Joel Eaves
 Eaves in the 1951 Glomerata | |
| Biographical details | |
|---|---|
| Born | June 3, 1914 Copperhill, Tennessee, U.S. |
| Died | July 18, 1991 (aged 77) Athens, Georgia, U.S. |
| Playing career | |
| Football | |
| 1934–1936 | Auburn |
| Basketball | |
| 1934–1937 | Auburn |
| Position(s) | End (football) Guard (basketball) |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| Football | |
| 1957 | Auburn (assistant) |
| Basketball | |
| 1937 | Sewanee (assistant) |
| 1938–1941 | Sewanee |
| 1949–1963 | Auburn |
| Administrative career (AD unless noted) | |
| 1963–1979 | Georgia |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 217–143 |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| Basketball SEC regular season (1960) | |
| Awards | |
| Football All-SEC (1936) Basketball SEC Coach of the Year (1960) Alabama Sports Hall of Fame | |
Joel Harry Eaves (June 3, 1914 – July 18, 1991) was an American college football and basketball player, coach, and 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
[edit]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
[edit]Eaves played on the Auburn Tigers basketball, football, and baseball teams
Basketball
[edit]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
[edit]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).[8]
Baseball
[edit]He pitched on the baseball team.
Coaching career
[edit]Sewanee
[edit]Before coaching at Auburn, he coached the Sewanee Tigers basketball team.[9]
Auburn
[edit]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.[10] 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.[11]
Joel Eaves was inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame in 1978.[10] 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.[12]
Administrative career
[edit]Eaves was the athletic director for the Georgia Bulldogs from 1963 to 1979. He hired Vince Dooley as football coach.[4]
Head coaching record
[edit]| Season | Coach | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sewanee (Southeastern Conference) (1938–1940) | |||||||||
| 1938–39 | Sewanee | 1–16 | 0–13 | 13th | |||||
| 1939–40 | Sewanee | 2–13 | 0–9 | 13th | |||||
| Sewanee (Independent) (1940–1941) | |||||||||
| 1940–41 | Sewanee | 1–14 | |||||||
| Sewanee: | 4–43 (.085) | 0–22 (.000) | |||||||
| Auburn (Southeastern Conference) (1949–1963) | |||||||||
| 1949–50 | Auburn | 17–7 | 12–6 | 3rd | |||||
| 1950–51 | Auburn | 12–10 | 6–8 | 5th | |||||
| 1951–52 | Auburn | 14–12 | 6–8 | 9th | |||||
| 1952–53 | Auburn | 13–8 | 6–7 | 5th | |||||
| 1953–54 | Auburn | 16–8 | 8–6 | 5th | |||||
| 1954–55 | Auburn | 11–9 | 6–8 | 8th | |||||
| 1955–56 | Auburn | 11–10 | 8–6 | 4th | |||||
| 1956–57 | Auburn | 13–8 | 8–6 | 6th | |||||
| 1957–58 | Auburn | 16–6 | 11–3 | 2nd | |||||
| 1958–59 | Auburn | 20–2 | 12–2 | 2nd | |||||
| 1959–60 | Auburn | 19–3 | 12–2 | 1st | |||||
| 1960–61 | Auburn | 15–7 | 8–6 | 5th | |||||
| 1961–62 | Auburn | 18–6 | 11–3 | 3rd | |||||
| 1962–63 | Auburn | 18–4 | 10–4 | 2nd | |||||
| Auburn: | 213–100 (.681) | 124–75 (.623) | |||||||
| Total: | 217–143 (.603) | ||||||||
|
National champion
Postseason invitational champion
| |||||||||
References
[edit]- ^ "Joel Eaves".
- ^ "Joel Harry Eaves".
- ^ "Ex Tiger Coach Dies Of Heart Failure". Florence Times Daily. July 19, 1991.
- ^ a b "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". Amazon.
- ^ "Associated Press Names All-Southeastern Eleven". St. Petersburg Times. December 1, 1936.
- ^ "1937 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 21, 2023.
- ^ "Joel Eaves". Archived from the original on June 15, 2015.
- ^ a b "Alabama Sports Hall of Fame and Museum – Birmingham, Alabama". ashof.org. Retrieved March 2, 2016.
- ^ "Joel Eaves, Georgia AD". Tuscaloosa News. October 15, 1978.
- ^ "AUBURNTIGERS.COM :: Auburn University Official Athletic Site". www.auburntigers.com. Archived from the original on January 10, 2013. Retrieved March 2, 2016.
- 1914 births
- 1991 deaths
- American football ends
- American men's basketball players
- Auburn Tigers baseball players
- Auburn Tigers men's basketball coaches
- Auburn Tigers men's basketball players
- Auburn Tigers football coaches
- Auburn Tigers football players
- Baseball pitchers
- Basketball coaches from Georgia (U.S. state)
- Basketball players from Atlanta
- Georgia Bulldogs athletic directors
- Guards (basketball)
- People from Polk County, Tennessee
- Players of American football from Atlanta
- Sewanee Tigers men's basketball coaches
- Baseball players from Atlanta