Alex Agase
Guard, linebacker | |||||
Personal information | |||||
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Born: | Chicago, Illinois, U.S. | March 27, 1922||||
Died: | May 3, 2007 Tarpon Springs, Florida, U.S. | (aged 85)||||
Height: | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) | ||||
Weight: | 212 lb (96 kg) | ||||
Career information | |||||
High school: | Evanston (IL) Township | ||||
College: | Illinois; Purdue | ||||
NFL draft: | 1944 / Round: 8 / Pick: 71 | ||||
Career history | |||||
As a player: | |||||
As a coach: | |||||
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As an administrator: | |||||
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Career highlights and awards | |||||
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Career NFL statistics | |||||
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Player stats at NFL.com · PFR | |||||
Alexander Arrasi Agase (March 27, 1922 – May 3, 2007) was an
Agase grew up in Illinois and attended the
Agase remained as an assistant until Parseghian left to coach at Notre Dame in 1963 and he was named the new head coach. Agase guided the Northwestern Wildcats to a 32–58–1 win-loss-tie record in nine seasons. He was named coach of the year by the Football Writers Association of America after guiding the team to a 6–4 record in 1970. Agase left to coach at Purdue in 1972, but none of his teams posted a winning record there, and he was fired in 1977. He then spent six years as athletic director at Eastern Michigan University before retiring. Agase died in 2007. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1963.
Early life and college
Agase was born in
was also involved with football.He attended
Agase entered the U.S. military in 1943 as America's involvement in World War II intensified.[3] He was sent to Purdue University for training in the U.S. Marines and played on the school's football team along with enlistees from other schools.[6] Purdue had won just one Big Ten Conference game the previous year, but the influx of trainees including Agase led to a reversal of fortune in 1943.[6] Coached by Elmer Burnham, the Purdue Boilermakers won all of their games that year and were named Big Ten co-champions.[7] Agase was again named an All-American.[8]
During the following two years, Agase served on active duty in the war. He participated in the battles of
Professional football career
Agase had been selected by the
The Rockets traded Agase and fellow lineman
Coaching career
Before the 1952 season, the Browns traded Agase to the Dallas Texans, a newly formed team set to start play that year. He ended his playing career and signed as a line coach with the Texans under head coach Jim Phelan.[23] The Texans finished with a 1–11 record and folded after the season.[24][25] Agase came out of retirement briefly after the Texans disbanded, joining the Baltimore Colts and playing as a linebacker for the 1953 season.[26] The Colts finished the season with a 3–9 record, placing fifth in the NFL West division.[27]
Iowa State and Northwestern
Agase was offered a job as an assistant coach for the Colts, but instead joined Iowa State University as its line coach in early 1954 on a $7,000-a-year salary.[28] He and Iowa State head coach Vince DiFrancesca had played football together in high school.[28] After two seasons at Iowa State, he signed as defensive line coach at Northwestern University.[29] He worked under head coach Ara Parseghian, a former Cleveland teammate.[29]
In seven years under Parseghian at Northwestern, Agase rose to become the coach's top assistant.[30] When Parseghian was offered the head coaching job at the University of Notre Dame at the end of 1963, he recommended Agase as his replacement.[30] Agase got the job immediately after Parseghian left.[31]
