Phillip Norris "Army" Armstrong (September 15, 1898 – October 11, 1981) 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. He 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 ...

Centre College Centre College is a private liberal arts college in Danville, Kentucky. It is an undergraduate college with an enrollment of approximately 1,400 students. Centre was officially chartered by the Kentucky General Assembly in 1819. The college is ...

Danville, Kentucky Danville is a home rule-class city in Boyle County, Kentucky, United States. It is the seat of its county. The population was 17,236 at the 2020 Census. Danville is the principal city of the Danville Micropolitan Statistical Area, which includes ...

from 1918 to 1919 and professionally for one season, in 1922, with the

Milwaukee Badgers The Milwaukee Badgers was a professional American football team, based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, that played in the National Football League from 1922 to 1926. The team played its home games at Athletic Park, later known as Borchert Field, on Mi ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL). Armstong served as the head football coach at Carroll College—now known as

Carroll University Carroll University is a private university affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA) and located in Waukesha, Wisconsin. Established in 1846, Carroll was Wisconsin's first four-year institution of higher learning. History Prior to its esta ...

—

Waukesha, Wisconsin Waukesha ( ) is the county seat of Waukesha County, Wisconsin, United States. It is part of the Milwaukee metropolitan area. Its population was 71,158 at the 2020 census. The city is adjacent to the Village of Waukesha. History The area that ...

from 1923 to 1930, compiling a record of 44–11–6.

Playing career

Centre

Norris played tackle and halfback for

and was a key offensive player during the

1921 Centre vs. Harvard football game The 1921 Centre vs. Harvard football game was a regular-season college football game played on October 29, 1921, at Harvard Stadium in Allston, Massachusetts. The contest featured the undefeated Centre Praying Colonels, representing Centre Colleg ...

, and was captain of the team that year. He was also a player on the school's

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

team. Centre College honored his contribution to the school's athletic program by inducting him into the college's Athletic Hall of Fame. He was a halfback on Centre's all-time football team chosen in 1935.

Milwaukee Badgers

After graduation from Centre, Norris played professionally for the 1922 season as a tackle for the

of the

(NFL) alongside his college teammate

Bo McMillin Alvin Nugent "Bo" McMillin (January 12, 1895 – March 31, 1952) was an American football player and coach at the collegiate and professional level. He played college football at Centre College in Danville, Kentucky, where he was a three-tim ...

Coaching career

Centenary

Armstrong's first coaching position was in 1922 at

Centenary College of Louisiana Centenary College of Louisiana is a private liberal arts college in Shreveport, Louisiana. The college is affiliated with the United Methodist Church. Founded in 1825, it is the oldest chartered liberal arts college west of the Mississippi Rive ...

. Here he was assistant to his college teammate (and future professional teammate)

where they produced an impressive record of eight wins and one loss while outscoring opponents 295 to 41.

Carroll

After completing one year as an assistant coach, Armstrong was named the 15th head football at Carroll College—now known as

—in

and he held that position for eight seasons, from 1923 until 1930. His career coaching record at Carroll College was 44–11–6. Armstrong oversaw one of the most successful periods of the football team at the college. The university honored his contributions by inducting him into the school's "Hall of Fame" in 1973. Key games for Carroll under Armstrong included the 1925 victory over Great Lakes Naval by a score of 73–0, and an undefeated 1925 season. The program never had anything but winning seasons under Armstrong, with the worst record being 4–3 in 1929; the worst loss that year was a 46–0 defeat by the

Iowa Hawkeyes The Iowa Hawkeyes are the athletic teams that represent the University of Iowa, located in Iowa City, Iowa. The Hawkeyes have varsity teams in 22 sports, 8 for men and 14 for women; a 15th women's sport will be added in 2023. The teams partici ...

. After retiring from coaching, Armstrong remain with Carroll College to become

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 and ...

and later a

trustee Trustee (or the holding of a trusteeship) is a legal term which, in its broadest sense, is a synonym for anyone in a position of trust and so can refer to any individual who holds property, authority, or a position of trust or responsibility to t ...

of the college.The Evening Independent
"A Football Legend is Dead" October 13, 1981

Head coaching record

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Armstrong, Norris 1898 births 1981 deaths American football halfbacks American football tackles Basketball coaches from Arkansas Centenary Gentlemen football coaches Centre Colonels football players Carroll Pioneers football coaches Carroll Pioneers men's basketball coaches All-Southern college football players Sportspeople from Fort Smith, Arkansas Coaches of American football from Arkansas Players of American football from Arkansas