Gordon Saussy (February 14, 1872 – December 12, 1952) 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 and a local politician from

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

. He served as the head coach at the

University of Georgia , mottoeng = "To teach, to serve, and to inquire into the nature of things.""To serve" was later added to the motto without changing the seal; the Latin motto directly translates as "To teach and to inquire into the nature of things." , establ ...

for one season in 1899, compiling a record of 2–3–1. Saussy was the Mayor of Savannah, Georgia from 1929 to 1931.

Background

Saussy was born in

Savannah, Georgia Savannah ( ) is the oldest city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia and is the county seat of Chatham County, Georgia, Chatham County. Established in 1733 on the Savannah River, the city of Savannah became the Kingdom of Great Br ...

on February 14, 1872. He led a number of civic organizations, including the

Georgia Salzburger Society The Georgia Salzburger Society, headquartered in historic Ebenezer, Georgia, celebrates the history and heritage of the Georgia Salzburgers who emigrated and settled in Old Ebenezer and New Ebenezer. It was established in 1925 as an independently ...

. His grandson,

Kirk Varnedoe John Kirk Train Varnedoe (January 18, 1946 – August 14, 2003) was an American art historian, the Chief Curator of Painting and Sculpture at the Museum of Modern Art from 1988 to 2001, Professor of the History of Art at the Institute for Advance ...

, played

rugby Rugby may refer to: Sport * Rugby football in many forms: ** Rugby league: 13 players per side *** Masters Rugby League *** Mod league *** Rugby league nines *** Rugby league sevens *** Touch (sport) *** Wheelchair rugby league ** Rugby union: 1 ...

for 14 years and later became the Director of Painting and Sculpting at New York’s

Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It plays a major role in developing and collecting modern art, and is often identified as one of ...

Football career

Saussy attended and graduated from

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 ...

in 1896 and was a star player on the Cornell football team. He was the head football coach of the

Mercer University Mercer University is a private research university with its main campus in Macon, Georgia. Founded in 1833 as Mercer Institute and gaining university status in 1837, it is the oldest private university in the state and enrolls more than 9,000 ...

Bears football team in for the 1897 season and the

Bulldogs football team for the 1899 season. He was the second Georgia coach with ties to Cornell, the first being

Pop 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 inn ...

. Saussy's record at Mercer was 0–1 and at Georgia was 2–3–1.

Political career

After coaching at Georgia, Saussy returned to Savannah, where he practiced law. He once was a Democratic member of the

Georgia General Assembly The Georgia General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is bicameral, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. Each of the General Assembly's 236 members serve two-year terms and are directly ...

and was elected Mayor of Savannah in 1929. He resigned in 1931, successfully ran as a candidate for Ordinary of

Chatham County, Georgia Chatham County ( ) is located in the U.S. state of Georgia, on the state's Atlantic coast. The county seat and largest city is Savannah. One of the original counties of Georgia, Chatham County was created February 5, 1777, and is named after Will ...

and served in that capacity until his death.

Death

Saussy died in December 1952 and was buried at

Laurel Grove Cemetery Laurel Grove Cemetery is a cemetery located in midtown Savannah, Georgia. It includes the original cemetery for whites (now known as Laurel Grove North) and a companion burial ground (called Laurel Grove South) that was reserved for slaves and fr ...

. The religious service was conducted at the Wesley Monumental Methodist Church.Savannah Morning News, December 10, 1952

Head coaching record

References

External links

''History of the University of Georgia'', Thomas Walter Reed, Imprint: Athens, Georgia : University of Georgia, ca.1949, pp.3461-3463

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Saussy, Gordon 1872 births 1952 deaths 19th-century players of American football American athlete-politicians Cornell Big Red football players Georgia Bulldogs football coaches Mercer Bears football coaches Georgia (U.S. state) Democrats Georgia (U.S. state) lawyers Mayors of Savannah, Georgia Players of American football from Savannah, Georgia