Bernard F. "Bunny" Oakes (September 15, 1898 – October 22, 1970) 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 ...

player and coach. He served as the head football coach at the

University of Montana The University of Montana (UM) is a public research university in Missoula, Montana. UM is a flagship institution of the Montana University System and its second largest campus. UM reported 10,962 undergraduate and graduate students in the fal ...

(1931–1934), the

University of Colorado at Boulder The University of Colorado Boulder (CU Boulder, CU, or Colorado) is a public research university in Boulder, Colorado. Founded in 1876, five months before Colorado became a state, it is the flagship university of the University of Colorado sys ...

(1935–1939), the

University of Wyoming The University of Wyoming (UW) is a public land-grant research university in Laramie, Wyoming. It was founded in March 1886, four years before the territory was admitted as the 44th state, and opened in September 1887. The University of Wyoming ...

(1941–1946), and

Grinnell College Grinnell College is a private liberal arts college in Grinnell, Iowa, United States. It was founded in 1846 when a group of New England Congregationalists established the Trustees of Iowa College. Grinnell has the fifth highest endowment-to-st ...

(1947–1948), 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 ...

record of 43–69–4.

Early life, military service, and playing career

Oakes was born September 15, 1898, in

Fort Wayne, Indiana Fort Wayne is a city in and the county seat of Allen County, Indiana, United States. Located in northeastern Indiana, the city is west of the Ohio border and south of the Michigan border. The city's population was 263,886 as of the 2020 Censu ...

. Oakes grew up in the

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

area and played

high school football High school football (french: football au lycée) is gridiron football played by high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both countries, but its popularity is declining, part ...

at Proviso Township High School in

Maywood, Illinois Maywood is a village in Proviso Township, Cook County, Illinois, United States in the Chicago metropolitan area. It was founded on April 6, 1869, and organized October 22, 1881. The population was 23,512 at the 2020 United States Census. History ...

. Oakes enlisted in the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...

in 1917, and joined the

American Expeditionary Forces The American Expeditionary Forces (A. E. F.) was a formation of the United States Army on the Western Front of World War I. The A. E. F. was established on July 5, 1917, in France under the command of General John J. Pershing. It fought alon ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

in June 1918. He saw combat action with the

5th Marines The 5th Marine Regiment (also referred to as "5th Marines") is an infantry regiment of the United States Marine Corps based at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California. It is the most highly decorated regiment in the Marine Corps and falls u ...

in a number of major engagements and was wounded on October 4, 1918. Staying with his unit following the

armistice An armistice is a formal agreement of warring parties to stop fighting. It is not necessarily the end of a war, as it may constitute only a cessation of hostilities while an attempt is made to negotiate a lasting peace. It is derived from the La ...

, Oakes played football with the championship 2nd Battalion, 5th Marines team in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

in 1919. Following the war, Oakes enrolled at the

University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the Universit ...

and played football under coach

Bob Zuppke Robert Carl Zuppke (July 2, 1879 – December 22, 1957) was an American football coach. He served as the head coach at the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign from 1913 until 1941, compiling a career college football record of 131–81� ...

. As a senior at Illinois in 1923, he played on the

national championship A national championship(s) is the top achievement for any sport or competition, contest within a league of a particular nation or nation state. The title is usually awarded by contests, ranking systems, stature, ability, etc. This determines the be ...

-winning Fighting Illini football team and participated in the first game at the Memorial Stadium in

Champaign, Illinois Champaign ( ) is a city in Champaign County, Illinois, United States. The population was 88,302 at the 2020 census. It is the tenth-most populous municipality in Illinois and the fourth most populous city in Illinois outside the Chicago metropo ...

Coaching career

Following graduation from Illinois, Oakes was named the football line coach at the

University of Tennessee The University of Tennessee (officially The University of Tennessee, Knoxville; or UT Knoxville; UTK; or UT) is a public land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee. Founded in 1794, two years before Tennessee became the 16th state, ...

under head coach

M. B. Banks Mark Beal Banks (June 5, 1883 – January 12, 1970) was an American football, basketball and baseball player, coach, and college athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach at Central University of Kentucky—now known as Centre ...

