Elmer Mitchell
Encyclopedia
Elmer D. Mitchell was an American football
and basketball
coach in Michigan
who is considered the father of intramural sports
. He was the first varsity
basketball coach at the University of Michigan
at Ann Arbor
and the founder of that school's intramural sports program. Through 2010, he has the highest winning percentage of any head coach in Eastern Michigan Eagles men's basketball
history.
Mitchell also coached at Union High School
in Grand Rapids, Michigan
, and received a Medal of Honor from Czechoslovakia
for his work in the field of intramural athletics.
member Branch Rickey
. He usually played center field, or occasionally first base, and he was the team captain in 1912, his senior year.
Immediately after graduating from Michigan, Mitchell managed the Negaunee baseball team, in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, for a summer. In the fall of 1912, he was hired as a teacher and coach at Union High School
, where "[h]e developed state title contenders in baseball, football, and basketball". In the 1914-1915 season, his last at the high school, the basketball team posted a 14-1 record.
(now Eastern Michigan University), in Ypsilanti, Michigan
. While at MSNC, Mitchell taught physical education courses geared toward the school's future teachers, covering such topics as playground direction and athletic coaching, and he co-wrote a book about basketball. He was also a successful coach in basketball, football, and baseball.
Mitchell was the head college football
coach for the "Michigan State Normalites
" for the 1915 and 1916 seasons. His coaching record at the program was 5 wins, 4 losses and 2 ties. As of the conclusion of the 2010 season, this ranks him #19 at Eastern Michigan in total wins and #10 at the school in winning percentage .
Mitchell was also the head coach for the "Michigan State Normalites" men's basketball
team for the 1915-16 and 1916-17 seasons. His coaching record at the program was 25 wins and 5 losses. As of the conclusion of the 2010 season, this ranks him #17 at Eastern Michigan in total wins and #1 at the school in winning percentage . Elton Rynearson
was the team captain for the 1916-1917 season, and succeeded Mitchell as the head coach. Although the team finished undefeated in Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association
play in the 1916-1917 season, Kalamazoo College
was also undefeated, and is recorded by the MIAA as the champion for that year.
, in Ann Arbor
, fielded a team of members of the then-current student body and achieved a 1–4 record for the 1908–09 season. However, after three years of demanding a basketball program the student body did not attend the games and the program was terminated due to low attendance. Basketball returned in 1917 in what was considered the inaugural season of varsity
basketball, and Mitchell was hired to coach the team. The team finished 6–12 overall (0–10, Western Conference
). The following year Mitchell led the team to a 16–8 (5–5) record. While at Michigan, Mitchell also coached the freshman football and baseball teams.
Mitchell later wrote Intramural Athletics (ED Mitchell - AS Barnes, 1928) and Intramural Sports, and co-authored Intramural Sports with Pat Mueller.
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
and basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
coach in Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
who is considered the father of intramural sports
Intramural sports
Intramural sports or intramurals are recreational sports organized within a set geographic area. The term derives from the Latin words intra muros meaning "within walls", and was used to indicate sports matches and contests that took place among teams from "within the walls" of an ancient city...
. He was the first varsity
Varsity team
In the United States and Canada, varsity sports teams are the principal athletic teams representing a college, university, high school or other secondary school. Such teams compete against the principal athletic teams at other colleges/universities, or in the case of secondary schools, against...
basketball coach at the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
at Ann Arbor
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Ann Arbor is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the county seat of Washtenaw County. The 2010 census places the population at 113,934, making it the sixth largest city in Michigan. The Ann Arbor Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 344,791 as of 2010...
and the founder of that school's intramural sports program. Through 2010, he has the highest winning percentage of any head coach in Eastern Michigan Eagles men's basketball
Eastern Michigan Eagles men's basketball
The Eastern Michigan Eagles men's basketball team has appeared in four NCAA Division I tournaments, and have a 3-4 record, tied for third best among Michigan colleges...
history.
Mitchell also coached at Union High School
Union High School (Grand Rapids, Michigan)
Union High School is one of the five high schools in Grand Rapids Public School district. Union has a student population of around 1,200 students for the 2010/2011 school year. The current principal is Justin Jennings, along with assistant principals Aida Toledo and Belinda Jimenez...
in Grand Rapids, Michigan
Grand Rapids, Michigan
Grand Rapids is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. The city is located on the Grand River about 40 miles east of Lake Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 188,040. In 2010, the Grand Rapids metropolitan area had a population of 774,160 and a combined statistical area, Grand...
, and received a Medal of Honor from Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
for his work in the field of intramural athletics.
Early years
Mitchell attended the University of Michigan, where he played on the varsity baseball team for three years, under head coach and eventual Baseball Hall of FameNational Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum
The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 25 Main Street in Cooperstown, New York, operated by private interests serving as the central point for the study of the history of baseball in the United States and beyond, the display of...
member Branch Rickey
Branch Rickey
Wesley Branch Rickey was an innovative Major League Baseball executive elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1967...