Agase's first years as coach of the Northwestern Wildcats football team were unsuccessful. The team had losing records each season between 1964 and 1969.[32] In 1970, however, the team finished with a 6–4 record, taking second place in the Big Ten Conference, and Agase was named the national coach of the year by the Football Writers Association of America.[32][33] The Wildcats followed up with a 7–4 record in 1971, but fell to 2–9 in 1972.[32]
Purdue
After nine seasons as the Northwestern coach, Agase accepted an offer at the end of 1972 to become head football coach at Purdue, one of the two schools for which he played.[34] Taking the job was "not an easy decision to make", he said at the time, because he was happy at Northwestern.[34] Agase coached at Purdue through the 1976 season. His teams never posted a winning record in his years there, although they did pull two noteworthy upsets of Top Ten teams, defeating #2 Notre Dame in South Bend in 1974 and #1 Michigan in West Lafayette in 1976.[32] He was fired in early 1977 and took a job as athletic director at Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti, Michigan.[35] He stayed in that job until 1982, when he unexpectedly resigned citing "personal reasons".[36]
Later life and death
Agase remained active in college football by assisting
Head coaching record
Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | ||||
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Northwestern Wildcats (Big Ten Conference) (1964–1972) | |||||||||
1964 | Northwestern | 3–6 | 2–5 | T–7th | |||||
1965 | Northwestern | 4–6 | 3–4 | 6th | |||||
1966 | Northwestern | 3–6–1 | 2–4–1 | T–7th | |||||
1967 | Northwestern | 3–7 | 2–5 | 8th | |||||
1968 | Northwestern | 1–9 | 1–6 | T–8th | |||||
1969 | Northwestern | 3–7 | 3–4 | T–5th | |||||
1970 | Northwestern | 6–4 | 6–1 | T–2nd | |||||
1971 | Northwestern | 7–4 | 6–3 | 2nd | |||||
1972 | Northwestern | 2–9 | 1–8 | 10th | |||||
Northwestern: | 32–58–1 | 26–40–1 | |||||||
Purdue Boilermakers (Big Ten Conference) (1973–1976) | |||||||||
1973 | Purdue | 5–6 | 4–4 | T–4th | |||||
1974 | Purdue | 4–6–1 | 3–5 | 6th | |||||
1975 | Purdue | 4–7 | 4–4 | T–3rd | |||||
1976 | Purdue | 5–6 | 4–4 | T–3rd | |||||
Purdue: | 18–25–1 | 15–17 | |||||||
Total: | 50–83–2 |
References
- ^ a b "Hall of Famer Spotlight – Alex Agase". College Football Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on 2010-12-14. Retrieved October 9, 2012.
- ^ a b c "Alex Agase". College Football Hall of Fame. Football Foundation. Retrieved October 9, 2012.
- ^ a b c "Alex Agase Dead At The Age Of 85". University of Illinois. Archived from the original on 2013-01-22. Retrieved October 9, 2012.
- ^ a b Hoff, Dave (October 10, 1942). "Alex Agase Big Factor In Victory". Youngstown Vindicator. Champaign, Ill. Associated Press. p. D1. Retrieved October 10, 2012.
- ^ "Illinois Yearly Results". College Football Data Warehouse. Archived from the original on May 3, 2012. Retrieved October 11, 2012.
- ^ a b "Great Lakes Bows to Purdue, 23 to 13". The Milwaukee Journal. Great Lakes, Ill. Associated Press. September 19, 1943. p. 5. Retrieved October 11, 2012.
- ^ "Purdue Yearly Results". College Football Data Warehouse. Archived from the original on October 22, 2012. Retrieved October 11, 2012.
- ^ a b c "Alex Agase, College Football Standout, Is Dead at 85". The New York Times. Chicago. Associated Press. May 5, 2007. Archived from the original on January 31, 2013. Retrieved October 12, 2012.
- ^ a b c Leone, Jared (May 6, 2007). "Ex-football coach Agase dies". Tampa Bay Times. Archived from the original on October 12, 2012. Retrieved October 12, 2012.
- ^ a b "Illinois' Alex Agase Rated Most Valuable". The Palm Beach Post. Chicago. Associated Press. December 15, 1946. p. 20. Retrieved October 12, 2012.
- ^ "Illinois In the Polls". College Football Data Warehouse. Archived from the original on May 3, 2012. Retrieved October 12, 2012.
- ^ a b "Illinois Yearly Results". College Football Data Warehouse. Archived from the original on May 3, 2012. Retrieved October 12, 2012.
- ^ "Dons Sign Alex Agase; Packers Had Rights". The Milwaukee Journal. Los Angeles. Associated Press. February 1, 1947. p. 7. Retrieved October 12, 2012.
