Frederick M. Ellis
File:Fred Ellis photo.png | |
Biographical details | |
---|---|
Born | Norwood, Massachusetts | February 26, 1906
Died | July 19, 1967 Burlington, Massachusetts | (aged 61)
Playing career | |
Football | |
1926–1928 | Tufts |
Position(s) | Quarterback |
Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
Football | |
1946–1953 | Tufts |
Basketball | |
1946–1953 | Tufts |
Head coaching record | |
Overall | 25–34–6 (football) 74–75 (basketball) |
Frederick Melvin "Fish" Ellis (February 26, 1906 – July 19, 1967) was an American sportsman who played football, basketball, baseball, and track at Tufts University. He was also an athletics coach, administrator, and university professor at Tufts. Ellis is the namesake of Tufts' home football field, the Ellis Oval. He is regarded by many as one of the greatest athletes in Tufts history.[1][2][3]
Early life and playing career
Ellis was born in 1906 in Norwood, Massachusetts.[1] His family moved to Gloucester and then to Medford, where Ellis attended Medford High School, graduating in 1925.[1] Ellis entered Tufts University that fall, majoring in civil engineering.[2] Ellis lettered in four sports – football, basketball, baseball, and track – at Tufts, from which he graduated in 1929.[1] He was the first Tufts student to earn varsity letters in four sports.[1]
Ellis is best remembered for his time playing football.[4] He played quarterback for the Tufts football team from 1926 to 1928, scoring a school-record 181 points.[5] That record stood until 2016, when Shayne "Chance" Brady finished his Tufts career with 210 points.[6] Ellis led the 1927 squad to an undefeated season, with the Jumbos posting a perfect 8–0 record.[3][5]
Ellis' future wife, Dorothea Loughlin, attended Jackson College – the women's college associated with Tufts – from 1927 to 1931 and played on the Jackson baseball team.[3]
Later life
For a period of time after graduating, Ellis coached at Dean Academy. His stint included a period of time during which the team assembled three consecutive undefeated seasons.[7]
Ellis eventually returned to Medford and served as the head football coach at Tufts from 1946 to 1953, compiling a record of 25–34–6.[5] He was also the head basketball coach from 1946 to 1953, tallying a mark of 74–75.[8] In 1954, Ellis became a full professor and the chairman of Tufts' Department of Physical Education.[4][9]
Death and honors
Ellis died of a heart attack at the age of 61 on July 19, 1967 at his home in Burlington, Massachusetts.[10] He was survived by Dorothea and their two daughters, Faith and Susan, both of whom graduated from Tufts (as did their husbands).[9][10] Dorothea passed away on October 14, 2011.[11]
The football field at Tufts University was named in his honor as Frederick M. Ellis Oval at homecoming in 1969.[2][12] The Frederick M. Ellis Prize Scholarship at Tufts is named in his memory.[13] On April 21, 2018, Ellis was a member of the inaugural class inducted into the Tufts University Athletics Hall of Fame.[4][14]
Head coaching record
Football
Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Tufts Jumbos (Independent) (1946–1953) | |||||||||
1946 | Tufts | 1–6 | |||||||
1947 | Tufts | 5–2 | |||||||
1948 | Tufts | 3–4–1 | |||||||
1949 | Tufts | 5–3–1 | |||||||
1950 | Tufts | 4–4–1 | |||||||
1951 | Tufts | 0–7–2 | |||||||
1952 | Tufts | 3–4–1 | |||||||
1953 | Tufts | 4–3 | |||||||
Tufts: | 25–34–6 | ||||||||
Total: | 25–34–6 |
References
- ^ a b c d e Sauer, Anne; Branco, Jessica; Bennett, John; Crowley, Zachary (2000). "Ellis, Fredrick M., "Fish", 1906-1967". Concise Encyclopedia of Tufts History. Medford, MA: Tufts University Press. Archived from the original on May 25, 2018.
- ^ a b c "'Fish' Ellis: all-time Tufts athletic great". Tufts Journal. February 2002. Archived from the original on May 25, 2018.
- ^ a b c Herlihy, Mark (Spring 2002). "Go Jumbos! A History of Tufts Athletics". Tufts Online Magazine. Archived from the original on May 25, 2018.
- ^ a b c "First Class Inducted into Tufts Athletics Hall of Fame Saturday Night". Tufts University Athletics. April 22, 2018. Archived from the original on May 25, 2018.
- ^ a b c "Tufts University Football Program Records". Tufts University Athletics. Archived from the original on May 25, 2018.
{{cite web}}
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(help) - ^ Sweeney, Paul (Spring 2018). "Tufts All Stars". Tufts Magazine. Archived from the original on May 25, 2018.
- ^ Associated Press (October 8, 1942). "Expect Defeat". Biloxi Daily Herald. Retrieved May 25, 2018.
- ^ "Tufts University Men's Basketball Program Records". Tufts University Athletics. Archived from the original on May 25, 2018.
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(help) - ^ a b Dixon, Linda J. (1979). "Cohen, the Oval and Alumnae Hall". High on the Hill: Tufts Then and Now (4th ed.). Medford, MA: Tufts University Press. Archived from the original on May 25, 2018.
- ^ a b "Prof. Frederick Ellis Dies; Set Football Marks at Tufts". The New York Times. July 20, 1967. Retrieved April 13, 2011.
- ^ "Tufts Mourns The Loss Of Dorothea M. "Dorie" Ellis, Matriarch of Jumbo Athletics". Tufts University Athletics. October 17, 2011. Archived from the original on May 25, 2018.
- ^ Corbett, Bernard M.; Simpson, Paul (2004). The Only Game That Matters: The Harvard/Yale Rivalry. New York: Crown Publishing Group. p. 238. ISBN 978-1400050680.
- ^ Sauer, Anne; Branco, Jessica; Bennett, John; Crowley, Zachary (2000). "Frederick Melvin Ellis Prize, 1968". Concise Encyclopedia of Tufts History. Medford, MA: Tufts University Press. Archived from the original on May 25, 2018.
- ^ Samuels, Eddie (April 23, 2018). "Tufts inducts inaugural Hall of Fame class". The Tufts Daily. Archived from the original on May 25, 2018.
- 1906 births
- 1967 deaths
- American football quarterbacks
- American military personnel of World War II
- Baseball players from Massachusetts
- Basketball players from Massachusetts
- Tufts Jumbos athletic directors
- Tufts Jumbos baseball players
- Tufts Jumbos football coaches
- Tufts Jumbos football players
- Tufts Jumbos men's basketball coaches
- College men's basketball head coaches in the United States
- College golf coaches in the United States
- College men's track and field athletes in the United States
- High school basketball coaches in the United States
- High school football coaches in the United States
- People from Burlington, Massachusetts
- Sportspeople from Gloucester, Massachusetts
- Sportspeople from Medford, Massachusetts
- People from Norwood, Massachusetts
- Players of American football from Massachusetts
- Tufts University faculty
- United States Army Air Forces officers