Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1916-01-01
TRIBUTE PAID TO
EUGENE W. NIXON
Coach of Davenport High School is
Honored as Best Athlete Mon
mouth Turned Out.
PROVES A DEMON AT HURLING
Wins All Medals in Sight in Four
Division of Sport and Was
Terror to Opposing Teams.

G. ". Axelson, sport writer for the
Chicago Herald, who is running daily
features On the greatest all-round ath-
Ietes of the respective colleges, TOOK
Eugene W. Nixon, coach of the DAY.
enport high school team, fog his sub
iect today. Nixon has announced his
intentions Of retiring, but Davenport
will try to persuade him TO stay
Axelson has the following to say OF
the wizard Nixon and his record at
Monmouth:
NO big college in the west ever
had to ask Monmouth twice for
game if it needed to polish up It's
eleven for a strenuous season. Mon
mouth was always ready and occa-
sionally a little more so. That was
ten or fifteen years ago, when rules
were elastic and the players were al
forded plenty of time for training.
Football, baseball and track teams
from Monmouth, in those days, cut
quite a figure even in fast company,
and consequently the athletes from
this minor institution well earned the
title of Little Giants" They were
not so little, either, and one of the
last crop was Eugene W. Nixon,
rated as the greatest all-around ath-
lete which Monmouth ever produced.
Whale on Diamond.
Nixon was not alone a marvel in
hO Mnnn1ni1tb
showed on the gridiron, but he was
also a whale on the diamond, track
and in the gymnasium. He was a
ten-second man on the cinder path, a
clouter of the ball and could shoot
the baskets in the indoor sport with
the best.
He was also sizeable, standing
close to six feet in height, and he could
go considerably higher when pushed
onlhe gridiron. Thus he once hurd-
LEI an opponent standing upright,
cordfng to college tradition. and
ade a touchdown. He acquired this
rick on the track, as he could go over
the sticks almost as good as on the
fat. Hurdling in football not being
tabooed in those days, Nixon became
the terror of oposing teams.
Halls From Marissa.
The lanky youth entered Mon
mouth in the fall of 1908. He gave his
home address when he matriculated
as Marissa, III. He attended high
eolool II, i,;o homo town au6 como fc
college with the prestige of a stal
prep athlete. 1t was no trick for hin
to make the varsity football team
Track, baseball, basketball and gym
nastics followed in natural sequence
For four years he earned his letters
in all, and he had enough mono
grammed sweaters and blankets wher
he left to stock an Indian tribe.
in baseball he had a record which
has never been beaten and seldom
equaled He played center field or
the team and for four years he never
missed fly. He was also handy
with the stick and won many a tight
contest with the willow. On the track
team he was the one all-around man
On the fiat he ran the 100 in 0:10
while he also specialized in the low
hurdles. In pole vaulting he climbed
near the 1l-foot mark, while his rec
ord of 5 feet 1l12 inches still stand:
as a record at Monmouth in the higl
jump.
Turns to Coaching.
Nixon liked the game so we'll tina
some time after he graduated in 800
he went to Davenport to coach tht
high school team, and has had phe
nomenal success. In eight years h,
has only lost two football games, ant
his reputation has brought him offer
galore from colleges and universities
Previous TO going TO Davenport h