Frederick Melvin "Fish" Ellis (February 26, 1906 – July 19, 1967) was an American sportsman who played football,

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 ...

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

, and track at

Tufts University Tufts University is a private research university on the border of Medford and Somerville, Massachusetts. It was founded in 1852 as Tufts College by Christian universalists who sought to provide a nonsectarian institution of higher learning. ...

. He was also an athletics coach, administrator, and university professor at Tufts. Ellis is the namesake of Tufts' home football field, the

Ellis Oval The Tufts Jumbos are the varsity intercollegiate athletic programs of Tufts University, in Medford, Massachusetts. The Jumbos compete at NCAA Division III level as member of the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC). Like all Divi ...

. He is regarded by many as one of the greatest athletes in Tufts history.

Early life and playing career

Ellis was born in 1906 in Norwood, Massachusetts. His family moved to

Gloucester Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean to the west, east of Monmouth and east ...

and then to Medford, where Ellis attended Medford High School, graduating in 1925. Ellis entered

that fall, majoring in civil engineering. Ellis lettered in four sports – football, basketball, baseball, and track – at Tufts, from which he graduated in 1929. He was the first Tufts student to earn varsity letters in four sports. In the summers of 1928 and 1929, he played for Orleans in the Cape Cod Baseball League. Ellis is best remembered for his time playing football. He played

quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...

for the Tufts football team from 1926 to 1928, scoring a school-record 181 points. That record stood until 2016, when Shayne "Chance" Brady finished his Tufts career with 210 points. Ellis led the 1927 squad to an undefeated season, with the Jumbos posting a perfect 8–0 record. Ellis' future wife, Dorothea Loughlin, attended

Jackson College Jackson College is a public college in Jackson County, Michigan. Originally established as Jackson Junior College in 1928, Jackson County electors voted to reincorporate the institution as a community college district under the "Public Act 188 ...

– the women's college associated with Tufts – from 1927 to 1931 and played on the Jackson baseball team.

Later life

For a period of time after graduating, Ellis coached at Dean Academy. His stint included a period of time during which the team assembled three consecutive undefeated seasons. Ellis eventually returned to Medford and served as the head football coach at Tufts from 1946 to 1953, compiling a record of 25–34–6. He was also the head basketball coach from 1946 to 1953, tallying a mark of 74–75. In 1954, Ellis became a full professor and the chairman of Tufts' Department of Physical Education.

Death and honors

Ellis died of a heart attack at the age of 61 on July 19, 1967, at his home in Burlington, Massachusetts. He was survived by Dorothea and their two daughters, Faith and Susan, both of whom graduated from Tufts (as did their husbands). Dorothea passed away on October 14, 2011. The football field at Tufts University was named in his honor as Frederick M. Ellis Oval at homecoming in 1969. The Frederick M. Ellis Prize Scholarship at Tufts is named in his memory. On April 21, 2018, Ellis was a member of the inaugural class inducted into the Tufts University Athletics Hall of Fame.

Head coaching record

Football

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ellis, Frederick M. 1906 births 1967 deaths American football quarterbacks American men's basketball players Baseball players from Middlesex County, Massachusetts Basketball coaches from Massachusetts Basketball players from Essex County, Massachusetts Tufts Jumbos athletic directors Tufts Jumbos baseball players Tufts Jumbos football coaches Tufts Jumbos football players Tufts Jumbos men's basketball coaches Cape Cod Baseball League players (pre-modern era) Orleans Firebirds players College men's basketball head coaches in the United States College golf coaches in the United States College men's track and field athletes in the United States People from Burlington, Massachusetts Sportspeople from Gloucester, Massachusetts Sportspeople from Medford, Massachusetts People from Norwood, Massachusetts Baseball players from Norfolk County, Massachusetts Coaches of American football from Massachusetts Players of American football from Middlesex County, Massachusetts Tufts University faculty Tufts University School of Engineering alumni United States Army Air Forces officers United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II Military personnel from Massachusetts