. In 1926, Oakes was named the line coach at the

University of Nebraska–Lincoln The University of Nebraska–Lincoln (Nebraska, NU, or UNL) is a public land-grant research university in Lincoln, Nebraska. Chartered in 1869 by the Nebraska Legislature as part of the Morrill Act of 1862, the school was known as the Universit ...

under

Ernest Bearg Ernest Elmer Bearg (July 20, 1893 – August 24, 1971) was an American football and basketball coach. He served as the head football coach at Washburn University from 1918 to 1919 and again from 1929 to 1935 and the University of Nebraska–Lincol ...

and later worked under

Dana X. Bible Dana Xenophon Bible (October 8, 1891 – January 19, 1980) was an American football player, coach of football, basketball, and baseball, and college athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach at Mississippi College (1913–1 ...

. Oakes's first head coaching assignment came in 1931 when he was named as the head football coach at the

. During his tenure at Montana, Oakes wrote and had published his book, ''Football Line Play''. The book quickly became an important text for coaches and players throughout the country. It was also during this period in his coaching career that he received several patents for football blocking equipment. His dummies were the earliest mobile blocking equipment available to schools and enabled various formations to be simulated. In 1934, Oakes was named the head football coach at the

. His teams at Colorado won

Rocky Mountain Conference The Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC), commonly known as the Rocky Mountain Conference (RMC) from approximately 1910 through the late 1960s, is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NC ...

titles during the 1935 and 1937 seasons. The 1937 team, which featured All-American halfback and future justice of the

Supreme Court of the United States The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...

Byron White Byron "Whizzer" Raymond White (June 8, 1917 April 15, 2002) was an American professional football player and jurist who served as an associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court from 1962 until his retirement in 1993. Born and raised in Color ...

, went undefeated in the regular season and played in the 1938 Cotton Bowl Classic, the first

bowl game In North America, a bowl game is one of a number of post-season college football games that are primarily played by teams belonging to the NCAA's Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS). For most of its history, the Division I Bowl Subdivis ...

appearance for Colorado. The 1939 Colorado team placed first in the

Mountain States Conference A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually higher ...

. Oakes's record for the five years at Colorado was 25–15–1 with a conference mark of 24–6–1. Oakes returned to the University of Illinois in 1940, where he earned a Master of Science degree. In April 1941, Oakes took over as the head football coach at the

. With the onset of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, intercollegiate athletics were suspended in 1943 and Oakes concentrated on physical training of Army and Navy cadets at the University of Wyoming. Following the war, Oakes resumed his position as head coach for the 1946 season. Oakes completed his collegiate football coaching career at

Grinnell, Iowa Grinnell is a city in Poweshiek County, Iowa, United States. The population was 9,564 at the time of the 2020 census. It is best known for being the home of Grinnell College. History Grinnell was founded by settlers from New England who were ...

. Assuming duties as head football coach and

athletic director An athletic director (commonly "athletics director" or "AD") is an administrator at many American clubs or institutions, such as colleges and universities, as well as in larger high schools and middle schools, who oversees the work of coaches and ...

at Grinnell in 1947, Oakes completed his coaching career following the 1948 season.

Death and memorial

Oakes died on October 22, 1970, near

Lancaster, Pennsylvania Lancaster, ( ; pdc, Lengeschder) is a city in and the county seat of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. It is one of the oldest inland cities in the United States. With a population at the 2020 census of 58,039, it ranks 11th in population amon ...

of an apparent heart attack while vacationing with his wife. At the 65th Annual Convention of the

National Collegiate Athletic Association The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

on January 11, 1971, a memorial resolution commemorating Oakes's distinguished service to athletics was adopted. The Memorial Resolution reads: "For his faithful service to his institution and higher education; his valuable contributions to intercollegiate athletics, and his wholesome influence upon the lives of young men. Be it known that the membership of the National Collegiate Athletic Association, assembled in annual Convention, resolved that this memorial be inscribed in honor and fond remembrance of Bernard F. Oakes."

Head coaching record

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Oakes, Bunny 1898 births 1970 deaths American football tackles Colorado Buffaloes football coaches Grinnell Pioneers football coaches Illinois Fighting Illini football players Montana Grizzlies football coaches Nebraska Cornhuskers football coaches Tennessee Volunteers football coaches Wyoming Cowboys and Cowgirls athletic directors Wyoming Cowboys football coaches United States Marine Corps personnel of World War I United States Marines Sportspeople from Fort Wayne, Indiana Sportspeople from Maywood, Illinois Players of American football from Illinois Coaches of American football from Illinois Players of American football from Fort Wayne, Indiana