Charles William Bachman Jr. (December 1, 1892 – December 14, 1985) was an American

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

player and coach. Bachman was an

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

native and an

alumnus Alumni (: alumnus () or alumna ()) are former students or graduates of a school, college, or university. The feminine plural alumnae is sometimes used for groups of women, and alums (: alum) or alumns (: alumn) as gender-neutral alternatives. Th ...

of the

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac (known simply as Notre Dame; ; ND) is a Private university, private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, United States. Founded in 1842 by members of the Congregation of Holy Cross, a Cathol ...

, where he played football. He served as the head football coach of

Northwestern University Northwestern University (NU) is a Private university, private research university in Evanston, Illinois, United States. Established in 1851 to serve the historic Northwest Territory, it is the oldest University charter, chartered university in ...

, Kansas State Agricultural College, the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preem ...

, Michigan State College, and Hillsdale College Bachman was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame as a coach in 1978.

Early life and education

Bachman was born in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, in 1892. He received his high school education at Englewood High School in

, where he was standout athlete in

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

and

track and field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a ru ...

.Jack D. Seibold, ''The Spartan Sports Encyclopedia''
Charles W. Bachman (1933–1946)
Sports Publishing, L.L.C., pp. 941–942 (2003). Retrieved March 16, 2010. Bachman attended the

from 1914 to 1916, and played for the

Notre Dame Fighting Irish football The Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team is a college football team representing the University of Notre Dame in Notre Dame, Indiana (CDP), Notre Dame, Indiana, north of the city of South Bend, Indiana. The team plays its home games at the ca ...

team alongside Knute Rockne. He was named an

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 ...

at guard in 1916, making Walter Camp's second team. Bachman briefly held the world record in the

discus throw The discus throw (), also known as disc throw, is a track and field sport in which the participant athlete throws an oblate spheroid weight (object), weight called a discus in an attempt to mark a further distance than other competitors. It is a ...

during the spring of 1917, and spent the 1917 fall season helping to coach the football team at

DePauw University DePauw University ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Greencastle, Indiana, United States. It was founded in 1837 as Indiana Asbury College and changed its name to DePauw University in 1884. The college has a Methodist heritage and was ...

. In 1918, Bachman returned to the field, playing center for the legendary U.S. Navy team at Great Lakes Naval Station. The Great Lakes team posted a 7–0–2 record; it beat

Navy A navy, naval force, military maritime fleet, war navy, or maritime force is the military branch, branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral z ...

and Purdue, tied Bachman's former Notre Dame team, and defeated Mare Island Marine Base in the Rose Bowl. His Great Lakes teammates included Paddy Driscoll and George Halas.

Coaching career

In 1919, at age 26, Bachman began his head coaching career at

Evanston, Illinois Evanston is a city in Cook County, Illinois, United States, situated on the North Shore (Chicago), North Shore along Lake Michigan. A suburb of Chicago, Evanston is north of Chicago Loop, downtown Chicago, bordered by Chicago to the south, Skok ...

. Bachman brought a number of former players returning from

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

military service to Northwestern, but his team posted a disappointing 2–5 record.College Football Data Warehouse, All-Time Coaching Records
Charles W. Bachman Records by Year
. Retrieved March 1, 2010. He moved on to Kansas State Agricultural College in

Manhattan, Kansas Manhattan is a city in and the county seat of Riley County, Kansas, United States, although the city extends into Pottawatomie County, Kansas, Pottawatomie County. It is located in northeastern Kansas at the junction of the Kansas River and Big ...

following this season, and the losing record proved to be an aberration; from 1920 to 1927, Bachman posted a record of 33–23–9 at Kansas State. In 1924, Bachman's K-State team beat the University of Kansas for the first time in eighteen years. Bachman coached Kansas State's first All-American, and under his leadership the school also permanently returned to its former nickname of Wildcats and began using a live bobcat as a mascot. Bachman accepted the head coaching position at the

in Gainesville, Florida in 1928, where he posted an 8–1 record his first season, the best in the Florida Gators' history up to that time.
2012 Florida Football Media Guide
'', University Athletic Association, Gainesville, Florida, pp. 108, 115, 116 (2012). Retrieved September 16, 2012. The 1928 Gators' sole loss came in their final game of the season, a 13–12 upset by Robert Neyland's 8–0–1 Tennessee Volunteers in Knoxville. While at Florida, Bachman coached the Gators' first first-team All-American, Hall of Fame end

Dale Van Sickel Dale Harris Van Sickel (November 29, 1907 – January 25, 1977) was an American college football, basketball and baseball player during the 1920s, who later became a Hollywood motion picture actor and stunt performer for over forty years. Van ...

