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Adam Walsh (football coach)
Encyclopedia
Adam Walsh was an American football
player and coach. He played college football
as a center
at the University of Notre Dame
where he was an All-American
and captain of the 1924 team under Knute Rockne
. Walsh then served as the head football coach at Santa Clara University
from 1925 to 1928 and at Bowdoin College
from 1935 to 1942 and again from 1947 to 1958, compiling a career college football record of 80–85–11. He also coached the Cleveland/Los Angeles Rams
of the NFL
in 1945 and 1946, tallying a mark of 15–5–1. Walsh was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame
as a player in 1968.
in Los Angeles, and earned varsity letters in basketball, track, and football at the University of Notre Dame
. Walsh was an All-American center and captain of the 1924 Notre Dame football
team under head coach Knute Rockne
. Walsh anchored the team's offensive line, dubbed the "Seven Mules," who blocked for the famed "Four Horsemen" backfield. The 1924 team completed an undefeated season with a win over Stanford
in the Rose Bowl
.
Walsh played every minute of the game against Army
in 1924 with two broken hands, never missed a single snap of the ball, was involved in 75 percent of the tackles on defense, and intercepted a pass in the final minutes of the game to preserve a Notre Dame victory. He remains the offensive center on the All-time Notre Dame Team.
at Santa Clara University
from 1925 to 1928. He then spent five seasons as the line coach at Yale University
, and one season at Harvard University
in the same capacity. In 1935, Walsh accepted the head coaching position at Bowdoin College
in Brunswick, Maine
. Though Bowdoin had been winless the prior year, Walsh began his 20-year coaching career at the college with a state championship. His teams won or tied for the Maine championship in seven of his first eight years at Bowdoin.
Bowdoin suspended their football program in 1943 with the onset of World War II. In 1944, Walsh returned to Notre Dame as a line coach for a season. In 1945, he led the Cleveland Rams
to the NFL Championship
and coached the team the next season after a move to Los Angeles. He returned to Bowdoin after two years with the Rams and a 15–5–1 coaching record in the NFL
. Between 1947 and 1958, Walsh's Bowdoin teams won outright or shared the Maine state championship four more times.
, representing Brunswick as a Democrat and was appointed the U.S. Marshal
for Maine
under Presidents
Kennedy
and Johnson
.
Walsh was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame
in 1968, the Helms Hall of Fame, and the Maine Sports Hall of Fame in 1976. He was also named to the All-Time Southern California High School Team, the All-time Notre Dame Team, and the All-time Rose Bowl Team.
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
player and coach. He played college football
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
as a center
Center (American football)
Center is a position in American football and Canadian football . The center is the innermost lineman of the offensive line on a football team's offense...
at the University of Notre Dame
University of Notre Dame
The University of Notre Dame du Lac is a Catholic research university located in Notre Dame, an unincorporated community north of the city of South Bend, in St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States...
where he was an All-American
1924 College Football All-America Team
The 1924 College Football All-America team consists of American football players selected to the College Football All-America Teams selected by various organizations in 1924.-Key:*WC = Collier's Weekly as selected by Walter Camp*AAB = All-America Board...
and captain of the 1924 team under Knute Rockne
Knute Rockne
Knute Kenneth Rockne was an American football player and coach. He is regarded as one of the greatest coaches in college football history...
. Walsh then served as the head football coach at Santa Clara University
Santa Clara University
Santa Clara University is a private, not-for-profit, Jesuit-affiliated university located in Santa Clara, California, United States. Chartered by the state of California and accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, it operates in collaboration with the Society of Jesus , whose...
from 1925 to 1928 and at Bowdoin College
Bowdoin College
Bowdoin College , founded in 1794, is an elite private liberal arts college located in the coastal Maine town of Brunswick, Maine. As of 2011, U.S. News and World Report ranks Bowdoin 6th among liberal arts colleges in the United States. At times, it was ranked as high as 4th in the country. It is...
