Elmer Dayton Mitchell (September 6, 1889 – June 15, 1983)} 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 wi ...

and

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

coach in

Michigan Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the List of U.S. states and ...

who is considered the father of

intramural sports Intramural sports are recreational sports organized within a particular institution, usually an educational institution, or a set geographic region. The term, which is chiefly North American, derives from the Latin words ''intra muros'' meaning " ...

. He was the first varsity basketball coach at the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

at Ann Arbor and the founder of that school's intramural sports program. Through 2010, he has the highest winning percentage of any head coach in

Eastern Michigan Eagles men's basketball The Eastern Michigan Eagles men's basketball team represents Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti, Michigan. The team currently competes in the West division of the Mid-American Conference (MAC). They have appeared in four NCAA Division I tou ...

history. Mitchell also coached at Union High School in

Grand Rapids, Michigan Grand Rapids is a city and county seat of Kent County in the U.S. state of Michigan. At the 2020 census, the city had a population of 198,917 which ranks it as the second most-populated city in the state after Detroit. Grand Rapids is the ...

, received a Medal of Honor from

Czechoslovakia , rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי, , common_name = Czechoslovakia , life_span = 1918–19391945–1992 , p1 = Austria-Hungary , image_p1 ...

for his work in the field of intramural athletics., and was elected into the National Academy of Kinesiology (née American Academy of Physical Education) in 1930 as Fellow #26.

Early years

Mitchell attended the University of Michigan, where he played on the varsity baseball team for three years, under head coach and eventual Baseball Hall of Fame member Branch Rickey. He usually played center field, or occasionally first base, and he was the team captain in 1912, his senior year. Immediately after graduating from Michigan, Mitchell managed the Negaunee baseball team, in Michigan's

Upper Peninsula The Upper Peninsula of Michigan – also known as Upper Michigan or colloquially the U.P. – is the northern and more elevated of the two major landmasses that make up the U.S. state of Michigan; it is separated from the Lower Peninsula by ...

, for a summer. In the fall of 1912, he was hired as a teacher and coach at Union High School, where " developed state title contenders in baseball, football, and basketball". In the 1914–15 season, his last at the high school, the basketball team posted a 14–1 record.

Coaching career

Michigan State Normal

In 1915, Mitchell was hired as an assistant professor of physical education at Michigan State Normal College (MSNC)—now known as

Eastern Michigan University Eastern Michigan University (EMU, Eastern Michigan or simply Eastern), is a public research university in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Founded in 1849 as Michigan State Normal School, the school was the fourth normal school established in the United Sta ...

—in

Ypsilanti, Michigan Ypsilanti (), commonly shortened to Ypsi, is a city in Washtenaw County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 census, the city's population was 20,648. The city is bounded to the north by Superior Township and on the west, south, an ...

. While at MSNC, Mitchell taught physical education courses geared toward the school's future teachers, covering such topics as playground direction and athletic coaching, and he co-wrote a book about basketball. He was also a successful coach in basketball, football, and baseball. Mitchell was the head football coach for the "Michigan State Normalites" for the 1915 and 1916 seasons, compiling a record of 5–4–2. Mitchell was also the head coach for the "Michigan State Normalites" men's basketball team for the 1915–16 and 1916–17 seasons. His coaching record at the program was 25–5.

Elton Rynearson Elton James Rynearson Sr. (April 7, 1893 – February 8, 1967) was an American athlete, coach, and college athletics administrator. He was affiliated with Eastern Michigan University (known as Michigan State Normal College prior to 1956) for most ...

was the team captain for the 1916–17 season, and succeeded Mitchell as the head coach. Although the team finished undefeated in

Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association The Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) is an athletic conference that competes in the NCAA's Division III. There are nine teams in the conference, all located in the states of Michigan and Indiana. The Michigan Intercollegiate A ...

play in the 1916–17 season,

Kalamazoo College Kalamazoo College, also known as Kalamazoo, K College, KC or simply K, is a private liberal arts college in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Founded in 1833 by Baptist ministers as the Michigan and Huron Institute, Kalamazoo is the oldest private college in ...

was also undefeated, and is recorded by the MIAA as the champion for that year.

Michigan

As a result of public and alumni demand for a basketball team, the

, in Ann Arbor, fielded a team of members of the then-current student body and achieved a 1–4 record for the 1908–09 season. However, after three years of demanding a basketball program the student body did not attend the games and the program was terminated due to low attendance. Basketball returned in 1917 in what was considered the inaugural season of varsity basketball, and Mitchell was hired to coach the team. The team finished 6–12 overall (0–10, Western Conference). The following year Mitchell led the team to a 16–8 (5–5) record. While at Michigan, Mitchell also coached the freshman football and baseball teams.

Intramural sports

Mitchell is credited with instituting intramural athletics at the University of Michigan, and he was named the school's first Director of Intramural Athletics in 1919. Mitchell is considered the father of intramural sports and taught a class in intramural sports taken by William Wasson, founder of the National Intramural Association (NIA), the forerunner to the National Intramural and Recreational Sports Association (NIRSA). Mitchell later wrote ''Intramural Athletics '' (ED Mitchell - AS Barnes, 1928) and ''Intramural Sports'', and co-authored ''Intramural Sports'' with Pat Mueller.New York, Ronald Press Co. 1960

Head coaching record

Football

Basketball

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mitchell, Elmer 1889 births 1983 deaths Baseball outfielders Baseball first basemen College men's basketball head coaches in the United States Eastern Michigan Eagles baseball coaches Eastern Michigan Eagles football coaches Eastern Michigan University faculty Michigan Wolverines baseball players Michigan Wolverines men's basketball coaches High school baseball coaches in the United States High school basketball coaches in Michigan High school football coaches in Michigan People from Negaunee, Michigan Coaches of American football from Michigan Baseball coaches from Michigan Baseball players from Michigan Basketball coaches from Michigan