Charles Augustus Lueder (May 30, 1878 – August 14, 1954) was an American

head coach A head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other coaches. In some sports, the head coach is instead called the "manager", as in assoc ...

in both rowing and

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 ...

. He was a native of Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, and was known as a talented athlete while attending

Cornell University Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to teach an ...

Cornell

Lueder graduated from Cornell University with a

Doctor of Veterinary Medicine A veterinarian (vet), also known as a veterinary surgeon or veterinary physician, is a medical professional who practices veterinary medicine. They manage a wide range of health conditions and injuries in non-human animals. Along with this, vet ...

in 1902. He was one of the first students to excel in three varsity sports there, competing under three legendary coaches: football under

Glenn Scobey Warner Glenn Scobey Warner (April 5, 1871 – September 7, 1954), most commonly known as Pop Warner, was an American college football coach at various institutions who is responsible for several key aspects of the modern game. Included among his in ...

, track under Jack Moakley, and crew under

Charles E. Courtney Charles Edward Courtney (November 13, 1849 – July 17, 1920) was an American rower and rowing coach from Union Springs, New York. A carpenter by trade, Courtney was a nationally known amateur rower. Courtney never lost a race as an amateur an ...

. His undergraduate success led to his membership in the

Quill and Dagger Quill and Dagger is a senior honor society at Cornell University. It is often recognized as one of the most prominent societies of its type, along with Skull and Bones and Scroll and Key at Yale University. In 1929, ''The New York Times'' stated t ...

society. Lueder was at that time considered one of the strongest athletes Cornell had ever developed. In 1901, Lueder was part of Cornell’s world-record-setting varsity eight at the

Intercollegiate Rowing Association The Intercollegiate Rowing Association (IRA) governs intercollegiate rowing between varsity men's heavyweight, men's lightweight, and women's lightweight rowing programs across the United States, while the NCAA fulfills this role for women's ope ...

Championship Regatta in

Poughkeepsie, New York Poughkeepsie ( ), officially the City of Poughkeepsie, separate from the Town of Poughkeepsie around it) is a city in the U.S. state of New York. It is the county seat of Dutchess County, with a 2020 census population of 31,577. Poughkeepsi ...

. This crew broke the world record for a four-mile course with a time of 18 minutes, 53⅓ seconds. In 1956, he was an inaugural inductee into the National Rowing Hall of Fame.

Coaching career

After graduation, Lueder served as head football coach at Virginia Agricultural and Mechanical College and Polytechnic Institute (VPI)—now known as

Virginia Tech Virginia Tech (formally the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University and informally VT, or VPI) is a Public university, public Land-grant college, land-grant research university with its main campus in Blacksburg, Virginia. It also ...

. Lueder was also approached by

Syracuse University Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York. Established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church, the university has been nonsectarian since 1920. Locate ...

to coach their football team. He went to Syracuse to look over the facilities and talk to their representatives. He considered both propositions but accepted Virginal Tech. The next year, he returned to Cornell as assistant coach of football under Warner and assistant coach of rowing under Courtney. He later became head football coach at

West Virginia University West Virginia University (WVU) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Morgantown, West Virginia. Its other campuses are those of the West Virginia University Institute of Technology in Beckley, Potomac State College ...

(1908–1911), but returned again to Cornell as head crew coach for two seasons (1924–1926).

Head coaching record

Football

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lueder, Charles Augustus 1878 births 1954 deaths 19th-century players of American football American male rowers American football tackles Cornell Big Red football coaches Cornell Big Red football players Virginia Tech Hokies football coaches West Virginia Mountaineers football coaches Cornell Big Red rowers Cornell Big Red rowing coaches Sportspeople from Luzerne County, Pennsylvania Players of American football from Pennsylvania