Leonard Allison
Encyclopedia
Leonard B. "Stub" Allison (November 15, 1892 – December 12, 1961) was an American football
, basketball
, and baseball
coach. He served as the head football coach at the University of Washington
(1920), the University of South Dakota
(1922–1926), at the University of California, Berkeley
(1935–1944), compiling a career college football
record of 80–66–5. At California, Allison amassed a 58–42–2 record. In 1937 and 1938, he guided the Bears
to back-to-back ten-win seasons, the only such occurrence in school history. His 1937 squad
, dubbed the "Thunder Team", won the 1938 Rose Bowl
, was named the national champions
by a number of selectors, and is considered by some sportswriters to have been the best team in school history. While at Washington, Allison also coached the baseball team, in 1920 and 1921, and the basketball team, in 1920.
in Northfield, Minnesota
, where he played football
. He graduated from Carleton in 1917. He also served for four years in the United States Army
.
disciple who mostly relied on the single-wing offense. Allison's first coaching experience came on the staff of his former college coach Claude J. Hunt
, at the University of Washington
in 1919. The following season, he took over as head coach, and his team amassed a 1–5 record. At Washington, Allison also spent time as the head coach of the baseball and basketball teams. In 1920, he led the basketball team to a 7–8 record, and in 1920 and 1921, he led the baseball team to 7–4–1 and 8–4 records, respectively.
Allison served as head coach at the University of South Dakota
from 1922 to 1926 and compiled a 21–19–3 mark. He then moved on to the University of Wisconsin
, where he was the head boxing instructor, football line coach, and assistant athletic director
from 1927 until 1931. That year, he went to the University of California, Berkeley
to take a position as an assistant football coach.
He became the head coach at California for the 1935 season. The ESPN College Football Encyclopedia rates the 1937 California team
as the best in school history. Allison led the "Thunder Team" (a play on California's "Wonder Teams" of the 1920s) to the Rose Bowl
, where they defeated Alabama
, 13–0, to finish with a 10–0–1 record. ESPN
noted that team relied on "power runs and a nasty, opportunistic defense that allowed only 33 points and shut out seven teams." Allison's final record at California was 58–42–2. Aside from being named national champions in 1937, under Allison, California captured a share of the Pacific Coast Conference
title in 1935 and 1938, and outright in 1937.
In April 1945, after Allison declined the opportunity to resign, California notified him that they would not renew his expiring contract. The Pittsburgh Press noted that after peaking in 1937, "five dismal years were climaxed last fall" in 1944, and that his firing was "no surprise since it was well known that an influential alumni bloc was lobbying against him on grounds that he shackled good material with a dull offense."
. Allison died on December 12, 1961 in the Alta Bates Hospital
in Oakland, California
hospital, to which he had been confined for three weeks because of a heart ailment. He was 69 years old and survived by his wife Ethyl.
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...
, basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
, and baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
coach. He served as the head football coach at the University of Washington
University of Washington
University of Washington is a public research university, founded in 1861 in Seattle, Washington, United States. The UW is the largest university in the Northwest and the oldest public university on the West Coast. The university has three campuses, with its largest campus in the University...
(1920), the University of South Dakota
University of South Dakota
The University of South Dakota ', the state’s oldest university, was founded in 1862 and classes began in 1882. Located in Vermillion, South Dakota, United States, USD is home to South Dakota's only medical school and law school. USD is governed by the South Dakota Board of Regents, and its current...
(1922–1926), at the University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
(1935–1944), compiling a career 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...
record of 80–66–5. At California, Allison amassed a 58–42–2 record. In 1937 and 1938, he guided the Bears
California Golden Bears football
The California Golden Bears football team is the college football team of the University of California. The team plays its home games at California Memorial Stadium, however the team played at San Francisco's AT&T Park in 2011 while Memorial Stadium was being renovated, the team will return to...
to back-to-back ten-win seasons, the only such occurrence in school history. His 1937 squad
1937 California Golden Bears football team
The 1937 California Golden Bears football team, nicknamed the "Thunder Team", represented the University of California, Berkeley in National Collegiate Athletic Association intercollegiate competition. They were led by third-year head coach Leonard "Stub" Allison. The Bears compiled a 10–0–1...
, dubbed the "Thunder Team", won the 1938 Rose Bowl
1938 Rose Bowl
The 1938 Rose Bowl was played on January 1, 1938, and was the 24th Rose Bowl. The game featured the California Golden Bears against the Alabama Crimson Tide, two of the top teams from the 1937 college football season...
, was named the national champions
NCAA Division I FBS National Football Championship
A college football national championship in the highest level of collegiate play in the United States, currently the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I Football Bowl Subdivision , is a designation awarded annually by various third-party organizations to their selection of the best...
by a number of selectors, and is considered by some sportswriters to have been the best team in school history. While at Washington, Allison also coached the baseball team, in 1920 and 1921, and the basketball team, in 1920.
