Robert Erskine (coach)

Robert Horace "Doc" Erskine (July 4, 1904 – February 1, 1978)[1] was an American college football and basketball coach. He served at Loyola University New Orleans as the head football coach from 1933 to 1934 and as the head basketball coach from 1924 to 1925 and 1933 to 1939.

Robert Erskine
Biographical details
Born(1904-07-04)July 4, 1904
Waukegan, Illinois
DiedFebruary 1, 1978(1978-02-01) (aged 73)
San Mateo, California
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
Football
1926–1932Jesuit HS (LA)
1933–1934Loyola (LA)
1935–1940Oklahoma (assistant)
1941Marquette ([backs)
1946–1947Marquette (ends)
1948–1951Marquette (backs)
1952–1954Marquette (ends)
Basketball
1924–1925Loyola (LA)
1933–1939Loyola (LA)
Head coaching record
Overall11–7 (college football)
48–61 (college basketball)

Biography

"Doc" was born on the Fourth of July in Waukegan, Illinois, to Caroline V. Griffith (1870–1952) & Robert James Erskine (1878–1925). He had an elder brother, David G. Erskine.[2]

Erskine served as a lieutenant of infantry in the United States Army Reserve.[3] He never played football at any level, but was described by the Associated Press as a capable analyst of blocking, running, passing, and punting.[4]

He served as coach and trainer at the New Mexico Military Institute and Louisiana State University before being named basketball coach at Loyola University at New Orleans in 1924 while still a student. He received a B.S. from Loyola in 1926.[5]

From 1926 to 1933, he coached at Jesuit High School in New Orleans, where he led the football team to a "brilliant record" of 46–8–3.[6] After a year as assistant, he was head coach from 1927 through 1932. “During his six-year tenure as head coach, Erskine won four Prep championships,” wrote Ronald J. Drez in Gallant Fighting Sons. “Those six powerhouse football teams amassed 1,585 points to the opponents’ 362. His basketball teams won five consecutive Prep championships from 1929 to 1933. And his track teams collected four Prep trophies....Even Erskine’s golf teams won two Prep championships. In Doc’s six years, Jesuit athletics had exploded.” One of his athletes was 1932 Olympic Gold Medalist Emmett Toppino and Doc’s 1933 half-mile relay squad finished second in a national invitational in Chicago only to a team anchored by Jesse Owens.[7]

In March 1933, Loyola University New Orleans appointed Erskine as its head football coach, replacing Clark Shaughnessy.[6] As head football coach at Loyola from 1933 to 1934, Erskine's team amassed an 11–7 record.[4] He resigned on December 19, 1934.[8] In his seven years as Loyola basketball coach in 1924–25 and from 1933 to 1939, Erskine compiled a combined record of 48–61.[9]

In 1935, he was hired as the backfield assistant at Oklahoma under Biff Jones.[4] In 1938, Sooners fans recognized his hard work as a scout, naming him the "travelingest coach". In that role, he logged over 15,000 miles, including a 4,400-mile outing to Seattle (via Chicago) in preparation for a game against Washington State.[10] In 1940, Erskine was shifted from freshman coach to once again handle backfield duties.[11]

Erskine followed Tom Stidham to Marquette University, where he served as backfield coach for the 1941 season.[12] He intended to remain at the school the following year,[13] but he received military orders to report for duty in the United States Army Air Corps at Lowry Field as a first lieutenant in July.[3] In September 1943, he was serving in the Air Corps Intelligence Division and was promoted to the rank of captain and discharged as a major.[14] He returned from the service to Marquette in March 1946,[15] and worked as the ends coach under head coach Frank Murray.[16][17] He was shifted to backfield coach for the 1948 season,[18] and by 1952, had been switched again.[19] Erskine also handled scouting duties for the program.[20]

Head coaching record

College football
Year Team Overall ConferenceStanding Bowl/playoffs
Loyola Wolf Pack (Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association) (1933–1934)
1933 Loyola 7–23–1T–8th
1934 Loyola 4–53–1T–8th
Loyola: 11–76–2
Total:11–7

References
  1. Ancestry.com. California, Death Index, 1940–1997 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2000.
  2. Year: 1920; Census Place: Waukegan, Lake, Illinois; Roll: T625_382; Page: 10B; Enumeration District: 271
  3. Doc Erskine is Called For Air Corps Service, The Milwaukee Journal, Jun 10, 1942.
  4. Oklahomans Think Biff Good Medicine For Ailing Sooners, St. Petersburg Times, May 4, 1935.
  5. Jesuit High School, The Blue Jay, New Orleans, Louisiana; 1927. Loyola University of the South, New Orleans, "U.S., School Yearbooks, 1880–2012"; Year: 1926
  6. Doc Erskine Succeeds Shaughnessy as Coach, Youngstown Vindicator, Mar 12, 1933.
  7. Ronald J. Drez, Gallant Fighting Sons: The Jesuits, Louisiana, And Their School In New Orleans; Konecky & Konecky, LLC; 2012. pg. 104.
  8. Y. M. C. A. TEAM BEATS MAROON WRESTLERS, 14–8, Chicago Daily Tribune, Dec 20, 1934.
  9. 2010–11 Loyola University New Orleans Men's Basketball Media Guide, p. 41, Loyola University New Orleans, 2010.
  10. "TRAVELINGEST COACH?" ONE NOMINATION, Daily Boston Globe, Dec 9, 1938.
  11. Oklahoma Will Have New Grid Line Coach, The Spokesman-Review, Feb 25, 1940.
  12. M.U. Opens Outdoor Practice, The Milwaukee Sentinel, Mar 31, 1941.
  13. Bob Waldorf to Coach Line at Marquette, Chicago Daily Tribune, Mar 15, 1942.
  14. Ancestry.com. U.S., Department of Veterans Affairs BIRLS Death File, 1850–2010 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011.In the WAKE of the NEWS, Chicago Daily Tribune, Sep 10, 1943.
  15. 10 Named for $50,000 Race at Santa Anita, Chicago Daily Tribune, Mar 16, 1946.
  16. Hilltops' Record At Home Will Get Sternest Test, The Milwaukee Journal, Nov 5, 1946.
  17. Coach Murray To Take Advantage of Good Weather, The Milwaukee Journal, Apr 3, 1946.
  18. BELL NAMED END COACH; Former Marquette Ace Returns as Assistant to Murray, The New York Times, Apr 4, 1948.
  19. Soph Back Ace in M.U. Punting Drill, The Milwaukee Sentinel, Sep 17, 1952.
  20. MU Down? Cincinnati May Find Rejuvenated Warriors Tough, The Milwaukee Sentinel, Oct 8, 1954.
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