Pete Elliott

Peter R. Elliott (September 29, 1926 – January 4, 2013) was an American football player and coach. Elliott served as the head football coach at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln (1956), the University of California, Berkeley (1957–1959), the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (1960–1966), and the University of Miami (1973–1974), compiling a career college football record of 56–72–11. From 1979 to 1996, Elliott served as executive director of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

For other people named Peter Elliott, see Peter Elliott (disambiguation).
Pete Elliott
Elliott at Michigan Stadium on November 5, 1960
Biographical details
Born(1926-09-29)September 29, 1926
Bloomington, Illinois, U.S.
DiedJanuary 4, 2013(2013-01-04) (aged 86)
Canton, Ohio, U.S.
Playing career
Football
1945–1948Michigan
Position(s)Quarterback (football)
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
Football
1949–1950Oregon State (ends)
1951–1955Oklahoma (assistant)
1956Nebraska
1957–1959California
1960–1966Illinois
1973–1974Miami (FL)
1978St. Louis Cardinals (assistant)
Administrative career (AD unless noted)
1974–1978Miami (FL)
1979–1995Pro Football Hall of Fame (exec. dir.)
Head coaching record
Overall56–72–1
Bowls1–1
Accomplishments and honors
Championships
1 AAWU (1958)
1 Big Ten (1963)
College Football Hall of Fame
Inducted in 1994 (profile)

College

Elliott was an All-American quarterback on the undefeated 1948 Michigan Wolverines football team that won a national championship. He was also a standout basketball player who was first-team All-Big Ten Conference in 1948 and second-team All-Big Ten in 1949 as well as team MVP in 1948.[1] The 1948 team finished third in the eastern region of the NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship.[1] Elliott is the only Michigan athlete to have earned 12 letters in varsity sports: football, basketball, and golf.

Bump Elliott, Pete (No. 45), Fritz Crisler and Bruce Hilkene (No. 75) celebrate 1947 Big 9 championship after defeating Wisconsin.

At Michigan, Elliott played football with his brother Bump, who also became a well known college coach.

Coaching career

After college, Elliot served as an assistant coach at Oregon State University from 1949 to 1950 and the University of Oklahoma from 1951 to 1955. In 1956, he took the head coaching job at Nebraska, lasting one year with a record of 4–6. The next year, he took over at California, where he remained until 1959 with a compiled record of 10–21. In 1958, he led the Golden Bears to an AAWU title and an appearance in the Rose Bowl, where they lost to Iowa.

In 1960, Elliott succeeded Ray Eliot at Illinois and was at the school until 1966. With the Illini, his record was 31–34–1, earning a Big Ten title and Rose Bowl victory over Washington during the 1963 season. He, along with basketball coaches Harry Combes and Howie Braun, was pressured into resigning on March 19, 1967, by the university which was threatened with expulsion by the Big Ten Conference over a slush fund scandal.[2] In 1973, he became head coach at Miami, where he remained for two years and compiled an 11–11 record.

Later life

Elliott served as athletic director at Miami from 1973 to 1978. In March 1978, Elliott rejoined his former boss, Bud Wilkinson, as an assistant with the NFL St. Louis Cardinals. Elliott served as executive director of the Pro Football Hall of Fame from 1979 to 1996 and was serving on its board of trustees. Elliott was also a member of the Sigma Chi fraternity and was selected as a Significant Sig.

Elliott died at the age of 86 of congestive heart failure on January 4, 2013, in Canton, Ohio.[3]

Head coaching record
Year Team Overall ConferenceStanding Bowl/playoffs Coaches# AP°
Nebraska Cornhuskers (Big Seven Conference) (1956)
1956 Nebraska 4–63–34th
Nebraska: 4–63–3
California Golden Bears (Pacific Coast Conference) (1957–1958)
1957 California 1–91–67th
1958 California 7–46–11stL Rose1616
California Golden Bears (Athletic Association of Western Universities) (1959)
1959 California 2–81–34th
California: 10–218–10
Illinois Fighting Illini (Big Ten Conference) (1961–1966)
1960 Illinois 5–43–4T–5th
1961 Illinois 0–90–710th
1962 Illinois 2–72–58th18
1963 Illinois 8–1–15–1–11stW Rose43
1964 Illinois 6–34–3T–4th16
1965 Illinois 6–44–35th
1966 Illinois 4–64–3T–3rd
Illinois: 31–34–122–26–1
Miami Hurricanes (NCAA Division I independent) (1973–1974)
1973 Miami 5–6
1974 Miami 6–5
Miami: 11–11
Total:56–72–1
      National championship         Conference title         Conference division title or championship game berth

See also

References
  1. Michigan Basketball 2007-08 (media guide).
  2. "Slush Fund Scandal: Three Illini Coaches Quit," United Press International (UPI), Monday, March 20, 1967. Retrieved August 31, 2022.
  3. Goldstein, Richard (January 6, 2013). "Pete Elliott, Football All-American and Coach, Dies at 86". The New York Times. Retrieved May 2, 2017.
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