Geary Francis "Swede" Eppley ( December 30, 1895 – June 10, 1978) was an American university administrator, professor,

agronomist An agriculturist, agriculturalist, agrologist, or agronomist (abbreviated as agr.), is a professional in the science, practice, and management of agriculture and agribusiness. It is a regulated profession in Canada, India, the Philippines, the ...

, military officer, athlete, and

track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping events ...

coach. He served as the University of Maryland

athletic director An athletic director (commonly "athletics director" or "AD") is an administrator at many American clubs or institutions, such as colleges and universities, as well as in larger high schools and middle schools, who oversees the work of coaches and ...

from 1937 to 1947, during which time the school's athletic teams won seven national championships. Eppley worked in various capacities for

Prince George's County ) , demonym = Prince Georgian , ZIP codes = 20607–20774 , area codes = 240, 301 , founded date = April 23 , founded year = 1696 , named for = Prince George of Denmark , leader_title = Executive , leader_name = Angela D. Alsobrook ...

and for private charities. He served in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

during the

First First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...

and

Second World War 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 opposin ...

Early life and education

Eppley was born in 1895 in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

In 1914, he enrolled at the Maryland State College of Agriculture (now known as the

University of Maryland The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the University System of M ...

), but put his education on hold to serve in 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 ...

.Geary Eppley papers
ArchivesUM, University Libraries, University of Maryland, retrieved June 13, 2009. Eppley served as a

second lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until ...

in the 2nd Cavalry Regiment from March 11, 1918, to July 3, 1919. After the war, he returned to Maryland State, and earned letters in

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 ...

and

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

in 1919 and 1920.All-Time Lettermen
(PDF), ''2007 Terrapin Football Record Book'', University of Maryland, 2007. He played on the

football team A football team is a group of players selected to play together in the various team sports known as football. Such teams could be selected to play in a match against an opposing team, to represent a football club, group, state or nation, an All-st ...

as an

end End, END, Ending, or variation, may refer to: End *In mathematics: ** End (category theory) ** End (topology) **End (graph theory) ** End (group theory) (a subcase of the previous) **End (endomorphism) *In sports and games **End (gridiron footbal ...

. In track, he set the

Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference The Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level. Formed in 1913, it consists mostly of historically black co ...

pole vault Pole vaulting, also known as pole jumping, is a track and field event in which an athlete uses a long and flexible pole, usually made from fiberglass or carbon fiber, as an aid to jump over a bar. Pole jumping competitions were known to the Myc ...

record, and in football, he was named a second-team all-conference

. He graduated with a bachelor of science degree in

agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...

in 1920. He was a member of the

Phi Kappa Phi The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi (or simply Phi Kappa Phi or ) is an honor society established in 1897 to recognize and encourage superior scholarship without restriction as to area of study, and to promote the "unity and democracy of education ...

Omicron Delta Kappa Omicron Delta Kappa (), also known as The Circle and ODK, is one of the most prestigious honor societies in the United States with chapters at more than 300 college campuses. It was founded December 3, 1914, at Washington and Lee University in ...

Pi Delta Epsilon The Society for Collegiate Journalists (SCJ) is an American honor society for student journalists. It was formed on June 1, 1975 as a merger between the two journalism honor societies Pi Delta Epsilon (ΠΔΕ) and Alpha Phi Gamma (ΑΦΓ). Many ...

, and

Phi Eta Sigma Phi Eta Sigma () is an American freshman honor society. Founded at the University of Illinois on March 22, 1923, it is the oldest and largest freshman honor society and has chartered three hundred and eighty-six chapters throughout the United Stat ...

honor societies, as well as the

Scabbard and Blade Scabbard and Blade (S&B) is a college military honor society founded at the University of Wisconsin in 1904. Although membership is open to Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) cadets and midshipmen of all military services, the society is mod ...

and the

Pershing Rifles The National Society of Pershing Rifles is a military-oriented honor society for college-level students founded in 1894 as a drill unit at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. It is the oldest continuously operating US college organization dedi ...

