Frederick Scheetz Jones (April 7, 1862 – January 14, 1944) was an American university professor, dean, and college football coach. He was the first physics teacher 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. ...

and the school's second football coach, known as the "father of Minnesota football". Following his time as coach, Jones continued his involvement in athletics. He helped secure land and funding for

Northrop Field Northrop Field was the on-campus stadium of the Minnesota Golden Gophers football team from 1899 to 1923. The original field had seating of around 3,000 and was named for University President Cyrus Northrop. After the 1902 season, the playing f ...

, the program's first true home field. He also signed Henry L. Williams to be the new head football coach at Minnesota in 1900. Jones was born in

Palmyra, Missouri Palmyra is a city in and the county seat of Marion County, Missouri, United States. The population was 3,595 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Hannibal Micropolitan Statistical Area. History Palmyra was platted in 1819, and named after P ...

and attended

Shattuck-Saint Mary's Shattuck-St. Mary's (also known as Shattuck-St. Mary's School, Shattuck, or simply SSM) is a coeducational Episcopal-affiliated boarding school in Faribault, Minnesota, United States. Established in 1858 as an Episcopal mission school and se ...

Faribault, Minnesota Faribault ( ) is a city in, and the county seat of, Rice County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 23,352 at the 2010 census. Faribault is approximately south of Minneapolis–Saint Paul. Interstate 35 and Minnesota State Highway ...

. After graduating from

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 ...

with the class of 1884, Jones taught history and elocution at Shattuck. He then taught physics at the University of Minnesota before spending two years in Europe, studying at the

University of Berlin Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin (german: Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, abbreviated HU Berlin) is a German public research university in the central borough of Mitte in Berlin. It was established by Frederick William III on the initiative ...

and ETH Zurich. He returned to the University of Minnesota in 1889 as professor of physics and electricity. From 1902 to 1909, he was the dean of the School of Engineering at Minnesota. Jones received a

Legum Doctor Legum Doctor (Latin: “teacher of the laws”) (LL.D.) or, in English, Doctor of Laws, is a doctorate-level academic degree in law or an honorary degree, depending on the jurisdiction. The double “L” in the abbreviation refers to the ear ...

degree from the

University of Kansas The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States, and several satellite campuses, research and educational centers, medical centers, and classes across the state of Kansas. T ...

in 1909. He was the dean of

Yale College Yale College is the undergraduate college of Yale University. Founded in 1701, it is the original school of the university. Although other Yale schools were founded as early as 1810, all of Yale was officially known as Yale College until 1887, ...

from 1909 until his retirement in 1927. Jones died on January 14, 1944, as his home in

Hamden, Connecticut Hamden is a town in New Haven County, Connecticut, United States. The town's nickname is "The Land of the Sleeping Giant". The population was 61,169 at the 2020 census. History The peaceful tribe of Quinnipiacs were the first residents of the ...

Head coaching record

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Frederick S. 1862 births 1944 deaths Schoolteachers from Minnesota ETH Zurich alumni Humboldt University of Berlin alumni Minnesota Golden Gophers football coaches University of Kansas faculty University of Minnesota faculty Yale University administrators Yale University alumni People from Marion County, Missouri