Alexander Nicoll Jerrems (August 3, 1874 – September 21, 1948) 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 played college football for the

Yale Bulldogs football The Yale Bulldogs football program represents Yale University in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (formerly Division I-AA). Yale's football program is one of the oldest in the world, having begun competi ...

teams from 1893 to 1895 and coached the

Minnesota Golden Gophers football The Minnesota Golden Gophers football team represents the University of Minnesota in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level. Founded in 1882, Minnesota has been a member of the Big Ten Conference since its incept ...

teams from 1896 to 1897.

Early years

Jerrems was born in Sydney, Australia. While still an infant, he moved with his parents to

London, England London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a major s ...

. After three years in London, the family moved to

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

, and after two years there, settled in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

. (biographical sketch including photograph) He attended preparatory school education at

The Hill School The Hill School (commonly known as The Hill) is a coeducational preparatory boarding school located on a campus in Pottstown, Pennsylvania, about northwest of Philadelphia. The Hill is part of the Ten Schools Admissions Organization (TSAO). ...

in Pottstown, Pennsylvania, and while there played football. His father, William George Jerrems, was the president of Nicoll the Tailor, Inc. (The "Nicoll the Tailor" chain operated nationwide from San Francisco to New York.) His mother was Mary (Nicoll) Jerrems.

Yale

From 1893 to 1896, Jerrems attended the

Sheffield Scientific School Sheffield Scientific School was founded in 1847 as a school of Yale College in New Haven, Connecticut, for instruction in science and engineering. Originally named the Yale Scientific School, it was renamed in 1861 in honor of Joseph E. Sheffiel ...

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Sta ...

. He played college football for the

teams from 1893 to 1895. He played on his class team in 1893 and also served as a substitute for the varsity team. In 1894, he played halfback for the varsity, and in his final year, he was the starting fullback for the undefeated 1895 Yale team that compiled a 13–0–2 record. On November 23, 1895, he helped lead Yale to a 20–10 victory over

Princeton Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the ni ...

before a crowd of 30,000 at the Polo Grounds in New York City. Jerrems handled the punting duties, blocked a kick, and scored a touchdown in the game. He also played college baseball at Yale as a center fielder.

Minnesota

In April 1896, Jerrems received an offer to coach the

team. After several weeks of negotiating a salary, Jerrems was engaged in May 1896, at age 21, and with a salary reported to be $1,200. He served as the head football coach at the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public land-grant research university in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States. ...

for the

1896 Events January–March * January 2 – The Jameson Raid comes to an end, as Jameson surrenders to the Boers. * January 4 – Utah is admitted as the 45th U.S. state. * January 5 – An Austrian newspaper reports that ...

and 1897 Golden Gophers seasons, leading the team to a 12–6 overall record including 1–5 in

Big Ten Conference The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...

play. On October 31, 1896, Jerrems also played at the fullback position for the Ex-Collegians team that played against his Minnesota squad. He was the only Minnesota football coach in the 1890s to coach for more than one season.

Later years

In 1898, Jerrems served as a football coach at

Christian Brothers College High School Christian Brothers College High School (CBC High School) is a Lasallian Catholic college preparatory school for young men in Town and Country, Missouri, a suburb of St. Louis. It is located in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Saint Louis and ...

in St. Louis. In 1900, he married Mary Emlen Bell. They had three children: Marabel, born in 1901, Alexander Nicoll, Jr., born in 1903, and Hellen Virginia, born in 1905. All three children were raised in Chicago. He worked for a time with his family's "Nicoll The Tailor" business in Chicago.Draft registration card for Alexander Nicoll Jerrems, born August 3, 1874. Ancestry.com. U.S., World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918 atabase on-line He was secretary and director of the business in 1912.

Head coaching record

College

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Jerrems, Alexander 1874 births 1948 deaths 19th-century players of American football American football fullbacks American football halfbacks Minnesota Golden Gophers football coaches Yale Bulldogs baseball players Yale Bulldogs football players High school football coaches in Missouri Sportspeople from Chicago Sportspeople from Sydney The Hill School alumni Players of American football from Chicago