Professional career

Eppley joined the faculty as an assistant

professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an Academy, academic rank at university, universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who pr ...

agronomy Agronomy is the science and technology of producing and using plants by agriculture for food, fuel, fiber, chemicals, recreation, or land conservation. Agronomy has come to include research of plant genetics, plant physiology, meteorology, and ...

in 1922, and in 1926, he earned a master of arts degree from what was by then known as the University of Maryland. He became the Maryland track coach during the 1930s, and his teams won two national championships. Jim Kehoe, who was on one of Eppley's track teams and himself later became track coach and athletic director, said, "I thought he was a really good coach ... He was very aggressive, very well informed." He was assigned as the university's dean of men in 1936. The following year, Eppley became the

and served in that capacity until 1947; during his tenure, Maryland won one

and six

lacrosse Lacrosse is a team sport played with a lacrosse stick and a lacrosse ball. It is the oldest organized sport in North America, with its origins with the indigenous people of North America as early as the 12th century. The game was extensively ...

national championships.''2009 Maryland Lacrosse Media and Recruiting Guide''
, University of Maryland, 2009. He was a staunch supporter of athletics at Maryland, and routinely sat in the

student section A student section or student cheering section is a group of student fans that supports its school's athletic teams at sporting events; they are known for being one of the most visible and vocal sections of a sports crowd as well as for their occ ...

at the university's games. In 1941,The era of Eppley
''

The Diamondback ''The Diamondback'' is an independent student newspaper associated with the University of Maryland, College Park. It began in 1910 as ''The Triangle'' and became known as ''The Diamondback'' in 1921. Now a weekly online journal, ''The Diamondback ...

'', October 23, 2006. Eppley was activated from the

Army Reserve A military reserve force is a military organization whose members have military and civilian occupations. They are not normally kept under arms, and their main role is to be available when their military requires additional manpower. Reserve ...

at the rank of

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

, and was assigned to the office of the Army Chief of Staff. After the conclusion of the

university president A chancellor is a leader of a college or university, usually either the executive or ceremonial head of the university or of a university campus within a university system. In most Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth and former Commonwealth n ...

Harry C. Byrd urgently requested Eppley's return as dean in 1945, saying, "You are absolutely essential to the successful operation of the university and if the university is an essential unit in our state and national existence, then it is certainly essential that you return to us." The school was experiencing a large influx in students as discharged veterans pursued their education under the

G.I. Bill The Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944, commonly known as the G.I. Bill, was a law that provided a range of benefits for some of the returning World War II veterans (commonly referred to as G.I.s). The original G.I. Bill expired in 1956, bu ...

, and it strained the university's logistics. The enrollment of many wounded veterans increased the need for handicapped access, and the sheer number of students meant dining facilities required waits of up to an hour. Also, the disproportionate number of male students to females created disciplinary problems. In 1947, Eppley wrote to the assistant dean of women in the defense of some fraternity brothers who had broken into a sorority, but conceded that "the drinking problem on the university campus is a little worse than usual due to the aftermath of the war." Eppley served terms as the vice president of the

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 ...

in the 1940s, and as its president in 1949. During the late 1940s and early 1950s, college athletics were marred by several scandals across the nation, and there were allegations of its overemphasis at universities. When the Southern Conference placed a ban on postseason

bowl game In North America, a bowl game is one of a number of post-season college football games that are primarily played by teams belonging to the NCAA's Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS). For most of its history, the Division I Bowl Subdivis ...

s, Eppley said, "As a member of the faculty, I am not over enthusiastic about bowls, but ... any over-emphasis is caused by the great desire of the American people to win." Maryland ignored the ban to participate in the 1952 Sugar Bowl, and was sanctioned by the conference. The incident proved a major catalyst for the formation of the

Atlantic Coast Conference The Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) is a collegiate athletic conference located in the eastern United States. Headquartered in Greensboro, North Carolina, the ACC's fifteen member universities compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Associa ...

(ACC) in 1953. Eppley later served as the president of the ACC. From 1946 to 1958, he was the university's director of student welfare, and in 1964, he was named a dean

emeritus ''Emeritus'' (; female: ''emerita'') is an adjective used to designate a retired chair, professor, pastor, bishop, pope, director, president, prime minister, rabbi, emperor, or other person who has been "permitted to retain as an honorary title ...

