Elmer Ripley

Elmer Ripley
Sport(s)	Basketball
Biographical details
Born	July 21, 1892(1892-07-21)
Place of birth	Staten Island, New York
Died	April 29, 1982(1982-04-29) (aged 89)
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1922–1925 1927–1929 1929–1935 1938–1943 1943–1945 1945–1946 1946–1949 1949–1951 1951–1953	Wagner Georgetown Yale Georgetown Columbia Notre Dame Georgetown John Carroll Army
Head coaching record
Overall	301–226 (college)
Basketball Hall of Fame Inducted in 1973 (profile)

Elmer H. Ripley (July 21, 1891 – April 29, 1982) was an American college men's and professional basketball coach. In over 30 years, he coached collegiately at seven different schools as well as professionally for several teams. Once celebrated, Ripley now is an almost forgotten figure in the history of American basketball.

Early life

Ripley was born in Staten Island, New York on July 21, 1891. After graduating from local Curtis High School, he attended Brown University.

Playing career

Considered to be one of the great basketball coaches of the last century, Ripley began his career as a player before making the switch to coach in 1922. At age 19, Ripley decided to leave Brown to play basketball professionally with the Interstate League Brooklyn Trolly Dodgers, the New York League's Uyica Utes and the "Original Celtics" club. Ripley would enjoy numerous achievements including being voted among the ten best pro players from 1909 to 1926.

Coaching career

After playing, he went on to coach basketball at several major American universities and traveled the world teaching the game. Ripley began his first professional coaching tenure with Wagner College in 1922, before moving into a position at Georgetown University in 1927. His skills as a coach were evident as he won 12 of his first 13 games. During his many years with the Georgetown, he achieved a 133–82 record and lead the Hoyas to the NCAA tournament twice. Ripley was in high demand and was hied away by several prestigious colleges including Columbia University, University of Notre Dame, and Yale University, which he coached to the 1933 Ivy League championship.

After leaving Georgetown for good in 1949, Ripley coached the Harlem Globetrotters (1953–1956), the Israeli Olympic team (1956) and the Canadian Olympic team (1960). Held in high regard, the U.S. Committee for Sports sent Ripley to Israel in 1957 to teach basketball. Ripley continued to coach through his 80th birthday and was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1973.

Ripley died on April 29, 1982 at the age of 89.