Dukes Duford
 Duford during his tenure at Saint Louis | |
| Biographical details | |
|---|---|
| Born | June 11, 1898 Menomonie, Wisconsin, U.S. |
| Died | May 8, 1981 (aged 82) Clayton, Missouri, U.S. |
| Playing career | |
| Football | |
| 1921–1923 | Marquette |
| 1924 | Green Bay Packers |
| Position(s) | St. Ambrose |
| 1944–1945 | Saint Louis |
| Administrative career (AD unless noted) | |
| 1940-1947 | Saint Louis |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 92–50–9 (football) |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| Football 1 Iowa Conference (1937) | |
Wilfred Joseph "Dukes" Duford (June 11, 1898 – May 8, 1981) was an American
Biography
Duford was born on June 11, 1898, in Menomonie, Wisconsin.[1] Duford attended Niagara High School[2] and Marquette University, where he played football, baseball, and basketball.[3][4] Duford lettered in basketball from 1921 to 1923.[5] He graduated in 1924.[3]
After college, he played professional football in the National Football League (NFL) for one season with the Green Bay Packers. He saw action in three games in 1924 as a halfback.[1]
Duford began his college football coaching career with a two-year stint at the
Impressed by his winning record, St. Ambrose University signed Duford to a multi-year contract as its football coach. Duford served as both the head football coach and athletic director at Saint Louis from 1940 to 1947.[6] He also served as the basketball coach for the 1944–45 season and posted an 11–6 record.[7] Duford and his staff resigned from Saint Louis after the 1947 season in which the football team amassed a 4–6 record.[8] In his autobiography, Memories of a Hall of Fame Sportswriter, Bob Broeg called Duford his "candidate for the most noble coach of all."[9]
In 1966, Duford was working as the Commissioner of the St. Louis Council on Human Relations,[10] which was set up to facilitate racial integration of the city.[11] Duford returned to Saint Louis University as its interim athletic director in 1967.[6] Duford was inducted into the Saint Louis University's Billiken Hall of Fame in 1995.[12]
Duford died at his Missouri home in 1981 of a heart ailment.[13]
Head coaching record
Football
| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
St. Mary's Irish (Independent) (1929–1930)
| |||||||||
| 1929 | St. Mary's | 2–5–2 | |||||||
| 1930 | St. Mary's | 6–3 | |||||||
| St. Mary's: | 8–8–2 | ||||||||
St. Ambrose Saints / Fighting Bees (Iowa Conference ) (1931–1939)
| |||||||||
| 1931 | St. Ambrose | 9–1 | 6–1 | 2nd | |||||
| 1932 | St. Ambrose | 5–1–2 | 5–1–1 | 7th | |||||
| 1933 | St. Ambrose | 4–4 | 4–2 | T–3rd | |||||
| 1934 | St. Ambrose | 6–2 | 5–0 | 2nd | |||||
| 1935 | St. Ambrose | 7–1 | 4–0 | 2nd | |||||
| 1936 | St. Ambrose | 8–0–1 | 4–0–1 | 2nd | |||||
| 1937 | St. Ambrose | 8–0 | 5–0 | T–1st | |||||
| 1938 | St. Ambrose | 7–0–1 | 3–0 | 2nd | |||||
| 1939 | St. Ambrose | 6–1–1 | 2–0 | 3rd | |||||
| St. Ambrose: | 60–10–5 | 38–4–2 | |||||||
| Saint Louis Billikens (Missouri Valley Conference) (1940–1947) | |||||||||
| 1940 | Saint Louis | 3–6–1 | 2–3 | 5th | |||||
| 1941 | Saint Louis | 4–5–1 | 1–3–1 | 4th | |||||
| 1942 | Saint Louis | 4–5 | 2–3 | T–3rd | |||||
| 1943 | No team—World War II | ||||||||
| 1944 | No team—World War II | ||||||||
| 1945 | Saint Louis | 5–4 | 0–1 | 5th | |||||
| 1946 | Saint Louis | 4–6 | 1–1 | T–3rd | |||||
| 1947 | Saint Louis | 4–6 | 1–1 | 3rd | |||||
| Saint Louis: | 24–32–2 | 7–12–1 | |||||||
| Total: | 92–50–9 | ||||||||
| National championship Conference title Conference division title or championship game berth | |||||||||
Basketball
| Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saint Louis Billikens (Missouri Valley Conference) (1944–1945) | |||||||||
| 1944–45 | Saint Louis | 10–4 | [Note A] | [Note A] | |||||
| Total: | 10–4 (.714) | ||||||||
- ^A. The MVC also cancelled the season due to World War II.
References
- ^ a b Dukes Duford, Pro Football Reference, retrieved June 24, 2010.
- ^ Dukes Duford Archived June 10, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, Database Football, retrieved July 1, 2010.
- ^ a b c St. Louis Signs Dukes Duford; Marquette Graduate Given Long Contract Because of St. Ambrose Record[permanent dead link], The Milwaukee Journal, January 31, 1940.
- ^ A miss and a tip[permanent dead link], The Milwaukee Journal, December 13, 1979.
- ^ All-Time Letterwinners Archived 2010-02-08 at the Wayback Machine, Marquette University, retrieved June 25, 2010.
- ^ a b c Former Coach Duford Named By St. Louis[permanent dead link], The Milwaukee Journal, June 3, 1967.
- ^ Billiken Coaches Archived 2012-11-12 at the Wayback Machine (PDF), 2007-08 Men's Basketball Media Guide, p. 128, Saint Louis University, 2007.
- ^ Dukes Duford Out As Billikens Coach Archived 2016-07-01 at the Wayback Machine, December 6, 1947.
- ISBN 1-57167-010-6.
- ^ HOUSING EQUALITY HITS A RAW NERVE; In St. Louis, as in Other Big Cities, the Idea of a Negro Neighbor Stirs Anxiety, The New York Times, September 20, 1966.
- ISBN 0-8262-1303-0.
- ^ Billiken Hall of Fame Members Archived July 16, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, Saint Louis University, retrieved July 1, 2010.
- ^ "Ex-SLU director dies", Pacific Stars and Stripes, Tuesday, May 12, 1981, Tokyo, Japan, Japan
External links
- Career statistics and player information from NFL.com · Pro Football Reference
- Dukes Duford at Find a Grave