Amos Parker Foster (March 10, 1880 – August 7, 1952) was an
American football
American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...
and
basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
player and coach in the early 1900s. He was a 1904 graduate of
Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College (; ) is a private research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, it is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. Although founded to educate Native A ...
where he
lettered
Calligraphy (from el, link=y, καλλιγραφία) is a visual art related to writing. It is the design and execution of lettering with a pen, ink brush, or other writing instrument. Contemporary calligraphic practice can be defined as "t ...
in both basketball and football. Foster served as the head football coach at the
University of Cincinnati
The University of Cincinnati (UC or Cincinnati) is a public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio. Founded in 1819 as Cincinnati College, it is the oldest institution of higher education in Cincinnati and has an annual enrollment of over 44,00 ...
(1904–1905), the
University of Nebraska
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, the ...
(1906), and
Miami University
Miami University (informally Miami of Ohio or simply Miami) is a public research university in Oxford, Ohio. The university was founded in 1809, making it the second-oldest university in Ohio (behind Ohio University, founded in 1804) and the 10 ...
(1907–1908), compiling a career
college football
College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States.
Unlike most ...
mark of 30–9. He was also the head basketball coach at Cincinnati for five seasons from 1904 to 1909, tallying a mark of 30–10. After coaching he practiced law in
Ohio
Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...
.
Early life
Foster was born on March 10, 1880, in
Keene, New Hampshire
Keene is a city in, and the County seat, seat of Cheshire County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 23,047 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, down from 23,409 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census.
Keene is ho ...
. He graduated from
Cushing Academy
Cushing Academy is a Private school, private, coeducational College preparatory, college-preparatory school for Boarding school, boarding and Day school, day students in Ashburnham, Massachusetts, United States. It serves approximately 400 student ...
in 1899, where he had played on several athletic teams. He spent the next year doing
college preparatory
A college-preparatory school (usually shortened to preparatory school or prep school) is a type of secondary school. The term refers to public, private independent or parochial schools primarily designed to prepare students for higher education ...
work at Cushing and was a member of the graduate basketball team, which was named All-New England champion after winning in a tournament of 35 top teams.
Playing career
Foster lettered in football in 1902 and 1903 for
Dartmouth. He helped the 1903 team coached by
Fred Folsom
Fred Gorham Folsom (November 9, 1873 – November 11, 1944) was an American football player, coach of football and baseball, lawyer, and law professor. He served as the head football coach at the University of Colorado Boulder (1895–1899, 1901 ...
to a 9–1 record including the school's first-ever win over
Harvard
Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...
.
Many of the Eastern writers named him to their
All-American team for his success his last year at
fullback.
Foster was also a three-year letter winner for Dartmouth in basketball, lettering in 1901, 1902 and 1903. During the 1902–03 season he served as team captain and led them to a 7–9 record.
Coaching career
Foster started his coaching career while still at Dartmouth, when he took a job as head basketball coach at the
Bradford Academy. He held this position for two seasons.
Cincinnati
Foster was head coach for the
Cincinnati Bearcats
The Cincinnati Bearcats are the athletic teams that represent the University of Cincinnati. Though they will move to the Big 12 Conference (XII) the teams are currently a part of the American Athletic Conference (The American), which from 1979 ...
in both football and basketball. He coached the
Cincinnati football team for two seasons 1904 and 1905. In his two years as the Bearcat's head coach, he compiled an overall record of 11–4. Foster's most successful year at Cincinnati was in 1904 where he led the Bearcats to a 7–1 record. This team scored 182 points during the season and only gave up 10. Their seven wins included shutout victories over
Kentucky
Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...
,
Tennessee
Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
, and traditional rival
Miami
Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...
. Foster added a 4–3 mark in 1905 before taking over the head coaching job at the
University of Nebraska
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, the ...
for the 1906 season.
Foster was also the head coach of the
basketball squad at Cincinnati from 1904 to 1909. In his five seasons as Bearcats' head coach he compiled an overall record of 30–10. His most successful season was in 1908 where he led the Bearcats to a 9–0 record and an Ohio Collegiate Championship. Even though Foster left Cincinnati to coach football at other schools, he still coached the Bearcats basketball team.
Nebraska
![The Charging Machine](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6e/The_Charging_Machine.jpg)
Foster replaced
Walter C. Booth
Walter Cowles "Bummy" Booth (December 7, 1874 – April 5, 1944) was an American football coach. He served as the head football coach at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln from 1900 to 1905, compiling a record of 46–8–1. Booth led Nebraska ...
as head coach of the
Nebraska football team for the 1906 season. He spent just one season as coach of the
Cornhuskers
The Nebraska Cornhuskers (often abbreviated to Huskers) are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. The university is a member of the Big Ten Conference, and the Cornhuskers compete in NCAA Divis ...
, leading them to a 6–4 record.
He was able to beat his former school, Cincinnati, by a score of 41–0.
Miami
Foster was head football coach at
Miami University
Miami University (informally Miami of Ohio or simply Miami) is a public research university in Oxford, Ohio. The university was founded in 1809, making it the second-oldest university in Ohio (behind Ohio University, founded in 1804) and the 10 ...
in
Oxford, Ohio
Oxford is a city in Butler County, Ohio, United States. The population was 23,035 at the 2020 census. A college town, Oxford was founded as a home for Miami University and lies in the southwestern portion of the state approximately northwest ...
, for the 1907 and 1908 seasons. The 1908 team outscored their opponents 113–10 and went 7–0. He left Miami with a record of 13–1. His career winning percentage of .939 is the highest in Miami history ahead of
College Football Hall of Fame
The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and interactive attraction devoted to college football. The National Football Foundation (NFF) founded the Hall in 1951 to immortalize the players and coaches of college football that were vote ...
coaches
George Little,
Ara Parseghian
Ara Raoul Parseghian (; hy, Արա Ռաուլ Պարսեղյան; May 21, 1923 – August 2, 2017) was an American football player and coach who guided the University of Notre Dame to national championships in 1966 and 1973. He is noted for bri ...
,
Sid Gillman
Sidney Gillman (October 26, 1911 – January 3, 2003) was an American football player, coach and executive. Gillman's insistence on stretching the football field by throwing deep downfield passes, instead of short passes to running backs or w ...
,
Woody Hayes
Wayne Woodrow Hayes (February 14, 1913 – March 12, 1987) was an American football player and coach. He served as the head coach at Denison University (1946–1948), Miami University in Oxford, Ohio (1949–1950), and Ohio State University (1951 ...
, and
Bo Schembechler
Glenn Edward "Bo" Schembechler Jr. ( ; April 1, 1929 – November 17, 2006) was an American football player, coach, and athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach at Miami University from 1963 to 1968 and at the University of ...
.
Head coaching record
Football
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Foster, Amos
1880 births
1952 deaths
20th-century American lawyers
American football fullbacks
American men's basketball players
Cincinnati Bearcats football coaches
Cincinnati Bearcats men's basketball coaches
Dartmouth Big Green football players
Dartmouth Big Green men's basketball players
Miami RedHawks football coaches
Nebraska Cornhuskers football coaches
Ohio lawyers
University of Cincinnati College of Law alumni
People from Keene, New Hampshire
Coaches of American football from New Hampshire
Players of American football from New Hampshire
Basketball coaches from New Hampshire
Basketball players from New Hampshire