Richard Burr "Red" Rutherford (April 11, 1891 – February 16, 1976) was an American

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 ...

and college basketball coach. He served as the head football coach at

Washington University in St. Louis Washington University in St. Louis (WashU or WUSTL) is a private research university with its main campus in St. Louis County, and Clayton, Missouri. Founded in 1853, the university is named after George Washington. Washington University is r ...

from 1917 to 1919 and at Oregon Agricultural College, now

Oregon State University Oregon State University (OSU) is a public land-grant, research university in Corvallis, Oregon. OSU offers more than 200 undergraduate-degree programs along with a variety of graduate and doctoral degrees. It has the 10th largest engineering co ...

, from 1920 to 1923, compiling a career football coaching record of 28–19–6. Rutherford was also the head basketball coach at Washington University from 1917 to 1920 and at Oregon Agricultural from 1920 to 1922, tallying a career basketball coaching mark of 58–41.

Coaching career

Football

Rutherford was the head coach of the

Oregon State Beavers football The Oregon State Beavers football team represents Oregon State University in NCAA Division I FBS college football. The team first fielded an organized football team in 1893 and is a member of the Pac-12 Conference. Jonathan Smith has been the he ...

team from 1920 to 1923. During his tenure there, he compiled a 13–14–6 record.

1923 Civil War

This Civil War was played at Hayward Field before 12,000 fans on November 25, 1923. It had been 15 years since Oregon State had beaten the

University of Oregon The University of Oregon (UO, U of O or Oregon) is a public research university in Eugene, Oregon. Founded in 1876, the institution is well known for its strong ties to the sports apparel and marketing firm Nike, Inc, and its co-founder, billion ...

in Eugene. In fact, in the 29 years the rivalry had been contested, Oregon Agricultural College had only beaten Oregon on the road on two other occasions, making this an era when most Beaver fans took it as a given that a trip "south to Lane County" was as good as a loss. OAC coach R.B. Rutherford and team captain

Percy Locey Percy P. Locey (November 28, 1894 – August 1981) was an American football player, coach, and a college athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach at the University of Denver from 1932 to 1935. He was the athletic director the ...

felt otherwise. So did quarterback Roy Price. In the second quarter, Price took a Webfoot punt on his own 23-yard line and didn't stop until he had reached the Oregon end zone for the game's only score. Rutherford and the Beavers team won, 6–0. This game is still known as one of the greatest "Civil War" games.

Basketball

From 1920 to 1922, Rutherford also coached the Oregon State Beavers basketball team. In his two seasons as the head basketball coach, he posted a 27–19 record. He is one of three people to have coached both teams.

Later life and death

Rutherford moved to

Stirling City, California Stirling City is a census-designated place in Butte County, California, located on Paradise Ridge in the western foothills of the Sierra Nevada. Contrary to its name, Stirling City is not a city. Its ZIP Code is 95978 and area code 530. It lies ...

in 1959 and then to

Paradise, California Paradise is a town in Butte County, California, United States in the Sierra Nevada foothills above the northeastern Sacramento Valley. As of the 2020 census, the town population was 4,764. On November 8, 2018, a major wildfire, the Camp Fire ...

in 1969. He died on February 16, 1976, at a hospital in Paradise.

Head coaching record

Football

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rutherford, R. B. 1891 births 1976 deaths American football halfbacks Nebraska Cornhuskers football players Nebraska Cornhuskers men's basketball players Nebraska Cornhuskers wrestlers Oregon State Beavers football coaches Oregon State Beavers men's basketball coaches Washington University Bears football coaches Washington University Bears men's basketball coaches People from Beatrice, Nebraska People from Paradise, California Coaches of American football from California Players of American football from Butte County, California Basketball coaches from Nebraska Basketball players from Nebraska