Harris G. Cope

Harris G. Cope

Coach Cope c. 1913
Sport(s) Football
Biographical details
Born (1880-03-16)March 16, 1880
Savannah, Georgia
Died September 24, 1924(1924-09-24) (aged 44)
Birmingham, Alabama
Alma mater Sewanee: The University of the South
Playing career
1899–1901 Sewanee
Position(s) Third baseman/Quarterback
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1904 Sewanee (assistant)
1909–1916 Sewanee
1922–1923 Howard
Head coaching record
Overall 48–28–12

Statistics

Accomplishments and honors
Championships
1 SIAA (as player) (1899)
1 SIAA (as coach) (1909)

Harris Goodwin Cope (March 16, 1880 September 24, 1924) was an American football and baseball player and football coach. Cope was a member of the National Football Rules Committee in 1914-15.

Playing years

Cope first played at Taft School in Watertown, Connecticut.[1]

Sewanee

Cope c. 1901

Football

In his first year of varsity football, Cope was a substitute quarterback on the undefeated "Iron Men" of the 1899 Sewanee Tigers football team. He was the captain and the starting quarter for Sewanee's 1901 team.[2]

Baseball

He played third baseman on the Sewanee baseball team.

Coaching years

Cope coached at Sewanee: University of the South and Howard College.[3] He worked for a short time as a business man in Cartersville before returning to Sewanee to coach in 1909.[4]

Sewanee

Cope has the third-most wins of any Sewanee coach (43), behind Shirley Majors' 93 and John Windham's 45; and has the highest winning percentage of any Sewanee coach who coached for more than 3 seasons. His continuity came after a period in which Sewanee had much talent but six coaches in seven years.[5]

1909

In Cope's first year at head coach he led the Sewanee Tigers to an Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association (SIAA) championship in 1909, beating previous season's champion LSU and handing Vanderbilt its first loss to a Southern team in six years.

Howard

Former Sewanee player Bob Taylor Dobbins assisted Cope at Howard.

Legacy

Cope's disciples include:

Head coaching record

Year Team Overall Conference Standing Bowl/playoffs
Sewanee Tigers (Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association) (1909–1916)
1909 Sewanee 6–1 5–0 1st
1910 Sewanee 8–2 3–1 T–3rd
1911 Sewanee 6–3–1 2–3 9th
1912 Sewanee 5–1–2 2–1–2 5th
1913 Sewanee 4–3 2–2 7th
1914 Sewanee 5–3 4–2 5th
1915 Sewanee 4–3–2 2–2–2 10th
1916 Sewanee 5–2–2 2–2–2 14th
Sewanee: 43–18–7 22–14–6
Howard Bulldogs (Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association) (1922–1923)
1922 Howard 2–6–2
1923 Howard 3–4–3
Howard: 5–10–5
Total: 48–28–12
      National championship         Conference title         Conference division title

References

  1. Marvin McCarthy (January 2, 1922). "Howard Gets Coach Cope". Atlanta Constitution. p. 9. Retrieved February 18, 2016 via Newspapers.com.
  2. John Hunter Garland (1962). The Mills, Cope, and related families of Georgia. p. 188.
  3. "Harris Cope".
  4. "Coach For Sewanee". Atlanta Georgian. August 31, 1909.
  5. James Gregg, Jr. (1949). "Sports At Sewanee". Sewanee Alumni News: 3.

External links

Harris G. Cope at Find a Grave

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