Robert T. Fisher (December 3, 1888 – July 7, 1942) 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 played

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 ...

Harvard University 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 ...

and was a consensus All-American in 1910 and 1911. He served as the head football coach at Harvard from 1919 to 1925, compiling a record of 43–14–5 and winning the

1920 Rose Bowl The 1920 Rose Bowl, known at the time as the Tournament East-West Football Game, was a college football bowl game in Pasadena, California, played on January 1, 1920. In the sixth Rose Bowl, the once-tied Harvard Crimson met the once-defeated Ore ...

. His 1919 team was retroactively recognized as a national champion by a number of selectors. Fisher was one of the original trustees for the

American Football Coaches Association The American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) is an association of over 11,000 American football coaches and staff on all levels. According to its constitution, some of the main goals of the American Football Coaches Association are to "mainta ...

(AFCA). He was inducted into the

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 ...

as a player in 1973.

Playing career

Fisher was born on December 3, 1888 in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

. He grew up in Dorchester and played tackle at

Phillips Academy ("Not for Self") la, Finis Origine Pendet ("The End Depends Upon the Beginning") Youth From Every Quarter Knowledge and Goodness , address = 180 Main Street , city = Andover , state = Ma ...

, where he was a teammate of

John Kilpatrick John Reed Kilpatrick (June 15, 1889 – May 7, 1960) was an American athlete, soldier, and sports businessperson. He is a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame and College Football Hall of Fame. Kilpatrick was born to a Canadian mother and American ...

. He played

guard Guard or guards may refer to: Professional occupations * Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault * Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street * Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning * Prison ...

on Harvard’s freshman team in 1908 and on the varsity team from 1909 to 1911. He was captain of the

1911 Harvard Crimson football team The 1911 Harvard Crimson football team represented Harvard University in the 1911 college football season. The Crimson finished with a 6–2–1 record under fourth-year head coach Percy Haughton. Walter Camp selected two Harvard players, guard ...

. He was a second team All-American in 1909 and a consensus first team All-American in 1910 and 1911.

Military service

In 1917, Fisher was commissioned as a first lieutenant in the Aviation Section of the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

Signal Corps and assigned to the San Antonio Aviation General Supply Depot. In 1918 he was transferred to

Wilbur Wright Field Wilbur Wright Field was a military installation and an airfield used as a World War I pilot, mechanic, and armorer training facility and, under different designations, conducted United States Army Air Corps and Air Forces flight testing. Loca ...

Dayton, Ohio Dayton () is the sixth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County. A small part of the city extends into Greene County. The 2020 U.S. census estimate put the city population at 137,644, while Greater Day ...

, where he was later promoted to captain. While at Wright he met Louise Winters and they married when he was discharged in March of 1919. The Fishers had four sons and one daughter. After the war, Fisher returned to C. F. Hovey.

Coaching

After graduating in 1912, Fisher went to work for the C. F. Hovey department store, but remained involved with the Crimson as an assistant football coach. On June 13, 1919 it was announced that he would succeed

Percy Haughton Percy Duncan Haughton (July 11, 1876 – October 27, 1924) was an American football and baseball player and coach. He served as head football coach at Cornell University from 1899 to 1900, at Harvard University from 1908 to 1916, and at Columbia ...

as Harvard's head football coach. He was chosen after Haughton's lead assistant, Leo Leary, turned down the job to focus on his business interests. His 1919 team went undefeated and won the

over

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

and was retroactively recognized as a national champion by the

Helms Athletic Foundation The Helms Athletic Foundation, founded in 1936, was a Los Angeles-based organization dedicated to the promotion of athletics and sportsmanship. Paul H. Helms was the organization's founder and benefactor, funding the foundation via his ownership ...

and the

Houlgate System The Houlgate System, also known as the Deke Houlgate collegiate football rating system, was a mathematical rating system for determining annual college football national championships. The ratings, which rated teams according to the strength of thei ...

, and as a co-national champion by the College Football Researchers Association,

National Championship Foundation The National Championship Foundation (NCF) was established by Mike Riter of Hudson, New York. The NCF retroactively selected college football national champions for each year from 1869 to 1979, and its selections are among the historic national ch ...

, and

Parke H. Davis Parke Hill Davis (July 15, 1871 – June 5, 1934)"PARKE H. DAVIS BURIED.; Many Prominent Men at Funeral of Football Authority", special to ''The New York Times'', June 9, 1934 was an American football player, coach, and historian. Shortly befo ...

. The following year, Harvard went 8–0–1 and was retroactively named as the co-national champion by the

Boand System The Boand System was a system for determining the college football national championship. It was also known as the Azzi Ratem system (derived from "As I rate 'em"). The system was developed by William F. Boand. The rankings were based on mathemati ...

, however the majority of selectors have chosen

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

as the national champion for 1920. In 1921, Harvard lost to Center College in what is widely considered one of the greatest upsets in college football history. On February 3, 1925, Fisher informed the Harvard Athletic Committee that he would not return as head coach. He was convinced to reconsider and on March 4, 1925 it was announced he would return as head coach. After the season, Fisher announced he would not return as head coach. Fisher compiled a record of 43–14–5 in his seven seasons as Harvard's coach. He had a 4–2–1 record in the Harvard–Yale game. He had less success in the annual game against Princeton, amassing a 1–4–2 record and losing by a combined score of 70 to 0 in his final two seasons as coach.

Later life

Fisher worked at Lee, Higginson & Co. until 1927, when he and

Francis Ouimet Francis DeSales Ouimet () (May 8, 1893 – September 2, 1967) was an American amateur golfer who is frequently referred to as the "father of amateur golf" in the United States. He won the U.S. Open in 1913 and was the first non-Briton elected ...

were chosen to head the Boston office of the stock and commodities exchange house Harriss, Irby & Vose. In 1931 he joined Spencer Trask & Co. and in 1940 was promoted to manager. On July 7, 1942, Fisher died of a heart attack at Newton Hospital. He was survived by his wife, daughter, and four sons. Fisher's four sons played together at his alma mater, Phillips Academy and went on to play for Harvard. Three of them played together on the 1942 team while the fourth was unavailable due to military commitments. At the time of his death, Fisher resided in

Weston, Massachusetts Weston is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, Middlesex County, Massachusetts, about 15 miles west of Boston. At the time of the 2020 United States Census, the population of Weston was 11,851. Weston was incorporated in 1713, and protectio ...

Head coaching record

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Fisher, Bob 1888 births 1942 deaths All-American college football players American football guards Coaches of American football from Massachusetts College Football Hall of Fame inductees Harvard Crimson football coaches Harvard Crimson football players Players of American football from Boston Sportspeople from Boston People from Weston, Massachusetts People from Dorchester, Massachusetts Phillips Academy alumni United States Army Signal Corps personnel United States Army personnel of World War I