Robert Kent Gooch (September 26, 1893 – May 22, 1982) 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

track Track or Tracks may refer to: Routes or imprints * Ancient trackway, any track or trail whose origin is lost in antiquity * Animal track, imprints left on surfaces that an animal walks across * Desire path, a line worn by people taking the shorte ...

athlete. Gooch was a

quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...

for the Virginia Cavaliers football team of the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United S ...

. He was named a

Rhodes Scholar The Rhodes Scholarship is an international postgraduate award for students to study at the University of Oxford, in the United Kingdom. Established in 1902, it is the oldest graduate scholarship in the world. It is considered among the world' ...

, but the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

interrupted his studies. During the war, Gooch served with the American Ambulance Corps with the French forces on the

Somme __NOTOC__ Somme or The Somme may refer to: Places *Somme (department), a department of France *Somme, Queensland, Australia *Canal de la Somme, a canal in France *Somme (river), a river in France Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Somme'' (book), a ...

front, and was awarded the

Croix de Guerre The ''Croix de Guerre'' (, ''Cross of War'') is a military decoration of France. It was first created in 1915 and consists of a square-cross medal on two crossed swords, hanging from a ribbon with various degree pins. The decoration was first awa ...

. He is the namesake of the Robert Kent Gooch Scholarship, for second and third-year college students who have a record of outstanding academic achievement and a record of outstanding service to others. For many years Gooch was a

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...

professor at UVA, writing several books. He is buried at the

University of Virginia Cemetery The University of Virginia Cemetery and Columbarium is a cemetery on the grounds of the University of Virginia, located at the intersection of McCormick Road and Alderman Road. In operation since 1828, during the earliest days of the university, ...

. A named professorship of political science, the Robert Kent Gooch Professor of Politics, was established in his honor at the university, with Larry Sabato the incumbent as of 2018.

Early years

Gooch was born on September 26, 1893, in Roanoke to William Stapleton Gooch, a lawyer, and Mary Stuart Anderson. His ancestry was English and French; a descendant of Sir William Gooch, 1st Baronet. In 1895, the family moved to Louisa Court House, VA.

University of Virginia

Gooch played quarterback for Virginia from

1912 Events January * January 1 – The Republic of China (1912–49), Republic of China is established. * January 5 – The Prague Conference (6th All-Russian Conference of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party) opens. * January 6 ...

1914 This year saw the beginning of what became known as World War I, after Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, heir to the Austrian throne was Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, assassinated by Serbian nationalist Gavrilo Princip. It als ...

. He led the Cavaliers to an 8–1 record in 1914, when he was teammates with the likes of Buck Mayer and James L. White. One fellow said, "When Gooch took the ball he moved so fast that he seemed to be in four places at one time, and the

referee A referee is an official, in a variety of sports and competition, responsible for enforcing the rules of the sport, including sportsmanship decisions such as ejection. The official tasked with this job may be known by a variety of other titl ...

tried to penalize Virginia for having 15 men on the field." Professor

W. A. Lambeth William Alexander Lambeth (October 27, 1867 – June 24, 1944) was a medical professor who was the first athletic director at the University of Virginia. He is often called "the father of intercollegiate athletics" at the university. Lambeth wa ...

of Virginia selected Gooch for his All-Southern team in 1914.Spalding's Official Football Guide. NCAA. 1915. He later returned as an assistant coach at his alma mater.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gooch, Robert Kent 1893 births 1982 deaths Virginia Cavaliers football players American football quarterbacks All-Southern college football players University of Virginia faculty Players of American football from Virginia Political science educators Burials at the University of Virginia Cemetery French military personnel of World War I