Joel Eaves
| Sport(s) | Basketball, football |
|---|---|
| Biographical details | |
| Born |
June 3, 1914 Copperhill, Tennessee |
| Died |
July 18, 1991 (aged 77) Athens, Georgia |
| Playing career | |
| 1934–1937 | Auburn |
| Position(s) | Guard, End (football) |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| Basketball | |
| 1937 | Sewanee (assistant) |
| 1938–1941 | Sewanee |
| 1949–1963 | Auburn |
| Football | |
| 1957 | Auburn (assistant) |
| Administrative career (AD unless noted) | |
| 1963–1979 | Georgia |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 212–141 (.601) |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| |
| Awards | |
| |
Joel Harry Eaves (June 3, 1914 – July 18, 1991) was a college football and basketball player and coach as well as athletic director. He is perhaps most known for coaching basketball at his alma mater, the Auburn Tigers of Auburn University.[1] He is the all-time winningest coach in Auburn basketball history. He was also once athletic director for the Georgia Bulldogs. Eaves was inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame in 1978.[2]
Early years
Eaves was born on the Georgia state line in Copperhill, Tennessee.[3][4] He grew up in Atlanta and attended Tech High School.[5]
Playing career
Eaves played on the Auburn Tigers basketball, football, and baseball teams
Basketball
Eaves was captain of the basketball team his senior year, an all-around guard.[6] He stood 6 feet 3 inches and weighed 190 pounds. The head coach of the basketball team was Ralph "Shug" Jordan.
Football
On coach Jack Meagher's football team, Eaves was an end, selected All-SEC by the Associated Press in 1936.[7] He was drafted in the eighth round of the 1937 NFL Draft by the Boston Redskins but never played in the National Football League (NFL).
Baseball
He pitched on the baseball team.
Coaching career
Sewanee
Before coaching at Auburn, he coached the Sewanee Tigers basketball team.[8]
Auburn
Eaves coached the Auburn men's basketball program from 1949 to 1963. He guided Auburn to its first SEC championship in 1960, and was named SEC Coach of the Year that season. Eaves made famous the shuffle offense while at Auburn.[9] After 14 seasons at Auburn, Eaves finished with a record of 213-100 (.681), making him the winningest men's basketball coach in Auburn history.
Eaves also assisted with the football team while at Auburn, helping with the freshmen ends for two years before coaching varsity defensive ends, contributing to Auburn's 1957 national championship.[10]
Joel Eaves was inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame in 1978.[9] Auburn's Memorial Coliseum was renamed after Eaves to Joel H. Eaves Memorial Coliseum in 1987, and later to Beard-Eaves-Memorial Coliseum in 1993.[11]
Administrative career
Eaves was the athletic director for the Georgia Bulldogs from 1963 to 1979. He hired Vince Dooley as football coach.[4]
References
- ↑ "Joel Eaves".
- ↑ "Joel Harry Eaves".
- ↑ "Ex Tiger Coach Dies Of Heart Failure". Florence Times Daily. July 19, 1991.
- 1 2 "Ex Tiger Coach Dies Of Heart Failure". Times Daily. July 19, 1991.
- ↑ "Former Georgia AD Eaves Dead At 77" (PDF). Savannah Morning News. July 19, 1991. Retrieved June 13, 2015.
- ↑ "Auburn University Original 1937 Basketball Photo".
- ↑ "Associated Press Names All-Southeastern Eleven". St. Petersburg Times. December 1, 1936.
- ↑ "Joel Eaves".
- 1 2 "Alabama Sports Hall of Fame and Museum – Birmingham, Alabama". ashof.org. Retrieved 2016-03-02.
- ↑ "Joel Eaves, Georgia AD". Tuscaloosa News. October 15, 1978.
- ↑ "AUBURNTIGERS.COM :: Auburn University Official Athletic Site". www.auburntigers.com. Retrieved 2016-03-02.