James Donald Owens (March 6, 1927 – June 6, 2009) was an American football player and coach. He played one year in th National Football League (NFL) as an end for the

Baltimore Colts The Baltimore Colts were a professional American football team that played in Baltimore from its founding in 1953 to 1984. The team now plays in Indianapolis, as the Indianapolis Colts. The team was named for Baltimore's history of horse breed ...

. Owens' career in coaching was longer-lived, as he held the position of head coach at the University of Washington from 1957 to 1974, compiling a record of in 18 seasons.

Biography

Playing career

Owens played

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 ...

at the University of Oklahoma from 1946 to 1949, under head coach

Bud Wilkinson Charles Burnham "Bud" Wilkinson (April 23, 1916 – February 9, 1994) was an American football player, coach, broadcaster, and politician. He served as the head football coach at the University of Oklahoma from 1947 to 1963, compiling a record of ...

, where he was a teammate of Darrell Royal, who, coincidentally, was the Huskies' head coach in

1956 Events January * January 1 – The Anglo-Egyptian Sudan, Anglo-Egyptian Condominium ends in Sudan. * January 8 – Operation Auca: Five U.S. evangelical Christian Missionary, missionaries, Nate Saint, Roger Youderian, Ed McCully, Jim ...

, then took the same post at Texas, allowing Owens to come to Seattle. He played a year of pro football in

1950 Events January * January 1 – The International Police Association (IPA) – the largest police organization in the world – is formed. * January 5 – 1950 Sverdlovsk plane crash, Sverdlovsk plane crash: ''Aeroflot'' Lisunov Li-2 cr ...

for the

, a one-win squad worthy of mention as among the worst teams in NFL history.

Coaching career

After his brief foray in professional football came to an end, Owens served as a college assistant coach for six years under

Bear Bryant Paul William "Bear" Bryant (September 11, 1913 – January 26, 1983) was an American college football player and coach. He is considered by many to be one of the greatest college football coaches of all time, and best known as the head coach of ...

at the University of Kentucky and at Texas A&M University. According to legend, after the 1956 season, when the Washington Huskies were looking for a head coach, Bryant indicated to reporters that Owens "will make a great coach for somebody some day." In

1959 Events January * January 1 - Cuba: Fulgencio Batista flees Havana when the forces of Fidel Castro advance. * January 2 - Lunar probe Luna 1 was the first man-made object to attain escape velocity from Earth. It reached the vicinity of E ...

and

1960 It is also known as the "Year of Africa" because of major events—particularly the independence of seventeen African nations—that focused global attention on the continent and intensified feelings of Pan-Africanism. Events January * Ja ...

, he led Washington to back-to-back ten-win seasons and consecutive Rose Bowl wins. He was awarded the UPI Pacific Coast Coach of the Year for

and

. He also coached the Huskies to the

1964 Rose Bowl The 1964 Rose Bowl was the 50th Rose Bowl Game, played on January 1, 1964. It featured the Illinois Fighting Illini and the Washington Huskies. Illinois was led by co-captains Dick Butkus and George Donnelly, Jim Grabowski, Lynn Stewart, and Ar ...

. Owens concurrently served as the athletic director at Washington from 1960 to 1969. He was elected to the

College Football Hall of Fame The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and interactive attraction devoted to college football. The National Football Foundation (NFF) founded the Hall in 1951 to immortalize the players and coaches of college football that were vote ...

as a player in 1982. Owens' 1960 team was awarded the national championship by the

Helms Athletic Foundation The Helms Athletic Foundation, founded in 1936, was a Los Angeles-based organization dedicated to the promotion of athletics and sportsmanship. Paul H. Helms was the organization's founder and benefactor, funding the foundation via his ownership ...

after defeating Minnesota in the

1961 Rose Bowl The 1961 Rose Bowl was the 47th Rose Bowl game, played on January 2, 1961, in Pasadena, California. The #6 Washington Huskies defeated the top-ranked Minnesota Golden Gophers, 17–7. Washington quarterback Bob Schloredt returned from a mid-season ...

. The Golden Gophers had already been awarded the AP, UPI, and NFF national championships at the end of the regular season, as was customary at the time. Owens resigned as head coach of the Huskies following the 1974 season at the end of his last contract, a three-year deal at $33,000 per year. His later years at Washington were marred by accusations of racism and the backlash that resulted from his actions and attitudes towards black players. He was succeeded as head coach by Don James, the head coach at

Kent State Kent State University (KSU) is a public research university in Kent, Ohio. The university also includes seven regional campuses in Northeast Ohio and additional facilities in the region and internationally. Regional campuses are located in Ash ...

, who also led the Huskies for eighteen seasons. Owens later apologized for his actions as part of his acknowledgements as a statue of him was erected at Washington in

2003 File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry into Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an epidemic in China, and was a precursor to SARS-CoV-2; A des ...

. Owens died at age 82 in 2009 at his home in Bigfork, Montana.

Head coaching record

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Owens, Jim 1927 births 2009 deaths American football ends Baltimore Colts players Kentucky Wildcats football coaches Oklahoma Sooners football players Texas A&M Aggies football coaches Washington Huskies athletic directors Washington Huskies football coaches College Football Hall of Fame inductees Players of American football from Oklahoma City People from Bigfork, Montana Coaches of American football from Oklahoma Baltimore Colts (1947–1950) players