Ernie Quigley
Encyclopedia
Ernest Cosmos "Ernie" Quigley (March 22, 1880 – December 10, 1960) was a Canadian
-born American
sports official who became notable both as a basketball
referee
and as an umpire
in Major League Baseball
. He also worked as an American football
coach and official.
, and was raised in Concordia, Kansas
where he was a prominent member of the high school
football team in the 1890s.
at the University of Kansas
.
at St. Mary's College, Kansas
from 1903 until 1912, while also attending law school at the University of Kansas.
located in Salina, Kansas
and he held that position for the 1919 season, leading the team for only one game. The team lost its one game on November 22, 1919 against Fort Hays State University
by a score of 26 to 0.
at the University of Kansas
where he hired coaches George Sauer
, Jules V. Sikes
, and Dick Harp
.
and Amateur Athletic Union
games during his 40-year career, and supervised the NCAA tournament
officials from 1940 to 1942. He also refereed the basketball finals between the United States and Canada at the 1936 Summer Olympics
in Berlin, played outdoors in the rain, in the first Games at which basketball was a medal sport. Rather than using his whistle, the small-statured Quigley often used his high-pitched voice to command attention in supervising play. In 1944 he became athletic director
at Kansas, serving until 1950. He was enshrined in the Basketball Hall of Fame
in 1961.
baseball umpire from to , and oversaw six World Series
, most notably the notorious 1919
Black Sox
series, as well as those in 1916
, 1921
, 1924
, 1927
and 1935
; he was crew chief for the 1927 Series. On June 1, 1923, he was the home plate umpire for the game in which the New York Giants
, visiting the Philadelphia Phillies
, became the first 20th-century team to score in every inning of a 9-inning game, winning 22–8. He also participated in a baseball tour of Japan
, and later became an NL supervisor of umpires. His 3,351 games as an umpire ranked seventh in major league history when he retired; his 1,511 games behind home plate are still the tenth most in history. Quigley Field, the University of Kansas' first baseball stadium, was named after him.
–Illinois
game, three Rose Bowl
s (1920, 1925, 1927), and the Cotton Bowl Classic. He was a member of the NCAA's Rules Committee from 1946 to 1954.
and was buried at that city's Mt. Calvary Cemetery.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
-born American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
sports official who became notable both as a 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...
referee
Official (basketball)
In basketball, an official is a person who has the responsibility to enforce the rules and maintain the order of the game. The title of official also applies to the scorers and timekeepers, as well as other personnel that have an active task in maintaining the game...
and as an umpire
Umpire (baseball)
In baseball, the umpire is the person charged with officiating the game, including beginning and ending the game, enforcing the rules of the game and the grounds, making judgment calls on plays, and handling the disciplinary actions. The term is often shortened to the colloquial form ump...
in Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
. He also worked as an American football
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...
coach and official.
Early life
Quigley was born in Newcastle, New BrunswickNewcastle, New Brunswick
Newcastle is a Canadian urban neighbourhood in the city of Miramichi, New Brunswick.Prior to municipal amalgamation in 1995, it was an incorporated town and the shire town of Northumberland County....
, and was raised in Concordia, Kansas
Concordia, Kansas
Concordia is a city in and the county seat of Cloud County, Kansas, United States. Located on the Republican River in the Smoky Hills region of the Great Plains, Concordia was founded in 1871 and is an economic and cultural center in north-central Kansas...
where he was a prominent member of the high school
Concordia Junior-Senior High School
Concordia Junior-Senior High School is located in Concordia, Kansas and is a part of Unified School District #333. It is called the "Junior-Senior" high school because the junior high school and senior high school are housed in the same building complex.-Junior High, Senior High, and Middle...
football team in the 1890s.
Coaching and administrative career
Quigley was a student of basketball inventor James NaismithJames Naismith
The first game of "Basket Ball" was played in December 1891. In a handwritten report, Naismith described the circumstances of the inaugural match; in contrast to modern basketball, the players played nine versus nine, handled a soccer ball, not a basketball, and instead of shooting at two hoops,...
at the University of Kansas
University of Kansas
The University of Kansas is a public research university and the largest university in the state of Kansas. KU campuses are located in Lawrence, Wichita, Overland Park, and Kansas City, Kansas with the main campus being located in Lawrence on Mount Oread, the highest point in Lawrence. The...
