Sonny Grandelius
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Sonny Grandelius | ||
|---|---|---|
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| Title | Head coach | |
| Sport | football | |
| Born | April 16, 1929 | |
| Place of birth | Muskegon Heights, Michigan | |
| Died | April 25, 2008 (aged 79)[1] | |
| Place of death | Beverly Hills, Michigan[1] | |
| Career highlights | ||
| Overall | 21-10 | |
| Bowls | 0-1 | |
| Coaching stats | ||
| College Football DataWarehouse | ||
| Championships | ||
| 1961 Big Eight Championship | ||
| Awards | ||
| 1991 Duffy Daughtery Award[2] | ||
| Playing career | ||
| 1948-51 1953 |
Michigan State New York Giants |
|
| Position | Halfback | |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | ||
| 1959-61 | Colorado | |
Everett John "Sonny" Grandelius (April 16, 1929 - April 25, 2008) was the an American football coach who served as head coach of the Colorado Buffaloes from 1959 to 1961. He posted a 20-11 (.645) record as head coach. He was a halfback for Michigan State from 1948 to 1950.
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[edit] Player
Born in Muskegon Heights, Michigan, he attended Muskegon Heights High School, and is a 1987 inductee to the Muskegon Sports Hall of Fame.[3] He led his team to back-to-back state championships in 1945 as a quarterback and in in 1946 as a fullback when he was also selected as a first team All-State.
He gained 184 rushing yards in the 1950 season opener, establishing a then school record. During his senior season, he gained 1,023 yards and 11 touchdowns on 163 attempts, the 17th back in NCAA history to rush for 1000 yards or more in a season and the first at Michigan State.[1] He was the leading scorer for the team and selected as the team's MVP. Grandelius also was an All-American his senior year; selected by three publications including the AP.[2] In 2006, he was ranked 4th in average career yards per carry (6.09) at Michigan State (min 150 attempts) and tied for 10th in rushing touchdowns for one season (11).[4] He had 7 100-yard rushing games in his career. He was the MVP of the 1951 Hula Bowl and also lettered in boxing his sophomore year.[3]
[edit] 100-yard rushing games
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Drafted as the 11th pick in the third round (37th overall) of the 1952 NFL Draft,[5] he played one season (1953) in the NFL for the New York Giants. He rushed 108 times for 278 yards with 1 touchdown and 3 fumbles and also had 15 receptions for 80 yards.[6]
[edit] Coaching
Grandelius was hired as the head football coach of Colorado beginning with the 1959 season. He would lead the team to controversial greatness, including a Big Eight Conference Championship in 1961.[1] However, shortly after the 1962 Orange Bowl that Colorado lost, it became apparent that Grandelius had been using a slush fund to pay between 15 to 30 top recruits and their families. The NCAA investigated and released the findings on April 27, 1962,[7] which resulted in Grandelius' firing. Only one regent, Charles Bromley, of the University voted not to fire Grandelius, saying the firing "violated every principle of fair play since the Magna Carta."[8]
The football team was also punished for two seasons by not allowing television coverage of games or be involved in any post-season bowl games. At least 20 players lost scholarships or left Colorado. News accounts at the time claimed that Grandelius was the first coach in the country fired for recruiting improprieties.[9]
After Colorado, he went on to coaching positions with the Detroit Lions, and Philadelphia Eagles. He then was an NFL color commentator for CBS for the Detroit Lions in 1965-67. Grandelius was also the general manager for the WFL Detroit Wheels in 1974.[10] He died at age 79 in Beverly Hills, Michigan.
- See also: NFL on CBS commentator pairings#1965
[edit] Coaching record
| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl Game | Bowl Opponent | Outcome | Rank# |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Colorado Buffaloes (Big Eight) (1959 — 1961) | ||||||||
| 1959 | Colorado | 5-5 | 3-3 | T-3rd | ||||
| 1960 | Colorado | 6-4 | 5-2 | 2nd | ||||
| 1961 | Colorado | 9-2 | 7-0 | 1st | Orange Bowl | LSU | L, 25-7 | 7th |
| At Colorado: | 20-11 | 15-5 | ||||||
| Career: | 20-11 | |||||||
| National Championship Conference Title | ||||||||
| #Rankings from final Coaches Poll of the season. | ||||||||
[edit] External links
- 1962 NCAA Public Infraction Report
- Recruiting Violations at Colorado history by Boulder Daily Camera
- Coloradan Boulder Beat by Paul Danish (page 3)
- Muskegon Area Sports Hall of Fame Class of 1987
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d Ex-Buff coach Grandelius dies. Daily Camera (2008-04-27). Retrieved on 2008-04-28.
- ^ a b 2003 Michigan State Media Guide (PDF) (English). Michigan State (2003). Retrieved on 2007-01-10.
- ^ a b CLASS of 1987 (HTML) (English). mashf.com. Retrieved on 2007-01-10.
- ^ Rushing Records (p. 96) (HTML) (English) (2006). Retrieved on 2006-07-10.
- ^ 1952 NFL Draft (HTML) (English). databasefootball.com. Retrieved on 2007-01-10.
- ^ John Troan (2003-07-20). Sonny Grandelius (HTML) (English). JT-SW.com. Retrieved on 2007-01-10.
- ^ Colorado's 1962 NCAA Public Infraction Report. NCAA (1962-04-27). Retrieved on 2007-01-10.
- ^ Paul Danish (June 2005). Coloradan Boulder Beat (PDF). Retrieved on 2007-01-10.
- ^ CU-News:Recruiting violations. Boulder Daily Camera (2004-02-07). Retrieved on 2007-01-10.
- ^ Detroit WFL Wheels - 1974. Helmethut.com. Retrieved on 2007-01-10.
| Preceded by Dallas Ward |
University of Colorado Head Coach 1959–1961 |
Succeeded by Bud Davis |
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