. In a controversial episode in 1953, Eppley confiscated thousands of copies of ''

'' student paper because of an

exposé Expose, exposé, or exposed may refer to: News sources * Exposé (journalism), a form of investigative journalism * '' The Exposé'', a British conspiracist website Film and TV Film * ''Exposé'' (film), a 1976 thriller film * ''Exposed'' (1932 ...

on living conditions in the female dormitories. Eppley played a pivotal role in the founding of the university's

student union A students' union, also known by many other names, is a student organization present in many colleges, universities, and high schools. In higher education, the students' union is often accorded its own building on the campus, dedicated to social, ...

and its chapel. Eppley also served in numerous capacities for

government and non-governmental organizations. He was the Prince George's County Boy's Club director, master of the county

grange Grange may refer to: Buildings * Grange House, Scotland, built in 1564, and demolished in 1906 * Grange Estate, Pennsylvania, built in 1682 * Monastic grange, a farming estate belonging to a monastery Geography Australia * Grange, South Austral ...

, a county Welfare Board member, and the county Community Chest budget chairman.

Personal life

He married Elizabeth Flenner in 1925, and together, they had two daughters, Elizabeth and Frances, and one son, Geary W. Eppley. Geary F. Eppley was the honorary president of the Prince George's County Alumni Association of the University of Maryland, an

American Cancer Society The American Cancer Society (ACS) is a nationwide voluntary health organization dedicated to eliminating cancer. Established in 1913, the society is organized into six geographical regions of both medical and lay volunteers operating in more than ...

board member, a member of the Masons, the College Park

Rotary Club Rotary International is one of the largest service organizations in the world. Its stated mission is to "provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through hefellowship of business, profe ...

, the Brotherhood of Saint Andrew at St. Andrews Church, and a

vestryman A vestryman is a member of his local church's vestry, or leading body.Anstice, Henry (1914). ''What Every Warden and Vestryman Should Know.'' Church literature press He is not a member of the clergy.Potter, Henry Codman (1890). ''The Offices of Wa ...

at St. Andrews Church.

Death and honors

He survived his wife, Elizabeth, who died in 1976. Eppley died on June 10, 1978, of a heart condition at Leland Memorial Hospital in

College Park, Maryland College Park is a city in Prince George's County, Maryland, United States, and is approximately four miles (6.4 km) from the northeast border of Washington, D.C. The population was 34,740 at the 2020 United States Census. It is best known a ...

. He was inducted in the

University of Maryland Athletic Hall of Fame The University of Maryland Athletic Hall of Fame was established in 1982 by the M Club Foundation to honor student-athletes, coaches, and administrators who made significant contributions to athletics at the University of Maryland, College Park, U ...

in 1982. The Geary F. Eppley Award is awarded annually to the university's senior athlete with the highest

grade-point average Grading in education is the process of applying standardized measurements for varying levels of achievements in a course. Grades can be assigned as letters (usually A through F), as a range (for example, 1 to 6), as a percentage, or as a numbe ...

. In 2006, the campus recreation center was dedicated as the Geary F. Eppley Recreation Center. His daughter, Frances Eppley Tobin, said, "It's a perfect building for him, because he was so dedicated to athletics and physical fitness." The university had unsuccessfully sought to sell the facility's naming rights to a corporate sponsor. An alumni group had petitioned to rename the

Adele H. Stamp Student Union The Adele H. Stamp Student Union, commonly referred to as "Stamp", is the student activity center on the campus of the University of Maryland, College Park. First constructed in 1954 (with additions in 1962 and 1971), the building was renamed ...

in honor of Eppley, who had organized its creation, but were rebuffed by the university. The school's administration later agreed to dedicating the recreation center to Eppley after an important patron threatened to cut off donations.Fighting for a name
''

'', October 23, 2006.

References

External links

Arlington National Cemetery
{{DEFAULTSORT:Eppley, Geary F. 1895 births 1978 deaths American agronomists American male pole vaulters American football defensive ends American football tight ends Maryland Terrapins athletic directors Maryland Terrapins football players Maryland Terrapins men's track and field athletes Maryland Terrapins track and field coaches Pershing Riflemen University of Maryland, College Park faculty University of Maryland, College Park administrators United States Army personnel of World War II United States Army colonels People from Prince George's County, Maryland Players of American football from Maryland Players of American football from Washington, D.C. 20th-century American academics 20th-century agronomists