from 1935 to 1942 and again from 1947 to 1958, compiling a career college football record of 80–85–11. He also coached the Cleveland/Los Angeles Rams
St. Louis Rams
The St. Louis Rams are a professional American football team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are currently members of the West Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Rams have won three NFL Championships .The Rams began playing in 1936 in Cleveland,...
of the NFL
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
in 1945 and 1946, tallying a mark of 15–5–1. Walsh was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame
College Football Hall of Fame
The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and museum devoted to college football. Located in South Bend, Indiana, it is connected to a convention center and situated in the city's renovated downtown district, two miles south of the University of Notre Dame campus. It is slated to move...
as a player in 1968.
Playing career
Walsh was an outstanding athlete at Hollywood High SchoolHollywood High School
Hollywood High School is a Los Angeles Unified School District high school located at the intersection of North Highland Avenue and West Sunset Boulevard in the Hollywood district of Los Angeles, California.-History:...
in Los Angeles, and earned varsity letters in basketball, track, and football at the University of Notre Dame
University of Notre Dame
The University of Notre Dame du Lac is a Catholic research university located in Notre Dame, an unincorporated community north of the city of South Bend, in St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States...
. Walsh was an All-American center and captain of the 1924 Notre Dame football
Notre Dame Fighting Irish football
Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team is the football team of the University of Notre Dame. The team is currently coached by Brian Kelly.Notre Dame competes as an Independent at the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision level, and is a founding member of the Bowl Championship Series coalition. It is an...
team under head coach Knute Rockne
Knute Rockne
Knute Kenneth Rockne was an American football player and coach. He is regarded as one of the greatest coaches in college football history...
. Walsh anchored the team's offensive line, dubbed the "Seven Mules," who blocked for the famed "Four Horsemen" backfield. The 1924 team completed an undefeated season with a win over Stanford
Stanford Cardinal football
The Stanford Cardinal football program represents Stanford University in college football at the NCAA Division I FBS level and is a member of the Pac-12 Conference's North Division. Stanford, the top-ranked academic institution with an FBS program, has a highly successful football tradition. The...
in the Rose Bowl
1925 Rose Bowl
The 1925 Rose Bowl was a college football bowl game. It was the 11th Rose Bowl Game. The Notre Dame Fighting Irish defeated Stanford University, 27-10. The game featured two legendary coaches, Knute Rockne of Notre Dame, and Glenn "Pop" Warner in his first year at Stanford. The game also featured...
.
Walsh played every minute of the game against Army
Army Black Knights football
The Army Black Knights football program represents the United States Military Academy. Army was recognized as the national champions in 1944, 1945 and 1946....
in 1924 with two broken hands, never missed a single snap of the ball, was involved in 75 percent of the tackles on defense, and intercepted a pass in the final minutes of the game to preserve a Notre Dame victory. He remains the offensive center on the All-time Notre Dame Team.
Coaching career
Walsh served as head football coach and athletic directorAthletic director
An athletic director is an administrator at many American colleges and universities, as well as in larger high schools and middle schools, who oversees the work of coaches and related staff involved in intercollegiate or interscholastic athletic programs...
at Santa Clara University
Santa Clara University
Santa Clara University is a private, not-for-profit, Jesuit-affiliated university located in Santa Clara, California, United States. Chartered by the state of California and accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, it operates in collaboration with the Society of Jesus , whose...
from 1925 to 1928. He then spent five seasons as the line coach at Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
, and one season at Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
in the same capacity. In 1935, Walsh accepted the head coaching position at Bowdoin College
Bowdoin College
Bowdoin College , founded in 1794, is an elite private liberal arts college located in the coastal Maine town of Brunswick, Maine. As of 2011, U.S. News and World Report ranks Bowdoin 6th among liberal arts colleges in the United States. At times, it was ranked as high as 4th in the country. It is...
in Brunswick, Maine
Brunswick, Maine
Brunswick is a town in Cumberland County, Maine, United States. The population was 20,278 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Portland-South Portland-Biddeford metropolitan area. Brunswick is home to Bowdoin College, the Bowdoin College Museum of Art, the Peary-MacMillan Arctic Museum, , and the...
