Claire Linton Cribbs (August 13, 1912 – September 14, 1985) was an American

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 high school coach. He was 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 ...

at the

University of Pittsburgh The University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) is a Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. The university is composed of seventeen undergraduate and graduate schools and colle ...

and won over 400 games as a high school coach in the state of

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

. Cribbs, a 6'0 (1.83 m) guard from Jeannette High School in

Jeannette, Pennsylvania Jeannette is a city in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 8,780 at the 2020 census. Jeannette was founded in 1888 and named after Jeannette Hartupee McKee, the wife of one of the city's founders, H. Sellers McKe ...

, chose to attend the nearby

and play for

Hall of Fame A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or Wiktionary:fame, fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actu ...

coach

Doc Carlson Henry Clifford "Doc" Carlson (July 4, 1894 – November 1, 1964) was an American basketball coach and football player. He is a Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame inductee as the men's college basketball coach of his alma mater, the University of ...

. Cribbs led the Panthers to a 53–15 record in his three varsity seasons, winning the Eastern Intercollegiate Conference in 1933 and 1934 and tying for the championship with

West Virginia West Virginia is a mountainous U.S. state, state in the Southern United States, Southern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States.The United States Census Bureau, Census Bureau and the Association of American ...

in 1935. Cribbs was the star of these teams, garnering all-conference honors all three years and consensus All-American honors as a junior and senior. After graduating from Pitt, Cribbs briefly played baseball as a pitcher for the International League's

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles (also known as the O's) are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East Division. As one of the America ...

. He then became a teacher and coach at Warren Consolidated High School in

Tiltonsville, Ohio Tiltonsville is a village in Jefferson County, Ohio, United States, along the Ohio River. The population was 1,259 at the 2020 census. It is a part of the Weirton–Steubenville metropolitan area. History Tiltonsville was laid out in 1806 by Joh ...

, where he coached future

baseball Hall of Fame The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a history museum and hall of fame in Cooperstown, New York, operated by a private foundation. It serves as the central collection and gathering space for the history of baseball in the United S ...

Bill Mazeroski William Stanley Mazeroski (born September 5, 1936), nicknamed "Maz" and "the Glove", is an American former second baseman in Major League Baseball (MLB) who played his entire career for the Pittsburgh Pirates from 1956 to 1972. A seven-time All- ...

. After a tour in the

U. S. Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest displacement, at 4.5 million tons in 2021. It has the world's largest aircraft ...

during

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 ...

, he became a history teacher and boys' basketball coach at Bellaire High School in

Bellaire, Ohio Bellaire is a village (United States)#Ohio, village in Belmont County, Ohio, United States, along the Ohio River. The population was 3,870 at the 2020 census, having peaked in 1920. It is part of the Wheeling metropolitan area. The Bellaire Brid ...

, in 1949. He remained coach there until his retirement in 1977, winning over 400 games and at one point leading the Big Reds to victory for 54 consecutive home games.p. 94 Claire Cribbs is enshrined in the University of Pittsburgh Hall of Fame, as well as the Ohio basketball coaches, Dapper Dan, and Westmoreland County (PA) halls of fame. He died on September 14, 1985, in Bellaire.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cribbs, Claire 1912 births 1985 deaths All-American college men's basketball players American men's basketball players Baltimore Orioles (International League) players Basketball players from Pennsylvania Guards (basketball) High school basketball coaches in Ohio Pittsburgh Panthers men's basketball players Sportspeople from Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania United States Navy personnel of World War II 20th-century American sportsmen