. He usually played center field, or occasionally first base, and he was the team captain in 1912, his senior year.
Immediately after graduating from Michigan, Mitchell managed the Negaunee baseball team, in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, for a summer. In the fall of 1912, he was hired as a teacher and coach at Union High School
Union High School (Grand Rapids, Michigan)
Union High School is one of the five high schools in Grand Rapids Public School district. Union has a student population of around 1,200 students for the 2010/2011 school year. The current principal is Justin Jennings, along with assistant principals Aida Toledo and Belinda Jimenez...
, where "[h]e developed state title contenders in baseball, football, and basketball". In the 1914-1915 season, his last at the high school, the basketball team posted a 14-1 record.
Michigan State Normal College
In 1915, Mitchell was hired as an assistant professor of physical education at Michigan State Normal CollegeEastern Michigan University
Eastern Michigan University is a comprehensive, co-educational public university located in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Ypsilanti is west of Detroit and eight miles east of Ann Arbor. The university was founded in 1849 as Michigan State Normal School...
(now Eastern Michigan University), in Ypsilanti, Michigan
Ypsilanti, Michigan
Ypsilanti is a city in Washtenaw County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 22,362. The city is bounded to the north by the Charter Township of Superior and on the west, south, and east by the Charter Township of Ypsilanti...
. While at MSNC, Mitchell taught physical education courses geared toward the school's future teachers, covering such topics as playground direction and athletic coaching, and he co-wrote a book about basketball. He was also a successful coach in basketball, football, and baseball.
Mitchell was the head college football
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
coach for the "Michigan State Normalites
Eastern Michigan Eagles football
The Eastern Michigan Eagles are a college football program at Eastern Michigan University. They compete in Division I Football Bowl Subdivision and the Mid-American Conference...
" for the 1915 and 1916 seasons. His coaching record at the program was 5 wins, 4 losses and 2 ties. As of the conclusion of the 2010 season, this ranks him #19 at Eastern Michigan in total wins and #10 at the school in winning percentage .
Mitchell was also the head coach for the "Michigan State Normalites" men's basketball
Eastern Michigan Eagles men's basketball
The Eastern Michigan Eagles men's basketball team has appeared in four NCAA Division I tournaments, and have a 3-4 record, tied for third best among Michigan colleges...
team for the 1915-16 and 1916-17 seasons. His coaching record at the program was 25 wins and 5 losses. As of the conclusion of the 2010 season, this ranks him #17 at Eastern Michigan in total wins and #1 at the school in winning percentage . Elton Rynearson
Elton Rynearson
Elton James Rynearson, Sr. was an American athlete, coach, and athletic director. He was affiliated with Eastern Michigan University for most of his life, beginning his association with the school as a student in 1910 and retiring as the school's athletic director in...
was the team captain for the 1916-1917 season, and succeeded Mitchell as the head coach. Although the team finished undefeated in Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association
Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association
The Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association is an athletic conference that competes in the NCAA's Division III. The nine teams in the conference are all located in the states of Michigan and Indiana. The Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association was established on March 24, 1888, making...
play in the 1916-1917 season, Kalamazoo College
Kalamazoo College
Kalamazoo College, also known as K College or simply K, is a private liberal arts college in Kalamazoo, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1833, the college is among the 100 oldest in the country. Today, it produces more Peace Corps volunteers per capita than any other U.S...
was also undefeated, and is recorded by the MIAA as the champion for that year.
Michigan
As a result of public and alumni demand for a basketball team, the University of MichiganUniversity of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
, in Ann Arbor
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Ann Arbor is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the county seat of Washtenaw County. The 2010 census places the population at 113,934, making it the sixth largest city in Michigan. The Ann Arbor Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 344,791 as of 2010...
, fielded a team of members of the then-current student body and achieved a 1–4 record for the 1908–09 season. However, after three years of demanding a basketball program the student body did not attend the games and the program was terminated due to low attendance. Basketball returned in 1917 in what was considered the inaugural season of varsity
Varsity team
In the United States and Canada, varsity sports teams are the principal athletic teams representing a college, university, high school or other secondary school. Such teams compete against the principal athletic teams at other colleges/universities, or in the case of secondary schools, against...
basketball, and Mitchell was hired to coach the team. The team finished 6–12 overall (0–10, Western Conference
Big Ten Conference
The Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
). The following year Mitchell led the team to a 16–8 (5–5) record. While at Michigan, Mitchell also coached the freshman football and baseball teams.
Intramural sports
Mitchell is credited with instituting intramural athletics at the University of Michigan, and he was named the school's first Director of Intramural Athletics in 1919. Mitchell is considered the father of intramural sports and taught a class in intramural sports taken by William Wasson, founder of the National Intramural Association (NIA), the forerunner to the National Intramural and Recreational Sports Association (NIRSA).Mitchell later wrote Intramural Athletics (ED Mitchell - AS Barnes, 1928) and Intramural Sports, and co-authored Intramural Sports with Pat Mueller.