John Joseph Ryan (April 3, 1886 – April 7, 1950) was an American football and basketball player and coach. He served as the head football coach at the College of St. Thomas in Saint Paul, Minnesota from 1911 to 1912, at Marquette University from 1917 to 1921, and at the University of Wisconsin from 1923 to 1924, compiling a career college football record of 44–11–11. Ryan was also the head basketball coach at Marquette from 1917 to 1920, tallying a mark of 13–9.
 Ryan pictured in The Hilltop 1920, Marquette yearbook | |
| Biographical details | |
|---|---|
| Born | April 3, 1886 Waterbury, Connecticut, U.S. |
| Died | April 7, 1950 (aged 64) Milwaukee, Wisconsin, U.S. |
| Playing career | |
| Football | |
| 1906 | New Hampshire |
| 1908–1910 | Dartmouth |
| Baseball | |
| 1909 | Dartmouth |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| Football | |
| 1911–1912 | St. Thomas (MN) |
| 1916 | Marquette (advisory) |
| 1917–1921 | Marquette |
| 1922 | Dartmouth (assistant) |
| 1923–1924 | Wisconsin |
| 1925–1929 | Northwestern (ends) |
| 1934–1939 | Northwestern (assistant) |
| Basketball | |
| 1917–1920 | Marquette |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 44–11–11 (football) 13–9 (basketball) |
Early life and playing career
editRyan was born on April 3, 1886, in Waterbury, Connecticut.[1] He first attended New Hampshire College of Agriculture and the Mechanic Arts (which later became the University of New Hampshire), where he played quarterback on the 1906 New Hampshire football team.[2] Ryan then attended Dartmouth College, where he played football, basketball, and baseball. He was captain of the 1910 Dartmouth football team.[3][4]
Coaching career
editAfter graduating from Dartmouth in 1911, Ryan began his coaching career at St. Thomas College in Saint Paul, Minnesota, where he was the school's first resident athletic coach. He moved to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in 1914, where he worked for a flour milling firm based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He joined the football team at Marquette University in 1916 as an advisory coach under fellow Dartmouth alumnus, John B. McAuliffe. Ryan replaced McAuliffe as head coach the following year and held the post for five seasons, during which he compiled a record of 28–5–5. He returned to his alma mater in 1922 to serve as an assistant to Jackson Cannell.
In March 1923, Ryan was hired as the head football coach at the University of Wisconsin. He was also given the title of assistant professor and paid an annual salary of $6,000.[5] Ryan helmed the Badgers football team for two seasons, tallying a mark of 5–6–4. He moved to Northwestern University in 1925, where he was the ends coach for five seasons under Glenn Thistlethwaite and Dick Hanley. Ryan returned to Hanley's staff as an assistant coach and scout in 1934, and continued on under Pappy Waldorf until 1939.[3]
Later life and death
editRyan served on the board of school directors in Milwaukee from 1940 until his death. He died on April 7, 1950, at St. Mary's Hospital in Milwaukee.[3]
Head coaching record
editFootball
edit| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. Thomas Cadets (Independent) (1911–1912) | |||||||||
| 1911 | St. Thomas | 5–0–1 | |||||||
| 1912 | St. Thomas | 6–0–1 | |||||||
| St. Thomas: | 11–0–2 | ||||||||
| Marquette Hilltoppers (Independent) (1917–1921) | |||||||||
| 1917 | Marquette | 8–0–1 | |||||||
| 1918 | Marquette | 2–0–1 | |||||||
| 1919 | Marquette | 5–1–2 | |||||||
| 1920 | Marquette | 7–2 | |||||||
| 1921 | Marquette | 6–2–1 | |||||||
| Marquette: | 28–5–5 | ||||||||
| Wisconsin Badgers (Big Ten Conference) (1923–1924) | |||||||||
| 1923 | Wisconsin | 3–3–1 | 1–3–1 | 7th | |||||
| 1924 | Wisconsin | 2–3–3 | 0–2–2 | T–8th | |||||
| Wisconsin: | 5–6–4 | 1–5–3 | |||||||
| Total: | 44–11–11 | ||||||||
References
edit- ^ Emerson, Charles Franklin (1911). General Catalogue of Dartmouth College and the Associated Schools 1769-1910. Concord, New Hampshire: Rumford Press. p. 458. Retrieved October 31, 2011.
- ^ "Alumni Notes". The New Hampshire College Monthly. Vol. 16, no. 3. December 1908. p. 90. Retrieved May 16, 2020 – via Wayback Machine.
- ^ a b c "John J. Ryan Dead; Ex-Football Coach; Served at U. of Wisconsin and Marquette—Captain of 1910 Eleven at Dartmouth" (PDF). The New York Times. AP. April 9, 1950. Retrieved October 30, 2011.
- ^ "John J. Ryan, 62, Dies; Ex-Wisconsin Coach". The Philadelphia Inquirer. AP. April 9, 1950. p. 55. Retrieved May 16, 2020 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Ryan to coach Wisconsin.; Former Dartmouth Man Selected for Football Post" (PDF). The New York Times. March 8, 1923. Retrieved October 30, 2011.