Claude E. Thornhill
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Tiny Thornhill | ||
|---|---|---|
| Title | Head Coach | |
| Sport | College football | |
| Born | April 14, 1893 | |
| Place of birth | Richmond, Virginia | |
| Died | June 30, 1956 (aged 63) | |
| Place of death | Berkeley, California | |
| Career highlights | ||
| Overall | 35-25-7 (.575) | |
| Coaching stats | ||
| College Football DataWarehouse | ||
| Playing career | ||
| 1913-1916 1917-1919 1920 1920 |
Pittsburgh Massillon Tigers Cleveland Tigers Buffalo All-Americans |
|
| Position | Tackle/Guard | |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | ||
| 1933 - 1939 | Stanford University | |
Claude Earl "Tiny" Thornhill (April 14, 1893 – June 30, 1956) was an American college football coach at Stanford from 1933 to 1939.
Contents |
[edit] Playing career
Thornhill played college football at Pitt under legendary coach Glenn "Pop" Warner. An All-American offensive guard and tackle, Thornhill was given the ironic nickname "Tiny" due to his imposing size.[1] Following his graduation from Pitt, Tiny became an assistant coach to Pop Warner but left midway through the season to play pro football with the Massillon Tigers, with teammates that included Knute Rockne, Jock Sutherland, Gus Dorais, Bob Higgins, and Bob Peck.[2] He also played in the first-ever National Football League season in 1920 for the Cleveland Tigers and Buffalo All-Americans.[3][4]
[edit] Coaching career
After leaving pro football, Thornhill returned to Pitt as an assistant coach to Warner. In 1922, Warner accepted the head coaching position at Stanford, but as he had two years to finish his contract at Pitt, sent Thornhill and Andrew Kerr ahead to coach Stanford in preparation of his arrival in 1924.[5]
Thornhill served as offensive line coach under Warner until 1933, when Warner left Stanford to take the head coaching job at Temple University and Thornhill was named head coach. In his first three years, Thornhill's team, which had named itself the Vow Boys due to their promise never to lose to USC, led his Indians to the Rose Bowl each season. Thornhill remains the only Stanford coach in history to lead his team to postseason play in his first three seasons. Stanford lost the first two appearances, but won the 1936 Rose Bowl over SMU 7-0.
After the first three seasons, Thornhill's teams went steadily downhill, culminating in a 1-7-1 season in 1939, after which Thornhill was fired and replaced by Clark Shaughnessy.
Thornhill died in Berkeley, California in 1956 of a heart ailment.[6] He was inducted into the Beaver County Sports Hall of Fame in 1978.
[edit] Head coaching record
| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl | Coaches# | AP° | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stanford Cardinal (Pacific Coast Conference) (1933–1939) | |||||||||
| 1933 | Stanford | 8-2-1 | 4-1 | T-1st | L 0-7 Rose Bowl | ||||
| 1934 | Stanford | 9-1-1 | 5-0 | 1st | L 13-29 Rose Bowl | ||||
| 1935 | Stanford | 8-1 | 4-1 | T-1st | W 7-0 Rose Bowl | ||||
| 1936 | Stanford | 2-5-2 | 2-3-2 | 6th | |||||
| 1937 | Stanford | 4-3-2 | 4-2-1 | 2nd | |||||
| 1938 | Stanford | 3-6 | 2-5 | 8th | |||||
| 1939 | Stanford | 1-7-1 | 0-6-1 | 9th | |||||
| Stanford: | 35-25-7 | ||||||||
| Total: | 35-25-7 | ||||||||
| National Championship Conference Title Conference Division Title | |||||||||
| †Indicates BCS bowl game. #Rankings from final Coaches Poll. °Rankings from final AP Poll. |
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[edit] References
- ^ Effrat, Louis (November 25, 1937). "30 Determined Stanford Athletes Arrive for Battle With Columbia". New York Times.
- ^ "Profile". Beaver County Sports Hall of Fame. http://www.bcshof.org/halloffamers/thornhill1978.htm. Retrieved 2009-08-20.
- ^ "Claude Thornhill". databasefootball.com. http://www.databasefootball.com/players/playerpage.htm?ilkid=THORNCLA01. Retrieved 2007-07-20.
- ^ "Pitt Football's All-Time First Team All-Americans". PittsburghPanthers.com. http://pittsburghpanthers.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/052306aaa.html. Retrieved 2007-07-20.
- ^ "Pop Warner". Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame. http://www.bashof.org/inducteebios/pwarner.htm. Retrieved 2007-07-20.
- ^ "Tiny Thornhill, Coach, 63, Dead". New York Times. July 1, 1956.
| Preceded by Glenn "Pop" Warner |
Stanford University Head Football Coach 1933–1939 |
Succeeded by Clark Shaughnessy |
|
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