James Banks McFadden (February 7, 1917 – June 4, 2005) was an

American football American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, field with goalposts at e ...

and

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

player and coach. McFadden is best known for his association with

Clemson University Clemson University () is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university near Clemson, South Carolina, United States. - The blue-shaded pattern denotes university property. This shows Clemson University is ''out ...

, where he spent 43 years as a player, coach, and administrator. He was elected to the

College Football Hall of Fame The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and interactive Tourist attraction, attraction devoted to college football, college American football. The National Football Foundation (NFF) founded the Hall in 1951 to immortalize the players ...

in 1959 as a player.

Early life

Born in

Fort Lawn, South Carolina Fort Lawn is a town in Chester County, South Carolina. The population was 895 at the 2010 census. History John A. G. Walker owned a plantation in Chester County. After Walker died in the 1870s, his widow wanted a town built, which would be name ...

, McFadden attended Great Falls High School in

Great Falls, South Carolina Great Falls is a town in Chester County, South Carolina, United States and is located fourteen miles southwest of Lancaster, South Carolina. The population was 1,951 at the 2020 census. History The Great Falls Depot, Great Falls Downtown Histo ...

, where he led the Red Devils to two state championships in football and one in

Playing career

McFadden is widely considered to be the greatest athlete in

history,

lettering Lettering or Lettering design is an act or result of artfully drawing letters, instead of writing them simply. Lettering is considered an art form, where each letter in a phrase or quote acts as an illustration. Each letter is created with attent ...

in three sports (football, basketball, and track). In 1939, McFadden was voted the

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American not-for-profit organization, not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association, and produces news reports that are dist ...

' "Athlete of the Year". McFadden was also a two-time

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

in basketball (1938 and 1939) and led the Tigers basketball team to a

Southern Conference The Southern Conference (SoCon) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I. Southern Conference College football, football teams c ...

championship in 1939. McFadden also played halfback and punter on the football team and was named Clemson's first Associated Press All-American in football in 1939, which saw the Tigers play and win their 1st bowl game (1940 Cotton Bowl Classic). Upon graduating, McFadden played football for the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

Brooklyn Dodgers The Brooklyn Dodgers were a Major League Baseball team founded in 1883 as the Brooklyn Grays. In 1884, it became a member of the American Association as the Brooklyn Atlantics before joining the National League in 1890. They remained in Brook ...

. He was the fourth overall pick in the 1940 NFL draft. In his first and only year as a professional, he played in 11 games. He had the longest rush in the NFL that year—75 yards. He was tied for second for most yards per attempt with a 4.8 yards per carry average. He was also fifth in the league for most rushing yards per game. Defensively he had two interceptions. Despite his success, McFadden preferred the small-town life and the family atmosphere of Clemson. He returned to the state of South Carolina to coach at his alma mater.

Military and coaching career

McFadden fought in

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

and upon returning to the United States returned to coaching. McFadden served as Clemson's head basketball coach from 1946 to 1956 in addition to stints as head track and assistant football coach. He retired from coaching in 1969 and took over the university's intramural department, which he directed for 15 years.

Legacy

On September 19, 1987, Clemson University retired his basketball No. 23 and football No. 66. In October 2008, the

O'Rourke–McFadden Trophy The O'Rourke–McFadden Trophy was created in 2008 by the Boston College Gridiron Club to commemorate the tradition at Clemson and Boston College while honoring the legacy of Charlie O'Rourke and Banks McFadden. O'Rourke and McFadden are m ...

was introduced as a reward to the winner of the annual football game between

Boston College Boston College (BC) is a private university, private Catholic Jesuits, Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1863 by the Society of Jesus, a Catholic Religious order (Catholic), religious order, t ...

and Clemson, in honor of the historic meeting between

Charlie O'Rourke Charles Christopher "Chuckin' Charlie" O'Rourke Sr. (May 10, 1917 – April 14, 2000) was an American football player and coach. He played college football as a quarterback at Boston College and professionally with Chicago Bears of the Nationa ...

and Banks McFadden in the 1940 Cotton Bowl Classic, Clemson's first bowl appearance.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:McFadden, Banks 1917 births 2005 deaths American football halfbacks American men's basketball players Brooklyn Dodgers (NFL) players Clemson Tigers football players Clemson Tigers men's basketball coaches Clemson Tigers men's basketball players Clemson Tigers men's track and field athletes Clemson Tigers track and field coaches All-American college men's basketball players College Football Hall of Fame inductees Basketball coaches from South Carolina American military personnel of World War II People from Chester County, South Carolina Coaches of American football from South Carolina Players of American football from South Carolina Basketball players from South Carolina Track and field athletes from South Carolina 20th-century American sportsmen