.
St. Mary's
After graduating he served as a coach, teacher and athletic directorAthletic director
An athletic director is an administrator at many American colleges and universities, as well as in larger high schools and middle schools, who oversees the work of coaches and related staff involved in intercollegiate or interscholastic athletic programs...
at St. Mary's College, Kansas
St. Mary's College, Kansas
Saint Mary's Academy and College is a religious school of the Society of St. Pius X located in St. Marys, Kansas, 25 miles west of Topeka.- St. Mary's College :...
from 1903 until 1912, while also attending law school at the University of Kansas.
Kansas Wesleyan
Quigley was the seventh head football coach for the Kansas Wesleyan University CoyotesKansas Wesleyan University Coyotes
Kansas Wesleyan University athletic teams are known as the Coyotes.. They participate in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics and the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference.-Football:...
located in Salina, Kansas
Salina, Kansas
Salina is a city in and the county seat of Saline County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 47,707. Located in one of the world's largest wheat-producing areas, Salina is a regional trade center for north-central Kansas...
and he held that position for the 1919 season, leading the team for only one game. The team lost its one game on November 22, 1919 against Fort Hays State University
Fort Hays State University
Fort Hays State University is a public, co-educational university located in Hays, Kansas, United States. It is the fourth-largest of the six state universities governed by the Kansas Board of Regents, with an enrollment of approximately 11,200 students .- History :FHSU was founded in 1902 as the...
by a score of 26 to 0.
Kansas
In 1944, Quigley became the athletic directorAthletic director
An athletic director is an administrator at many American colleges and universities, as well as in larger high schools and middle schools, who oversees the work of coaches and related staff involved in intercollegiate or interscholastic athletic programs...
at the University of Kansas
University of Kansas
The University of Kansas is a public research university and the largest university in the state of Kansas. KU campuses are located in Lawrence, Wichita, Overland Park, and Kansas City, Kansas with the main campus being located in Lawrence on Mount Oread, the highest point in Lawrence. The...
where he hired coaches George Sauer
George Sauer
-External links:* at College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com...
, Jules V. Sikes
Jules V. Sikes
-External links:*...
, and Dick Harp
Dick Harp
Dick Harp became the Kansas Jayhawks' fourth men's basketball coach in 1957. He coached for eight years until 1964. Harp's overall Kansas record was 121-82 and conference record was 53-45 ....
.
Officiating career
Quigley officiated at more than 1,500 collegiateCollege basketball
College basketball most often refers to the USA basketball competitive governance structure established by the National Collegiate Athletic Association . Basketball in the NCAA is divided into three divisions: Division I, Division II and Division III....
and Amateur Athletic Union
Amateur Athletic Union
The Amateur Athletic Union is one of the largest non-profit volunteer sports organizations in the United States. A multi-sport organization, the AAU is dedicated exclusively to the promotion and development of amateur sports and physical fitness programs.-History:The AAU was founded in 1888 to...
games during his 40-year career, and supervised the NCAA tournament
NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship
The NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship is a single-elimination tournament held each spring in the United States, featuring 68 college basketball teams, to determine the national championship in the top tier of college basketball...
officials from 1940 to 1942. He also refereed the basketball finals between the United States and Canada at the 1936 Summer Olympics
Basketball at the 1936 Summer Olympics
-Fifth-place classification:-First round:Winners advanced to the second round. Losers competed in the first consolation round for another chance to move on.* Estonia def. France, 34-29* Chile def. Turkey, 30-16* Switzerland def. Germany, 25-18...
in Berlin, played outdoors in the rain, in the first Games at which basketball was a medal sport. Rather than using his whistle, the small-statured Quigley often used his high-pitched voice to command attention in supervising play. In 1944 he became athletic director
Athletic director
An athletic director is an administrator at many American colleges and universities, as well as in larger high schools and middle schools, who oversees the work of coaches and related staff involved in intercollegiate or interscholastic athletic programs...
at Kansas, serving until 1950. He was enshrined in the Basketball Hall of Fame
Basketball Hall of Fame
The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, located in Springfield, Massachusetts, United States, honors exceptional basketball players, coaches, referees, executives, and other major contributors to the game of basketball worldwide...
in 1961.
