Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1946-01-22
Football Annals Show
Tar Grads 0utrate
Outside Mentors
By LEWIS F. ATCHIsON.

Capt. Tom Hamilton's appoint
ment as head football coach at
Annapolis, succeeding Comdr. Oscar
E. Hagberg, ends the controversy
temporarily at least, whether Navy
should abandon it's graduate coach
ing system in favor of a high
powered, high-salaried civilian men
tor. Crabtown alumni favored the
popular flight officers appointment
and today hailed it with unfeigned
satisfaction.
Whether a civilian coach would
get better results is debatable, but
the record weighs heavily in favor
of the graduate system. Hagberg,
for example, chalked up 10 victories
against four defeats and one tie
in two years at the helm. His teams
failed to beat Army. but so did
every other college eleven.
The overall record from 1892,
when Navy placed its first officially
recognized team on the field, until
last year, gives graduate coaches
a comfortable margin of 1855 VIC
tories, Sc defeats and 81 ties against
14l wins. 10 losses and IT stale
mates.
Grads Tutor Unbeaten Teams.
The only three unbeaten teams
in Navy history were coached by
academy alumni. The 1910 squad
coached by 1t. F. D. Berrien won
eight games and tied one and the
fN1lnuJino o,.l
turned out an eleven that won six
games and tied three. The last was
Navy Bill" Ingram's famed and
powerful 1926 machine that romped
through nine straight opponents,
then battled to a 21-21 impasse
against Army before thrilled but
frost bitten mob of 100000 at Chi
cago. 1t was Hamilton who kicked
all the extra points for Navy to
assure it of tie.
Navy has had 16 civilian coaches,
beginning with Benjamin L. Crosby
in 80 and ending with RIP" Miller,
who stepped down at the end OF a
three-year tenure in 1888 to become
line coach. Bob Folwell of Penn en-
joyed the longest regime, remaining
through five seasons from 1920 to
1924, inclusive. His teams won "a,
last II and tied three games, losing
three to Army, beating it once and
tying it once over that stretch. Fol-
well resigned after the 1924 game
when Army's Ed Garbisch booted
four field goals at Baltimore to beat
the Midshipmen, 1910.
Dobie Leader of Civilians.
Most successful of civilian tutors
was Gloomy Gil Dobie, whose teams
won II and lost three games over a
three-year period. A Dobie team
met Army only once, in 1919, and got
a 60 decision at the Polo Grounds.
Ingram, who coached from 1927
through 1880, led the future admirals
to 80 victories, lost Is and tied four
games. Aside from the 1926 tie,
Ingram's teams broke even with
Army in two games. They did not
meet in 1928 and 1929 when the
schools temporarily severed rela-
tons In a dispute over eligibility
rules.
Hamilton, now 40, scored two vic
tories over Army in his first term as
coach, ending a 13-year draught in
1884 when Slade Cutters field goal
In the mud Of Franklin Field carried
the sailors to a 80 triumph.
Hamilton Reports March I.
Hamilton now is on the Pacific
Coast, but Vice Admiral Aubrey w.
Fitch, academy superintendent, said
he would report to Annapolis by
March l to assume charge of spring
practice. Since last December / the
new coach has been commander of
the escort carrier Savo Island, which
has been ferrying troops from the
Pacific battle areas.
Other graduate coaches will be
ordered to Annapolis to round out
the staff, Admiral Fitch said, but
Rip Miller, Keith Wordsworth and
Ray Swartz, professional coaches
who have assisted at Navy several
years, will remain.
Academy officials said that sue
cessor to Capt. c. Owen Humphreys,
director of athletics, will be an
nounced later, but that he Is slated
to remain Until June.