- ^ "Rockets Get Agase In Trade for Back". The Pittsburgh Press. Chicago. United Press International. September 17, 1947. p. 29. Retrieved October 12, 2012.
- ^ "1947 Chicago Rockets Statistics & Players". Pro Football Reference. Archived from the original on October 18, 2012. Retrieved October 12, 2012.
- ^ "Browns Get Agase in Trade for Lund". Cleveland Plain Dealer. May 22, 1948. p. 17.
- ^ Piascik 2007, pp. 64, 81.
- ^ Piascik 2007, pp. 120–121.
- ^ Piascik 2007, pp. 141, 145.
- ^ Piascik 2007, p. 181.
- ^ a b Piascik 2007, p. 233.
- ^ Piascik 2007, p. 234.
- ^ "Agase Gets Job As Dallas Coach". Cleveland Plain Dealer. May 13, 1952. p. 24.
- ^ "Agase Mentioned For Huskies Job". Toledo Blade. Seattle. Associated Press. February 16, 1953. p. 18. Retrieved October 12, 2012.
- ^ "1952 Dallas Texans Statistics & Players". Pro Football Reference. Archived from the original on October 6, 2012. Retrieved October 12, 2012.
- ^ Sauerbrei, Harold (September 6, 1953). "Ex-Browns Start On Colt Defense". Cleveland Plain Dealer. p. 3C.
- ^ "1953 Baltimore Colts Players & Statistics". Pro Football Reference. Archived from the original on October 20, 2012. Retrieved October 12, 2012.
- ^ a b "Alex Agase Hired to Staff at Iowa State". The Milwaukee Journal. Ames, Iowa. United Press International. February 3, 1954. p. 2. Retrieved October 12, 2012.
- ^ a b "Iowa State Line Coach Will Leave". The Daily Reporter. Evanston, Ill. Associated Press. January 20, 1956. p. 6. Retrieved October 12, 2012.
- ^ a b "Agase Reported Top Choice To Replace Ara". Times Daily. Chicago. Associated Press. December 16, 1963. p. 8. Retrieved October 12, 2012.
- ^ "Ara Accepts; Aid Gets Wildcat Job". The Milwaukee Sentinel. Chicago, Ill. United Press International. December 18, 1963. p. 2. Retrieved October 12, 2012.
- ^ a b c d "Alex Agase Records by Year". College Football Data Warehouse. Archived from the original on October 19, 2012. Retrieved October 12, 2012.
- ^ "Wildcats' Agase 'Coach of Year'". Palm Beach Post-Times. Des Moines, Iowa. Associated Press. January 10, 1971. p. E5. Retrieved October 12, 2012.
- ^ a b "Agase to coach Purdue". Tri City Herald. West Lafayette, Ind. Associated Press. December 18, 1972. p. 21. Retrieved October 12, 2012.
- ^ "Eastern Is Expected To Sign Agase". The Argus-Press. Detroit. Associated Press. February 9, 1977. p. 16. Retrieved October 12, 2012.
- ^ "Agase Resigns As Eastern AD". Ludington Daily News. Ypsilanti, Mich. Associated Press. May 7, 1982. p. 8. Retrieved October 12, 2012.
- ^ a b "Former Northwestern Coach Alex Agase Dies at Age 85". CBS College Sports. May 3, 2007. Archived from the original on May 25, 2013. Retrieved October 12, 2012.
- ^ Markus, Robert (June 22, 1990). "Illini Football Centennial Celebration Hits The Road". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on August 8, 2014. Retrieved October 12, 2012.
Bibliography
- Piascik, Andy (2007). The Best Show in Football: The 1946–1955 Cleveland Browns. Lanham, Maryland: Taylor Trade Publishing. ISBN 978-1-58979-571-6.
External links
- Alex Agase at the College Football Hall of Fame
- Career statistics and player information from NFL.com · Pro Football Reference
- Alex Agase at Find a Grave