Dick Romney

Ernest Lowell "Dick" Romney (February 12, 1895 – February 5, 1969) was an American football, basketball and baseball player and coach, track athlete, and college athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach and athletic director at the Agricultural College of Utah, now Utah State University, from 1918 to 1949,[1] compiling a career college football record of 128–91–16. Romney was also the head basketball coach at Utah Agricultural from 1919 to 1941, tallying a college basketball mark of 224–158. He served as the commissioner of the Skyline Conference from 1949 to 1960.[2][3] Romney was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame as a coach in 1954[4] and was elected to the Helms Athletic Foundation and Hall of Fame as a football coach in 1958.

Dick Romney
Romney pictured in Buzzer 1921, Utah Agricultural yearbook
Biographical details
Born(1895-02-12)February 12, 1895
Salt Lake City, Utah, U.S.
DiedFebruary 5, 1969(1969-02-05) (aged 73)
Salt Lake City, Utah, U.S.
Playing career
1914–1916Utah
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
Football
1919–1948Utah Agricultural
Basketball
1919–1941Utah Agricultural
Administrative career (AD unless noted)
1919–1948Utah Agricultural
1949–1960Skyline Six / Skyline (comm.)
Head coaching record
Overall128–91–16 (football)
224–158 (basketball)
Bowls0–1
Accomplishments and honors
Championships
Football
3 RMC (1921, 1935–1936)
1 Mountain States (1946)
College Football Hall of Fame
Inducted in 1954 (profile)

Early life, family, and playing career

Romney was born in Salt Lake City to George Romney and Hannah Ottinger Romney. "Dick" was a nickname to given him by his mother. He married Elizabeth ("Beth") Horlick of Salt Lake City in 1917.

He graduated from the University of Utah where he lettered in football (playing as a running back), basketball, baseball, and track. He was a member of the A.A.U. national championship basketball team of 1916.[5] In 1916, he was chosen by the Helms Foundation as an All-American Collegiate and A.A.U. Basketball player.

As a member of the U.S. Army's 362nd Infantry, Romney played halfback for the Fort Lewis football team, scoring the only touchdown in a loss to Mare Island's team in the wartime 1918 Rose Bowl.[6]

Romney's brothers—G. Ottinger "Ott" Romney, W. W. "Woody" Romney, Milton "Mitt" Romney and Floyd Romney—were all gifted athletes and four were coaches. Ott coached the champion 'Golden Bobcats' (Basketball, 1928) at Montana State Agricultural College, now Montana State University, Bozeman. Floyd played football for Ott at Montana State, and went on to a long coaching career at East High School in Salt Lake City, Utah. Mitt played college football at Utah and Chicago as a quarterback and later coached at Texas and for the Racine Cardinals. From 1925 to 1928, Mitt was a quarterback for the Chicago Bears of the NFL. Mitt Romney is a first cousin to former Governor George Romney of Michigan, and his son, Mitt Romney of Massachusetts, was named for him.[7]

Coaching career

Between 1925 and 1948, Romney organized and operated a summer school for football and basketball coaches that he ran in Logan, Utah. Noteworthy football speakers included Knute Rockne, Pop Warner, "Pappy" Waldorf, "Fritz" Kreisler, Clark Schaunnessy and Henry Frankel. Basketball greats presented at Romney's clinics.[8]

Later years and honors

A new football stadium built in 1968 (replacing an earlier facility built in 1927, also named for him) at Utah State University was renamed Romney Stadium. Romney Stadium honored the Hall of Fame coach from 1969 to 2015, when it was renamed for a corporate sponsor.

On February 5, 1969, Romney died from a heart attack at his home in Salt Lake City, one week before his 74th birthday, at the age of 73.[9]

