| James Phelan | ||
|---|---|---|
| Sport(s) | Football, basketball | |
| Biographical details | ||
| Born | December 5, 1892 | |
| Place of birth | Sacramento, California | |
| Died | November 14, 1974 (aged 81) | |
| Place of death | Honolulu, Hawaii | |
| Playing career | ||
| 1915–1917 | Notre Dame | |
| Position(s) | Quarterback (football) | |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | ||
| Football 1920–1921 1922–1929 1930–1941 1942–1947 1948–1949 1952 Basketball 1943–1945 |
Missouri Purdue Washington Saint Mary's Los Angeles Dons Dallas Texans (NFL) Saint Mary's |
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| Head coaching record | ||
| Overall | 137–87–14 (college football) 12–26 (AAFC/NFL) 10–11 (college basketball) |
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| Bowls | 0–3 | |
| Statistics | ||
| College Football Data Warehouse | ||
| Accomplishments and honors | ||
| Championships | ||
| 1 Big Ten (1929) 1 PCC (1936) |
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Inducted in 1973 (profile) |
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James Michael Phelan (December 5, 1892 – November 14, 1974) was an American football player and coach. He served as the head football coach at the University of Missouri (1920–1921), Purdue University (1922–1929), the University of Washington (1930–1941), and Saint Mary's College of California (1942–1947), compiling a career college football record of 137–87–14. Phelan also coached the Los Angeles Dons of the All-America Football Conference from 1948 to 1949 and the Dallas Texans of the National Football League in 1952, tallying a professional football coaching record of 12–26. In addition, he was the head basketball coach at Saint Mary's for two seasons during World War II (1943–1945), where he amassed a record 10–11. Phelan played football as a quarterback at the University of Notre Dame from 1915 to 1917. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame as a coach in 1973.
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After growing up in Portland, Oregon, Jim Phelan went to Notre Dame in 1915. In his first game as a reserve quarterback and placekicker for the football team, he threw for a touchdown and ran for another in a 32–0 victory over Alma College. This earned him the starting job, and he would go on to complete a 7–1 season, the lone defeat a 20–19 loss at Nebraska.
The 1916 team was a defensive juggernaut, shutting out every team they played except for their meeting at Army, which they lost 30–10, thus finishing the season 8–1. The 1917 campaign began with a 55–0 victory over Kalamazoo, followed by a 0–0 tie at Wisconsin in which Phelan attempted to win the game by kicking a 61-yard field goal that bounced off the crossbar. An 7–0 loss at Nebraska the following week would be the last game of his career, as he was drafted into military service for World War I and sent to Camp Taylor, Louisville.
Following the war, Phelan entered the college coaching ranks. From 1920 to 1921, he coached at Missouri, and compiled a 13–3 record. From 1922 to 1929, he coached at Purdue, and compiled a 35–22–4 record there. From 1930 to 1941, he coached at Washington, and compiled a 65–37–9 record there.
Following a six-year stint as head coach of Saint Mary's (CA) that included two bowl appearances, Phelan joined the coaching staff of several upstart professional football franchises, including a year as head coach of the NFL's Dallas Texans in 1952.
Phelan was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1973.
| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | AP# | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Missouri Tigers (Missouri Valley Conference) (1920–1921) | |||||||||
| 1920 | Missouri | 7–1 | 5–1 | 2nd | |||||
| 1921 | Missouri | 6–2 | 4–2 | T–2nd | |||||
| Missouri: | 13–3 | 9–3 | |||||||
| Purdue Boilermakers (Big Ten Conference) (1922–1929) | |||||||||
| 1922 | Purdue | 1–5–1 | 0–3–1 | 10th | |||||
| 1923 | Purdue | 2–5–1 | 1–4 | T–8th | |||||
| 1924 | Purdue | 5–2 | 2–2 | 5th | |||||
| 1925 | Purdue | 3–4–1 | 0–3–1 | T–9th | |||||
| 1926 | Purdue | 5–2–1 | 2–1–1 | 4th | |||||
| 1927 | Purdue | 6–2 | 2–2 | T–4th | |||||
| 1928 | Purdue | 5–2–1 | 2–2–1 | 6th | |||||
| 1929 | Purdue | 8–0 | 5–0 | 1st | |||||
| Purdue: | 35–22–5 | 14–17–4 | |||||||
| Washington Huskies (Pacific Coast Conference) (1930–1941) | |||||||||
| 1930 | Washington | 5–4 | 3–4 | 5th | |||||
| 1931 | Washington | 5–3–1 | 3–3–1 | 5th | |||||
| 1932 | Washington | 6–2–2 | 3–2–2 | 4th | |||||
| 1933 | Washington | 5–4 | 3–4 | 7th | |||||
| 1934 | Washington | 6–1–1 | 5–1–1 | 3rd | |||||
| 1935 | Washington | 5–3 | 4–3 | 6th | |||||
| 1936 | Washington | 7–2–1 | 7–0–1 | 1st | L Rose | 5 | |||
| 1937 | Washington | 7–2–2 | 4–2–2 | 3rd | |||||
| 1938 | Washington | 3–5–1 | 3–4–1 | 6th | |||||
| 1939 | Washington | 4–5 | 4–4 | 4th | |||||
| 1940 | Washington | 7–2 | 7–1 | 2nd | 10 | ||||
| 1941 | Washington | 5–4 | 5–3 | T–2nd | |||||
| Washington: | 65–37–8 | 51–31–8 | |||||||
| Saint Mary's Gaels (Independent) (1942–1947) | |||||||||
| 1942 | Saint Mary's | 6–3–1 | |||||||
| 1943 | Saint Mary's | 2–5 | |||||||
| 1944 | Saint Mary's | 0–5 | |||||||
| 1945 | Saint Mary's | 7–2 | L Sugar | ||||||
| 1946 | Saint Mary's | 6–3 | L Oil | ||||||
| 1947 | Saint Mary's | 3–7 | |||||||
| Saint Mary's: | 24–25–1 | ||||||||
| Total: | 137–87–14 | ||||||||
| National championship Conference title Conference division title | |||||||||
| #Rankings from final AP Poll. | |||||||||
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