, in 1928 and 1929. He also led the 1929 Gators in their first major intersectional match-up, a "neutral site" game in

Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

against John McEwan's 7–2

Oregon Ducks football The Oregon Ducks football program is a college football team for the University of Oregon, located in the U.S. state of Oregon. The team competes at the NCAA Division I level in the Football Bowl Subdivision, FBS and is a member of the Big Ten Co ...

team, with the Gators coming away with the 20–6 victory. Bachman's first two seasons with the Gators were his most successful, but he continued to lead the Gators Eleven for five seasons, posting an overall record of 27–18–3. Dashwood Hicks, a lineman for the Gators in 1928, said "I've never seen a man eat and sleep football like Bachman. He couldn't sit down and talk without drawing plays or something." Bachman left Florida to become the head football coach of Michigan State College in

East Lansing, Michigan East Lansing is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. Most of the city lies within Ingham County, although a small portion extends north into Clinton County. At the 2020 census, the city had a population of 47,741. The city is located immediate ...

, coaching from 1933 to 1942 and from 1944 to 1946. Similar to the situation he inherited at Kansas State, Michigan State had not beaten the

University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...

for eighteen years (1916–1933), but under Bachman, Michigan State defeated Michigan four consecutive seasons (1934–1937). Bachman's overall record at Michigan State was 70–34–10. His Spartan teams were also notable because he outfitted them in gold and black uniforms instead of the official school colors of green and white. In 1953, Bachman was named the head football coach at Hillsdale College in Hillsdale, Michigan. He held that position for one season, posting a record of 5–3–2.

Honors and death

Bachman was inducted into the University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame as an "honorary letter winner" in 1971,Associated Press,
O'Connell Lauded for Actions
" ''Sarasota Journal'' (May 3, 1971). Retrieved July 24, 2011. and later, the College Football Hall of Fame in 1978. He died in Port Charlotte, Florida in 1985; he was 93 years old.Charles W. Bachman
" ''The New York Times'' (December 16, 1985). Retrieved March 12, 2010. Bachman was survived by his wife Grace and their three sons, including noted software engineer Charles W. Bachman.

Head coaching record

References

Bibliography

*
2012 Florida Football Media Guide
', University Athletic Association, Gainesville, Florida (2012). * Carlson, Norm, ''University of Florida Football Vault: The History of the Florida Gators'', Whitman Publishing, LLC, Atlanta, Georgia (2007). . * Golenbock, Peter, ''Go Gators! An Oral History of Florida's Pursuit of Gridiron Glory'', Legends Publishing, LLC, St. Petersburg, Florida (2002). . * McCarthy, Kevin M.
''Fightin' Gators: A History of University of Florida Football''
Arcadia Publishing, Mount Pleasant, South Carolina (2000). . * McEwen, Tom, ''The Gators: A Story of Florida Football'', The Strode Publishers, Huntsville, Alabama (1974). . * Nash, Noel, ed., ''The Gainesville Sun Presents The Greatest Moments in Florida Gators Football'', Sports Publishing, Inc., Champaign, Illinois (1998). . * Proctor, Samuel, & Wright Langley, ''Gator History: A Pictorial History of the University of Florida'', South Star Publishing Company, Gainesville, Florida (1986). . * Seibold, Jack D., ''The Spartan Sports Encyclopedia''
Charles W. Bachman (1933–1946)
Sports Publishing, L.L.C. (2003). .

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bachman, Charlie 1892 births 1985 deaths American football centers American football guards American male discus throwers Camp Grant Warriors football coaches DePauw Tigers football coaches Florida Gators football coaches Great Lakes Navy Bluejackets football players Hillsdale Chargers football coaches Kansas State Wildcats football coaches Michigan State Spartans football coaches Northwestern Wildcats athletic directors Northwestern Wildcats football coaches Notre Dame Fighting Irish football players All-American college football players College Football Hall of Fame inductees Englewood Technical Prep Academy alumni Coaches of American football from Illinois Players of American football from Chicago Track and field athletes from Illinois