. Though Bowdoin had been winless the prior year, Walsh began his 20-year coaching career at the college with a state championship. His teams won or tied for the Maine championship in seven of his first eight years at Bowdoin.
Bowdoin suspended their football program in 1943 with the onset of World War II. In 1944, Walsh returned to Notre Dame as a line coach for a season. In 1945, he led the Cleveland Rams
St. Louis Rams
The St. Louis Rams are a professional American football team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are currently members of the West Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Rams have won three NFL Championships .The Rams began playing in 1936 in Cleveland,...
to the NFL Championship
NFL Championship Game, 1945
In the 1945 National Football League Championship Game, the Cleveland Rams defeated the Washington Redskins, 15–14, at Cleveland Municipal Stadium in Cleveland, Ohio on December 16, 1945. This was the last game before the Rams moved to Los Angeles, California and was the 13th annual NFL...
and coached the team the next season after a move to Los Angeles. He returned to Bowdoin after two years with the Rams and a 15–5–1 coaching record in the NFL
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
. Between 1947 and 1958, Walsh's Bowdoin teams won outright or shared the Maine state championship four more times.
Later life and honors
After retiring from coaching, Walsh served two terms in the Maine House of RepresentativesMaine House of Representatives
The Maine House of Representatives is the lower house of the Maine Legislature. The House consists of 151 members representing an equal amount of districts across the state. Each voting member of the House represents around 8,450 citizens of the state...
, representing Brunswick as a Democrat and was appointed the U.S. Marshal
United States Marshals Service
The United States Marshals Service is a United States federal law enforcement agency within the United States Department of Justice . The office of U.S. Marshal is the oldest federal law enforcement office in the United States; it was created by the Judiciary Act of 1789...
for Maine
Maine
Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...
under Presidents
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Kennedy
John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy , often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963....
and Johnson
Lyndon B. Johnson
Lyndon Baines Johnson , often referred to as LBJ, was the 36th President of the United States after his service as the 37th Vice President of the United States...
.
Walsh was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame
College Football Hall of Fame
The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and museum devoted to college football. Located in South Bend, Indiana, it is connected to a convention center and situated in the city's renovated downtown district, two miles south of the University of Notre Dame campus. It is slated to move...
in 1968, the Helms Hall of Fame, and the Maine Sports Hall of Fame in 1976. He was also named to the All-Time Southern California High School Team, the All-time Notre Dame Team, and the All-time Rose Bowl Team.
College
NFL
| Team | |Regular Season | CLE 1945 Cleveland Rams season at Cleveland Municipal Stadium, Cleveland, OH* Game attendance: 32,178In the first quarter, the Redskins had the ball at their own 5-yard line. Dropping back into the end zone, quarterback Sammy Baugh threw, but the ball hit the goal post and bounced back to the ground in the end zone... |
1945 1945 NFL season The 1945 NFL season was the 26th regular season of the National Football League. The Pittsburgh Steelers and the Chicago Cardinals resumed their traditional operations.... |
9 | 1 | 0 | .750 | 1st in West | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | NFL Champions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LA 1946 Los Angeles Rams season The 1946 Los Angeles Rams season was the team's ninth year with the National Football League and the first season in Los Angeles.-NFL Draft:-Transactions:... |
1946 2008 NFL season The 2008 NFL season was the 89th regular season of the National Football League, themed with the slogan "Believe in Now."Super Bowl XLIII, the league's championship game, was at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida on February 1, 2009, with the Pittsburgh Steelers coming out victorious over the... |
6 | 4 | 1 | .600 | 2nd in West | – | – | – | – | ||
| Total | 15 | 5 | 1 | .750 | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | |||||