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 Phelan in 1938 | |
| Biographical details | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1892-12-05)December 5, 1892 Sacramento, California, U.S. |
| Died | November 14, 1974(1974-11-14) (aged 81) Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S. |
| Playing career | |
| Football | |
| 1915–1917 | Notre Dame |
| Position | Quarterback |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| Football | |
| 1919 | Missouri (assistant) |
| 1920–1921 | Missouri |
| 1922–1929 | Purdue |
| 1930–1941 | Washington |
| 1942–1947 | Saint Mary's |
| 1948–1949 | Los Angeles Dons |
| 1951 | New York Yanks |
| 1952 | Dallas Texans |
| Basketball | |
| 1943–1945 | Saint Mary's |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 137–87–14 (college football) 13–35–2 (AAFC/NFL) 10–11 (college basketball) |
| Bowls | 1–3 |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| Football Big Ten (1929) PCC (1936) | |
| College Football Hall of Fame Inducted in 1973 (profile) | |
James Michael Phelan (December 5, 1892 – November 14, 1974) was an Americanfootball player and coach of football andbasketball. He served as the head football coach at theUniversity of Missouri (1920–1921),Purdue University (1922–1929), theUniversity of Washington (1930–1941), andSaint Mary's College of California (1942–1947), compiling a careercollege football record of 137–87–14.
Phelan also coached theLos Angeles Dons of theAll-America Football Conference (AAFC) from 1948 to 1949, theNew York Yanks andDallas Texans of theNational Football League (NFL) in 1951 and 1952, tallying a professional football coaching record of 13–35–2. In addition, he was the headbasketball coach at Saint Mary's for two seasons duringWorld War II (1943–1945), where he amassed a record 10–11. Phelan played college football as aquarterback at theUniversity of Notre Dame from1915 to1917. He was inducted into theCollege Football Hall of Fame as a coach in 1973.
After growing up inPortland, Oregon, Phelan went to Notre Dame in1915. In his first game as a reserve quarterback andplacekicker for thefootball team, he threw for a touchdown and ran for another in a 32–0 victory overAlma College. This earned him thestarting job, and he would go on to complete a 7–1 season, the lone defeat was by one point atNebraska.
The1916 team was a defensive juggernaut, shutting out every team it played except for its meeting withArmy, which it lost 30–10, thus finishing the season 8–1. The1917 campaign began with a 55–0 victory overKalamazoo, followed by a scoreless tie atWisconsin, in which Phelan attempted to win the game by kicking a 61-yardfield goal; the ball bounced off the crossbar. A 7–0 loss atNebraska the following week was the last game of his career, as he was drafted into military service forWorld War I and sent toCamp Taylor inLouisville, Kentucky.
Following the war, Phelan entered the college coaching ranks. From 1920 to 1921, he coached at Missouri, and compiled a 13–3 record. From 1922 to 1929, he coached at Purdue, and compiled a 35–22–4 record there. From1930 to1941, he coached at Washington inSeattle, and compiled a 65–37–9 record there.[1][2][3]
Following a six-year stint as head coach ofSaint Mary's (CA) that included two bowl appearances, Phelan joined the coaching staff of three professional football franchises, including a two-year stint as the head coach of theLos Angeles Dons and one season as head coach of theNFL's Dallas Texans in 1952.[4]
Phelan was inducted into theCollege Football Hall of Fame in 1973.
| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | AP# | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Missouri Tigers(Missouri Valley Conference)(1920–1921) | |||||||||
| 1920 | Missouri | 7–1 | 5–1 | 2nd | |||||
| 1921 | Missouri | 6–2 | 4–2 | T–2nd | |||||
| Missouri: | 13–3 | 9–3 | |||||||
| Purdue Boilermakers(Big Ten Conference)(1922–1929) | |||||||||
| 1922 | Purdue | 1–5–1 | 0–3–1 | 10th | |||||
| 1923 | Purdue | 2–5–1 | 1–4 | T–8th | |||||
| 1924 | Purdue | 5–2 | 2–2 | 5th | |||||
| 1925 | Purdue | 3–4–1 | 0–3–1 | T–9th | |||||
| 1926 | Purdue | 5–2–1 | 2–1–1 | 4th | |||||
| 1927 | Purdue | 6–2 | 2–2 | T–4th | |||||
| 1928 | Purdue | 5–2–1 | 2–2–1 | 6th | |||||
| 1929 | Purdue | 8–0 | 5–0 | 1st | |||||
| Purdue: | 35–22–5 | 14–17–4 | |||||||
| Washington Huskies(Pacific Coast Conference)(1930–1941) | |||||||||
| 1930 | Washington | 5–4 | 3–4 | 5th | |||||
| 1931 | Washington | 5–3–1 | 3–3–1 | 5th | |||||
| 1932 | Washington | 6–2–2 | 3–2–2 | 4th | |||||
| 1933 | Washington | 5–4 | 3–4 | 7th | |||||
| 1934 | Washington | 6–1–1 | 5–1–1 | 3rd | |||||
| 1935 | Washington | 5–3 | 4–3 | 6th | |||||
| 1936 | Washington | 7–2–1 | 7–0–1 | 1st | LRose | 5 | |||
| 1937 | Washington | 7–2–2 | 4–2–2 | 3rd | WPoi | ||||
| 1938 | Washington | 3–5–1 | 3–4–1 | 6th | |||||
| 1939 | Washington | 4–5 | 4–4 | 4th | |||||
| 1940 | Washington | 7–2 | 7–1 | 2nd | 10 | ||||
| 1941 | Washington | 5–4 | 5–3 | T–2nd | |||||
| Washington: | 65–37–8 | 51–31–8 | |||||||
| Saint Mary's Gaels(Independent)(1942–1947) | |||||||||
| 1942 | Saint Mary's | 6–3–1 | |||||||
| 1943 | Saint Mary's | 2–5 | |||||||
| 1944 | Saint Mary's | 0–5 | |||||||
| 1945 | Saint Mary's | 7–2 | LSugar | ||||||
| 1946 | Saint Mary's | 6–3 | LOil | ||||||
| 1947 | Saint Mary's | 3–7 | |||||||
| Saint Mary's: | 24–25–1 | ||||||||
| Total: | 137–87–14 | ||||||||
| National championship Conference title Conference division title or championship game berth | |||||||||
| |||||||||