| Pat O'Dea | ||
|---|---|---|
| Sport(s) | Football | |
| Biographical details | ||
| Born | March 17, 1872 | |
| Place of birth | Kilmore, Victoria, Australia | |
| Died | April 5, 1962 (aged 90) | |
| Place of death | San Francisco, California | |
| Playing career | ||
| 1898–1899 | Wisconsin | |
| Position(s) | Fullback | |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | ||
| 1900–1901 1902 |
Notre Dame Missouri |
|
| Head coaching record | ||
| Overall | 19–7–2 | |
| Statistics | ||
| College Football Data Warehouse | ||
|
Inducted in 1962 (profile) |
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Patrick John "Kangaroo Kicker" O'Dea (March 17, 1872 – March 4, 1962) was an Australian rules and American football player and coach. An Australian by birth, O'Dea played Australian rules football for the Melbourne Football Club in the VFA.[1] In 1898 and 1899, O'Dea played American football at the University of Wisconsin–Madison in the United States, where he excelled in the kicking game. He then served as the head football coach at the University of Notre Dame from 1900 to 1901 and at the University of Missouri in 1902, compiling a career college football record of 19–7–2. O'Dea was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame as a player in 1962.
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O'Dea was born in Crystal Brook to an Irish-born father and a Victorian-born mother. He was the third child of seven children. As a child he attended Christian Brothers College and Xavier College. As a 16-year-old he received a bravery award for rescuing a woman at Mordialloc beach.[2]
O'Dea played American football at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, where he was their star fullback from 1896–1899 and captained the 1898 and 1899 teams. In those days fullbacks punted and often did the placekicking. In the 1898 edition of the Northwestern game, which was played in a blizzard, he drop kicked a 62-yard field goal, and had an 116-yard punt. This earned him the nickname "Kangaroo Kicker".
In the 1899 game, he returned a kickoff 90 yards for a touchdown, and had four field goals. He was selected as an All-American team member in 1899.
From 1900 to 1901, O'Dea coached at the University of Notre Dame, and compiled a 14–4–2 record.
O'Dea was the tenth head football coach for the University of Missouri–Columbia Tigers located in Columbia, Missouri and he held that position for the 1902 season. His career coaching record at Missouri was 5 wins, 3 losses, and 0 ties. This ranks him 22nd at Missouri in total wins and tenth at Missouri in winning percentage.[3]
After coaching, he disappeared from public view in 1917, having decided that he didn't like being treated as a celebrity. In 1934, he was discovered living under an assumed name in California and came back to Wisconsin to a hero's welcome. He later appeared on Bob Hope's All-American football team announcement shows. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame on April 3, 1962. He died the next day at the University of California, San Francisco Medical Center.[2]
| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Notre Dame Fighting Irish (Independent) (1900–1901) | |||||||||
| 1900 | Notre Dame | 6–3–1 | |||||||
| 1901 | Notre Dame | 8–1–1 | |||||||
| Notre Dame: | 14–4–2 | ||||||||
| Missouri Tigers (Independent) (1902) | |||||||||
| 1902 | Missouri | 5–3 | |||||||
| Missouri: | 5–3 | ||||||||
| Total: | 19–7–2 | ||||||||
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