Reginald H. "Red" Threlfall (June 2, 1903 – February 14, 1971) 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 ...

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 ...

and

Canadian football Canadian football () is a team sport, sport played in Canada in which two teams of 12 players each compete for territorial control of a field of play long and wide attempting to advance a pointed oval-shaped ball into the opposing team's sco ...

coach. He served as the head football coach at

South Dakota State University South Dakota State University is a public land-grant research university in Brookings, South Dakota. Founded in 1881, it is the state's largest and most comprehensive university and the oldest continually-operating university in South Dakota. The ...

Brookings, South Dakota Brookings is a city in Brookings County, South Dakota, Brookings County, South Dakota, United States. Brookings is South Dakota's List of cities in South Dakota, fourth largest city, with a population of 23,377 at the 2020 United States census, 20 ...

, from 1934 to 1937, compiling a record of 17–19–2. Threlfall was the head coach of the

Winnipeg Blue Bombers The Winnipeg Blue Bombers are a professional Canadian football team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The Blue Bombers compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West division. They play their home games at IG Fiel ...

of the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...

(CFL) from 1938 to 1944.

Athletic career

Threlfall played tackle for four years at

Waltham High School Waltham High School is a public high school located in Waltham, Massachusetts, United States. It is the only high school operated by Waltham Public Schools. History The current Waltham High School was constructed in 1968 and expanded in 1998 a ...

Waltham, Massachusetts Waltham ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, and was an early center for the labor movement as well as a major contributor to the American Industrial Revolution. The original home of the Boston Manufacturing Company, th ...

. He enrolled at

Purdue University Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and money ...

in 1922, but financial difficulties forced him to leave. He returned to Purdue in 1923 and played on the freshman football team. He played tackle and center for the varsity team from 1924 to 1926. He was also a member of the school's wrestling team.

Coaching career

During his senior year with the Boilermakers, Threlfall assisted coaching the team's linemen during spring practice. In 1927 he was hired as an assistant football coach at

Bates College Bates College () is a private liberal arts college in Lewiston, Maine. Anchored by the Historic Quad, the campus of Bates totals with a small urban campus which includes 33 Victorian Houses as some of the dormitories. It maintains of nature p ...

. He and head coach Carleton Wiggin left after the 1928 season. In 1930 he joined the athletic department at

South Dakota State South Dakota State University is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Brookings, South Dakota. Founded in 1881, it is the state's largest and most comprehensive university and the oldest continually ...

. From 1934 to 1937 he was the school's head football coach and athletic director at. From 1938 to 1942 he coached the

to 28-8 regular season and five Grey Cup appearances, winning in

1939 This year also marks the start of the Second World War, the largest and deadliest conflict in human history. Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * January 1 ** Third Reich *** Jews are forbidden to ...

and

1941 Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * January–August – 10,072 men, women and children with mental and physical disabilities are asphyxiated with carbon monoxide in a gas chamber, at Hadamar Eu ...

. His .778 winning percentage is the highest in team history.

Insurance

In 1940, Threlfall joined the Winnipeg branch of

Sun Life Sun Life Financial Inc. is a Canadian financial services company. It is primarily known as a life insurance company. Sun Life has a presence in investment management with over CAD$1.3 trillion in assets under management operating in a number ...

. He then worked for the Great West Life Assurance Company. In 1953 he was appointed vice president and superintendent of agencies for Western States Life Insurance Company.

Later life and death

In 1968, Threlfall retired and moved to

Sun City, Arizona Sun City is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in Maricopa County, Arizona, Maricopa County, Arizona, United States, that is located within the Phoenix metropolitan area. The population was 39,931 as of the 2020 United Sta ...

. He suffered a heart attack on February 3, 1971, and had a stroke six days later. He died on February 14, 1971.

Head coaching record

College football

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Threlfall, Red 1903 births 1971 deaths American businesspeople in insurance American football centers Purdue Boilermakers football players Bates Bobcats football coaches People from Sun City, Arizona Sportspeople from Waltham, Massachusetts South Dakota State Jackrabbits football coaches South Dakota State Jackrabbits men's basketball coaches South Dakota State Jackrabbits athletic directors Winnipeg Blue Bombers coaches