Paul J. Schissler (November 11, 1893 – April 16, 1968) 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 ...

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

, and

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

coach. He coached football at the high school, college, and professional levels, and is credited with starting the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

's annual

Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (starting in 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's star players. The format has changed thro ...

Coaching career

Schissler first coaching position was as the head football coach at Hastings High School in

Hastings, Nebraska Hastings is a city and the county seat of Adams County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 25,152 at the 2020 census. It is known as the town where Kool-Aid was invented by Edwin Perkins in 1927, and celebrates that event with the Ko ...

. He had been a stand-out athlete at HHS, graduating in 1911. He coached there for two seasons, from 1913 to 1914.

College

Schissler's first collegiate position was as the 16th head football coach at

Doane College Doane University is a private university in Crete, Nebraska. It has additional campuses in Lincoln and Omaha, as well as online programs. History Doane College was founded on July 11, 1872, by Thomas Doane, chief civil engineer for the Burling ...

Crete, Nebraska Crete is a city in Saline County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 7,099 at the 2020 census. History The railroad was extended to the area in 1870, bringing settlers. In 1871, two rival towns merged to form a new town, which was name ...

. He only coached one season with Doane College during the 1915 season and had a record of 5–3. Schissler left Doane to become the head football coach at St. Viator College in

Bourbonnais, Illinois Bourbonnais ( ) is a village in Kankakee County, Illinois, United States. The population was 18,164 at the 2020 census. History The village is named for François Bourbonnais Sr., a fur trapper, hunter and agent of the American Fur Company, who ...

where he coached again for only one season in 1916. In 1919, Schissler went to the

University of Nebraska A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, ...

. There he was an assistant football coach, the head basketball coach, and the head baseball coach. Schissler was the head coach of the basketball team for two seasons, posting a 37–5 overall record. As the head baseball coach at Nebraska, Schissler posted a three-year record of 20–14. In 1921, Schissler was appointed as the athletic director at

Lombard College Lombard College was a Universalist college located in Galesburg, Illinois. History Lombard College was founded in 1853 by the Universalist Church as the Illinois Liberal Institute. In 1855, however, a major fire damaged much of the college, p ...

Galesburg, Illinois Galesburg is a city in Knox County, Illinois, United States. The city is northwest of Peoria. At the 2010 census, its population was 32,195. It is the county seat of Knox County and the principal city of the Galesburg Micropolitan Statistical ...

. Schissler was the head football coach for

Oregon State Oregon State University (OSU) is a public land-grant, research university in Corvallis, Oregon. OSU offers more than 200 undergraduate-degree programs along with a variety of graduate and doctoral degrees. It has the 10th largest engineering col ...

from 1924 to 1932. During his nine-year tenure, he compiled a 48–30–2 (.613) record.OREGON STATE FOOTBALL HISTORY DATABASE.
NationalChamps.net. Retrieved on December 2, 2007. He led the

Beavers Beavers are large, semiaquatic rodents in the genus ''Castor'' native to the temperate Northern Hemisphere. There are two extant species: the North American beaver (''Castor canadensis'') and the Eurasian beaver (''C. fiber''). Beavers a ...

to three seven-win seasons in 1925, 1926, and 1930. He was known for opening seasons strong, having had a 76–0 win against

Willamette University Willamette University is a private liberal arts college with locations in Salem and Portland, Oregon. Founded in 1842, it is the oldest college in the Western United States. Originally named the Oregon Institute, the school was an unaffiliated ...

, a 67–0 win against Multnomah Athletic Club, and a 51–0 win against Willamette.

NFL

Schissler first foray in to coaching in the NFL was with the

Chicago Cardinals The professional American football team now known as the Arizona Cardinals previously played in Chicago, Illinois, as the Chicago Cardinals from 1898 to 1959 before relocating to St. Louis, Missouri, for the 1960 through 1987 seasons. Roots ...

from 1933 to 1934. In his time as the Cardinals head coach he posted a record of 6–15–1. From 1935 to 1936, he was the head coach for the Brooklyn Dodgers NFL team in New York City, compiling a record of 8–14–2.Sprechman, Jordan, and Bill Shannon. 1998.
''This day in New York sports''
Champaign, Ill: Sports Pub. Inc.

Later career

Schissler later owned and coached the Hollywood Bears football team of the Pacific Coast Pro Football League.Ross, Charles Kenyatta. 1999
Outside the lines African Americans and the integration of the National Football League
'. New York: New York University Press.Gill, Bo
PCPFL: 1940-45.
Professional Football Researchers Association. Retrieved December 2, 2007. There he coached and played with Kenny Washington before Washington was allowed to play in the NFL. Schissler sold Washington's contract to the Los Angeles Rams in 1946. Schissler also coached the NFL's

and the

Hollywood Stars The Hollywood Stars were a Minor League Baseball team that played in the Pacific Coast League during the early- and mid-20th century. They were the arch-rivals of the other Los Angeles-based PCL team, the Los Angeles Angels. Hollywood Stars (192 ...

of the California Pro Football League, and during World War II served in the military where he also coached a football team. Later, Schissler helped start the

in 1951 while working for the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the U ...

''.

Death

Schissler died in

, on April 16, 1968, at the age of 74.

Head coaching record

College football

Notes

:''i.'' ^ Nebraska basketball media guide has name spelled 'Schlisser', however other documents do show Schissler as a coach at Nebraska during that time frame, including the Nebraska baseball media guide.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Schissler, Paul J. 1968 deaths 1893 births Brooklyn Dodgers (NFL) coaches Chicago Cardinals coaches Doane Tigers football coaches Doane Tigers men's basketball coaches High school football coaches in Nebraska Lombard Olive athletic directors Lombard Olive football coaches March Field Flyers football coaches Nebraska Cornhuskers baseball coaches Nebraska Cornhuskers football coaches Nebraska Cornhuskers men's basketball coaches Nebraska Wesleyan Prairie Wolves men's basketball coaches Oregon State Beavers football coaches St. Viator Irish football coaches Chicago Cardinals head coaches