John Bryan Friel (August 26, 1898 – December 12, 1995) was an American college basketball

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

, the head coach of the Washington State Cougars for 30 seasons, from

1928 Events January * January – British bacteriologist Frederick Griffith reports the results of Griffith's experiment, indirectly proving the existence of DNA. * January 1 – Eastern Bloc emigration and defection: Boris Bazhanov, J ...

He holds the school record for victories by a men's basketball coach with 495, and led Washington State to the NCAA tournament championship game in

1941 Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * January–August – 10,072 men, women and children with mental and physical disabilities are asphyxiated with carbon monoxide in a gas chamber, at Hadamar Eu ...

. He was later the first commissioner of the Big Sky Conference. Friel played college basketball at Washington State before becoming a high school coach. In 1928, he was named the head coach of Washington State. His teams won one

Pacific Coast Conference The Pacific Coast Conference (PCC) was a college athletic conference in the United States which existed from 1915 to 1959. Though the Pac-12 Conference claims the PCC's history as part of its own, with eight of the ten PCC members (including a ...

championship and three divisional titles. Friel officiated college football games and was head coach of the Cougars baseball team from 1943 to 1945.

Early years

Born in Waterville, Washington, Friel enrolled at Washington State College in 1916, then served in Europe during World War I. He returned to Pullman after the war and was the captain of the basketball team, playing at forward and earning all-conference honors in 1922. He claimed six varsity letters, and in 18 starts as a baseball pitcher had a win–loss record of 15–1.

High school coach

Following graduation in 1923, Friel coached high school basketball, first at

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, then at North Central in Spokane, winning the state title in his third and final season at North Central.

Washington State

He became the head basketball coach at his alma mater in 1928, and his team posted a 9–14 record in his first season. Washington State increased its victory total each of the next three seasons, winning 22 games in 1931–32. The Cougars won at least 20 games in 10 of Friel's 30 seasons as head coach, and had 21 winning seasons. The 1940–41 team was Friel's only one to make the NCAA Tournament. One of three Washington State teams to win a

divisional championship under Friel, the 1940–41 Cougars won the conference title, and won two games in the NCAA Tournament to advance to the final, where they lost 39–34 to Wisconsin. Friel has been credited as helping to change free throw rules in college basketball. In addition to his duties as basketball coach, Friel was Washington State's baseball head coach from 1943 to 1945 and a

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 ...

official; he was originally selected to officiate the

1942 Rose Bowl The 1942 Rose Bowl was the 28th edition of the college football bowl game, played on Thursday, January 1, 1942. Originally scheduled for the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California, it was moved to Durham, North Carolina, due to fears about an attack b ...

, but his basketball schedule prevented him from serving as referee. After the early 1950s, his Cougar teams struggled, failing to post a winning record following a 19–16 mark in 1951–52; in November 1957, Friel announced that he would retire at the end of the season. Friel had the eighth-most wins among Division I men's college basketball coaches when he retired. He remained with the school into the 1960s, continuing as golf coach and in the physical education program. The court inside Beasley Coliseum, the Cougars' home arena, was named after Friel in April 1977, as announced by university President Glenn Terrell at a meeting of the board of regents; the dedication ceremony was at halftime on The following year, Friel was among the first to be inducted into Washington State's Athletic Hall of Fame.

Conference work

Friel was a supervisor for the

Pacific-10 Conference The Pac-12 Conference is a collegiate athletic conference, that operates in the Western United States, participating in 24 sports at the NCAA Division I level. Its football teams compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS; formerly Division ...

's basketball officiating bureau and spent eight years as the first commissioner of the Big Sky Conference, beginning in 1963. Into the 1980s, Friel continued working for the Pac-10, evaluating officials.

Death

Friel died at the age of 97 in Pullman on December 12, 1995, due to pneumonia. In 2003, he was inducted into the

Pac-10 Basketball Hall of Honor The Pac-12 Conference Hall of Honor recognizes former athletes and coaches who have made a significant impact to the tradition and heritage of the Pac-12 Conference. Established in 2002, one honoree is selected by each member institution in the co ...

. That summer, his widow Catherine died at age 101.

Head coaching record

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Friel, Jack 1898 births 1995 deaths American men's basketball coaches American men's basketball players Basketball coaches from Washington (state) Basketball players from Washington (state) Big Sky Conference commissioners Forwards (basketball) High school basketball coaches in the United States People from Waterville, Washington Washington State Cougars baseball coaches Washington State Cougars baseball players Washington State Cougars men's basketball coaches Washington State Cougars men's basketball players