Walter Skidmore

Walter Skidmore
Sport(s) Basketball
Biographical details
Born November 19, 1903(1903-11-19)
Place of birth Kentucky
Died April 13, 1993(1993-04-13) (aged 89)
Place of death Chapel Hill, North Carolina
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1935–1939 North Carolina
Head coaching record
Overall 65–25
Accomplishments and honors
Championships
1938 - Southern Conference regular season
1936 - Southern Conference Tournament

Walter Dennis Skidmore (November 19, 1903 – April 13, 1993) was an American basketball coach. he was best known for being the head coach of the North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball team from 1935 through 1939.[1] Skidmore had a record of 65–25 with the Tar Heels and led his team to win the Southern Conference Tournament in 1936 and Southern Conference regular season championship in 1938.[2] In his last year of coaching, Skidmore coached George Glamack who went on to become a star player at North Carolina.[3] Skidmore took over coaching after Bo Shepard left as head coach due to health problems.[4] Skidmore was a native of Harlan County, Kentucky, and the son of a coal miner. He attended Centre College in Kentucky, graduating in 1926.[5][6] Before becoming the head basketball coach at North Carolina, Skidmore had coached the North Carolina junior varsity and Charlotte High School teams.[7][8][5] He retired from coaching in 1939 and moved to Letcher County, Kentucky. From 1955 to 1970, Skidmore operated the Tar Heel Motel in Clinton, North Carolina.[6] In April 1993, Skidmore died in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, at age 89.

Head coaching record

Season Team Overall Conference Standing Postseason
North Carolina Tar Heels (Southern Conference) (1935–1939)
1935–36 North Carolina 21–4 13–3 2nd
1936–37 North Carolina 18–5 14–3 2nd
1937–38 North Carolina 16–5 13–3 1st
1938–39 North Carolina 10–11 8–7 7th
North Carolina: 65–25 48–16
Total: 65–25

      National champion         Conference regular season champion         Conference tournament champion
      Conference regular season & conference tournament champion       Conference division champion

References

General
Specific
  1. ^ "Skidmore Is Cage Coach". The Christian Science Monitor. November 27, 1935. http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/csmonitor_historic/access/307141232.html?dids=307141232:307141232&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:AI&date=Nov+27%2C+1935&author=&pub=Christian+Science+Monitor&desc=Skidmore+Is+Cage+Coach&pqatl=google. 
  2. ^ Rappoport 2002, p. 18
  3. ^ Powell 2005, p. 29
  4. ^ Powell 2005, p. 27
  5. ^ a b "Coach Collins Out at North Carolina". The New York Times. December 11, 1933. http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=FA0910F93F5516738DDDA80994DA415B838FF1D3. 
  6. ^ a b "Deaths: Walter Skidmore". Harlan Daily Enterprise. April 15, 1993. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=tB5BAAAAIBAJ&sjid=iagMAAAAIBAJ&pg=2581,4501746&dq=walter-skidmore+carolina+basketball&hl=en. 
  7. ^ Powell 2005, p. 41
  8. ^ "Names of 20 Prospective Coaches to Be Considered at Raleigh" (PDF). The News and Courier. December 20, 1933. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=nk9JAAAAIBAJ&sjid=yQkNAAAAIBAJ&dq=walter%20skidmore&pg=1644%2C4524975. Retrieved September 16, 2011.