George Sauer

George Sauer
	Sauer from 1934 Cornhusker
Biographical details
Born	December 11, 1910; Stratton, Nebraska, U.S.
Died	February 5, 1994 (aged 83); Waco, Texas, U.S.
Alma mater	University of Nebraska
Playing career
1931–1933	Nebraska
1935–1937	Green Bay Packers
1942	Pensacola NAS
Position(s)	Halfback
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
Football
1937–1941	New Hampshire
1946–1947	Kansas
1948–1949	Navy
1950–1955	Baylor
Basketball
1938–1939	New Hampshire
Administrative career (AD unless noted)
1950–1958	Baylor
1961	New York Titans (GM)
1962–1969	New York Titans/Jets (dir. pro pers.)
1969–1970	Boston Patriots (GM)
Head coaching record
Overall	78–55–9 (football); 3–14 (basketball)
Bowls	0–3
Accomplishments and honors
Championships
	2 New England Conference (1937, 1940); 2 Big Six (1946–1947) ; AFL champion (1968) ; Super Bowl champion (III); NFL champion (1936)
Awards
	Consensus All-American (1933); 3× First-team All-Big Six (1931, 1932, 1933);
	College Football Hall of Fame; Inducted in 1954 (profile)

George Henry Sauer Sr. (December 11, 1910 – February 5, 1994) was an American football player, coach, college sports administrator, and professional football executive.

Career

Sauer attended the University of Nebraska where he was an All-American halfback under Dana X. Bible from 1931-1933. After college, he played for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL) from 1935 to 1937, helping them win the 1936 NFL championship as their starting left halfback. Sauer left professional football in 1937 and coached at the University of New Hampshire from 1937 to 1941, compiling a record of 22-18-1.^[1] He left his coaching position and enlisted in the U.S. Navy in 1942 and was commissioned as an officer after completing the requisite training.^[2] After he completed his military service, he coached for two years at University of Kansas, he compiled a 15–3–2 (.786) record, winning the conference title in each season.^[3] After he left Kansas, Sauer coached at the United States Naval Academy (1948–1949), and Baylor University (1950–1955), compiling a career college football record of 78–55–9 and earning trips to both the Orange Bowl and the Gator Bowl.^[4] Sauer remained at Baylor as Athletic Director until 1960 when he became the first General Manager of the New York Titans of the American Football League. The Titans later reorganized and in 1963 were renamed in as the New York Jets. As director of player personnel, Sauer drafted and signed his own son, George Sauer Jr. as a wide receiver.^[5] Sauer remained with the Jets until 1969 when he was named general manager of the Boston Patriots.^[6]

Sauer appeared as an imposter on the February 26, 1962 episode of the game show To Tell The Truth.^[7]

Death and legacy

Sauer died in 1994 after a 10 year battle with Alzheimer's disease. At the time of his death, he was survived by his wife Lillian, son George Sauer Jr., and daughter, Dana.^[8]

Sauer was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame as a player in 1954 and in 1998 was inducted into the University of New Hampshire Wildcats' Hall of Fame.^[9]

Head coaching record

Football


Year	Team	Overall	Conference	Standing	Bowl/playoffs	Coaches^#	AP^°
New Hampshire Wildcats (New England Conference) (1937–1941)
1937	New Hampshire	7–1	1–0	T–1st
1938	New Hampshire	3–6	1–1	3rd
1939	New Hampshire	3–5	1–1	T–2nd
1940	New Hampshire	5–3	2–0	1st
1941	New Hampshire	4–3–1	0–0–1	3rd
New Hampshire:		22–18–1	5–2–1
Kansas Jayhawks (Big Six Conference) (1946–1947)
1946	Kansas	7–2–1	4–1	T–1st
1947	Kansas	8–1–2	4–0–1	T–1st	L Orange		12
Kansas:		15–3–3	8–1–1
Navy Midshipmen (Independent) (1948–1949)
1948	Navy	0–8–1
1949	Navy	3–5–1
Navy:		3–13–2
Baylor Bears (Southwest Conference) (1950–1955)
1950	Baylor	7–3	4–2	2nd		15
1951	Baylor	8–2–1	4–1–1	2nd	L Orange	9	9
1952	Baylor	4–4–2	1–3–2	5th
1953	Baylor	7–3	4–2	3rd
1954	Baylor	7–4	4–2	T–3rd	L Gator		18
1955	Baylor	5–5	2–4	T–5th
Baylor:		38–21–3	19–14–3
Total:		78–55–9
National championship Conference title Conference division title or championship game berth

References

^ "George Sauer Sr". The Boston Globe. Retrieved April 26, 2020.
^ "George Sauer enlist in U.S. Navy". Lincoln Journal Star. April 17, 1942. p. 1. Retrieved April 26, 2020.
^ "GEORGE SAUER". National Football Foundation Hall of Fame. Retrieved April 26, 2020.
^ Mosher, Curt (September 1998). The Best of the Big Red Running Backs. Champaign, IL: Sports Publishing. pp. 146–150. ISBN 1-58261-001-0.
^ "George Sauer". Concordia University - The Center for Volga German Studies.^{[permanent dead link]}
^ "Ex Navy Football Coach Sauer is Dead at 81". The Baltimore Sun. February 9, 1994.
^ "To Tell The Truth". CBS. Archived from the original on December 21, 2021. Retrieved April 26, 2020.
^ "Sauer, former Baylor coach, dies after illness". Austin American Statesman (Austin, TX). February 8, 1994.
^ "UNH Wildcats - Hall of Fame". unhwildcats.com. Retrieved December 15, 2019.

External links

George Sauer at the College Football Hall of Fame
Career statistics from NFL.com · Pro Football Reference

[1] "George Sauer Sr". The Boston Globe. Retrieved April 26, 2020.

[2] "George Sauer enlist in U.S. Navy". Lincoln Journal Star. April 17, 1942. p. 1. Retrieved April 26, 2020.

[3] "GEORGE SAUER". National Football Foundation Hall of Fame. Retrieved April 26, 2020.

[4] Mosher, Curt (September 1998). The Best of the Big Red Running Backs. Champaign, IL: Sports Publishing. pp. 146–150. ISBN 1-58261-001-0.

[5] "George Sauer". Concordia University - The Center for Volga German Studies.^{[permanent dead link]}

[6] "Ex Navy Football Coach Sauer is Dead at 81". The Baltimore Sun. February 9, 1994.

[7] "To Tell The Truth". CBS. Archived from the original on December 21, 2021. Retrieved April 26, 2020.

[8] "Sauer, former Baylor coach, dies after illness". Austin American Statesman (Austin, TX). February 8, 1994.

[9] "UNH Wildcats - Hall of Fame". unhwildcats.com. Retrieved December 15, 2019.

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