Early life
Allison attended Carleton CollegeCarleton College
Carleton College is an independent non-sectarian, coeducational, liberal arts college in Northfield, Minnesota, USA. The college enrolls 1,958 undergraduate students, and employs 198 full-time faculty members. In 2012 U.S...
in Northfield, Minnesota
Northfield, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 17,147 people, 4,909 households, and 3,210 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,452.2 people per square mile . There were 5,119 housing units at an average density of 732.1 per square mile...
, where he played 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...
. He graduated from Carleton in 1917. He also served for four years in the United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
.
Coaching career
In its obituary for Allison, The Milwaukee Journal called him a Knute RockneKnute Rockne
Knute Kenneth Rockne was an American football player and coach. He is regarded as one of the greatest coaches in college football history...
disciple who mostly relied on the single-wing offense. Allison's first coaching experience came on the staff of his former college coach Claude J. Hunt
Claude J. Hunt
Claude J. "Jump" Hunt was an American football player and coach of football and basketball. He served as the head football coach at Hillsdale College , Carleton College , and the University of Washington...
, at the University of Washington
University of Washington
University of Washington is a public research university, founded in 1861 in Seattle, Washington, United States. The UW is the largest university in the Northwest and the oldest public university on the West Coast. The university has three campuses, with its largest campus in the University...
in 1919. The following season, he took over as head coach, and his team amassed a 1–5 record. At Washington, Allison also spent time as the head coach of the baseball and basketball teams. In 1920, he led the basketball team to a 7–8 record, and in 1920 and 1921, he led the baseball team to 7–4–1 and 8–4 records, respectively.
Allison served as head coach at the University of South Dakota
University of South Dakota
The University of South Dakota ', the state’s oldest university, was founded in 1862 and classes began in 1882. Located in Vermillion, South Dakota, United States, USD is home to South Dakota's only medical school and law school. USD is governed by the South Dakota Board of Regents, and its current...
from 1922 to 1926 and compiled a 21–19–3 mark. He then moved on to the University of Wisconsin
University of Wisconsin–Madison
The University of Wisconsin–Madison is a public research university located in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. Founded in 1848, UW–Madison is the flagship campus of the University of Wisconsin System. It became a land-grant institution in 1866...
, where he was the head boxing instructor, football line coach, and assistant athletic director
Athletic 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...
from 1927 until 1931. That year, he went to the University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
to take a position as an assistant football coach.
He became the head coach at California for the 1935 season. The ESPN College Football Encyclopedia rates the 1937 California team
1937 California Golden Bears football team
The 1937 California Golden Bears football team, nicknamed the "Thunder Team", represented the University of California, Berkeley in National Collegiate Athletic Association intercollegiate competition. They were led by third-year head coach Leonard "Stub" Allison. The Bears compiled a 10–0–1...
as the best in school history. Allison led the "Thunder Team" (a play on California's "Wonder Teams" of the 1920s) to the Rose Bowl
1938 Rose Bowl
The 1938 Rose Bowl was played on January 1, 1938, and was the 24th Rose Bowl. The game featured the California Golden Bears against the Alabama Crimson Tide, two of the top teams from the 1937 college football season...
, where they defeated Alabama
Alabama Crimson Tide football
|TeamName = Alabama football |Image = Alabama Crimson Tide Logo.svg |ImageSize = 110 |Helmet = Alabama Football.png |ImageSize2 = 150 |CurrentSeason = 2011 Alabama Crimson Tide football team...
, 13–0, to finish with a 10–0–1 record. ESPN
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
noted that team relied on "power runs and a nasty, opportunistic defense that allowed only 33 points and shut out seven teams." Allison's final record at California was 58–42–2. Aside from being named national champions in 1937, under Allison, California captured a share of the Pacific Coast Conference
Pacific Coast Conference
The Pacific Coast Conference was a college athletic conference in the United States which existed from 1915 to 1959. Though the Pacific-12 Conference claims the PCC's history as part of its own, the older league had a completely different charter and was disbanded in 1959 due to a major crisis...
title in 1935 and 1938, and outright in 1937.
In April 1945, after Allison declined the opportunity to resign, California notified him that they would not renew his expiring contract. The Pittsburgh Press noted that after peaking in 1937, "five dismal years were climaxed last fall" in 1944, and that his firing was "no surprise since it was well known that an influential alumni bloc was lobbying against him on grounds that he shackled good material with a dull offense."
Later life
From about 1946 until his death, Allison was the director of industrial relations at the Oakland Naval Supply CenterNaval Supply Depot, Oakland
Naval Supply Depot, Oakland was a supply facility operated by the U.S. Navy in Oakland, California. During World War II, it was a major source of supplies and war materials for ships operating in the Pacific....
. Allison died on December 12, 1961 in the Alta Bates Hospital
Alta Bates Summit Medical Center
Alta Bates Summit Medical Center is a hospital located in the East Bay of the San Francisco Bay Area. Its three campuses are located in Berkeley and Oakland...
in Oakland, California
Oakland, California
Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...
hospital, to which he had been confined for three weeks because of a heart ailment. He was 69 years old and survived by his wife Ethyl.
Football
External links
- Stub Allison at College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com