Laurence A. "Moon" Mullins (June 13, 1908 – August 10, 1968) was an American

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

player, coach and

athletic director An athletic director (commonly "athletics director" or "AD") is an administrator at many American clubs or institutions, such as colleges and universities, as well as in larger high schools and middle schools, who oversees the work of coaches a ...

. He played fullback under

Knute Rockne Knute Kenneth Rockne (; March 4, 1888 – March 31, 1931) was an American football player and coach at the University of Notre Dame. Leading Notre Dame for 13 seasons, Rockne accumulated over 100 wins and three national championships. Rockne is ...

at the

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac (known simply as Notre Dame; ; ND) is a Private university, private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, United States. Founded in 1842 by members of the Congregation of Holy Cross, a Cathol ...

. He served as the head coach at St. Benedict's College from 1932 to 1936, Loyola University of New Orleans from 1937 to 1939, and

St. Ambrose University St. Ambrose University (SAU) is a private university, private Catholic university in Davenport, Iowa, United States. It was founded as a school of commerce for young men in 1882. History Foundation St. Ambrose was founded as a seminary and scho ...

in 1940 and 1947 to 1950. Mullins was the athletic director at

Kansas State University Kansas State University (KSU, Kansas State, or K-State) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university with its main campus in Manhattan, Kansas, United States. It was opened as the state's land-grant coll ...

and

Marquette University Marquette University () is a Private university, private Jesuit research university in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States. It was established as Marquette College on August 28, 1881, by John Henni, the first Archbishop of the Roman Catholic Ar ...

Early life

Mullins was born in

South Pasadena, California South Pasadena is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. As of the 2020 census, it had a population of 26,943, up from 25,619 at the 2020 census. It is located in the Western San Gabriel Valley. It is in area and lies betwe ...

on June 13, 1908. He attended the

, where he played on the

football team A football team is a group of players selected to play together in the various team sports known as football. Such teams could be selected to play in a match against an opposing team, to represent a football club, group, state or nation, an All-st ...

under head coach

as a fullback from 1928 to 1930. The 1929 and 1930 teams won consecutive

national championships A national championship(s) is the top achievement for any sport or competition, contest within a league of a particular nation or nation state. The title is usually awarded by contests, ranking systems, stature, ability, etc. This determines the be ...

, and those teams finished with perfect untied and undefeated records. He graduated from the school with a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

degree in 1931.Mullins, Irish star in 1929-30, dies
''The Rochester Sentinel'', Aug. 12, 1968. Mullins was one of 6 team members to carry Knute Rocknes' casket to the grave .(Ref Find Grave.com)

Coaching career

After college, Mullins began his coaching career at the

University of Kansas The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States. Two branch campuses are in the Kansas City metropolitan area on the Kansas side: the university's medical school and hospital ...

. His first position was as the backfield assistant under head coach

Homer Woodson Hargiss Homer Woodson "Bill" Hargiss (September 1, 1887 – October 15, 1978) was an American athlete and coach. He played American football and basketball and also competed in track and field events. Additionally, Hargis coached athletics at several co ...

in 1931 for a salary of $4,000. The following season, he became head football coach and

at St. Benedict's, a small college in

Atchison, Kansas Atchison is a city in, and the county seat of, Atchison County, Kansas, United States, along the Missouri River. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of the city was 10,885. The city is named in honor of US Senator ...

with 600 students at the time, for a salary of about $3,500. While there, he led his teams to a 38–5–1 record.

Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...

accounted for two of the five losses. His final season there in 1936, St. Benedict's finished undefeated and untied.Moon Mullins Goes To Loyola
''The Telegraph-Herald'', January 20, 1937. In January 1937, the Loyola University of New Orleans hired Mullins as its head coach.Larry Mullins is Hired by Loyola
''Lawrence Journal-World'', January 19, 1937. During his three-year tenure, he compiled an 11–16–1 record at Loyola. The Wolves finished the 1939 season with a 5–5 mark, which was sufficient to capture the

Dixie Conference The Dixie Conference was the name of two collegiate athletic leagues in the United States. The first operated from 1930 until the United States' entry into World War II in 1942. The second conference to use the name existed from 1948 to 1954. Di ...

championship. In December 1939, he announced that he would not seek renewal of his expiring contract. Two weeks later, the school discontinued its football program. In 1940, he became head coach at

Davenport, Iowa Davenport ( ) is a city in Scott County, Iowa, United States, and its county seat. It is situated along the Mississippi River on the eastern border of the state. Davenport had a population of 101,724 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 cen ...

