James Banks McFadden (February 7, 1917 – June 4, 2005) 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 wi ...

and

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

player and coach. McFadden is best known for his association with

Clemson University Clemson University () is a public land-grant research university in Clemson, South Carolina. Founded in 1889, Clemson is the second-largest university in the student population in South Carolina. For the fall 2019 semester, the university enr ...

, where he spent 43 years as a player, coach, and administrator. He was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame in 1959.

Early life

Born in

Fort Lawn, South Carolina Fort Lawn is a town in Chester County, South Carolina. The population was 895 at the 2010 census. History John A. G. Walker owned a plantation in Chester County. After Walker died in the 1870s, his widow wanted a town built, which would be name ...

, McFadden attended Great Falls High School in Great Falls, South Carolina, where he led the Red Devils to two state championships in football and one in

Playing career

Banks McFadden carries against Tulane-2 (Taps 1940)

McFadden is widely considered to be the greatest athlete in

history,

lettering Lettering is an umbrella term that covers the art of drawing letters, instead of simply writing them. Lettering is considered an art form, where each letter in a phrase or quote acts as an illustration. Each letter is created with attention to de ...

in three sports (football, basketball, and track). In 1939, McFadden was voted the

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. ne ...

' "Athlete of the Year". McFadden was also a two-time All-American in basketball (1938 and 1939) and led the Tigers basketball team to a

Southern Conference The Southern Conference (SoCon) is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I. Southern Conference football teams compete in the Football Championship Subdivision (formerly k ...

championship in 1939. McFadden also played halfback and punter on the football team and was named Clemson's first Associated Press All-American in football in 1939, which saw the Tigers play and win their 1st bowl game (1940 Cotton Bowl Classic). Upon graduating, McFadden played football for 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 ...

's Brooklyn Dodgers. He was the fourth overall pick in the

1940 NFL Draft The 1940 National Football League Draft was held on December 9, 1939, at the Schroeder Hotel in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. With the first overall pick of the draft, the Chicago Cardinals selected George Cafego. Player selections Round one Round ...

. In his first and only year as a professional, he played in 11 games. He had the longest rush in the NFL that year—75 yards. He was tied for second for most yards per attempt with a 4.8 yards per carry average. He was also fifth in the league for most rushing yards per game. Defensively he had two interceptions. Despite his success, McFadden preferred the small-town life and the family atmosphere of Clemson. He returned to the state of South Carolina to coach at his alma mater.

Military and coaching career

McFadden fought in

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 opposing ...

and upon returning to the United States returned to coaching. McFadden served as Clemson's head basketball coach from 1946-1956 in addition to stints as head track and assistant football coach. He retired from coaching in 1969 and took over the university's intramural department, which he directed for 15 years.

Legacy

On September 19, 1987, Clemson University retired his basketball No. 23 and football No. 66. In October 2008, the

O'Rourke–McFadden Trophy The O'Rourke–McFadden Trophy was created in 2008 by the Boston College Gridiron Club to commemorate the tradition at Clemson and Boston College while honoring the legacy of Charlie O'Rourke and Banks McFadden. O'Rourke and McFadden are me ...

was introduced as a reward to the winner of the annual football game between Boston College and Clemson, in honor of the historic meeting between

Charlie O'Rourke Charles Christopher "Chuckin' Charlie" O'Rourke (May 10, 1917 – April 14, 2000) was an American football player and coach. He played college football as a quarterback at Boston College and professionally with Chicago Bears of the National Foo ...

and Banks McFadden in the

1940 Cotton Bowl Classic The 1940 Cotton Bowl Classic was the fourth edition of the postseason college football bowl game, between the Clemson Tigers and the Boston College Eagles. It was played on Monday, January 1, 1940, at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas, Background Texas ...

, Clemson's first bowl appearance.

References

External links

* * * 1917 births 2005 deaths American football halfbacks American men's basketball players Brooklyn Dodgers (NFL) players Clemson Tigers football players Clemson Tigers men's basketball coaches Clemson Tigers men's basketball players Clemson Tigers men's track and field athletes Clemson Tigers track and field coaches All-American college men's basketball players College Football Hall of Fame inductees Basketball coaches from South Carolina American military personnel of World War II People from Chester County, South Carolina Coaches of American football from South Carolina Players of American football from South Carolina Basketball players from South Carolina Track and field athletes from South Carolina {{runningback-1910s-stub