 | |
| Biographical details | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1882-07-06)July 6, 1882 Pasadena, California, U.S. |
| Died | April 21, 1924(1924-04-21) (aged 41) Cleveland, Ohio, U.S. |
| Playing career | |
| Football | |
| c. 1904 | Western Reserve |
| ? | Massillon Tigers |
| Position(s) | End,quarterback |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| Football | |
| 1906–1909 | Western Reserve (assistant) |
| 1910 | Western Reserve |
| 1911–1913 | Case |
| 1917 | Penn State (head field coach) |
| 1918 | Cleveland Naval Reserve |
| 1919–1922 | Alabama |
| Basketball | |
| 1910 | Nebraska State Normal |
| Baseball | |
| 1910 | Nebraska State Normal |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 49–26–4 (football) 7–1 (men's basketball) 1–3–1 (women's basketball) 11–1 (baseball) |
Xenophon Cole "Xen" Scott (July 6, 1882 – April 21, 1924) was anAmerican football player, coach of football,basketball, andbaseball, and a sportswriter. He served as the head football coach at Western Reserve University in 1910, at the Case School of Applied Science from 1911 to 1913—both Western Reserve and Case are now part ofCase Western Reserve University—and at theUniversity of Alabama from 1919 to 1922, compiling a careercollege football record of 49–26–4.
Born inPasadena, California in 1882,[1] Scott moved toCleveland, Ohio with his family when he was four.[2] He played college football as anend andquarterback atWestern Reserve, from which he graduated in 1905, and then professionally with theMassillon Tigers.[3]
Prior to being hired as head football coach, Scott was a horse-racing writer inCleveland.[4] He also contributed material to theSpalding's Official Foot Ball Guide in 1907 and 1908. In 1907 he became an assistant coach atWestern Reserve University in Cleveland, often attributed as a key reason for the success of the1907 and1908Western Reserve teams.[5] After the unexpected death of Western Reserve head coachWilliam B. Seaman, Scott began his head coaching career at Western Reserve for the1910 football season.
In 1910, Scott was hired to be head coach at theNebraska State Normal School inPeru, Nebraska, where he also coached baseball and basketball.[6] He compiled a 29–9–3 (.744) record at Alabama. His first Tide team went 8–1 to set a school record for victories in a season; his second team did better, going 10–1 and finishing atop the standings of theSouthern Intercollegiate Athletic Association.
Scott recruitedJoe Sewell to Alabama and then sent him to theCleveland Indians when Sewell's football days were over; Joe Sewell went to the Baseball Hall of Fame. Scott's Tide scored 110 points against Marion Institution in 1922, an Alabama football record which still stands today.
In 1922, Scott's Tide beatPenn, 9–7, a shocking upset at the time and one which heralded the arrival of Alabama as a national football power. However, Scott did not get to enjoy his success; a case ofcancer of the mouth and tongue forced his resignation after the 1922 season[7] and he died in 1924, in Cleveland, at age 41.[8][9]
| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Western Reserve(Ohio Athletic Conference)(1910) | |||||||||
| 1910 | Western Reserve | 5–4 | 4–3 | 5th | |||||
| Western Reserve: | 5–4 | 4–3 | |||||||
| Case(Ohio Athletic Conference)(1911–1913) | |||||||||
| 1911 | Case | 6–2–1 | 5–1–1 | 2nd | |||||
| 1912 | Case | 4–6 | 3–3 | T–5th | |||||
| 1913 | Case | 5–5 | 3–3 | T–7th | |||||
| Case: | 15–13–1 | 11–7–1 | |||||||
| Alabama Crimson Tide(Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association)(1919–1921) | |||||||||
| 1919 | Alabama | 8–1 | 6–1 | 3rd | |||||
| 1920 | Alabama | 10–1 | 6–1 | 4th | |||||
| 1921 | Alabama | 5–4–2 | 2–4–2 | 18th | |||||
| Alabama Crimson Tide(Southern Conference)(1922) | |||||||||
| 1922 | Alabama | 6–3–1 | 3–2–1 | 8th | |||||
| Alabama: | 29–9–3 | 17–8–3 | |||||||
| Total: | 49–26–4 | ||||||||
.| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