, where he led the football team to an undefeated season.Year-by-Year Coaching Records
(PDF), St. Ambrose University, 2008. After American entry into

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, Mullins entered the

United States Navy Reserve The United States Navy Reserve (USNR), known as the United States Naval Reserve from 1915 to 2004, is the Reserve Component (RC) of the United States Navy. Members of the Navy Reserve, called reservists, are categorized as being in either the S ...

. He was sworn in as a lieutenant senior grade in

Jacksonville, Florida Jacksonville ( ) is the most populous city proper in the U.S. state of Florida, located on the Atlantic coast of North Florida, northeastern Florida. It is the county seat of Duval County, Florida, Duval County, with which the City of Jacksonv ...

on March 23, 1942, and then attended a month-long course in

Annapolis, Maryland Annapolis ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of Maryland. It is the county seat of Anne Arundel County and its only incorporated city. Situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east ...

prior to service in the Navy's physical training program. The following year, he assisted Lieutenant Colonel

Bernie Bierman Bernard W. Bierman (March 11, 1894 – March 7, 1977) was an American college football coach best known for his years as head coach of the Minnesota Golden Gophers football program. Between 1934-41, his Minnesota teams won five national champio ...

, the athletic director and football coach at the Iowa Preflight School. During the 1943 season, he served as the Iowa Pre-Flight backfield coach. By December 1944, Mullins had attained the rank of lieutenant commander and was Iowa Pre-Flight athletic director. In August 1945, he was made a staff officer of the Naval Air Intermediate Training Command in

Corpus Christi, Texas Corpus Christi ( ; ) is a Gulf Coast of the United States, coastal city in the South Texas region of the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat and largest city of Nueces County, Texas, Nueces County with portions extending into Aransas County, T ...

. While there, Mullins coached the

Naval Air Station A Naval Air Station (NAS) is a military air base, and consists of a permanent land-based operations locations for the military aviation division of the relevant branch of a navy (Naval aviation). These bases are typically populated by squadron ...

football team.Santa Clara Names Mullins
''The Spokesman-Review'', Nov 6, 1945. On November 5, 1945,

Santa Clara University Santa Clara University is a private university, private Jesuit university in Santa Clara, California, United States. Established in 1851, Santa Clara University is the oldest operating institution of higher learning in California. The university' ...

appointed him as its head coach of its football program, which had been temporarily suspended during the war. However, Mullins tendered his resignation on May 7, 1946, after his abortive five-month search for a residence for his wife and six children in the midst of housing shortage. Mullins returned to Corpus Christi to enter the

sporting goods Sports equipment, also called sporting goods, are the tools, materials, apparel, and gear, which varies in shapes, size, and usage in a particular sport. It includes balls, nets, rackets, protective gears like helmets, goggles, etc. Since the p ...

business, but soon reentered the coaching ranks. In 1947, he returned to St. Ambrose, where he served for four more seasons. Mullins led the Bees to another undefeated finish in 1949 with an 8–0 record, and was named the "Little All-American Coach of the Year". In 1950, St. Ambrose finished 12–1. The grueling 13-game schedule culminated in a victory over Loras to capture the

Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference The American Rivers Conference (A-R-C) is an intercollegiate athletic conference that competes in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division III. From 1927 until August 9, 2018, it was known officially as the Iowa Intercollegia ...

championship. Mullins' career total at the school was 40–7–1.

Administrative career and later life

In February 1951,

appointed Mullins as its athletic director with a $9,000 salary. In 1956, Mullins took the same position at

with a substantial pay raise. The university, which discontinued football and track in 1960, dismissed Mullins on January 31, 1962.Mullins Dismissed As Marquette AD
''The Washington Observer'', May 13, 1961. Mullins died of cancer in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

on August 10, 1968, at the age of 60. His body was interred in

South Bend, Indiana South Bend is a city in St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. It lies along the St. Joseph River (Lake Michigan), St. Joseph River near its southernmost bend, from which it derives its name. It is the List of cities in ...

Head coaching record

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mullins, Larry 1908 births 1968 deaths American football fullbacks Basketball coaches from California Benedictine Ravens athletic directors Benedictine Ravens football coaches Benedictine Ravens men's basketball coaches Corpus Christi Naval Air Station Comets football coaches Florida Gators football coaches Iowa Pre-Flight Seahawks football coaches Kansas Jayhawks football coaches Kansas State Wildcats athletic directors Loyola Wolf Pack football coaches Marquette Golden Eagles athletic directors Notre Dame Fighting Irish football players Santa Clara Broncos football coaches Players of American football from Los Angeles County, California St. Ambrose Fighting Bees football coaches People from South Pasadena, California Military personnel from California Deaths from cancer in Illinois Coaches of American football from California