Lawrence H. Lutz (1913–1998) 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 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 ...

. He played for the

California Golden Bears football The California Golden Bears football program represents the University of California, Berkeley in college football as a member of the Pac-12 Conference at the NCAA Division I, NCAA Division I FBS level. The team plays its home games at Californi ...

team from 1933 and 1935. He was selected as a consensus All-American at the tackle position in 1935.

Biography

A native of

Santa Ana, California Santa Ana () is the second most populous city and the county seat of Orange County, California. Located in the Greater Los Angeles region of Southern California, the city's population was 310,227 at the 2020 census, making Santa Ana the List of ...

, Lutz played football for

Santa Ana High School Santa Ana High School is the oldest and largest high school in Orange County, California, United States. The school was established in 1889. Notable alumni * Original members of the surf band The Chantays * Barry Asher, professional bowler * Ton ...

and was selected as the California high school player of the year in 1931. Lutz next enrolled at the

University of California The University of California (UC) is a public land-grant research university system in the U.S. state of California. The system is composed of the campuses at Berkeley, Davis, Irvine, Los Angeles, Merced, Riverside, San Diego, San Francisco, ...

Berkeley, California Berkeley ( ) is a city on the eastern shore of San Francisco Bay in northern Alameda County, California, United States. It is named after the 18th-century Irish bishop and philosopher George Berkeley. It borders the cities of Oakland and Emer ...

. He played tackle for the

California Golden Bears The California Golden Bears are the athletic teams that represent the University of California, Berkeley. Referred to in athletic competition as ''California'' or ''Cal'', the university fields 30 varsity athletic programs and various club te ...

as a sophomore in 1933 and as a senior in 1935. He was unable to play in 1934 due to an injury. As a senior in 1935, he was selected as a first-team All-American by the

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...

, the All-America Board (a board made up of Glenn "Pop" Warner, Christy Walsh,

Elmer Layden Elmer Francis Layden (May 4, 1903 – June 30, 1973) was an American football player, coach, college athletics administrator, and professional sports executive. He played college football at the University of Notre Dame where he starred at full ...

, Howard Jones and Frank Thomas), the

Central Press Association The Central Press Association was American newspaper syndication company based in Cleveland, Ohio. It was in business from 1910 to 1971. Originally independent, it was a subsidiary of King Features Syndicate from 1930 onwards. At its peak, the ...

(selected based on the votes of 53 college football captains), and the

Walter Camp Football Foundation The Walter Camp Football Foundation (WCFF) is one of the organizations whose College Football All-America Team is recognized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association. The organization also presents various awards. It is named in honor of foo ...

. He was named a second-team All-American by the

United Press United Press International (UPI) is an American international news agency whose newswires, photo, news film, and audio services provided news material to thousands of newspapers, magazines, radio and television stations for most of the 20th c ...

and is considered a consensus All-American. In selecting Lutz as an All-American, Associated Press sports editor Alan Gould wrote: "Lutz stood out among linemen on the coast, tackling fiercely and fast enough to draw out for interference when advantageous." At the end of the 1935 season, Lutz's teammates voted Lutz as the honorary captain of the 1935 team. Selected in the

1936 NFL Draft The 1936 National Football League Draft was the 1st draft of National Football League (NFL). It took place on February 8, 1936, at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The draft was instituted in an effort to end bidding wars amo ...

, Lutz turned down an offer to play professional football with the

Boston Redskins The Washington Commanders, an American football team belonging to the National Football League (NFL), have also played as the Boston Braves, Boston Redskins, Washington Redskins, and Washington Football Team. Founded in 1932, the team has won five ...

, opting to remain at the University of California as an assistant football coach working with

head coach A head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other coaches. In some sports, the head coach is instead called the "manager", as in assoc ...

Stub Allison Leonard Blaine "Stub" Allison (November 15, 1892 – December 12, 1961) was an American football, basketball, and baseball coach. He served as the head football coach at the University of Washington (1920), the University of South Dakota (1922� ...

. Lutz also played for the Salinas Iceberg Packers from 1936–1937 and for the St. Mary's Pre-Flight Air Devils in 1942. Some accounts indicate he may have also played for the

Calgary Bronks The Calgary Bronks were a professional Canadian football team based in Calgary, Alberta, that competed in the Alberta Rugby Football Union (ARFU) in 1935 and 1936, as well as the Western Interprovincial Football Union (WIFU) from 1936 and 1940. ...

in the Canadian Rugby League.

References

1913 births 1998 deaths All-American college football players Sportspeople from Santa Ana, California Players of American football from California American football tackles California Golden Bears football players {{offensive-lineman-1910s-stub