Professional baseball
Quigley was also a National LeagueNational League
The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League , is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball, and the world's oldest extant professional team sports league. Founded on February 2, 1876, to replace the National Association of Professional...
baseball umpire from to , and oversaw six World Series
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball, played between the American League and National League champions since 1903. The winner of the World Series championship is determined through a best-of-seven playoff and awarded the Commissioner's Trophy...
, most notably the notorious 1919
1919 World Series
The 1919 World Series matched the American League champion Chicago White Sox against the National League champion Cincinnati Reds. Although most World Series have been of the best-of-seven format, the 1919 World Series was a best-of-nine series...
Black Sox
Black Sox Scandal
The Black Sox Scandal took place around and during the play of the American baseball 1919 World Series. Eight members of the Chicago White Sox were banned for life from baseball for intentionally losing games, which allowed the Cincinnati Reds to win the World Series...
series, as well as those in 1916
1916 World Series
In the 1916 World Series, the Boston Red Sox beat the Brooklyn Robins four games to one.Casey Stengel shone on offense for the Robins in the 1916 Series but the Red Sox pitching core ultimately proved too much for the denizens of Flatbush...
, 1921
1921 World Series
In the 1921 World Series, the New York Giants beat the New York Yankees five games to three. This was the last of the experimental best-five-of-nine series....
, 1924
1924 World Series
In the 1924 World Series, the Washington Senators beat the New York Giants in seven games. The Giants became the first team to play in four consecutive World Series, winning in 1921–1922 and losing in 1923–1924. Their long-time manager, John McGraw, made his ninth and final World Series appearance...
, 1927
1927 World Series
In the 1927 World Series, the New York Yankees swept the Pittsburgh Pirates in four games. This was the first sweep of a National League team by an American League team....
and 1935
1935 World Series
The 1935 World Series featured the Detroit Tigers and the Chicago Cubs, with the Tigers winning in six games for their first championship in five Series appearances. They had lost in , , , and ....
; he was crew chief for the 1927 Series. On June 1, 1923, he was the home plate umpire for the game in which the New York Giants
San Francisco Giants
The San Francisco Giants are a Major League Baseball team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the National League West Division....
, visiting the Philadelphia Phillies
Philadelphia Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883. The Phillies are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League...
, became the first 20th-century team to score in every inning of a 9-inning game, winning 22–8. He also participated in a baseball tour of Japan
Japanese baseball
Nippon Professional Baseball or NPB is the highest level of baseball in Japan. Locally, it is often called , meaning Professional Baseball. Outside of Japan, it is often just referred to as "Japanese baseball." The roots of the league can be traced back to the formation of the in 1934 and the...
, and later became an NL supervisor of umpires. His 3,351 games as an umpire ranked seventh in major league history when he retired; his 1,511 games behind home plate are still the tenth most in history. Quigley Field, the University of Kansas' first baseball stadium, was named after him.
College football
Quigley also served as an official in major college football contests including the Army–Navy Game, five Harvard–Yale games, the MichiganMichigan Wolverines football
The Michigan Wolverines football program represents the University of Michigan in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level. Michigan has the most all-time wins and the highest winning percentage in college football history...
–Illinois
Illinois Fighting Illini football
The Illinois Fighting Illini are a major college football program, representing the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign. They compete in NCAA Division I-A and the Big Ten Conference.-Current staff:-All-time win/loss/tie record:*563-513-51...
game, three Rose Bowl
Rose Bowl Game
The Rose Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game, usually played on January 1 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California. When New Year's Day falls on a Sunday, the game is played on Monday, January 2...
s (1920, 1925, 1927), and the Cotton Bowl Classic. He was a member of the NCAA's Rules Committee from 1946 to 1954.
Death
Quigley died at age 80 in Lawrence, KansasLawrence, Kansas
Lawrence is the sixth largest city in the U.S. State of Kansas and the county seat of Douglas County. Located in northeastern Kansas, Lawrence is the anchor city of the Lawrence, Kansas, Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Douglas County...
and was buried at that city's Mt. Calvary Cemetery.