engineering.
Wisconsin
In July 1925, Slaughter was hired as assistant coach for the University of Wisconsin BadgersWisconsin Badgers football
The Wisconsin Badgers are a college football program that represents the University of Wisconsin–Madison in the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision and the Big Ten Conference. They play their home games at Camp Randall Stadium, the fourth-oldest stadium in college football...
football team. Slaughter coached the Wisconsin linemen under head coach George Little, who had coached Slaughter at Michigan. His former Michigan teammate, Irwin Uteritz
Irwin Uteritz
Irwin Charles "Utz" Uteritz was an American athlete and coach. He played American football and baseball for the University of Michigan from 1921 to 1923. At 140 pounds, he was one of the lightest quarterbacks ever to start for a major college program. Despite his size, Michigan football coach...
, was also hired by Little as an assistant coach to work with the Wisconsin backfield players. Slaughter remained the line coach at Wisconsin for the 1925 and 1926 college football seasons.
In September 1926, reports were published indicating that Slaughter had signed to play professional football with Red Grange
Red Grange
Harold Edward "Red" Grange, nicknamed "The Galloping Ghost", was a college and professional American football halfback for the University of Illinois, the Chicago Bears, and for the short-lived New York Yankees. His signing with the Bears helped legitimize the National Football League...
. However, Slaughter turned down the offer, noting that he would be barred from coaching in the Big Ten Conference
Big Ten Conference
The Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
if he signed as a professional football player.
North Carolina State
In April 1927, Slaughter was hired as an assistant football coach at North Carolina State College. He was an assistant coach at North Carolina State under Gus TebellGus Tebell
-External links:...
. During the 1927 season, Slaughter handled the linemen, while Tebell worked with the backfield players.
In 1928, Slaughter was hired as the line coach at Michigan State University
Michigan State University
Michigan State University is a public research university in East Lansing, Michigan, USA. Founded in 1855, it was the pioneer land-grant institution and served as a model for future land-grant colleges in the United States under the 1862 Morrill Act.MSU pioneered the studies of packaging,...
but failed to report for the job. When the Spartan squad assembled for practice on September 10, 1928, Slaughter was not on hand. Coach Harry Kipke gave him the benefit of the doubt, assuming the Spartans used the same early practice date as the Big Ten, September 15. When Slaughter failed to arrive on that date, Kipke sent him several telegrams but received no response. North Carolina State announced on September 20, 1928 that Slaughter had been retained for another year as its line coach. Slaughter continued serving as line coach for the North Carolina State Wolfpack through the 1930 football season.
Virginia
In March 1931, Slaughter was hired as an assistant football coach at the University of VirginiaUniversity of Virginia
The University of Virginia is a public research university located in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, founded by Thomas Jefferson...
, where he was put in charge of the linemen under new head coach Fred Dawson
Fred Dawson
-References:...
. Slaughter was an assistant coach under Lawson from 1931 to 1933. In 1934, Gus Tebell took over as the head coach at Virginia, and Slaughter stayed on as the line coach under Tebell through the 1936 season. When Frank Murray
Frank Murray
Frank J. Murray was an American football and basketball coach. He is one of the few head football coaches to have non-consecutive tenure at the same college or university. Murray was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1983.-Marquette:Murray was the 13th head football at the...
replaced Tebell as head football coach in February 1937, Slaughter was kept on line coach.
In July 1940, Slaughter left the football team to assume a faculty position as an instructor in Virginia's physical education department and was replaced by another University of Michigan All-American Ralph Heikkinen
Ralph Heikkinen
Ralph Isaac “Hike” Heikkinen was an All-American guard for the University of Michigan Wolverines football team from 1936-1938. He was a consensus All-American in 1938, the first player from the Gogebic Range area of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula to win the honor...
as the Cavaliers' line coach. Slaughter continued to serve on Virginia's faculty, becoming an assistant professor in 1944 and an associated professor in 1950. He also served as a member of the University Senate, Chairman of the Department of Physical Education, and Chairman of the Processions Committee and received the IMP Society Faculty Award in 1965.
Slaughter also took over as the coach of Virginia's golf team in 1940. In his first year as the coach of the golf team, one of his athletes, Dixon Brooke, won the NCAA Division I Men's Golf Championships
NCAA Division I Men's Golf Championships
The NCAA Division I Men's Golf Championships, played in late May or early June, is the top annual competition in U.S. men's collegiate golf. It is a stroke play team competition, starting in 2009 the competition changed to a stroke play/match play competition with the top 8 teams after 54 holes of...
. Slaughter also served as the chairman of the ACC
Atlantic Coast Conference
The Atlantic Coast Conference is a collegiate athletic league in the United States. Founded in 1953 in Greensboro, North Carolina, the ACC sanctions competition in twenty-five sports in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association for its twelve member universities...
Golf Coaches Association. He coached the Cavaliers' golf team from 1940 through at least the 1958 season.
From 1946 to 1948, he also returned to football coaching as an assistant football coach under Arthur Guepe
Arthur Guepe
Arthur L. "Art" Guepe was an American football player and coach. He served as the head coach at the University of Virginia from 1946 to 1952 and Vanderbilt University from 1953 to 1962, compiling a career college football record of 86–71–9.-Playing and assistant coaching career:Guepe...
, the fourth Virginia head coach for whom Slaughter served as line coach.
Slaughter also served as the Director of the Department of Intramurals at the University of Virginia from 1957 to 1973. Slaughter retired from the University of Virginia in 1973. In November 1982, the Slaughter Recreation Center, a new intramural athletic center on the University of Virginia campus, was dedicated in honor of Slaughter.
Death and family
Slaughter died in 1985 at age 82. After learning of Slaughter's death, Joe PalumboJoe Palumbo
Joseph C. "Joe" Palumbo is a former American football guard. He played college football for the University of Virginia Cavaliers. He was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame in 1999....
, captain of Virginia's 1951 football team said: "I best remember Butch Slaughter as a prince among men. Above all else he expected his players to play fair both on and off the field. The players all loved him. He is one in a million."
Slaughter's daughter, Mary Slaughter, became the first woman to play a varsity sport at the University of Virginia in 1954. There were no women's athletic teams at Virginia at that time, and she joined the men's tennis team and won the Women's Eastern Intercollegiate title. Slaughter's son, Edward R. Slaughter, Jr., became a lawyer and served in 1978 as the president of the Virginia Bar Association
Virginia Bar Association
The Virginia Bar Association is a voluntary organization of lawyers in Virginia, with offices in Richmond, Virginia.- VBA Mission : is the independent voice of the Virginia lawyer, advancing the highest ideals of the profession through advocacy and volunteer service.- History :The VBA, , was...
.
See also
- 1923 College Football All-America Team1923 College Football All-America TeamThe 1923 College Football All-America team consists of American football players selected to the College Football All-America Teams selected by various organizations in 1923.-Key:*FW = Football World magazine...
- 1924 College Football All-America Team1924 College Football All-America TeamThe 1924 College Football All-America team consists of American football players selected to the College Football All-America Teams selected by various organizations in 1924.-Key:*WC = Collier's Weekly as selected by Walter Camp*AAB = All-America Board...
- Michigan Wolverines football All-AmericansMichigan Wolverines Football All-AmericansMichigan Wolverines football All-Americans are American football players who have been named as All-Americans while playing for the University of Michigan football team.-Overview:...