John Francis "Chick" Meehan (September 5, 1893 – November 9, 1972) 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 ...

player and coach. He served as the head football coach at

Syracuse University Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York. Established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church, the university has been nonsectarian since 1920. Locate ...

(1920–1924),

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then- Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, th ...

(1925–1931), and

Manhattan College Manhattan College is a private, Catholic, liberal arts university in the Bronx, New York City. Originally established in 1853 by the Brothers of the Christian Schools (De La Salle Christian Brothers) as an academy for day students, it was la ...

(1932–1937), compiling a career

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 in the United States, American football rules first gained populari ...

record of 115–44–14. Meehan played

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 Am ...

at Syracuse from 1915 to 1917. Meehan stated, "We learn practically nothing from a victory. All our information comes from a defeat. A winner forgets most of his mistakes."

Coaching career

Syracuse

From 1920 to 1924, Meehan served as the head coach at Syracuse and compiled a 35–8–4 record. This total included back-to-back eight-win seasons in 1923 and 1924.

NYU

Meehan was the 19th head football coach at

(NYU), serving for seven seasons, from 1925 to 1931, and compiling a record of 49–15–4. This ranks him first at NYU in total wins and first at NYU in winning percentage. Meehan was awarded a place in NYU's athletic hall of fame for his coaching efforts.

Manhattan

Meehan's last head coaching job was as at

. He held that position for six seasons, from 1932 until 1937. His career coaching record at Manhattan was 31–21–6. This ranks him first at Manhattan in total wins and second at Manhattan in winning percentage.

Death

Meehan died at the age of 79 on November 9, 1972 at a hospital in

Syracuse, New York Syracuse ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, United States. It is the fifth-most populous city in the state of New York following New York City, Buffalo, Yonkers, and Rochester. At the 2020 census, the city' ...

Head coaching record

Football

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Meehan, John 1893 births 1972 deaths American football quarterbacks Manhattan Jaspers football coaches NYU Violets football coaches Syracuse Orange football coaches Syracuse Orange football players Syracuse Orangemen baseball players Syracuse Stars (baseball)