John W. "Puggy" Hunton (August 28, 1902 – October 3, 1967) was the final

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 ...

of the

Gonzaga University Gonzaga University (GU) () is a private Jesuit university in Spokane, Washington. It is accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities. Founded in 1887 by Joseph Cataldo, an Italian-born priest and Jesuit missionary, the univ ...

Bulldogs football team, leading their final three seasons, from 1939 to 1941. Prior to his tenure with the Bulldogs he was a

high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

coach at

Gonzaga Preparatory School Gonzaga Preparatory School in Spokane, Washington, is a private, Catholic high school in the Inland Northwest. As a Jesuit institution, "G-Prep" has been recognized for its college preparation education and community service. History Gonzaga Hig ...

Spokane Spokane ( ) is the largest city and county seat of Spokane County, Washington, United States. It is in eastern Washington, along the Spokane River, adjacent to the Selkirk Mountains, and west of the Rocky Mountain foothills, south of the Ca ...

and Cogswell High School of

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

Early life

Born in

Porum, Oklahoma Porum is a town in Muskogee County, Oklahoma, United States. It was named for John Porum Davis, a rancher, Civil War veteran, and Cherokee Nation councilman from the Canadian District in Indian Territory. The community was first known as Porum ...

, Hunton played collegiately at Gonzaga and graduated in June 1927. After he graduated, Hunton served as head coach for the football squad at Cogswell High School of

prior to accepting the head coaching position at the

in 1928. During his ten-year tenure at Gonzaga Prep, he led them to seven city championships and five undefeated seasons en route to an overall record of 74 wins and ten losses ().

Gonzaga

On March 5, 1939, Hunton was introduced as Gonzaga's head football coach as a replacement for fellow alumnus

Mike Pecarovich Michael J. Pecarovich (September 23, 1898 – March 23, 1965) was an American football coach, lawyer, and actor. He served as the head football coach at Loyola University of Los Angeles—now known as Loyola Marymount University—in 1928 and 193 ...

, who left for Loyola in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

. In his first season, Hunton led the Bulldogs to an upset over

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

Hayward Field Hayward Field is a track and field stadium in the northwest United States, located on the campus of the University of Oregon in Eugene, Oregon. It has been the home of the university's track and field teams since 1921, and was the on-campus ho ...

. For his efforts in the upset, Hunton was named coach of the week by various selectors. During his three-year tenure at

, Hunton had an overall record of fourteen wins, thirteen losses and one tie (14–13–1). Gonzaga fielded its last varsity

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

team in 1941. Like many colleges, the football program went on hiatus during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

(in April 1942), but after the war the administration decided not to resume it. The program had been in financial difficulty prior to the war. After Hunton was hired from Gonzaga Prep in 1939, he earned substantially less than his predecessor. In late August 1940, he signed a three-year contract, retroactive to July 1, at $2,500 per year. When the program was dropped, Hunton was released as head coach and not paid for his final year. He filed

suit A suit, lounge suit, or business suit is a set of clothes comprising a suit jacket and trousers of identical textiles worn with a collared dress shirt, necktie, and dress shoes. A skirt suit is similar, but with a matching skirt instead of tr ...

against the university regarding the contract, which was settled out of court in 1943.

Head coaching record

College

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hunton, Puggy 1902 births 1967 deaths Gonzaga Bulldogs football coaches Gonzaga Bulldogs football players High school football coaches in California High school football coaches in Washington (state) People from Muskogee County, Oklahoma Players of American football from Oklahoma Players of American football from Spokane, Washington