Head coaching record

Football
Year Team Overall ConferenceStanding Bowl/playoffs
Utah Agricultural/State Aggies (Rocky Mountain Conference) (1919–1937)
1919 Utah Agricultural 5–22–2T–4th
1920 Utah Agricultural 4–2–12–14th
1921 Utah Agricultural 7–13–01st
1922 Utah Agricultural 5–43–3T–5th
1923 Utah Agricultural 5–24–24th
1924 Utah Agricultural 4–2–13–2–1T–2nd
1925 Utah Agricultural 6–15–1T–2nd
1926 Utah Agricultural 5–1–24–1–23rd
1927 Utah Agricultural 3–4–13–37th
1928 Utah Agricultural 5–3–14–2–14th
1929 Utah State 3–43–49th
1930 Utah State 3–5–13–4–18th
1931 Utah State 6–25–22nd
1932 Utah State 4–43–3T–6th
1933 Utah State 4–44–36th
1934 Utah State 5–1–15–1–14th
1935 Utah State 5–2–15–1–1T–1st
1936 Utah State 7–0–16–0–11st
1937 Utah State 2–4–22–4–17th
Utah State Aggies (Mountain States / Skyline Six Conference) (1938–1948)
1938 Utah State 4–43–35th
1939 Utah State 3–4–12–3–15th
1940 Utah State 2–5–12–45th
1941 Utah State 0–80–67th
1942 Utah State 6–3–12–3–14th
1943 No team—World War II
1944 Utah State 3–30–24th
1945 Utah State 4–31–34th
1946 Utah State 7–2–14–1–1T–1stL Raisin
1947 Utah State 6–53–3T–3rdL Grape
1948 Utah State 5–62–4T–2nd
Utah State: 128–91–1688–71–12
Total:128–91–16
      National championship         Conference title         Conference division title or championship game berth

Basketball
Statistics overview
Season Team Overall Conference Standing Postseason
Utah Agricultural (Independent) (1919–1923)
1919–20 Utah Agricultural 2–0
1920–21 Utah Agricultural 6–4
1921–22 Utah Agricultural 8–3
1922–23 Utah Agricultural 8–4
Utah Agricultural (Mountain States Conference) (1923–1941)
1923–24 Utah Agricultural 6–63–52nd
1924–25 Utah Agricultural 12–75–5T–2nd
1925–26 Utah Agricultural 13–58–41st
1926–27 Utah Agricultural 11–39–32nd
1927–28 Utah Agricultural 7–75–72nd
1928–29 Utah Agricultural 8–104–83rd
1929–30 Utah Agricultural 15–77–5T–1st
1930–31 Utah Agricultural 13–77–5T–2nd
1931–32 Utah Agricultural 7–152–104th
1932–33 Utah Agricultural 10–124–83rd
1933–34 Utah Agricultural 14–67–5T–2nd
1934–35 Utah Agricultural 17–59–31st
1935–36 Utah Agricultural 17–99–31st
1936–37 Utah Agricultural 6–95–7T–3rd
1937–38 Utah Agricultural 11–96–64th
1938–39 Utah Agricultural 17–78–42ndNCAA Regional Third Place
1939–40 Utah Agricultural 11–77–5T–3rd
1940–41 Utah Agricultural 5–162–107th
Utah Agricultural: 224–158 (.586)107–103 (.510)
Total:224–158 (.586)

      National champion         Postseason invitational champion  
      Conference regular season champion         Conference regular season and conference tournament champion
      Division regular season champion       Division regular season and conference tournament champion
      Conference tournament champion

References
  1. "The Deseret News - Google News Archive Search".
  2. McCulloch, Ollie (January 28, 1949). "Dick Romney Accepts Skyline Six Commissioner Position". The Salt Lake Tribune. p. 22. Retrieved January 5, 2020 – via newspapers.com.
  3. "Brechler Quits Iowa Post, Becomes Skyline Chief". The Salt Lake Tribune. AP. February 25, 1960. p. 21. Retrieved January 5, 2020 – via newspapers.com.
  4. "The Deseret News - Google News Archive Search".
  5. Sheltra, Patrick (September 2011). 100 Things Utes Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die. ISBN 9781617495694.
  6. "Camp Lewis 91st Division football team plays the Mare Island Marines in the Rose Bowl on January 1, 1918". HistoryLink. Retrieved January 16, 2016.
  7. "Romney family has Cache connections". The Herald Journal. North Logan, Utah. July 20, 2012. Retrieved September 17, 2017.
  8. Doug Robinson (July 4, 2015). "Doug Robinson: When money speaks louder than legends". DeseretNews.com.
  9. "All-Time Great Dick Romney Dies Of Heart Attack". The Ogden Standard-Examiner. February 6, 1969. p. 6C – via Newspapers.com.
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